"I'm poor. My sister spent all my money, and I had to save up for ages before I could bring myself to buy my toys." Nawaki was practically on the verge of tears as he spoke.
Feeling that Nawaki's story was too miserable, Choza Akimichi reluctantly squeezed a bag of dried mangoes out from between his teeth and tossed it to him.
"Next time, you have to treat me to something too." Choza immediately began keeping score.
"Don't worry. Once I get rich, I'll definitely take you out to eat, drink, and have fun!" Nawaki patted Choza on the back.
"Hmph, you? Get rich? That's nothing but a pipe dream. Wake up already." Hyuga Matsuba laughed until his stomach hurt.
"Yeah, give it back." Hearing that, Choza immediately regretted it and wanted his snack back.
But Nawaki was quick-eyed and quick-handed, hurriedly hiding the snack away.
"It's just one bag of dried mangoes. You have a whole mountain of snacks, so why are you fussing over something so small?" Nawaki promptly opened the bag, and the fruity scent of dried mango drifted away on the wind.
Hyuga Matsuba was speechless. "You brat, one bag of dried mangoes was enough to tame you completely."
Nawaki grinned cheekily. "What's wrong with that? I haven't had money to buy dried mangoes in ages!"
"Wow, you guys are being punished to stand here, yet you're living pretty comfortably." Shikaku Nara, who had just opened his eyes, slowly stretched.
"You got punished to stand here too?" Nawaki asked curiously.
"You could figure it out with your toes. He was definitely caught sleeping; those painted-on eyes are way too obvious." Hyuga Matsuba spoke lazily. The moment they had walked out of the classroom, Shikaku Nara had fallen asleep. He had even disguised himself by drawing eyes and sticking them onto his face.
Shikaku Nara smiled, then plucked a bag of chips from Choza Akimichi's mountain of snacks.
Class was over, and when the teacher came out of the classroom and saw the cheerful scene in the hallway, she was so angry she did not know what to say.
Hyuga Matsuba happily played with his toy, Nawaki shouted encouragement from the side and began analyzing the battle, thick stacks of snack bags sat beside Choza, and Shikaku lay sprawled on the ground, sleeping like the dead.
"You little brats, you'll pay for this someday!" With that, Ueno Juri returned to the office.
"Did the teacher get angry?"
"Don't worry. We get Teacher Ueno angry every day. It's normal!"
"Nawaki, were those two girls who introduced themselves earlier from your clan?"
"Matsuba, you're really sharp. They are from our place, but they live with the elderly. I think I saw them a long time ago." Nawaki thought about it.
"The Uzumaki Clan has always been close to your clan. You're probably the only idiot who doesn't know about this." Hyuga Matsuba returned the toy to Nawaki. It was too cold outside, and he felt that going back to sleep would be more comfortable.
"Tch." Kushina's deskmate had returned, her face now full of disdain.
Hyuga Matsuba gave her a casual glance and did not want to trouble the girl.
Unexpectedly, Hyuga Matsuba ignored her outright. Kushina suddenly felt awkward and hit him again.
"Hey, why are you still acting like this? Are you really going to nitpick with a girl? You hit me first, and you hit me so hard."
"I never get angry when fighting with little girls."
"Who are you calling a little girl? Which eye of yours saw that I'm little?" Kushina jumped up.
"Haha, where do you think I meant was little?" Hyuga Matsuba looked toward Kushina's flat chest.
"Bah! You shameless pervert!" Kushina looked guarded, feeling that Hyuga Matsuba was truly a hooligan.
Hyuga Matsuba smiled faintly and said with a cheeky grin, "There's nothing worth looking at anyway, so why are you covering it up? Save that for when you grow into a young lady!"
"Shut your mouth!" Kushina was both embarrassed and angry, her face flushing bright red.
"Hey, did you know your nickname is Big Apple? You actually do look a bit like one." Hyuga Matsuba leaned close to Kushina's ear.
"You're asking for a beating!" Kushina grabbed Hyuga Matsuba's arm and bit down hard.
"A desperate dog starts biting people?!" Hyuga Matsuba suppressed the energy surging through his body. Fortunately, he reacted quickly, or Kushina's little teeth would not have survived.
The technique Hyuga Matsuba had learned could make his limbs incomparably hard. Though it was not as powerful as Armament Haki, it was still a major challenge for Kushina's teeth.
"Hmph." Kushina released his arm and spat to the side. Curious, she whispered, "It looks fair and smooth, but it bites like a leather shoe. It's hard to bite through."
She had used so much force just now, yet there was not the slightest mark on Hyuga Matsuba's arm. Kushina found it unbelievable.
"Matsuba, what are you two doing here?!" Nawaki ran over, having seen what had just happened.
"I knew you were a Ximen Qing! Mikoto only took such a short break, and you've already hooked up with Kushina. You're a scumbag!" Nawaki once again took the moral high ground.
Nawaki's voice was huge, drawing countless looks from the people around them. Everyone looked at Hyuga Matsuba and the girl beside him. Many boys shot him hateful looks, though their hearts were filled with envy.
But all the girls were jealous of Kushina.
Hyuga Matsuba curled his lip and said nothing. Whatever he said, everyone would still have something to say about it, so why waste his breath? Besides, there really was something a little different between the two of them.
If someone else tried biting Hyuga Matsuba's arm, he would definitely show no mercy and shatter all their teeth without giving them any face.
"Don't get the wrong idea, everyone. There's nothing between us!" Kushina also felt rather embarrassed.
"Wow, look, she's getting shy. With that hair color, doesn't she look especially like an apple? How could she compare to the cute and beautiful Mikoto? Hyuga Matsuba likes a girl like this? Has water gotten into his brain?"
"You... you..." Kushina felt wronged and immediately began to cry.
"Enough. That's enough!" Hyuga Matsuba cut in coldly.
Hyuga Matsuba looked as though he was truly angry. Even Nawaki, who was usually the most mischievous, obediently restrained himself, and the other students became much more well-behaved as well.
"Honestly, your hair is quite pretty. Your chubby little face is also part of what makes you special. I don't know about anything else, but in this school, only Mikoto is prettier than you. How could any other girl be better-looking than you?"
"Are you telling the truth?" Tears swirled in Kushina's eyes as she spoke softly.
"Of course. Just look around our class—what girl can compare to you?"
"Hmph." Kushina broke into a smile through her tears, then wiped them away. "Matsuba, you're a good person. I swear, when we go home later, I'll let you off this time. I've decided not to beat you up for now. I'll spare your life."
Hyuga Matsuba did not know what to say. So this seemingly delicate little girl had been planning to arrange a fight after school.
Before you continue