After a brief pause, Diarmuid didn't ask Hiashi anything. He turned directly to Teuchi and said, "Another bowl of ramen, and bring out your best skills, this is a big shot from the Hyuga Clan, after all, Hahaha."
Teuchi chuckled. "I still recognize Hiashi-sama."
Hiashi gave a somewhat bashful smile, appearing far less stern than his formal attire suggested. He spoke up, "Extra chashu, please."
"Coming right up!" Teuchi said cheerfully.
Hiashi sat down next to Diarmuid. Diarmuid looked toward Naruto and acted surprised. "I didn't realize this little guy was your junior. You two seem to have a good relationship?"
Since Hiashi had just invited Naruto to "come over and play," it was perfectly natural for Diarmuid to make that assumption. In reality, the bond between Hiashi and Naruto was indeed quite solid.
As it happened, the eldest daughter of the Hyuga family, Hiashi's daughter, was roughly the same age as Naruto. She was incredibly shy, perhaps inheriting that trait to some extent from her father. Hiashi, however, rarely showed his bashful side to others; most of the time, he maintained his dignity as the Head of the Hyuga Clan with a stern and serious demeanor.
Yet, there was no doubt that this shyness didn't equate to weakness. Both Hiashi and Hinata were, at their core, very strong-willed. "A fist of iron in a glove of velvet" would be an apt description. Perhaps this mirrored the philosophy of the Gentle Fist passed down through the Hyuga generations, subtly influencing their temperaments.
Because Hinata was young, shy, and extremely timid around strangers, she was often "picked on" at school. It wasn't exactly school bullying, no matter how "weak" Hinata seemed, she was still the eldest daughter of the Main House of the Hyuga Clan, the top noble family in Konoha. No brat would have the courage for true bullying, and even if they did, their parents would stop them. Furthermore, the Academy teachers would certainly protect her.
However, there were always some rebellious kids, not truly malicious, just immature, who liked to show off their "strength" by pestering someone of high status like Hinata. Such is the mind of a child. Perhaps once they left school and entered the society of the village, they would truly understand the majesty of a Great Clan. If Hinata were petty, she could make their lives miserable with a single word once she grew up, leaving them to rot as Genin forever.
The "bullying" was subtle, a vague sort of isolation. Combined with her naturally reclusive nature, Hinata didn't have much of a social circle at school. Then, during one of these "minor conflicts," the sunny and bright Naruto happened to witness Hinata being isolated. He didn't care about her status, nor were there any ulterior motives.
Driven purely by a sense of justice, Naruto stepped in, helped Hinata out, and became her friend. Naruto might not have realized it, but what seemed like a trivial matter to him was a form of salvation for the girl. A faint bud of emotion took root in Hinata's heart. It wasn't "love" or "romance" yet, just the friendship of two small children, but who could say what the future held?
When Hiashi learned of this, he began to pay more attention to his daughter's struggles at school. He didn't make trouble for anyone or lecture the school; that didn't fit his status or his philosophy. He felt it was good for Hinata to experience such things. More importantly, he was pleased she had met someone like Naruto who was brave enough to stand up for her.
Combined with Naruto's unique status, even though the Uzumaki Clan had declined, his lineage was undeniably noble... Yes, while Hiashi wasn't arrogant, a member of a Great Clan naturally valued noble blood. This was especially true for families with a Kekkei Genkai; the Hyuga were always thus.
As Diarmuid had analyzed before, Naruto's identity was too special and complex. Because of this, many people with foresight could see that his future achievements would be limitless. Naruto was the orphan of the Fourth Hokage and the young master of the Uzumaki Clan. Jiraiya would often return to the village to check on him, and he had deep ties to the Third Hokage. Even though he hadn't graduated yet, the "scent" of the Hokage lineage on him was already overwhelming.
In the future, as long as he chose a teacher from the Hokage's faction and showed even a bit of promise, his path toward the "Hokage" seat would be illuminated. Those with a long-term vision could see that Naruto possessed every factor required to lead the village. Hiashi, naturally, had such vision. Thus, he was very supportive of the friendship between Naruto and his daughter.
"Of course it's good. This little guy is my daughter's best friend. Speaking of which, you even held him when he was a baby," Hiashi said. As one of the direct participants in the Nine-Tails' disaster, it wasn't strange for someone of Hiashi's status to know these things.
"He is Minato's son," Hiashi added.
Many referred to the late Namikaze Minato as "Lord Fourth," but only a few close to him could call him "Minato" in a semi-public setting. Hiashi was undoubtedly one of them.
"Is that so? So it's him." A look of realization dawned in Diarmuid's eyes. Naruto noticed that the handsome man's gaze toward him became much softer, almost like he was looking at a dear friend's child.
Combined with what he had just heard, Naruto was surprised. This person knew my parents? He seems like a big shot, and he was close to them?
"Naruto... Naruto..." Diarmuid looked at Naruto and murmured the name with a smile. "Your name carries your father's expectations for you. He hoped you would become a great shinobi with an indomitable will and the perseverance to remain strong in the face of adversity. He hoped you would be a man who speaks plainly and always keeps his word. Do you understand?"
Naruto was truly shocked now. "How do you know that?"
"I know because your name comes from a book called The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Shinobi. The protagonist is also named Naruto. That book was written by your father's Sensei, and my good friend, Jiraiya. As for Jiraiya... you should know who he is, right?" Diarmuid said with a laugh.
This string of revelations made it clear that Diarmuid was very close to Naruto's inner circle. Consequently, Naruto looked at Diarmuid with a natural sense of affinity. His first impression of the man was now even better. There was a subconscious "he's one of us" feeling taking hold.
As everyone knows, first impressions are often the deepest and hardest to change. When you feel someone is close to you, your gaze naturally overlooks flaws. If they do something bad, you might even instinctively find excuses for them. Conversely, if you dislike someone, even their breathing feels like an insult.
"Of course I know him! The Pervy Sage..." Naruto blurted out.
Diarmuid couldn't help but roll his eyes. Naruto was only five or six years old and already calling Jiraiya "Pervy Sage." Clearly, this wasn't Naruto's fault. Who knew what perverted things Jiraiya had done to be caught by the boy?
"Yes, that's him. That pervert," Diarmuid said bluntly.
This surprised Naruto again. He called him "Pervy Sage," but he wasn't stupid. Jiraiya didn't come to the village often, and Naruto only saw him occasionally. But whenever Jiraiya did return, all the shinobi who saw him addressed him as "Jiraiya-sama." Yet this man called him a "pervert"... and Hiashi didn't think it was strange at all. This proved the man was likely even more impressive than the Pervy Sage, holding higher status or strength. Naruto's mind was quite sharp at times.
As he was thinking, Hiashi spoke, "Naruto, your noodles are getting cold."
Naruto snapped out of it, gave a startled yelp, and hurriedly finished his miso-flavored ramen. At that moment, Diarmuid and Hiashi's ramen was served. Though curious about Diarmuid, Naruto was still a child and couldn't sit still for long. He politely said goodbye to them both and, full of curiosity, headed home. He wanted to ask his mom who that mysterious, handsome guy was.
It wasn't a peak dining hour, so the shop was quiet. After serving the noodles, Teuchi showed great tact. Seeing no other customers, he called out, "Call me if you need anything else," and wandered over to sit with a fruit vendor across the street to smoke and chat.
The ramen stall became more private. Hiashi took a bite and sighed. "The taste is truly excellent."
"Of course. Look at me, the first thing I do when I come to Konoha is get ramen. Isn't that enough proof of its quality?" Diarmuid said while slurping his noodles.
"True. For a figure of your stature to favor this place certainly proves its worth," Hiashi said naturally. He paused before asking, "This time... you didn't sneak in again, did you?"
"What's that supposed to mean? You make me sound like some sort of criminal..." Diarmuid complained, clearly dissatisfied.
Hiashi looked at him with surprise, his tone a bit incredulous. "Please, have some self-awareness. It's not that you're like a criminal, you are one!"
Diarmuid felt a bit awkward. He quickly changed the subject, annoyed. "I entered quite openly. Though I've noticed Konoha's security isn't as tight as it was a few years ago. No one even asked me to register."
"But make no mistake, Lord Third definitely knows you've entered Konoha. It may seem less meticulous, but the eyes of the Anbu watch the entire village. A person with your record cannot go unnoticed," Hiashi said firmly.
"Fair point," Diarmuid nodded, not disagreeing.
Hiashi ate a few more bites before asking, "So, you didn't come to Konoha just to find me for ramen, did you? Is there something on your mind?"
"Yes. I heard envoys from Kumogakure have arrived in Konoha?" Diarmuid asked.
Hiashi looked at him in shock. "That is classified information... How do you know? Don't tell me you're planning to move against them? Please, not in Konoha..."
Diarmuid replied irritably, "I'm here to help you, you idiot."
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