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Chapter 88 The Legend of Koji the Mutt
🕑 Added 2025-07-22 12:34:37 +0000 UTCKoji quickly spoke with a nurse, and she informed him about his current situation. “You have quite a few broken bones, which means you shouldn’t move around.”
“Yeah, no kidding, I can feel it.” He tried his best to jest, but she clearly wasn’t in the mood for it, causing his smile to wither.
“Normally, we would be able to fix you right back up… but with the war going on, we are low on personnel, so I’m afraid you will just have to heal a bit slower.” She explained.
“How long will I be staying here?”
She flashed him an apologetic smile. “I’m afraid it’s likely going to take a week, maybe more.”
“But don’t worry,” she continued. “You are a hero of Konoha who got hurt in the line of duty, we will do everything we can to ensure that you will fully recover.” She said with a smile.
“You hear that? Line of duty? I wonder if she would still look at you with just a gentle smile if she knew the real reason you got beat up is because you decided to piss on your captain!” Kuro barked and laughed, rolling around on the floor as he mocked Koji.
The nurse gave the Ninken a strange look. She didn’t understand a word of what he was saying, only that he suddenly started barking and rolling. “Is he alright? Should I get someone?” She asked, concerned.
Koji felt his face flush red with heat and embarrassment. “He is fine, Kuro, remember where we are, don’t make so much noise.” He quickly told his partner, who thankfully did stop making such a racket.
“I see,” The nurse muttered suspiciously. “Anyway, if there is anything I can do, let me know. While we can’t fix you up due to lacking medic-nin, we still have enough support staff to ensure you have a comfortable stay.”
“Some food, it's been forever since I had real food from home, been out in the field for months now,” Koji said, feeling hungry and not wanting to eat more bad-tasting ration bars.
This clearly put the nurse in a difficult position, as she looked troubled right away. “Hmm, I can get you something to eat, but… I will have to ask someone about what you are allowed to eat. We normally ensure all our patients eat healthy.” She explained.
The nurse stepped out, leaving Koji alone in the quiet hospital room with nothing but the soft hum of chakra monitors and the faint scent of antiseptic.
Koji leaned back on the pillow, wincing as he adjusted. Every muscle screamed. His ribs especially felt like someone had dropped a boulder on them. Probably not far from the truth—Yuki didn’t do things halfway.
“I really fucked up,” he muttered.
“Please, don’t start a pity party now. She also ensured you were carried back here and ensured you stayed unconscious the whole way to spare you the pain. She wouldn’t have done that if she hated you, so cheer up, you are back in Konoha, and the food is great!”
Koji closed his eyes. “She did?”
“Sure did, she made sure you were safe, so while she might be angry, she doesn’t hate you,” Kuro reassured him.
They sat in silence for a moment. Then Koji whispered, “So… how many times has she been here?”
Kuro didn’t answer right away. “Daily so far, so she might show up later today, though she might not, she will know you are awake before she gets into the building, so depending on how she wants to punish you.” He didn’t continue.
Koji didn’t reply. He just stared up at the ceiling, the sterile tiles blurring in and out of focus.
Part of him hoped she’d come. Another part dreaded it. What could he even say?
“I’ll let you stew in your shame a bit longer,” Kuro muttered, leaping off the bed and padding toward the window. “Smells like company’s coming anyway.”
Before Koji could ask what he meant, the door creaked open.
“Koji?”
The voice was low, rough around the edges, but unmistakable—his mother.
He tried to sit up but immediately regretted it as a bolt of pain shot through his side.
“Don’t even think about it,” she barked, already at his side. Her hair was pulled back in a loose ponytail, streaked with gray, her clan tattoos faded with age but no less proud. The scar under her left eye twitched as she scowled down at him.
“You really did it this time, mutt,” she said, folding her arms.
Koji looked away. “Guess the rumors got back to the den.”
“Got back?” She snorted. “Kid, the entire clan knows about it, every whelp pretty much worships the ground you used to walk on. Really, what did you think? Seducing a Hyūga clan princess? And not just that—rumor is you barked her into heat, rode her like a feral tomcat, then pissed on her face like she was your chew toy.”
Koji groaned and pulled the blanket over his head. “Mom, please…”
“Oh no, you don’t get to hide.” She yanked the blanket down with one hand and slapped his arm—lightly, but enough to make him wince. “You’ve officially become a clan legend. One of the old geezers carved your face into the side of the northern training rock next to Great-Uncle Ranmaru.”
“What?” he asked, horrified.
“That’s right, you are up there with that old geezer, good company really.”
Kuro snorted from the window. “I’ve seen it. They made his ears too big.”
“They’re magnificent,” his mother shot back proudly. “And they’re yours now.”
Koji sighed. “I’m going to die from shame before I ever recover.”
His mother smirked and sat at the edge of the bed. “Nah. You’ll live. You survived the fury of a Hyūga woman after you did that. At this point, I doubt anything can even kill you, that thick skull of yours, you got that from your dad.”
Koji didn’t answer right away. He stared at the ceiling again, his heart feeling just a little bit lighter. “I hurt her, though. Not just physically. I crossed a line.”
She looked at him, her teasing fading, though not completely gone. “You messed up. That much is true. But you didn’t betray her. You lost control. Big difference.”
Koji frowned. “I don’t know if she sees it that way.”
His mother reached out, brushing a hand through his messy hair. “Well, lucky for you, you’ve got time to figure out how to make it right. And when you do? Just flash her a smile and she will listen, no girl can resist my little Koji’s smile, can they?”
“Kuro… why did you tell them that!?” he asked, mock betrayal in his voice.
“What was I supposed to do? You think the clan really believed a mutt like you managed to win over Yuki Hyūga? They were sure it was all a lie!” Kuro defended himself.
His mother snorted. “That we did, wasn’t until we got a whiff of her scent, and that of yours, that we believed it. That thick scent of you on her? Yeah, no, mistaking that for what it is.”
Koji groaned into his hands. “This is a nightmare…”
“Oh, it gets worse,” his mother said with a grin that could probably crack rocks. “A few of the old hags in the clan are already starting to make Yuki-chan’s wedding dress, Inuzuka style, plus some of the boys have already thrown together the bridal bed, a dog cage, for the Alpha’s bitch.”
“She is so going to kill me,” Koji muttered.
“She already tried that once already,” Kuro added helpfully. “Didn’t stick.”
“Anyway,” his mother said, gently putting a hand on his shoulder, “I’m happy for you Koji… I saw her once, here looking for you, she is a real beauty. I can’t wait to see my grandkids, and given how much of your seed I can still smell from her a week past your last mating, I doubt I have to wait all that long.”
Koji’s entire body flushed with heat—and not just from the pain. “Can we not talk about my sperm count right now?”
His mother gave him a fanged grin. “Too late, sweetie. Already bragged about it at the last council meeting.”
“You what—?!”
“Relax. I didn’t give details. Just said my boy made the clan proud and left a Hyūga walking bow-legged.”
Koji turned to Kuro. “Please kill me. Right now. Just bite the artery and make it clean.”
Kuro yawned. “Nah. I’m invested now. I want to see how this ends.”
His mother ruffled his hair again—messing it up worse than it already was—then leaned in with a softer voice, one reserved for those rare private moments. “Listen, I know we joke, but I’m serious when I say this: we’re proud of you. Not just because you knocked boots with a fancy heiress or because you survived her fists. But because you’re our idiot. You’re still standing. You still care. And that matters more than you think.”
Koji swallowed, looking away. “What if I ruined it?”
She shrugged. “Then fix it. Apologize. Grovel. Bring meat. Whatever it takes.”
“…She might never want to see me again.”
His mother stood, brushing the wrinkles from her vest. “If that were true, she wouldn’t have come looking. She wouldn’t have tucked you in. She wouldn’t have made sure you didn’t feel the pain. Don’t forget that.”
Koji watched her go, her footsteps fading down the hall like a thunderstorm rolling away.
Silence returned.
He lay there, staring at the ceiling for a long time.
Then Kuro spoke again, voice quieter this time. “You love her, huh?”
Koji didn’t answer right away. Then, softly—“Yeah. I really do.”
Kuro rested his head across Koji’s legs, tail thumping once. “Then don’t give up, partner. We’re Inuzuka. We fight for what’s ours.”
Koji didn’t say anything for a while, just lying there. “Kuro, please, move your head, it hurts.” He finally couldn’t handle the pain anymore and had to whimper. Kuro’s head felt like it weighed a ton as it pushed down on his broken shin.
Kuro let out a dramatic sigh, but finally lifted his head and shifted to the floor beside the bed with a grumble. “Fine, I’ll let the fragile meat sack rest. For now.”
Koji grunted a soft thanks, sinking a little deeper into the pillow, just in time to hear a knock.
This time, it wasn’t a booming voice or a familiar scent of home—it was sharp antiseptic and paperwork.
A young male medic-nin stepped in, clipboard in hand, barely old enough to grow chin stubble. His eyes scanned the room, hesitating a moment at the sight of Kuro.
“Uh… Koji Inuzuka?” he asked, clearing his throat.
“That’s me,” Koji mumbled, not bothering to lift his head.
The medic nodded. “Just here to check your pain levels now that you are awake, your injuries aren’t life-threatening or going to have long-term consequences, totally safe to let them heal the last step naturally.”
Koji narrowed his eyes. “Is this where you tell me no meat, no walking, no fun, and definitely no visitors with food?”
“Pretty much.” The medic gave a nervous smile. “Though I was told you might ignore most of that anyway.”
“Sounds like I’m not your first Inuzuka.” Koji chuckled.
“Not at all, I find your clan often ends up needing some medical attention, just your file alone is pretty long.” The medic said, a bit more friendly.
“What can I say? We train hard, and play harder.”
“I do not doubt that. But I must at least advise you to avoid too much fatty food and salt, and even if you eat what your clan sneaks you in, still eat what we give you, it's for your recovery.” He advised, having given up any hope of making Koji follow the dietary plan.
Koji sighed, accepting the inevitable. “Fine. I’ll eat the hospital slop too. Just don’t expect me to enjoy it.”
The medic gave a lopsided smile. “As long as it goes down. We’re still short-staffed, and dragging Inuzuka out of the ICU because they insisted on hunting boar with cracked ribs isn’t high on our to-do list.”
Kuro snorted. “He’s not even allowed to walk yet, let alone hunt.”
Koji grinned, though it turned to a grimace as he shifted his shoulder. “Not planning on chasing anything just yet. Unless it’s a grilled meat skewer rolling off a plate.”
The medic flipped the clipboard shut and tucked it under his arm. “Right. You’ve got chakra monitoring tonight and physical therapy tomorrow morning. Try not to get into any family wrestling matches before then.”
“Can’t promise anything if my cousins show up,” Koji muttered.
The medic just smiled faintly. “Rest up, Inuzuka.”
