Chapter 58: Sincerity Requires Reciprocity
Night had fallen completely. Streetlights throughout the village flickered to life one by one, illuminating all of Konoha.
The newly constructed movie theater stood out dramatically among Konoha's traditional architecture. Massive neon signs flashed in brilliant colors. A crowd had already gathered at the entrance, waiting to get inside.
"Wow... it's huge!"
Uzumaki Naruto craned his neck, staring up at the theater, eyes full of wonder.
"I've been excited ever since that shop owner described it! Let's hurry inside!" Sakura clenched her fists, voice carrying excitement.
Besides Hyuga Kiyonari, the other five were experiencing movies for the first time. They looked around curiously, gazes brimming with novelty.
Naruto gawked in every direction, nearly walking into a pillar. Sasuke maintained surface composure, but Kiyonari noticed his eyes continuously scanning their surroundings. Ino and Sakura excitedly discussed the movie posters lining the walls.
Ino turned from the poster wall. "Kiyonari, where are our seats?"
Kiyonari distributed the four tickets, letting them find their seats by number, while he pulled Hinata along ahead of the group.
Six tickets, purchased by two different people, so the seats weren't completely together.
Kiyonari quickly located their spots with Hinata—middle section toward the back, excellent view. After sitting down, Kiyonari reached into his pocket intending to carefully store the two wrinkled tickets. His fingers brushed against a small box.
He froze, then turned his head and lowered his voice. "Hinata."
"What is it, Kiyonari?"
At that exact moment, the theater lights suddenly cut out completely. The entire space plunged into darkness.
"Whoa!" Naruto, completely unprepared, yelped. "Why'd it get so dark?!"
"Shh!" Ino, sitting beside him, immediately tugged his arm. "The movie's starting. Didn't the projectionist say to stay quiet?"
"Oh, right."
In the darkness, Kiyonari's hand fumbled about and accidentally touched something soft.
That hand flinched slightly at first, then—as if finding an anchor—gripped his tightly. The faint trembling and warmth of her palm transmitted clearly.
Using this connection as a guide, Kiyonari pressed the small box into Hinata's hand.
"This is for you."
"Wh-what is it?"
"Open it and see."
The moment he finished speaking, the screen ahead blazed to life. Images and music surged forth simultaneously, pulling the theater from darkness. Light illuminated expressions on every row of faces—including Hinata's and the small box in her hands.
In that singular light source, she lowered her head and carefully opened the lid.
A delicate hair pin lay quietly on the cushioned interior. The pin's body was warm, dark-colored wood. The decorative head was an intricate silver flower with a tiny moonstone embedded at its center.
As the constantly shifting movie light passed over that small moonstone, it refracted dreamlike, glittering radiance.
Hinata's eyes widened instantly. She stared at the hair pin in stunned silence, momentarily losing the ability to speak. She could feel her heart pounding violently. Her cheeks burned hot again.
"Remember that day?"
Kiyonari's voice reached her ear. Though quiet, it came through more clearly than the movie dialogue.
"You were holding this hair pin in the accessories shop, but when Ishida suddenly came to talk to me, you worried something was wrong and rushed out."
"I passed that shop today. Saw it still in the window display, so I picked it up."
Hinata stared down at the box in her hands, fingertips repeatedly tracing the wood grain on the lid. Her eyes reddened slightly. The screen's shifting light flickered in her pure white pupils, unable to hide the glistening moisture.
"Kiyonari..."
Her voice nearly drowned in the movie's soundtrack. Fortunately, sitting close enough, Kiyonari heard.
He tilted his ear slightly. "Mm?"
"Why are you so good to me..." Hinata gathered her courage and finally spoke.
Kiyonari's head whipped around, pupils widening sharply. "Huh? What are you talking about?"
Though Hinata kept her head lowered, her voice carried slightly more clarity than before. "Why are you so good to me? When I... I've never given you any gifts. I'm always the one needing you..."
By the end, her voice had become almost inaudible.
"Isn't it because you were worried about me that you didn't get to buy it? This thing wasn't even expensive." Kiyonari scratched the back of his head, tone casual and matter-of-fact.
"But earlier during dinner, you kept secretly adding meat to my bowl. And you distracted everyone's attention for me..."
"Because this morning you came looking for me, but I brushed you off. Then when I came back and found you'd waited there for hours like an idiot, I figured I should make it up to you."
Hearing this, tears Hinata had been holding back finally spilled over, streaming down her cheeks.
"That's not... you..."
Kiyonari didn't know what to say for a moment. Confusion floated through his eyes.
Is she crying because her fantasy shattered?
Though... maybe that's for the best.
Kiyonari could roughly guess Hinata's feelings for him. But he'd never considered developing things in that direction. Too young—it would give him the feeling of a creepy adult deceiving a little girl. Besides, he wasn't that type.
Furthermore, he thought his behavioral logic was perfectly clear.
You're good to me, I feel it, so I want to be good to you. He maintained this "give and take" attitude with everyone. Hinata was simply more special than others, their relationship closer, so he responded more thoughtfully. That's all.
With things suddenly developing this way, Kiyonari lost interest in watching the movie. After a while, Hinata's emotions stabilized.
She grabbed Kiyonari's wrist, speaking slowly. "That's exactly why it's you, Kiyonari... Not everyone thinks to reciprocate after receiving kindness. And I... can't accept it without feeling guilty."
"You..."
Kiyonari fell silent.
After a long pause, he finally spoke quietly. "Hinata, I'm not special. I just... try to treat people the way they treat me. That's all."
"But that itself is special." Hinata's grip tightened slightly. "Most people don't even notice kindness, let alone think to return it."
The movie played on, but neither of them was really watching anymore.
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