A Girl's Thoughts Are Hard to Read; Everyone Has to Grow Up

Tenten wore only pajamas, the loose-fitting clothes accentuating her exquisite figure. She reached out and grabbed the blanket, wrapping herself in it tightly. Her porcelain-white arms gripped the blanket, her face was thin and fair, and she bit her lower lip.

"Hey, Tenten, can you please stop this?" Naruto sighed, "If you don't want to talk to me, that's fine. There's really no need to do this."

"Luckily, no one else is here. Looking at you like this, people would think I did something to you."

She lay on her side, huddled under the thick blankets. The temperature on the island was unusually low after nightfall; a basin of water placed outside the tent would have thin ice crystals visible in the middle of the night.

Tenten has a small face, and her two eyes are always darting around. She's wrapped in a quilt like a plump silkworm. She giggled at Naruto's words and said...

"What can you do to me? Anyway, I can't let you go on a risk alone."

"Yes, yes, I understand." Naruto sighed.

He knew, of course, that Tenten was reluctant to take the risk, and even tried to dissuade himself from doing so. But as the saying goes, since we're already here, why not do nothing?

He couldn't openly discuss the intricate underground world of the Land of Land of Whirlpools with Tenten. Sneaking down to investigate was unlikely, and coming back another time wouldn't be worthwhile.

Who knows when the next time will be? Is it really true that the next time will definitely be next time?

Two years ago, a mission to the Land of Snow required us to go to sea.

Anko, along with Naruto and Sakura, temporarily formed a team to accept a commission: to lead Kazahana Koyuki back to the Land of Snow to film a movie, after their ship sank at sea.

The four drifted at sea on Naruto's raft for nearly a month before finally crossing a third of the ocean and ending up on the Land of Whirlpools Island.

During the days they were waiting for rescue after contacting Konohagakure, Naruto and Anko stumbled upon a pit. Inside were exactly twenty-seven God Statues.

He discovered a crack inside the cave, but due to time constraints and the heavy workload, coupled with Naruto's limited confidence in escaping unscathed from the unknown danger, he decided to abandon the plan after much deliberation.

But two years later, Naruto now had the means to explore. One of his goals was to uncover the secrets buried beneath the Land of Whirlpools Island.

Secondly, there might be Anywhere Door he wants hidden underneath.

There's no time like the present, and it just so happened that after learning that Jiraiya and the others were safe, Naruto decided to take advantage of the opportunity to finish what he hadn't completed.

Because of their special relationship, Anko naturally kept the island's affairs a secret from him. But now, Naruto looked at Tenten, lost in thought.

"What's wrong with you?" Tenten she saw him not saying anything, just staring at her.

"Can you keep this a secret?" Naruto asked.

"Keep it a secret?"

"Yes, I don't want anyone to know anything about where I'm going tomorrow." Naruto nodded. "The original inhabitants of the Land of Whirlpools were the Uzumaki Clan, so..."

"The Land of Whirlpools was once feared by many, and although that is now in the past, there are some things I still don't want too many people to know."

"Oh, I understand." Tenten nodded, indicating her understanding.

Perhaps feeling touched that Naruto was telling her the truth, Tenten immediately promised that she would never reveal what she had seen.

Hearing this, Naruto felt relieved. Tenten was simple and kind; since she had made a promise, she naturally wouldn't go back on her word. So, in a great mood, he decided to take a bath as well.

The moment I stepped into the tent, the atmosphere became strange.

He was Tenten being stared at, and he couldn't help but look down at himself. That look made him feel insecure. If he hadn't seen that he was wearing all his clothes, Naruto would have thought he had come out naked.

Why are you staring at me?

"I have something to ask you, Naruto, come here." Tenten actually sat up abruptly, even turning the blanket up.

"Oh, okay," he replied, and lit the fire in the stove with a click.

As he spoke, he opened a small gap in the tent to allow for ventilation, to prevent him from being poisoned while sleeping. Finally, he walked over to Tenten and sat down next to her.

"What's wrong?"

"Um, I want to ask you... you..." Tenten looked so conflicted that it made Naruto's teeth ache.

"Just say what you want to say, there's no need for this." He took out a dry towel, tilted his head to wipe his hair, and said reassuringly.

"Alright, then I'll tell you." Tenten hesitated for a moment before looking up and asking, "Naruto, you're close to the Hyuga Clan, so do you know the person Neji married?"

"Neji?" Naruto looked Tenten up and down, making her feel a little uncomfortable.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked, her face slightly flushed, like the flushed face of someone who has just taken a bath and been scalded by hot water.

"Tenten, you're not thinking of crashing the wedding, are you?" he asked with a strange expression.

"What wedding hijacking? That's nonsense! What are you talking about?!" Tenten retorted, her face flushed. "I was just asking out of curiosity."

"Neji and I are comrades. He got married without saying a word. There's nothing wrong with being curious, right?"

"That's a reasonable reason, alright." Naruto put the towel away and glanced at Tenten. "I don't know that person, I've only met her once."

So Naruto briefly recounted what had recently happened to the Hyuga Clan. Of course, he cleverly absolved himself of all responsibility.

"So, you mean Neji got married to stabilize the Hyuga Clan?" Tenten was a little dumbfounded.

"Not really, anyway, he'll get married sooner or later. Since they're going to choose from within the Hyuga Clan anyway, it's better to arrange a marriage and make some use of him," Naruto.

"But does Neji like her?" Tenten asked again.

"Well, it's hard to say, but she's quite pretty," Naruto said. "I don't know Neji likes her, but he probably doesn't dislike her."

"Besides, the Hyuga Main Family also needs a reassurance. They can't figure out Neji's intentions. Now that the Caged Bird has been lifted, the Branch Family has more members than the Main Family."

"If this continues for too long, they probably won't be able to sleep peacefully. The fact that Neji is willing to marry a girl from the Main Family is good news for them."

After he finished speaking, there was a moment of silence in the tent.

Tenten kept his head down, unsure of what to say. A mix of emotions welled up inside him, and he looked up at Naruto, his eyes brimming with tears.

"Naruto, I feel so bad."

"Sigh, these things... you'll get over it once you think about them." Naruto may not be a good person, but he's still very sincere to his friends. He patted Tenten's blanket.

"In the Shinobi World, emotions are something you can't control."

"Nonsense! You clearly weren't acting against your will!" Tenten suddenly retorted, catching Naruto off guard.

"Huh?" He was stunned.

"You and Ino, and... Hinata Ino, too." Tenten stopped halfway through her sentence, her face turning bright red, as if she would burn completely if she continued.

"Well... the most important thing is that it's consensual, and I'm not married." Naruto shrugged. "When it comes to feelings, you really can't control yourself."

"I used to be in a lot of pain when I liked two people, but then I figured it out. If we can't choose, then we won't choose. Anyway, we're not bothering anyone else, right?"

Zhang San once said that as long as he doesn't get a marriage certificate, it wouldn't be illegal for him to marry eighteen wives and hold weddings at the same time.

Tenten:"."

She closed her eyes and spoke weakly.

"You're right, this is your private matter. I'm sorry. I was too impulsive. I... I just feel a little upset, sob sob, I'm sorry."

"It's alright, it's alright," Naruto reassured him.

"I've always... I've always considered Neji a comrade, and I've always admired him." Tenten couldn't hold back her emotions any longer, and tears streamed down her face.

"From his rigorous training to learning the secrets of the Hyuga Clan, so many years have passed, and it's really hard for me to be happy that he's broken free of the Caged Bird, and he never will be."

Naruto listened without saying anything, but shook his head, thinking to himself, "What a tragic fate!"

"Actually, I'm quite happy for Neji too, after all, he's finally entered a new stage in his life." Tenten wiped away her tears, her tone gradually returning to normal.

"Don't you like him?" Naruto asked.

"I like him. Neji is very caring and reliable, just like an older brother," Tenten said, sobbing. "Rock Lee is actually quite nice too. He takes good care of me, but he's a bit silly."

"Hmm?" Naruto looked at Tenten. "Something feels off, but you'll be fine once you put your mind at ease."

He didn't know what kind of "like" Tenten was referring to, but it sounded more like dependence. However, Neji genuinely didn't have any other feelings for Tenten; the people in Team 3 were all rather simple-minded.

In fact, apart from Pink Sakura, who openly liked Sasuke, the other members of the four classes didn't seem to develop feelings for their teammates.

After all, ninjas aren't children; they work in groups of three, including both men and women. If ninjas develop emotional bonds, they're bound to become irrational during missions.

If a partner or lover dies, it's easy to become unable to cope and go insane.

For example, Obito was willing to destroy the world for Rin Nohara, and there are too many other examples to list. The team members almost never let personal feelings interfere.

Team Seven is a very special case; it's highly likely that the members were handpicked by the Third Hokage. After all, Naruto liked Sakura, Sakura liked Sasuke.

In a certain situation, the two orphans formed a bond of love through Sakura. The idea was good, but unfortunately, the blond guy was replaced.

Naruto didn't have any romantic feelings for Pink Sakura, nor was he attracted to her. He later fell for Ino and Hinata, and his relationship with Pink Sakura ultimately faded.

Never mind, he wasn't really a minotaur, it was just an accident.

However, he was only comforting Tenten for the moment. He didn't care what Tenten meant to Neji; he was only concerned about tomorrow's trip to the cave.

"Thank you for being with me, Naruto." Tenten wiped away her tears. "I'm much better now, but I still feel sad and a little scared when I think about it."

"Fear? Why?" he asked.

"People change after marriage, right? Once you grow up, you won't have anything to talk about," Tenten said, her voice choked with emotion. "I feel like I'm going to lose another friend I can talk to about anything. I don't even know when I'll grow up."

"I always feel like I'll become increasingly lonely in the future. I probably won't be able to get married, and I don't know what to do. Just thinking about it makes me feel really sad."

"I see." Naruto was momentarily at a loss for words. "It's alright, Rock Lee here too anyway."

He suddenly remembered that Rock Lee would also get married; his obsession with martial Taijutsu wasn't because he disliked women. He could only scratch his head to hide his embarrassment, stammering for a long time.

"You don't need to comfort me, I've figured it out now," she said.

"That's good." Naruto said sadly.

As the fire slowly burned, the temperature inside the tent rose significantly, making it impossible for Tenten to stay wrapped in a blanket any longer. She tossed the blanket aside and sat there fanning herself with her hand.

Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and her pajamas covered her body. Naruto glanced at her and then looked away.

"Go to sleep early, you have things to do tomorrow."

"Okay," Tenten replied.

Nothing was said that night.

The next day.

Perhaps because of her outburst last night, Tenten seemed much more energetic, a faint smile on her face. Naruto felt a chill run down his spine under her gaze and swallowed hard.

"Tenten, what are you laughing at?"

"No, I'm just in a good mood," she replied.

"Oh, I'm in a good mood." Naruto smirked, packed up the tent, and walked ahead. "Let's go, follow me."

"Good."

A woman's heart is like the bottom of the sea, Naruto has never tried to guess what a young girl is thinking. Although he doesn't know what Tenten figured out last night, it's good that she's alright.

Seeing Tenten's delighted expression, his eyelids twitched, and he muttered something under his breath.

"Baffling."

In the morning, the two entered the heart of the Land of Whirlpools Island from the beach, one after the other. After some time, they finally found the cave that Naruto.

"This hole is so deep!" Tenten leaned down and looked inside, exclaiming in amazement.

"Slide down the side wall first, I'll go down and catch you from below." Naruto said, then skillfully jumped down, using the power of Chakra absorption to brake.

The journey went smoothly, and Naruto reached the bottom of the pit. He scanned the area but found nothing unusual.

"Get down!"

"Okay!" Tenten jumped down as well, and the journey was thrilling but safe.

The moment she landed, she curiously looked around, but was startled by the twenty-seven statues in the cave. Pointing at the several ferocious statues, she asked tremblingly.

"Naruto, what are those?"

"I don't know what it is, but it's definitely unusual to have it carved here." Naruto looked up; it was already noon, but no Nikko in.

"This is an extremely yin place, where Nikko never shines. Logically speaking, it makes no sense to build this altar here."

"Not an altar? Then what is it?" Tenten shrank his neck; the place was indeed cold and damp.

"Good question, I don't know either." Naruto waved his hand, signaling her to follow. "Don't ask so many questions, curiosity killed the cat."

"Okay." Tenten hurriedly followed. "Naruto, are you planning to steal something from here and take it with you?"

"What do you mean by stealing? Can you call it stealing something that belongs to our own clan?" Naruto turned around and Solemn Vow, "I'm just back to inherit the clan's property. Besides, I'm the clan leader."