Please... Keep an Eye on Me!

Yūhi Kurenai had no idea that she was being targeted by someone. After seeing Ishikawa Tatsuki's first date going smoothly, she was genuinely happy for her friend.

"Since Tatsuki is alright, then we..." Hong smiled and turned her gaze to Shuichi, intending to ask him to leave together.

But before she could finish speaking, she realized the atmosphere was a bit off.

Now only a man and a woman remain in the room, and Shuichi suddenly stares at her with an extremely gentle gaze, a gaze that seems to contain a meaning that has not appeared for many years.

"Shui... Shuichi-kun, why are you looking at me like that?" Kurenai was flustered by the gaze and unconsciously took a step back.

"It's nothing!" Shuichi's expression softened slightly. Realizing his first offensive had been too intense, he thought for a moment and then tentatively extended an invitation, "It's lunchtime now, how about... coming to my house for a get-together? And you can help me with some things while you're at it."

"Handling something?" Hong's heart was pounding faster and faster; she was starting to suspect that Shuichi was going to "make a move" on her.

Hearing his words calmed her down a bit, and she couldn't help but feel curious. Could it be that he really needed her help?

What trouble is so bad that you can't handle it?

Shuichi smiled mysteriously, "You'll see when you get there. Come with me. I've been researching ways to cook a lot of new ingredients lately, and no one else has tried them yet."

After saying that, he waited quietly for the other person's response. The two already had a good relationship, but after what had just happened, it seemed that something inexplicable had changed.

Hong, who had nothing urgent to do, couldn't refuse his invitation, so she accepted and they walked side by side toward a corner of the village.

In the evening, Shuichi's house exuded a quiet beauty.

A faint, almost inaudible commotion could be heard outside the wall. The surrounding area had become quite lively, though not nearly as bustling as the city center, due to the high value of his residency.

Not long after, two figures entered the Villa, and warm-toned lights lit up in different rooms, giving the whole house a cozy and comfortable feel.

On the second-floor balcony, Shuichi led Hong over and said, "Then, I'll go prepare the ingredients. It'll only take a little while."

After he turned and left, Yūhi Kurenai looked at the dining table, her heart began to race again, and her cheeks flushed instantly.

No wonder she thought so much, because there was only one chair in front of the dining table, which was a tiny row of sofas.

Judging from their physiques, even if they sat side by side, they would be quite close, which is even more excessive than a normal date between a man and a woman. If outsiders discovered them, they would probably all assume they were a couple.

"Is Shuichi-kun trying to woo me?" Hong sat down, resting her chin on her hands, touching her slightly flushed face, her eyes gazing dreamily at the full moon. "That annoying guy, at least give me some time to prepare, he's so direct..."

"Is this what he calls a fierce offensive in his tactics? What should I do...?"

Hong's thoughts were in constant flux. She had long harbored feelings for Shuichi and would certainly not refuse to develop a romantic relationship with him, but agreeing decisively seemed to be letting him off too easily, leaving her completely confused.

"Tap tap..."

Suddenly, the approaching footsteps behind her startled her awake. Turning around, she saw several Shuichi carrying plates as they approached. Unsurprisingly, they were all members of the Earth Clone servant team.

After they finished serving the dishes, Shuichi carried over a large box that was half his height, gently placed it on the ground, and opened it. Inside was a standard-format bottle rack, filled with a large number of glass bottles.

He kept taking bottles out and placing them on the table, smiling at Hong, "These are all things I wanted you to help me get rid of. I have a whole bunch of them at home, and I don't know if you'll like them."

After doing all this, Shuichi casually sat down on the sofa, deliberately keeping a certain distance to show that he was a gentleman. "Let's eat!"

"Shuichi-kun, you're so mean! I misjudged you before!"

Yūhi Kurenai as a monkey's bottom. The dishes on the table included wasabi octopus, takoyaki, salmon, and various bottles filled with different kinds of alcohol, such as shochu, Sake, rice wine, and vodka, all of which were high-end products from the Land of Fire.

If you say you like fish, it's easier to find out, but once these drinks are served, the nature of the conversation changes.

Drinking is a deeply hidden hobby of hers. Since she is still a minor, she often drinks secretly and even hides it from her parents. Logically, no one else should know. But Shuichi's actions now are definitely not a coincidence, otherwise why would she even choose the right type of drink?

Seeing Shuichi slightly innocent expression, she blushed and, without caring whether they were being too intimate, pinched his waist hard with two fingers. "Ouch!"

"How can you treat a girl like an enemy, even going so far as to gather intelligence on her?" Hong stared at him with wide eyes and said in a coquettish voice, "You actually used the same tricks I told you about a few days ago on me, it's absolutely outrageous..."

Looking back now, Shuichi's use of routines was truly masterful; he genuinely executed them effortlessly.

Taking advantage of Ishikawa Tatsuki's arranged marriage, he invited her to his home and then made his move based on her love of drinking.

He had just said these things a few days ago, and yet he brazenly used them in person. This is utterly speechless.

"Ouch, be a little gentler..." Shuichi cried out, sounding slightly pained.

He couldn't very well say, "I saw it in the formula book," so he had to silently take the blame, thinking to himself, "I miscalculated a little, but it's okay, I've achieved my goal!"

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Shuichi quickly grabbed Yūhi Kurenai's hand and gently massaged the calluses on her fingers and palms, startling her so much that she almost jumped up.

But after a while, she was reluctant to take it back, so she could only blush and turn her head away, not daring to look him in the eye again.

"If it's someone you don't care about, why would you bother paying attention?" Shuichi squinted, revealing what he considered his gentlest smile. "Only when facing someone you love will you care about their every move."

Hong felt her heart pounding unusually clearly, and her face flushed intensely. "Are these words another of your prepared tactics? Are you planning to two-time me from now on...?"

Shuichi once again displayed his exceptional ninja skills, his mind racing as he said, "That's hard to say, so to prevent other girls in Konoha from being harmed, I'd like to ask you to come..."

"Keep an eye on me!"

"Keep an eye on me!"

"Keep an eye on me!"

"..."

As those words echoed wildly in Hong's mind, she suddenly felt a chill in her palm. Shuichi smiled and said to her, "This is my house key. To make things easier for you, I'm handing it over to you now!"

"Then you'd better be careful, I might come to check from time to time..." Hong withdrew her hand, clutching the key tightly, and whispered.

While the two were enjoying their candlelight dinner, a third person was actually witnessing it.

Standing atop the highest point of the roof, Kotaro stared wide-eyed in disbelief, thinking, "What? That's it? A good girl is going to be ruined by Shuichi?"

It desperately wanted to warn Red that the real killer moves were the unexpected physical contact and the monetary offensive that followed—a trap within a trap!

But Shuichi that moment. Before Kotaro could even open his beak, he was so frightened by that glance from below that he felt a chill run down his spine.

The murderous intent in those eyes was countless times stronger than what it had faced after causing havoc at the Villa last time. It had no doubt that if it dared to ruin the dinner atmosphere, it would be cooked as a midnight snack tonight.

"What's wrong, Shuichi-kun?"

"It's nothing, my cooking skills are pretty good, aren't they?" Shuichi said casually, continuing to refill her glass.

Under the moonlight, their bodies drew closer and closer, and before long they were almost touching.

In the end, a slightly tipsy woman even rested her head on his shoulder, while Kotaro could only watch helplessly, not daring to make a sound...