Too Cold, So Let's Sleep Together

With a loud crack, a blinding flash of Kakkō streaked across the living room, plunging it into darkness.

"Um?"

"The power's out again!"

Insufficient power supply is a common occurrence during the Konohagakure New Year Festival, and those living on the outskirts of the village always face the risk of power outages.

"Then what should we do?"

"Then we'll have to squeeze in to sleep," he said.

"No!" Ino immediately shook her head. She stood up in the darkness and could only roughly determine Naruto's location. It took her eyes a while to adjust to the darkness.

Things are different now. As her body grows rapidly, she becomes increasingly sensitive to that kind of thing. Her mother occasionally tries to educate her about it, which always makes her blush.

It is said that ignorance is bliss, while the more you know, the more cautious you become.

"Are you going back?" His voice came from the darkness. She heard it clearly; it was just a simple question.

When Ino saw him stand up and move closer to her, her body immediately stiffened.

Knowing the layout of the living room, Naruto stood effortlessly in front of Ino. He tugged at her arm and began to speak.

Where did you put your coat?

"On the coat rack." Her voice changed slightly.

"Um."

When he said "hmm," Ino's back trembled slightly, as if some nerve had been touched. Naruto had already slowly walked away, seemingly heading towards the coat rack in the dark.

After a while, Naruto returned, bumping into something along the way.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"It's nothing, I just bumped into something," he said.

Immediately, Ino felt a thick winter coat wrapped around her, and Naruto's deep voice sounded in her ear.

"I'll take you to the entryway to change your shoes now."

"Okay." The word was almost squeezed out of Ino's throat. Hearing her own trembling voice in the darkness, she was startled and her face turned red instantly.

She thought to herself that it was a relief to not be able to see clearly due to the power outage, and breathed a small sigh of relief. But Naruto had already reached out to grab her hand, and in her panic, she accidentally slipped her hand inside his clothes.

The moment she touched her abdomen, she suddenly realized something was wrong and pulled her hand away with a cry of surprise.

In the darkness, Naruto gave a dry laugh.

Why are you touching me?

"I didn't!" Ino denied it outright, wanting to be angry but unable to get angry at all. Her cheeks were flushed, and she was afraid of being seen through. "I didn't!"

"Okay, you don't." Naruto smiled and took her hand as if coaxing a child. "I'll take you to the entrance to change your shoes, and then I'll take you back."

He didn't try to persuade Ino to stay overnight; times had changed. Once the girl realized the change, avoiding suspicion wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

This is not a sign of estrangement, but a further affirmation of self-awareness and emotions. A hug at twelve and a hug at sixteen are not the same thing; the latter is often far more complex.

In the darkness, Ino was led forward, her heart pounding. Suddenly, a sense of taboo welled up inside her, as if she had secretly tasted some forbidden fruit.

At the same time, she realized that although Naruto looked thin, he had grown into a man. He had all the features he should have, broad and firm, as if sculpted by a chisel.

Naruto held her hand tightly, her palms gradually sweating, and the hot breath beside her made her feel a little irritated. Just as she was starting to feel unbearable, they arrived at the entrance.

The door was pulled open, and a blast of cold air rushed in, instantly Ino up.

"Are you coming back?" she suddenly asked.

"Huh? What?" Naruto asked as he opened the door, but the cold wind blew past his ears and he didn't quite hear what she said.

"No, nothing," she stammered, quickly closing the door behind her. "Let's go."

The entire Konohagakure was shrouded in a blanket of silvery snow. Braving the cold wind, the two arrived at the Yamanaka Flower Shop, their breath steaming in the cold air. Naruto's ears were red from the cold as he waved to her.

"You should go upstairs soon, I'm going back now."

"Wait," Ino called out softly, "Won't you be cold going back like this?"

"No way," Naruto said uncertainly, looking at Ino with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong?"

"Would you like to come up and stay for a while, and go back tomorrow?" Ino stood at the entrance of the flower shop, her face redder than a rose in the dim light.

"Anyway, my parents aren't here."

After a brief moment of thought, Naruto decisively abandoned reason. Lychees? Ino doesn't want lychees anymore, what use are they to him?

"OK."

The languid voice reached her ears, and her reason crumbled instantly. Her heart pounded, Ino suddenly realized that this was her own home, and what if her father came home tomorrow morning and saw her?

She was thinking this to herself, but when she regained consciousness, she was already wearing an apron and standing in the kitchen.

Did you black out?

She thought about it carefully and realized she hadn't. She went upstairs with Naruto, turned on the lights and let him stay in the living room for a while, then she made an excuse to cook some late-night snacks and hid in the kitchen.

Looking at the boiling water in the pot, Ino.

This is insane!

After a long internal struggle, Ino finally calmed down, realizing she had actually brought Naruto home. The water in the pot had almost boiled dry.

Calm down. It's the New Year Festival, no one will notice it so late. Father usually comes back around lunchtime, so let him go out earlier.

As for my mother, she won't be back for at least two or three days.

I only took him in because it was so late and snowing heavily. It would have been too impolite to let him go back alone in the cold wind. Yes, impolite.

Naruto instinctively lay back on the sofa, feeling a little awkward, before suddenly realizing he wasn't at home. He immediately sat up straight and decided to stay in that position obediently.

Even though his uncle and aunt were not around, he still had a great sense of propriety.

Ten minutes later.

"Why does your midnight snack look like dishwater?" Naruto asked, looking at the soup with sauce floating on the surface, somewhat helplessly.

"I was too nervous and messed it up," Ino said, covering her face. "Are you hungry? I'll make you another one."

"No, I'm not hungry," he refused.

The kitchen was quickly cleaned up. Ino sat down on the edge of the sofa and said somewhat nervously.

"I'm sorry, I..."

"Fine."

The atmosphere became tense, and both of them were somewhat reserved. Even Naruto, with his carefree personality, couldn't relax. He noticed Ino's fingers were twisted together, and his eyelids twitched.

She realized that she was nervous too, but how come this ordinary night felt like a wedding night?

The living room sofa, this small corner of the world. The lights are bright, the boy and girl are alone in the room. It's quiet all around, and any sound would make them extra sensitive.

Suddenly, Ino stood up. She felt that as the hostess, it was necessary to break the ice and say something.

"If there's nothing else, go to sleep."

"Ah?"

"No!" Ino covered her mouth. Damn it, the more nervous she was, the more likely she was to say the wrong thing. "I meant resting together, oops! No, I meant resting separately."

She gestured with her hands for a long time, but she was so anxious that she couldn't say a word.

Naruto couldn't stand it any longer and stood up to ask.

"Where's the bathroom? I'd like to take a shower first."

"Huh?" Ino looked at him, her pupils dilating sharply, looking shocked.

He calmed down a bit and shrugged, saying, "I'm not used to sleeping without showering. Even if I'm sleeping on the sofa, I'll still take a shower."

"Oh." Ino pointed to a room. "That's it."

"I'll go get you a bath towel," she said, but halfway there she suddenly realized that the shop never accommodated overnight guests; they only received guests in the Yamanaka Clan.

Therefore, there were no spare clean bath towels.

After agonizing for a while, she paced back and forth in the living room, clutching her pink bath towel. The towel was a personal item, and she would need it later.

The moment Naruto came out of the shower, he saw Ino clutching a towel and muttering to herself, and he was momentarily stunned.

"What are you doing?"

Ino was startled too, but saw that Naruto had already finished showering and was probably drying himself in the warm air. She immediately breathed a sigh of relief, then shook her head and ran into the bathroom.

Night falls.

The temperature began to drop sharply on this snowy night, and the living room suddenly became unbearably cold. There were only three rooms on the second floor: one for Ino and one for her parents.

The last one is a storage room for flowers, but there is no bed.

Naruto didn't want to put Ino in a difficult position and simply chose to sleep on the sofa. However, as the night wore on, he could feel the temperature dropping, even under the covers, but it wasn't too cold.

With a click, Ino's door opened a crack. Light seeped into the room like threads, casting a dim, yellowish glow on a corner of the sofa.

Through the crack in the door, Ino peeked out with one eye, but without looking at him, she stammered.

"The living room isn't heated, it's too cold, let's all come in together."

"Huh?" Naruto seemed confused and asked, as if unsure, "What did you say?"

But Ino had already opened the door, dressed completely covered up, and said to him with a serious expression.

"Come in."

The room was brightly lit.

Looking at Ino, who was wrapped up in layers upon layers of clothing, Naruto couldn't help but want to laugh.

"You're dressed like that, you probably don't even need a blanket, right?"

"I want it!" Ino said defiantly.

Then, she pointed fiercely to the other side and said, "You sleep over there, don't cross the line, or I'll punch you flat."

"Anyway, I have a clear conscience, and I can't just watch you freeze to death."