In Sync

The boring first day of school was over, but that morning had been rather unusual.

Genma had first met Kurenai Yuhi and trained with her for a while that morning. When he returned to the classroom, he met Asuma, yet Asuma seemed to be meeting Kurenai for the first time.

Just as Shiranui Genma was feeling confused, Kurenai took the initiative to sit beside him instead of Asuma...

He simply could not make sense of that strange move.

With something like that bottled up inside him, how could he sleep peacefully? So he woke up especially early that morning, the first one in the entire family to rise.

After exercising for a while and taking a bath, he went to the living room.

There, he found quite a few dishes laid out, including delicacies he and his mother had worked out together.

His mother Riya truly was amazing. Five years after his transmigration, he only had to mention something briefly, and a few days later, she could make whatever food he wanted.

Things like soup dumplings, shumai, tangyuan, and pancakes were no challenge at all for Riya.

While marveling at how fortunate his father was, he also felt incredibly happy.

After washing his hands, he waited for Riya before starting to eat.

Riya lovingly patted his head when she saw how obediently Genma had waited for her.

Seeing Genma act like that, Hideyoshi's face darkened slightly. It was obvious that he suspected preferential treatment.

"Speaking of which, someone started chasing girls the moment school began. That seems a little immoral, doesn't it? Judging by their ages, she should be two years younger than you~"

"W-Wow, you were following me!"

Genma instantly realized something was off. He knew that for Hideyoshi, making pointed insinuations was as easy as breathing.

Yet Hideyoshi seemed to have built a wall around his face, maintaining his smile the whole time. "What are you talking about? An adult went to see whether a child who had been suppressed for two years had suddenly let himself loose. How could that be called following you? Do you understand fatherly love? Your dad loves you so much, and you say that about your dad!"

"Heh, don't listen to your father's nonsense. I was the one who told him to go. So, do you like that girl? This is the first time you've ever taken the initiative to talk to a girl. If there's anything you don't understand, ask your mother. Forget about asking your father. And what was that girl's name? Which family was she from?"

Faced with Hideyoshi's sharp-tongued nonsense, Riya shot him a warning glare before gently starting a conversation with Genma.

Although his mother had directly neutralized the malice coming from his father, her enthusiasm made it seem as though she had already picked out a daughter-in-law, which Genma found hard to handle.

He had never even been in a relationship before. Even when girls had liked him, he had never managed to talk with them much.

While talking with Kurenai had felt comfortable, whether she liked him or not was still completely up in the air.

They had only met twice in total. Kurenai had sat beside him only because he was a senior who knew a lot about the school.

Once Kurenai had learned everything she wanted to know and gradually experienced it herself, she might leave someone as untalented at romance as him.

But his mother's voice was so gentle that he could not bring himself to ignore her. He could only say with a troubled expression, "Mom, that girl is Kurenai Yuhi, from the Yuhi Clan. She comes from a prominent family. She might not even think much of me. Nothing's certain yet, so please don't worry about it~"

Seeing Genma so dejected, Riya became even more delighted. Folding her arms, she asked, "Mom only wants to ask you one thing. Do you like that girl or not?"

When asked whether he liked her, Genma was not entirely sure himself.

As for Kurenai Yuhi, whether now or in the future, her looks were beyond question. Countless shut-ins had secretly sighed over how lucky Asuma was, which said it all.

Based solely on his foolish romantic history from before, he definitely liked a beautiful girl like Kurenai Yuhi.

And after talking to Kurenai so many times, he often felt that they got along remarkably well. But one of life's greatest misconceptions made him bury that feeling deep inside.

One of life's three greatest misconceptions was thinking she liked you. But what if she did not? How awkward would that be?

On top of that, the world was far from peaceful now, and his own future was uncertain. Would falling in love too early affect his training? Would it leave him unable to protect that love in the end?

Confusion, fear, and worry gradually clouded Genma's face. After thinking for a long time, he slowly said, "For now, there's nothing about her I dislike. I think she's pretty nice."

Yet as soon as he finished speaking, a sense of unwillingness welled up in his heart.

Riya saw Genma's reaction clearly. As the person with the highest standing in the family, she first glanced at Hideyoshi, who was usually so unserious. At that moment, he was dipping his finger in tea and drawing circles.

Riya rolled her eyes and ignored Hideyoshi, then placed a hand on Genma's head.

"You don't need to hide your true feelings like this. Besides, you can't hide them anyway. You may be a little different from other children, but I know your habits when you're feeling down better than anyone.

If you like her, you like her. If you don't, you don't. It only takes one sentence to say it. Your father and I aren't strangers."

Feeling Riya's warmth, the gloom in Shiranui Genma's heart gradually faded away.

"Mm, your mother's right. Your dad may usually be unserious, but he knows right from wrong when it matters. If you like something, go experience it. Even if you end up battered and bruised, that's still your own choice. Besides, you study well and know your limits. Starting early isn't such a big deal."

Though the feeling of having everything seen through was uncomfortable, after living together for so long, he had long regarded the two people before him as his true parents.

Seeing his parents support him so much, Shiranui Genma quietly made up his mind.

After finishing breakfast, Genma patted his stomach in satisfaction, slung on his backpack, grabbed his lunch, and prepared to leave.

"Huh? Why is it so much heavier?"

When he lifted the rough cloth bag, it seemed much larger than usual. Looking at Riya and Hideyoshi, he found their eyes full of amusement.

"Whether you want to conquer a woman or a man, the usual method is to start with their stomach. And our family's food will make sure she never wants to leave!"

Hideyoshi spouted nonsense like a comic performer. Riya immediately rolled her eyes at him and said irritably,

"What do you mean, never wants to leave? You make us sound like bad people. She's still a little girl, at the age when she loves to eat. If we can win over her stomach, the difficulty will definitely drop by quite a bit!"

Genma was completely dumbfounded by this approach. Riya looked gentle as ever, while Hideyoshi kept raising his brows, giving Genma a strange feeling.

Am I being led astray?

Genma asked himself that, but quickly denied it. His instincts told him that what had just happened would only benefit him.

Since there was no harm in it, what was there to dwell on?

After bidding farewell to his parents, Genma headed to school with light steps.

At noon, the moment he had carefully prepared for finally arrived. Genma went to the cafeteria, took out his lunchbox, and brought along Kurenai's share as well.

But he had practically brought two lunches. How could he get Kurenai to accept it without feeling awkward? That gave Genma quite a headache.

With the mindset that death came sooner or later anyway, Genma gritted his teeth and hurried back to the classroom.

Kurenai was resting her chin on her hand, eagerly waiting. Sitting in her chair, she swung her little raised feet back and forth, looking playful and adorable.

The moment she saw Genma arrive, her beautiful eyes lit up.

"Wow, you ran really fast. Say, if you'd taken the entrance exam, could you have beaten Kakashi~?"

"Uh, maybe I'm just used to carrying things. In a few days, I might not be able to outrun them anymore. As for Kakashi, it's hard to say~"

"Hey, even if you haven't competed yet, you should have a little more confidence in yourself. Someone like Kakashi—I'll knock one down with a single punch someday!"

As she spoke, Kurenai swung her soft little fist, punching again and again as if Kakashi's dead-fish face were right in front of her. Her fists cut through the air with bursts of wind.

Taking advantage of the opening, Genma first set down Kurenai's portion, then brought out his own oversized lunchbox.

"Mmm~ Your lunchbox is huge! It's almost three times the size of mine~"

"Cough, I train pretty hard, so I eat more~" Genma said as he opened the lunchbox.

"Wow, what are all these dishes? There are so many compartments too. It looks like there are so many different kinds~"

Just as Genma was wondering what excuse he could use to invite Kurenai to eat with him, he realized that from the moment he had taken out the large lunchbox, her eyes had never left it.

"Um... Kurenai, why don't we eat together? My mom made all of this herself. You can't buy it anywhere else~"

The beautiful presentation of Genma's lunch, its rich variety, and the tempting aroma drifting from it all attracted Kurenai. But reason told her that she should not covet someone else's lunch.

"No, you might not have enough to eat. Your parents prepared so much because it should suit your physical needs."

"Uh, no, no. They always prepare extra for me, saying it'll help me get along better with my classmates~"

"Really?"

"Mm... Really!"

Half convinced and half doubtful, Kurenai picked up her chopsticks, leaned toward Genma's large lunchbox, and took a pretty piece of shumai.

"Then... I'll eat?"

"Mm, don't be polite." For some reason, seeing Kurenai look so pitiful while worrying so much about him, Genma immediately picked up his own chopsticks and started placing all kinds of dishes into Kurenai's lunchbox.

Under Kurenai's dumbfounded gaze, he quickly piled her lunchbox into a little mountain.

After doing all that, Genma sat upright with a red face and began eating from his own lunchbox without looking sideways.

Seeing Genma like this, Kurenai found it a little strange, but her hunger made her give up on pursuing the matter.

After eating for a while, perhaps because she had been conquered by the food or something, Kurenai became especially happy and picked out some dishes she had brought from home.

"Here, fair exchange. You should try my family's food too~"

Genma received a piece of beef. It was fragrant and tender, cooked to perfection.

"Delicious. Kurenai, I didn't expect your family's food to be so good too~"

But Kurenai made a bitter face.

"How about we trade more often from now on? My dad only knows how to make Roasted Meat. I'm almost sick of it, and I made the rice balls myself. Here, try the rice balls I made~"

"Huh? These are really good too~"

Although they were not as good as his mother's cooking, they had been made by a girl herself. Even if they had tasted bad, they would still have carried a different flavor.

But they really did taste excellent.

Like an elegant flower, they looked plain and unremarkable from afar. Only upon drawing close could one discover the flower's delicate beauty and its alluring hidden fragrance.