Fireworks for One

In that instant, Ino's face brightened, and Naruto actually had the urge to marry her on the spot, but fortunately, reality poured cold water on him in time.

"Your expression is disgusting."

"Well... let's go. I'm hungry too, let's go get something to eat together."

Naruto, undeterred by the dirt, picked up Nine-Tails from the ground again and expertly delivered a powerful punch to it the moment Nine-Tails bared its teeth.

"Who wants to go with you?" Ino walked ahead, then turned back to check if Naruto was following.

"What's wrong with going together? Sitting together to eat won't make you pregnant," Naruto added. "Holding hands will."

"Don't say such strange things!" Ino turned around and glared at him angrily. Taking advantage of the pause, Naruto calmly caught up with her, and they went from walking one in front of the other to walking side by side.

The fireworks display has ended, and the sparse fireworks above Hokage Rock have stopped.

Before they reached a brighter area, the surrounding light was dim, and the two could only make out the outlines of each other's faces. Neither of them spoke again, and the only sound around them was the rustling of their footsteps on the grass.

"I'm not planning to wash my hands for the next few days," he suddenly said, breaking the silence.

"Just go die already!" Ino seemed immune to Naruto's words and replied dismissively, "Don't say such perverted things. Didn't you touch Hinata's hand?"

"I've also touched Ino's, so may I share my personal thoughts?"

"No, I'll kill you if you tell me."

As soon as Ino finished speaking, she suddenly felt her hand being enveloped in warmth. Naruto's hand was as hot as a furnace, and he grasped her hand without warning.

"What are you doing!" Ino tensed up.

"It's easy to get lost late at night," Naruto said casually, his arm close to Ino's skin, the faint fragrance emanating from her making him feel a little itchy.

"Who would get lost in a place like this?" Ino waved her hand gently, trying to break free, but to no avail.

"Let go," she said, somewhat ashamed and indignant.

"Let go when we get to the light," Naruto said.

Ino didn't think too much about it, and seeing the light not far ahead, her lips pursed slightly. She didn't react for a moment, but after considering it for a while, she agreed.

He said he would let go when there was light, which seemed like a step back, but in fact he added another condition.

"Then stop pinching me!" Ino said, a little annoyed. "I'm angry."

"Then I won't pinch it anymore." Naruto immediately became obedient.

The walk wasn't long, and the two didn't speak again, slowly making their way to the light. Their shadows stretched long under the lamplight, nestled together.

Ino looked at her shadow on the ground, her expression somewhat complicated. Naruto had stopped, but hadn't completely let go of Ino's hand; he was only holding it loosely, but he could still feel the warmth of her palm.

"Should I let go?" Naruto asked, turning his head to look at Ino.

The latter met his gaze, his expression somewhat complicated, and after hesitating for a moment, muttered something under his breath.

"Whatever."

A triumphant smile flashed across Naruto's face as he grabbed Ino's hand and led her forward.

"Let's go get something to eat first."

"Oh."

Ino seemed to completely ignore him, letting him lead her into the crowd, a feeling completely different from the last time they held hands on the Konohagakure Street in the middle of the night.

Konohagakure Street was almost deserted at midnight, but there were still quite a few people strolling around the food street set up for the fireworks festival. Even though the fireworks festival had ended, it was still lively.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Ino was completely passively pulled through the crowd. She felt a mix of nervousness and excitement.

The light shimmered and spread, the streets were filled with Yukata, and the bright lights in front of each stall seemed to penetrate into one's heart.

She felt a little dizzy, only seeing a lot of people and points of light everywhere. Her palms were very hot, the warmth traveling up her arms and into her heart, circulating throughout her body.

"This is delicious." Naruto pulled Ino to wait in line at a small stall, holding Nine-Tails in his other arm, and turned to her, saying, "Ino, hug this dog."

"Huh?" Ino was stunned for a moment.

"I don't have my hands free to pay."

"Just let go," Ino said.

"Absolutely impossible."

Nine-Tails wouldn't let her hug it, Naruto couldn't spare the time to give it a loving lesson, so Ino ended up paying for it.

"Um, um!! There are also a lot of people queuing over there."

So Ino paid again.

After several rounds of back and forth, Ino paid the bill plus n. Even though Ino wasn't short of money, she couldn't carry much cash when going out in Yukata, and her money quickly ran out.

Fortunately, both of them were full, and the Nine-Tails even managed to get a few bites, immediately calming down. Inside the Sealing Space, the Nine-Tails had no interest in food at all, but it was a different story once it had a physical form.

Konohagakure isn't exactly a gourmet wasteland; at least for Nine-Tails, every bite is a novel experience.

"It seems to be full." Ino curiously peered into the Nine-Tails in Naruto's arms.

"You've fed it too much; its belly's already bulging," Naruto complained. "But you can try touching it now."

"It's so fierce."

"Even the fiercest animal has a brain. You're the one who fed it," Naruto said to Ino. "I don't think it will bite you. Give it a try."

Sure enough, when Ino reached out, Nine-Tails didn't react. It just pretended to be dead and even let out a cowardly bark.

Naruto was speechless at this scumbag fox, his eyes filled with disdain as he looked at it.

It's treating Ino like a rich woman. But that's fine, next time it can just trick itself into thinking its own money is a reward for pleasing Ino. Anyway, this fox isn't very smart, so let it keep fooling her.

"Its fur is so soft," Ino exclaimed, then mustered her courage to stroke Nine-Tails's head. "It's so obedient. Is it because I fed it?"

No, it's treating you like a free food source, Naruto thought to himself.

"I should go back now." Ino reluctantly shifted her gaze from Nine-Tails.

"Before we go back, let's go somewhere else," Naruto suddenly said, handing Kurama (the Nine-Tails) to Ino.

"Where are we going?" Ino took Nine-Tails from her arms and looked up at him with a puzzled expression.

"It's nearby, just follow me and you'll see."

As Naruto spoke, he pulled Ino away from the brightly lit food street and turned towards the more secluded southeast direction from the fork in Konohagakure Street.

After walking past rows of old, abandoned houses and along an old road, the two finally stopped at a secluded, uninhabited hillside.

Ino didn't know what he was going to do. She only saw Naruto let go of her hand and say, "Wait for me here." Then he glared at Nine-Tails- Tails) as a warning before running towards an abandoned house.

When he ran back, he was carrying a bunch of fireworks that were taller than him.

"What are you doing?" Ino was stunned. "The Fireworks Festival is over, isn't it? If you do something reckless, you'll get scolded."

"This wasn't originally intended for Fireworks Festival." Naruto placed a large pile of fireworks on the ground and lined them up in a row, saying without looking up, "The Fireworks Festival has nothing to do with me."

These were all items Naruto casually bought before the Konoha Crush, and he never found a chance to deal with them, so they were left in the Sealing Space.

"If your birthday coincides with Fireworks Festival, you won't be able to celebrate your birthday at all if you attend the Fireworks Festival."

"That's true, but it's not necessarily a bad thing."

Ino a little nervous. She had a rough idea of what Naruto was going to do, and her cheeks started to burn slightly.

Naruto pulled a candle from his pocket, his palm slightly red, and lit it.

"Take it."

A faint candlelight was offered to Ino, its glow like a Fire Fly on the secluded and dark hillside. Ino's face flushed crimson, and she hesitated to take it, her lips pressed tightly together.

"It's too late," Ino said, turning her head to the side and wringing her hands. "It'll cause trouble."

"That's a different matter. I hope you can have a special birthday, with a few fireworks just for you," he said.

"Besides, if you run faster, everything will be fine. If you really can't run, you can abandon the dog. It will come back on its own anyway."

Nine-Tails: "???"