Naruto: Stop Testing Me, I Really Have Nothing to Do with Her

Naruto truly had no idea that Choji could do something so indescribable—skipping out on the bill while eating with family—it was more abstract than performance art!

This isn't eating; it's like slapping Choza Akimichi's face with a shoehorn. It's a total rip-off.

"Okay, I understand," he replied hastily.

Because of Hinata, Ino surprisingly chose to back down. Because of this, Ino would Naruto his best to satisfy Ino's every whim.

"What about Choji?" she asked.

"At most he'll get a beating, nothing serious will happen," Naruto waved his hand and said. "Besides, this guy brought this trouble on himself, so we don't need to worry about him."

"All right."

Naruto took some time to go to the hospital and paid for Choji's treatment to have his hands and feet put in casts.

"What? On what grounds?"

"Don't you understand? This is more realistic. Just say you fell off the Hokage Rock." Naruto waved his hand. "I'll have Uzuki Yugao find Anbu to be your witness, so no one will suspect you."

"But Shikamaru and the others all know, how can we keep this a secret?" Choji asked.

"You won't deny it?"

"Deny?"

"These kinds of things, once a few more people say they saw you fall off the Hokage Rock, even a lie becomes the truth," Naruto, sounding very experienced.

He had used this tactic before when he was too busy to be in two places at once. Before going to the Hyuga Clan's base to find Hinata, he had seven or eight people trick them into thinking he had gone somewhere else.

Then, by subtly guiding them to repeat it in front of Ino, the Naruto who never existed originally appeared.

Choji was skeptical, but then he saw Naruto put him on the ground and leave.

"Hey! Come back here!"

"Naruto! Where are you going? Come back and help me up!"

~~

Tanzaku Town.

"When did you get back?" Nohara Nao smiled and opened the door. "It's been a long time, almost half a year. You haven't come to see us at all?"

"Have they completely forgotten about us?"

"No, Konohagakure also participated in the recent war between the Five Great Nations." Naruto's face showed no weakness whatsoever. "I had to at least contribute some effort, so..."

"Oh, that war? I've heard about it too." Nohara Nao was as lively as ever. "So what was the outcome? Did they win?"

Nohara Nao has a very likable personality. She is smart and bold, and her words are very pleasant to hear. Once she sets her mind on a goal, she will pursue it relentlessly.

If she had been following the war, she would naturally have known that they had won.

But instead of saying that, she asked Naruto about the outcome of the war. As someone who was involved, she believed that knowing the result from him would quickly bring them closer.

This is a tactic that Naruto often uses, Nohara Nao has adapted and applied it effectively.

"We won, but the war isn't completely over." Naruto lay on the sofa, tilting his head back with a relaxed expression. "The Five Great Nations haven't decided how to distribute the spoils yet, and we might have to fight again."

"So, do you still want to join the war?" she asked worriedly.

"Of course I don't need to. Why should I care about the internal wars Five Great Nations? It's too boring." Naruto pulled her over and casually put his hand on her waist.

"By the way, Sara said she wants to learn some Ninjutsu. What do you think?" Nohara Nao demeanor extremely relaxed.

"She's already an adult, right? She has absolutely no foundation in Ninjutsu. Learning Ninjutsu wouldn't be very effective, would it?" Naruto asked hesitantly. "Why does she want to learn Ninjutsu?"

"Maybe it's just to pass the time, who knows?" Nohara Nao said. "From the time we traveled through the Dragon Vein to now, twenty years have passed, and Rōran has completely disappeared."

"If she continues like this and can't find a purpose in life, she will probably be trapped in the pain of her country's destruction."

"That makes sense. There's no need for her to learn Ninjutsu then, is there?" Naruto looked up at the second floor. "Isn't she home? Let's hear what she has to say. If she insists on learning, I'll think of something else."

"No, he went out to buy groceries."

"Is there any way to solve this?" Nohara Nao paused for a moment. "We can only learn some simple Ninjutsu, such as the Three Jutsu."

"That's not necessarily true. It depends on her own wishes. If she wants to restore her country, there's really no need for her to learn Ninjutsu," Naruto said.

"If Ninjutsu don't require much talent."

"Does such Ninjutsu really exist?" Nohara Nao looked at Naruto and said with a hint of jealousy, "Then I want to learn it too, I want to learn it together."

Naruto smiled upon hearing this, thinking to himself that she was indeed very clever.

"Let's ask her first, but she's not here right now."

"So, are you staying today?" Nohara Nao blinked and asked, looking at Naruto with hopeful eyes. "It's been so long since we last met. Can you stay a few more days?"

"I've been quite busy these past few days, so I'm afraid I can't make it for several days," Naruto said hesitantly. He couldn't possibly be out of contact for several days in a row. "But I can come back to see you in a few days."

His words were very insightful; whether "a few days" meant "a few days" was entirely up to him to decide. He agreed first, and he said he'd see her.

The key point is that Naruto and Sara didn't actually have much contact, which is why he was able to explain it so clearly.

By being considerate of her feelings, she couldn't refuse his advances. Through endless practice, these details became almost instinctive reactions for Naruto.

"Alright then, how about tonight? You can stay, right?"

"Um... I can be here this afternoon. Sorry, I..." Naruto was indeed quite busy, even though he could actually squeeze out two days of free time.

But he was used to not making promises too readily, so he only planned to dedicate an afternoon to it, with the rest depending on the situation. If Nohara Nao was feeling down, he would suddenly appear at night to give her a jolt.

This back-and-forth exchange provides far more emotional value than a casual agreement to spend the night together. The principle is the same: no one cherishes what they can easily obtain.

As expected, Nohara Nao somewhat disappointed upon hearing Naruto's words. Naruto's lips curled slightly, but he remained silent.

Suddenly, Nohara Nao leaned close to his ear and whispered something.

"If you don't leave tonight, I'll give you a surprise!"

"What surprise?" Naruto looked at her in confusion, thinking that it was probably going to be Maid Outfit or a nurse's uniform with black and white stockings? He had already seen those before, so they were all pretty much the same thing.

"Hmm, I have an idea. Actually, I've discussed it with Sara." She lowered her voice and whispered in Naruto's ear, as if afraid of being overheard.

Actually, the house is quite spacious on both floors, so even if Nohara Nao shouts loudly in the living room, she doesn't have to worry about the neighbors hearing her. On the contrary, speaking softly creates a more secretive atmosphere.

"Really?" Naruto swallowed hard, looking at her suspiciously. "Don't test me. Sara and I really have nothing to do with each other."

"I know," she said.

"No, you don't know, you're still testing me?" Naruto was almost swayed by her, but he still took precautions. "Sara and I haven't spoken much, but Queen of Roran did help me."

"I really wasn't testing you. I swear, everything I just said is true," Nohara Nao said earnestly. "I really did talk to Sara."

Nohara Nao had indeed spoken with Sara long ago, and she knew that these two, who did not belong to this world, could only rely on Naruto to survive from the moment they traveled through time.

Rather than waiting for something that's bound to happen sooner or later, it's better to take the initiative and seize control. If you drag it out, and things change, the two of you will be in different situations.

Sara wasn't a conservative person. She had been in this world for over a year and had gradually accepted the reality of her fallen kingdom. She was now just a princess of a fallen kingdom, knowing nothing.

Although she did not give up hope, she also understood that she needed Naruto to achieve many things, so she easily reached a consensus with Nohara Nao.

"Stop joking, and you still say it's not a test!" Naruto tickled her, Nohara Nao laughed and dodged away, her voice changing as she played around.

The living room was filled with rhythmic, soothing music. An hour later, when the music was almost completely inaudible, Nohara Nao grabbed him.

"Take a break."

"If it works, it works; if it doesn't, it doesn't. What's the big deal about taking a break?" Naruto retorted with a smile.

"No, you've really come to take my life, haven't you?"

Nohara Nao wobbled to her feet from the sofa, staggered a few times, finally managed to touch the edge of the sofa to steady herself, and took a deep breath before speaking.

"I'm going to take a shower first. Remember to open the door for Sara later; she doesn't seem to have her key."

"Okay," Naruto replied.

After she entered the bathroom, Naruto turned around and casually picked up a manga from the bookshelf on the left. He felt somewhat bored; this had almost become a chore for him.

The main problem is that he doesn't know what's wrong with his body; everything seems normal, yet it seems like he's overdoing it. He only warmed up once, and the opposing athlete had already voluntarily left the field.

It's like a race where he never even reached the finish line before the other athlete had already given up. Although he enjoyed the race, winning without reaching the finish line doesn't seem to mean much.

Almost instinctively, the words that Nohara Nao had said earlier came to his mind, and he couldn't help but feel a little tempted.

While it's unclear whether she's telling the truth, it seems that adding another athlete could keep the game going if one opponent isn't enough on the field.

Naruto has no rivals in the 10-kilometer race, Nohara Nao's limit is only 3 kilometers, or even just 2 kilometers. She herself admits that she's not good at it and suggests asking for help in a relay race.

In other words, because Naruto's stamina is so good, running ten kilometers is more than enough for him. As a result, he wins too easily every time he fights Nohara Nao.

This would inevitably diminish the meaning of the competition if it continued, so Nohara Nao proposed a new relay race format. The only difference was that Naruto would still run the entire race, while she would bring in an outside helper to take over and run the whole race.

This foreign aid was Sara was a novice. To make the competition fairer, Nohara Nao proposed that she run three kilometers and Sara run two kilometers for the first five kilometers.

She ran the last five kilometers with Sara, but Naruto had to slow down and couldn't deliberately target the two of them.

Naruto, unsure of the legitimacy of the competition, didn't readily agree, replying that he'd think about it. He wanted to hear Sara's opinion first, fulfilling Sara wish before making any decisions.

About ten minutes later, there was a knocking sound on the door.

Naruto instinctively went to open the door, and as soon as he opened it, he saw Sara standing outside with her ears red and her head down, carrying a basket of vegetables. She didn't dare to look at Naruto at all.

"You're back from grocery shopping?"

"Okay." Sara nodded hurriedly. "I'll go to the kitchen and wash the vegetables first. Do you... do you want some of the new tea? I'll boil some water and make it for you."

"Alright." Naruto was much calmer than her. "You don't need to worry about me. I'll find something to do myself."

"Okay." Sara hurried into the kitchen.

Half an hour later, Nohara Nao came out of the bathroom, drying her wet hair, and asked a question when she saw the vegetable basket hanging there.

"Is Sara back?"

"Yeah, in the kitchen." Naruto said, sipping his new tea while reading a manga.

Nohara Nao ignored Naruto, dried her wet hair, and went into the kitchen. Soon, the kitchen was filled with playful noises. It seemed to be Sara who gasped softly, followed by Nohara Nao's laughter.

At noon, the three of them sat around the table eating, and no one spoke.

After the meal, the two women cleaned up the dishes together.

In the afternoon, the three of them went out for a stroll around Tanzaku Town. Even though the two girls were very familiar with Tanzaku Town, they still chattered excitedly the whole way and bought quite a few things.

The money Naruto left them from the beginning was enough for them to live on for decades, so they didn't have to worry about not having enough money. The two even bought Naruto new slippers.

Even though they already had several pairs of new slippers at home, they still decided to buy them.

As the sun set, the group returned to the house and rested for a while. Instead of cooking, they bought some food and beer. It wasn't until it gradually got dark that they set the food and drinks on the table.

Nohara Nao somehow got hold of a pack of red candles. She drew all the curtains in the living room and bedroom, and the lights were off, except for a few candles lit on the dining table.

There's one near the sofa, and one each in the bedroom and bathroom.

Naruto also started to find it interesting. The moment the curtains were drawn and the candles were lit, a dim and ambiguous atmosphere was created. The distance that had been there for so long instantly blurred, and even Sara became more talkative.

"Cheers!"

The three glasses clinked together, Nohara Nao's eyes narrowed into crescent moons. The Kakkō danced on their faces; Sara, her face flushed, sipped her drink slowly.

"Sara, why do you want to learn Ninjutsu?" Naruto sensed the opportune moment and smoothly steered the conversation. "Don't be shy, can you tell me?"

He didn't use phrases like "you can tell me," but rather guided Sarah to share, subconsciously leading Sara to accept the fact that the three of them were a group.

"I'm fine." Sara seemed a little drunk too. She wanted to take another sip to bolster her courage, but Naruto took it away.