It Had to Be You, Kurama

"It's nothing." Ino turned her head away, her face instantly turning bright red.

"Oh~!"

Naruto gave him a knowing look, like a teddy bear, and then quickly took a few steps back. Ino, as expected, panicked, stood up straight as if jolted, and said in embarrassment and indignation.

"What are you 'oh'ing about? You bastard! You pervert! You foot fetishist! You scum!"

"Thank you for the compliment."

"This isn't a compliment! You!!" Ino was completely at her wits' end with him, her hand gripping her bathrobe, her finger pointing at Naruto trembling slightly with anger.

Naruto smiled knowingly and said nothing more, then turned and went into the kitchen, his voice following shortly after.

"Please sit down for a while. The kitchen has prepared some hot soup to warm you up. After you finish that soup, your clothes will be almost dry."

Ino and Hinata exchanged a glance, then silently looked away.

Neither of them are the type to hurt others, but they also possess a certain resilience. If a thorn grows in their heart, they are willing to let it grow slowly, but when they feel it is the right time, they will not hesitate to pull it out.

During their long time in the bathroom, Ino and Hinata had found a vague answer, but it only existed in their minds and had no real impact on the real world.

Naruto had no idea what they were talking about, assuming it was just young girls chatting. Even if he did know, he wouldn't care; people have countless thoughts that can change at any moment.

He simply needs to continue living his life as it was originally planned. Without expectations, there will be no disappointment; don't place too many expectations on others.

At the dining table.

"Drinking some soup will make you feel better." Naruto used a soup spoon to divide two bowls of hot soup and pushed them to Ino and Hinata, who were sitting in the next seat.

The three of them formed a long, narrow triangle at the dining table, the wall clock ticking away, and wisps of white smoke slowly rising from the table.

He belatedly looked up at the two women and, through the rising steam, saw two slightly stiff faces, like the tired expressions of two not-so-good friends after a forced, noisy argument.

Outside on the balcony, it was getting dark.

The empty living room was quieter than ever. The apartment door was tightly shut, shutting out the hustle and bustle of Konohagakure Street. The sounds were so faint they seemed to be far away.

Naruto glanced at the three bowls of hot soup on the table, tapped the table casually, and said half-jokingly, ignoring the atmosphere.

"If anyone refuses to drink, they will have to stay here overnight for observation, for their own health."

The scene was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Hinata kept her Hinata down and didn't move. Naruto was sure that both women had heard him.

Finally, Ino looked at him, her eyes misty, her voice terrifyingly soft.

"You..."

With a slightly hoarse, tearful voice, Ino was completely different from the confident and outgoing Ino that Naruto knew.

Naruto paused slightly, but didn't look away. He raised his eyes and looked at Ino solemnly. Although he didn't know what was wrong with Ino, he knew clearly that if he hesitated at this moment, it would be the end for him.

"What's wrong?"

"I've been struggling with something." Ino felt a little listless, and tears seemed to be welling up in her eyes, about to spill over.

For the first time, he saw an expression on Ino's face that was completely different from usual; her eyes were watery, filled with torment and pleading.

It seemed she could no longer tolerate Naruto pretending to be confused. Although there was no need to make things completely clear now, she still wanted to know how Naruto viewed her.

"I"

Just as Ino was about to speak, Hinata suddenly reached for the hot soup and began to drink it spoonful by spoonful, without saying a word.

It seemed like they were rushing to finish the soup as they were completing a task.

Seeing this, Ino's words caught in her throat; she opened her mouth but no sound came out. Hinata, having finished her soup, stood up with her head down and spoke.

"Sorry, Naruto, Ino, I have to go back now."

With that, Hinata quickly walked into the bathroom, clutching her bathrobe. Only Ino and Naruto remained at the dining table. After a while, Ino also stood up abruptly and muttered something.

"I'm going back too."

He then went into the bathroom to get his clothes to dry, while Hinata, already dressed, came out, bowed to Naruto with her eyes lowered, and then fled as if escaping.

Naruto covered his face and gasped.

He suddenly realized that something terrible seemed to have happened between the two of them, but it seemed pointless to ask now.

A short while later, Ino also came out.

She didn't say goodbye, but just looked at Naruto deeply, shed a tear, pursed her lips, and left.

Naruto was left alone in the living room, facing a pot of hot soup. After a moment of silence, Nine-Tails poked its head out from the balcony and met Naruto's deep blue eyes.

"Kid, where are your two owners?" Nine-Tails- Tailed Fox deliberately brought up a sore spot.

"I'm leaving." He wasn't angry.

Or rather, there's nothing to be Naruto hasn't lost anything in the current situation. What Ino and Hinata think won't affect him.

Things will be as they are; there's no need for him to make any promises or sacrifices at this age. Whether he continues to play dumb or truly doesn't care, it doesn't matter.

In short, doing nothing means you can't go wrong.

"Gone? Did they get angry? What will happen to my wine then?" The Nine-Tails was simple and innocent; tonight, she didn't care about humans, only about the wine.

"Yeah, where will we get any more alcohol to drink?" Naruto said, looking down at his soup. After a few sips, he looked at Nine-Tails, who was standing blankly in front of the French windows on the balcony.

"Nine-Bell, come over and have some soup. That way you'll have something to eat earlier next time you're broke."

Before he could finish speaking, Naruto saw Nine-Tails silently return to the balcony, close the French windows, and begin practicing backflips without a word.

Seeing this, Naruto stroked his chin and stopped drinking the soup. He simply got up and went to the balcony, squatted down next to Nine-Tails, and watched Nine-Tails's backflip from a 360-degree, close-up perspective.

You can always win a girl back, but Nine-Tails backflip is something you probably won't see even once in hundreds of years.

"What are you doing?" Nine-Tails stopped his backflip and asked seriously.

"Watching you do a backflip." Naruto squatted on the ground, watching intently. "I wish I could record it, but unfortunately I don't have a camera."

"Heh!" Nine-Tails glanced at Naruto with disdain. "What do you know? What do you think I'm doing? I'm just offering you despicable humans fine wine as tribute!"

"Ah, that makes sense! It has to be you, Kurama, whose theory is grounded in reality." Naruto nodded.

"What are you all standing there for?" Naruto glanced at Nine-Tails sideways. "Let's train together."

Upon hearing this, Naruto actually stroked his chin and pondered for a while. After a moment, he got up, left a comment calling him an idiot, and returned to the living room.

I have some family matters to attend to today and tomorrow (the 30th and 31st), so I can only update 6,000 words per day. Starting the day after tomorrow, I'll accelerate my debt repayment efforts. (10,000 words per day)