Fire Province, Hot Water City—formerly the Land of Hot Water.
Shinichi was currently accompanying Rin as they strolled through the streets.
Konoha had hot spring inns too, and this little town was nowhere near as prosperous as Konoha, but being outside the village made many things much more convenient.
For instance, they did not have to worry about running into acquaintances, which eased Rin's concerns.
The girl happily tugged Shinichi around as they wandered about, occasionally trying little roadside games like goldfish scooping and dart throwing.
Perhaps those things were not particularly interesting in themselves; what mattered was who was accompanying you.
That afternoon, after finishing their shopping, Rin soaked her entire body in the hot spring pool, washing away the day's exhaustion.
Shinichi walked over with a bath towel wrapped around his waist and a bottle of wine in hand.
"This is the women's bath. What are you doing in here?"
Hearing the sound, Rin knew who it was without even looking and immediately questioned him.
Shinichi deliberately froze for a moment before saying, "Is it? I thought this was the men's bath. Looks like I came to the wrong place."
Shinichi had rented out the entire inn, and Rin knew it. Besides, it was not as though the two had never seen each other naked.
Shinichi set the wine bottle beside the pool and filled two cups.
Rin said disdainfully, "Could you make that act any more fake?"
Shinichi chuckled. Then he slowly entered the hot spring as well. The towel around his waist immediately floated up and gradually came undone.
Steam filled the hall, making distant things hard to see clearly.
Rin placed the towel from her head over her chest and watched Shinichi beside her warily. "Why did you come in? Are you wearing underwear under