Just like he'd been jabbed in the butt with a needle, the usually slow Shikamaru actually panicked—but before he could open his mouth, Choji, eager to be helpful, beat him to it.
"Naruto looks really pretty in girls' clothes~ And Sasuke's costume is super cool. Are you guys filming something?"
No doubt about it—the moment those words left Choji's mouth, the entire atmosphere dropped several degrees.
Shikamaru, who'd just reached out to silence his friend, turned pale. It was in this moment that he fully understood the true meaning of "pig teammate." But it was too late.
"Well then…"
Cracking her knuckles, Hinata's voice turned eerily cold. "Time to silence the witnesses."
Naruto and Sasuke, both fuming and red-faced, turned around. Their shadows stretched long across the corridor, looming over the pair of stunned boys. The sudden chill in the air made Choji's teeth chatter.
Then, like a spark igniting a powder keg, all hell broke loose.
"It's too late to run now!"
Naruto, ever the physical brute, lunged straight at them like a wild beast.
"You've seen what you shouldn't—so don't blame us!"
Gritting his teeth and crimson with shame, Sasuke whipped out two shining shuriken. They slammed into the wall behind Shikamaru and Choji with a thud, wires stretching taut between them like a trap, cutting off their escape.
"Wait, I didn't care what you guys were doing anyway—hey!"
Shikamaru tried to wave it off, but Naruto locked him in a chokehold from behind and tackled him to the ground.
"Too late! You can make your excuses after we silence you!"
Hinata shouted as she swept in from the side, a flawless leg sweep taking Choji down in one clean move. His face smacked the floor with a thump, muffled by his groan of complaint.
"Ugh, that hurts, Hinata… My chips spilled…"
Soon enough, Shikamaru and Choji were tied to a column in the hallway. Huffing nearby with a rice ball in hand, Naruto mumbled through a mouthful, "So… what now?"
"I told you. We silence them."
Hinata chomped into her own rice ball—clearly made by Shikamaru's mom. The flavor was simple, but way better than store-bought.
"Cough, cough… You're not really gonna, um, you know, kill them, right?"
Ino, still in her transformation, looked nervous. She was childhood friends with both boys and didn't want them getting hurt. But this situation… involved Sasuke's dignity.
"Exactly! Like we'd ever go around blabbing about this kind of thing."
Shikamaru was already relaxing, realizing from the loose bindings that Hinata probably wasn't serious.
Of course not. There was no way Hinata would actually kill them. Aside from being future members of the Konoha Twelve, Shikamaru and Choji were heirs to the Nara and Akimichi clans. Even as a Hyuga heiress, she'd never get away with it.
"You idiots. 'Silencing' doesn't mean killing—it just means making sure you can't talk. Naruto, I think you're already familiar with this method~ Our friendship started the same way, didn't it?"
Hinata grinned wickedly, and Naruto instantly shuddered, his face turning pale.
"Y-Yeah… I remember…"
"Shikamaru, Choji. We're classmates. I know you're not the chatty types. But…"
Hinata stepped in front of them, wagging her finger.
"Rules are rules. You've seen our secret, so now you only have one option—become a part of it."
"Tch… what a drag… I was hoping to have a chill afternoon, not get tied to a pillar."
Shikamaru sulked. Hinata shook her head in mock disappointment.
"Sigh~ So much laziness won't do. Choji, talk some sense into him. If you two behave, I'll treat you to barbecue tonight. How about that?"
"OOOOHHH!! Barbecue?!"
Choji's eyes lit up like fire. With a sudden surge of strength, he flexed and cracked the column behind him. Shikamaru, tied alongside him, was nearly strangled by the tightening ropes.
"GACK—Fine! Fine!! Let go, you idiot!"
"AHAHAHA~ Now that's more like it!"
Laughing, Hinata quickly formed hand seals—not for herself this time, but for them.
In ninjutsu, there's such a thing as proxy sealing. It's useful when the user can't move their arms. With someone else performing the hand seals and the user supplying the chakra, a technique like the Transformation Jutsu can still be cast.
This time, Hinata performed the seals while touching Shikamaru's forehead.
"Transformation Jutsu!"
Poof!
A burst of smoke later, and Shikamaru's form had changed into that of a tall, sultry oiran—a stunning courtesan.
A black silk cheongsam with high slits revealed long, smooth legs. Her elegant hairstyle was adorned with ebony pins. The look was regal and seductive, oozing mature charm. But those signature half-lidded, dead-fish eyes? Still unmistakably Shikamaru's.
Click.
Hinata snapped a photo with her camera and smiled. Perfect. Shikamaru's lazy aura was ideal for this type of character. She'd needed a courtesan role—who knew the perfect candidate would just drop into her lap?
"Listen closely, Shikamaru. If you dare tell anyone about this, I'll deliver this photo to your mom. Think she'd be proud?"
Grinning like a demon, she showed him the picture.
Shikamaru paled. "...She'd bury me alive without blinking. No doubt in my mind…"
"Too vicious, Hinata…"
"Hey Choji, if you keep quiet, I'll treat you to delicious snacks more often. Sound good?"
"YES! Yes! I swear I won't say a word! Just give me food and I'm good!"
"Wait, wait, wait—how come I get blackmail material and he gets free food?!"
Even Shikamaru couldn't help protesting.
"Different assets," Hinata shrugged, shaking the photo.
"Exactly… Naruto and Shikamaru were okay, but imagining Choji as a transformed beauty? Ugh. My brain might break."
Sakura clutched her chest, trying to erase the horrifying mental image of a pudgy Choji turning into a hot babe—or vice versa.
"Excellent~ Now that we're all bound by secrets, we're comrades."
Hinata clapped her hands with a sly smile.
"With plenty of manpower and new cast members, it's time to start thinking about where our story goes next."
---
"Here. This is the latest photobook."
Hinata placed a stack of glossy prints on the counter. Behind it, the squirrelly shop owner lit up like a fireworks display.
"Ohoho~ As expected of Lady Hinata! I must say, the last volume of Fox's Tale broke all our previous sales records! If you weren't the heiress of a noble clan, I would've come knocking myself! There were lines of fanboys waiting for it!"
Leafing through the new prints with excitement, the shopkeeper quickly pushed a metal cash box her way.
"Just like we agreed—your cut this time is 1.2 million ryo! Triple the usual amount!"