"The rain finally stopped..."
After a long and quiet afternoon by the fire, the downpour outside the window that lasted for several hours finally stopped.
Naruto walked to the window and opened it. A cool air mixed with the smell of earth and grass and the unique moist feeling after rain rushed in.
Satsuki also raised her head and looked out the window. The tranquility after the rain made her feel an indescribable feeling of despair and sadness.
The rain stopped... Does it mean...Naruto is leaving too? That night... do I really want to stay alone in this house?
At the thought of having to face the long night alone and deeply missing his parents' safety, Satsuki lowered his head unconsciously.
At this moment, a hand gently landed on her head again, rubbing her hair with a familiar force.
Satsuki was slightly startled, and she found that she... actually liked this feeling. When the head is stroked, there is a feeling of being cherished and protected.
At the same time, a little doubt arose in her heart, why had Naruto never done such an intimate gesture to her before?
Naruto's inner thought is that he should take advantage of this rare opportunity to touch his head... wait for Fugaku and Mikoto to come back safe and sound.
With the care and company of his parents, Satsuki's mood has recovered. It is estimated that he will soon turn back to the proud "Uchiha Sasuke" he was before. I'm afraid it won't be so easy to touch his head so smoothly...
"Satsuki," Naruto took back his hand and asked in a brisk tone, "Would you like to go out for a walk together?"
"Going around?" Satsuki raised his head.
"Well," Naruto nodded, "Just go for a walk or something. The grove and the river where we practice together are nearby, right? The air after the rain is also very wet. Do you want to go for a walk there?"
Naruto knows that when you are in great sadness, the most taboo thing is to stay alone in a closed environment and do nothing. That will only allow negative emotions to continue to ferment.
Going out, getting in touch with yourself, and letting your body move is the best way to relieve yourself.
Satsuki was silent for a moment, and she vaguely understood Naruto's intention. He nodded slightly. "... Hmm."
This kind of straightforward agreement without any arrogant rebuttal made Naruto feel a little strange and unfamiliar.
In the past, with Satsuki's character, he would have turned his head awkwardly and said something like, "Since you have asked me to do this, I will reluctantly accompany you to the hotel."
"Then Tuo, let's go."
Naruto deliberately chose the walking location on the outskirts of the village, on a less traveled path near the river. His intention is obvious.
He didn't want those strange looks and whispers to hurt Satsuki again due to the opinions and discussions in the village regarding the identities of the survivors Uchiha Massacre and Satsuki.
The two of them stepped out of the empty Uchiha Clan Compound gate one after another and walked on the quiet path leading to the outside of Konoha.
The heavy rain that had just stopped washed the whole world clean, and the air was filled with a rich, refreshing and moist smell.
Along the way, Naruto worked hard to find topics and chatted with Satsuki about some of the most common things. For example, the recent training experience of Taijutsu, the recent courses taught by the Ninja Academy Iruka-sensei, and the mushrooms in the back mountain have been growing more recently...
He carefully avoided any topics that might be related to "family", "relatives", and "last night". He just tried to fill the silence between the two of them little by little with these light and trivial daily topics.
As he went on, a complicated and unspeakable emotion gradually spread in Satsuki's heart. She clearly felt that she was about to be thrown into an extremely lonely place, but there was always a warm force surrounding her, dispelling the chill.
Her eyes fell involuntarily on the blond boy beside her.
Naruto He... is different from me. He seems... to have never had a family, right? He has always been alone...
... What were you doing before?
The two of them lingered side by side for a while, then came to a bench by the river for people to rest. The bench was made of thick wood and looked very sturdy, but unfortunately, it was soaked by the heavy rain just now, so it was not a good place to sit and rest at the moment.
However, for Ninja, who can accurately control chakra, this little trouble is nothing.
Naruto stretched out his hand very self-consciously, his palm hovering above the wet surface of the bench, and a stream of pure chakra began to gather in his palm.
The next moment, the nature of the chakra quietly changed, taking on the unique warmth of Fire Release.
A chakra with just the right amount of heat gently enveloped the entire bench. Visible to the naked eye, the water droplets on the surface of the bench were quickly evaporated.
The wooden bench itself was undamaged, and even the temperature was only heated to a warm and pleasant level that would never cause burns.
After doing all this, Naruto put away his hands, turned around deliberately, showing a proud expression.
This look finally made Satsuki's tight and sad little face finally couldn't help but reveal a very faint but real smile.
The next steps will be smooth sailing. The two of them sat down on the bench that exuded comfortable warmth, feeling the warmth coming from under their bodies, dispelling the chill after the rain.
After sitting for a while, Naruto's eyes were attracted by a vending machine standing on the roadside not far away.
"You sit here and don't move." He stood up and said to Satsuki, "I'll buy two bottles of drinks and they'll be here soon."
Satsuki nodded, his eyes subconsciously following the back of Naruto, until he confirmed that he had only stopped in front of the vending machine within sight and was not far away, and then he breathed a sigh of relief in his heart.
However, she soon discovered that Naruto did not return immediately after inserting the coin, pressing the button, and taking out two cans of drinks.
Instead, he stood in front of the vending machine, head lowered, as if tinkering with something.
Why don't you come? What to do there?
But seeing that Naruto was still standing firmly within her line of sight, with no intention of leaving, she suppressed the urge to get up and pass the ceremony, but continued to look at the man with a slight uneasiness, waiting.