The Girl Even the Gods Praised

His hearing was masked by the thunder, but he could hear her speaking.

Her lips parted slightly, and her expression was no longer one of disdain or indifference. It was a smile that was unbelievably gentle, even carrying a hint of longing.

This kind of scene probably only happens between couples deeply in love, or at a wedding. Such an unreserved smile, eyes so pure they evoke a feeling of tenderness.

Her slightly flushed cheeks and bewildered eyes were like the threads of desire pulled from a broken lotus root. Her adorable appearance would be incredibly beautiful to anyone who saw her.

Naruto saw her last words, and they were completely imprinted in his mind. Silence was more powerful than sound; the voice seemed to explode and resound in his mind.

I like you too.

Her words, spoken cautiously and with a hint of confession, were whispered in the dimly lit living room. Her eyes were bright, and her gaze was incredibly soft.

Naruto froze for a moment, involuntarily holding his breath. Seeing Ino's expression, it was hard to remain unmoved, and his heart began to race.

Shakespeare's sonnets flashed through my mind, describing a summer that even the gods praised, yet could not compare to the gentle and lovely face of a young girl.

Storms and rain cannot diminish her beauty; though all the most beautiful flowers wither, Death Reaper will still raise its hand to shelter her. She is immortal in poetry, eternal in our eyes.

Dark clouds loomed above the balcony, thunder rumbled incessantly, and lightning flashed like tree branches across the clouds.

Raindrops clung to the damp vines with tender buds, and a dark summer downpour poured down from above the clouds. The streets were deserted, and stray dogs ran wildly through the alleys.

His dark blue eyes seemed to see through him, piercing directly into the emptiness of his heart. They appeared to be waiting for his answer, a response to Ino's words.

What should I say?

"Now we should say something!" Naruto's fingers, which were resting on the sofa, twitched slightly, as if he had been electrocuted, and then he opened his mouth.

He had nothing, and always had. He lived only to lie down better; he had no grand ambitions, and adulthood seemed a distant dream. He had a terrible temper and was vengeful.

He has principles, but they're flexible; he has a sense of morality, but it's very rare. Having a system is just a way to comfortably coast along, at least to survive without having to diligently cultivate himself.

Ultimately, he knew he was not a perfect person, that his personality had significant flaws, that some of his beliefs were incorrect, and that even his sense of right and wrong was somewhat distorted.

Even so, he still yearned for beautiful things. The girl's soul was passionate, her innocent expression sparkling, and he wanted to respond, to touch and feel her.

"I like it too." The voice was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for Ino was halfway across the sofa, to hear.

He saw Ino's fair hand loosen its grip on the cushion and fall nervously onto the sofa, their fingers a meter apart.

In the dimly lit living room, Ino remained in that position for a while, her fingers slowly moving towards him. Naruto looked up at her, and his hand slowly reached out as well.

Thunder rumbled outside the balcony, and the faint, crisp sound of spatulas clattering in the kitchen could be heard.

In the living room sofa of the Yamanaka Clan, two fair hands slowly glided along the surface of the sofa, one on the left and one on the right, like trains arriving at each other.

Ino suddenly felt breathless, her heart pounding wildly. This was the most daring thing she had ever done. The sight of their hands drawing closer together was somewhat terrifying.

She felt her cheeks burning, and she couldn't take her eyes off Naruto's hands. His hands seemed slightly larger than hers, and his palms felt like furnaces.

Just as their fingertips were about to touch, a noise suddenly came from the kitchen.

"Ino, could you please get me the candy jar?"

"Okay!" Ino sat up straight on the sofa, her back arched, and responded loudly, her face flushed red, and her neck turned red as well.

She hurriedly got up, glanced at Naruto hastily, and then left immediately.

Naruto calmly withdrew his hand, the sweet scent of Ino lingering in the air, fleetingly disappearing. He walked to the balcony and found that the rain had subsided.

The potted plants on the balcony are still thriving, and the round holes in the sink are filled with clear rainwater. Outside the window, the sky Qingming Festival, and the white mist has dissipated.

After finishing his meal, Naruto said goodbye.

Since Ino's mother was home, staying any longer would feel restrictive, so he simply said goodbye. Ino's gaze was somewhat unnatural, and she never looked directly at him.

Occasionally, one could feel Ino's gaze sweeping over, but it didn't linger; upon closer inspection, one could only see the blush on Ino's face fading.

"Goodbye."

He left the Yamanaka Flower Shop, holding an umbrella as he walked along Konohagakure Street home. Everything was wet; in the afternoon Nikko, the golden rain danced like flames.

Second day of vacation.

Naruto squatted under the eaves of the training field, watching Rock Lee in his green training uniform doing one-finger push-ups under the scorching sun, and couldn't help but yawn. The rain from yesterday had dried up completely by this morning.

"How many?" he asked, resting his chin on his hand.

"Four hundred and forty-one." Rock Lee was drenched in sweat, the area beneath him completely soaked. "Still short."

"Let's stop after two more," Naruto said, standing up.

"Why?"

"Four four four is unlucky, we're about to go on a mission." He said matter-of-factly, "It's a big mission, all four squads have to go."

Rock Lee is straightforward and couldn't Naruto, so he just said "oh" and did two push-ups before obediently getting up.

Most of the time, Rock Lee stayed in the Team 3, but occasionally he would be taken along on missions by Might Guy. After all, he was Might Guy's direct disciple, and their teamwork was much smoother.

This is why Rock Lee's personality is like Might Guy's: unrestrained and naive.

Diligent training is indeed commendable; hard work can make up for lack of talent. But if I had known earlier, I wouldn't have agreed to train with Rock Lee. Naruto was already squatting here watching Rock Lee warm up early in the morning.

"Hurry up and fight. Let's make this clear first: I won't use Tailed Beast Chakra, and you're not allowed to use the Eight Inner Gates." Naruto grumbled. "Hold back a bit, or you'll kill me."

His Taijutsu is indeed lacking; without activating his Tailed Beast Chakra, he's even a step below Rock Lee.

Are you wearing heavy clothing?

"I wore it."

"Are you dressed warmly enough? If not, wear more!" Naruto said shamelessly.

Rock Lee checked the weights on his trousers, shook his head, and said it wasn't necessary. He tightened the bandages on his hands, then stretched out his hand and made a starting stance towards Naruto.

Naruto sighed and slowly made his way out.

Rock Lee's Taijutsu is more precise than anyone else's. Naruto could feel it in the first round: his extraordinary reaction speed and solid Taijutsu foundation.

Naruto could only use Ninjutsu to restrain them, his Taijutsu was barely passable. It was just training, not something he took seriously. Normally, people wouldn't hire Jinchuriki for training, but Rock Lee did.

Generally speaking, it's a waste not to use the Tailed Beast Chakra in your body, but Naruto didn't want to repeat the demolition of the training ground with Rock Lee, so he simply added many restrictions.

This training session was pointless. Rock Lee dodged all sorts of minor Ninjutsu from Naruto, including Wind Release, Lightning Release, and Lava Release.

It's not exactly powerful, but it's definitely disgusting.

After fighting for a long time, Rock Lee still couldn't find an opportunity to get close. Finally, he found an opening, and Rock Lee's eyes lit up with excitement. He jumped into the air and used Konoha Whirlwind.

Naruto frowned slightly, then as if he had suddenly thought of something, he abruptly summoned the system.

[Kurotsuchi Raiga's Funeral!]

A group of men in black carrying a white coffin appeared out of nowhere, with the deceased Raiga Kurosuki leading the way. The coffin burst open with a bang, sealing Rock Lee inside without a word.

"Thump thump thump!~!" Rock Lee struggled desperately inside the coffin, but was restricted by the power of the rules and could not forcefully break the coffin in a short time.

Naruto abruptly stopped the Ninjutsu, thus preventing Rock Lee from being buried alive.

Although this Ninjutsu is a bit bizarre, it's actually quite effective. The funeral procession stopped, with only the thud of the coffin lid being kicked open.

Naruto sniffled a little, but ignored him. Letting him out would only lead to more sparring. Sparring? Sparring my ass! Only barbarians like such troublesome things as fighting and killing.

What is that?

Outside the training ground, Tenten pointed at the white coffin in surprise and asked.

"It's nothing, just Ninjutsu." Naruto had already walked to the tap and turned on the water to rinse his arms.

If he didn't suddenly appear Tenten, he could even take a bath in the open air.

"Ninjutsu?" Tenten clicked her tongue slightly, but wasn't too surprised. "Where's Rock Lee? The mission has been assigned. The Lord Hokage told us to assemble and prepare for a mission."

"So fast?" Naruto looked up at Tenten, slightly taken aback.

"Hmm, news from the Hokage Building." Tenten looked around. "Isn't Rock Lee here? I'll go look elsewhere."

"Here it is." Naruto chuckled and released the Ninjutsu with a bang.

As the coffin-carrying procession disappeared, Rock Lee suddenly rolled out of the coffin, his posture still slightly bent, as if he were preparing to pound the coffin.

Tenten:"."

She shifted her gaze upwards, looking elsewhere.

She felt slightly depressed. Apart from Neji, who seemed somewhat normal, the teachers and classmates around her were all strange individuals.

"What kind of Ninjutsu is that? It's amazing!" Rock Lee jumped up from the ground.

"Just a regular Ninjutsu, used for pranks," Naruto replied casually, then pointed in Tenten's direction and said, "We need to prepare for a mission; something's happened in Sand."

"Great!" Rock Lee shouted, pumping his fist.

But he quickly realized what he had done and stammered out the rest.

"What I mean is, it's such a shame."

Tenten sighed, looking at her teammates, feeling that her youth was anything but wonderful. She took a deep breath and said to the two of them.

"Neji others are already preparing. You should hurry too, everyone will be going."

The three parted ways, Naruto went home to change into his mission gear. Worried that everyone would be going, he took Kurama (the Nine-Tails) from the sofa with him.