Karuma Yakumo

After successfully fooling a group of young girls, Narak had everyone sit down in a circle.

The wild boar had been roasting for quite a while, so it was about time to start eating.

In fact, this wasn't Narak's first time barbecuing in the wild. Whenever he had gone out to train alone in the past, he would simply catch some prey in the forest whenever he got hungry, then set up a rack and light a fire.

He had long since become an expert at barbecuing. As for seasonings and such, heh... the system wasn't stingy in that regard. After checking in for so many years, Narak felt that even if he stopped wanting to work one day, he could open a general store and support himself. If the system space didn't have unlimited capacity, that pile of miscellaneous items probably would have filled it long ago.

Narak removed the wild boar, its outer skin roasted golden brown, and placed it on the tablecloth. Then he drew his Zanpakuto... swish, swish, swish... and the wild boar was instantly sliced into pieces!

If Ōetsu Nimaiya in the Spirit King's Palace in the distant Soul Society had seen this, he would have been furious... I painstakingly forged that Zanpakuto, and you're using it to slice roast meat?!

"Come on, come on, don't be shy, everyone. Dig in!"

Narak greeted everyone politely.

"Thanks for the hospitality. Let's eat!" *3

As soon as he finished speaking, Naruto, Chōji, and Kiba each picked up a leg and began gnawing furiously, completely disregarding how hot the freshly roasted meat was.

Shikamaru and Shino, meanwhile, leisurely picked up a piece of meat and savored it in their mouths.

"Hmm... I never would have guessed that Big Brother Narak was this good at cooking!"

After taking just one bite, Shikamaru couldn't help praising him.

Narak smiled, brought the remaining leg before him, and instantly cut it into small pieces with his Zanpakuto. He placed them in front of the girls, then picked up a piece and tasted it himself.

"Mm, not bad. It's roasted just right. This is my first time roasting such a large wild boar. I thought I might mess it up, but the flavor turned out pretty well!"

Narak took another taste and gave his own cooking an approving evaluation. Then he fed a piece to Hanabi, who was in his arms.

The three girls watched the boys wolfing down the meat and couldn't help hesitating.

"What should I do? It looks so delicious. I want some too..."

"Ahhh, why don't we just eat one piece? One piece shouldn't make us fat, right?"

"Mm-hmm, then let's just eat one piece. We'll taste it and stop there!"

Thus, the three of them each picked up a piece and put it into their mouths. The next moment...

"Oh my god... It's so delicious! I never knew barbecued meat could taste this good!"

"Not bad, not bad. The key is that this barbecue is fatty without being greasy. The oil has already been roasted out, so there's no greasy feeling at all when you take a bite."

"I wonder what seasonings were used. I can only taste honey; I can't make out the others. When I bite into it, it's as if hundreds or thousands of flavors explode in my mouth all at once. Oh my god... how can barbecue be this delicious?"

"Big Brother Narak is so amazing... He's handsome, incredibly strong, and so gentle with people. Now he's even an amazing cook too. Oh my god, I've completely fallen for him!"

"Get lost, Ino-pig! Why don't you look in a mirror? How could Big Brother Narak possibly be interested in you?"

After just one bite, Ino and Sakura were completely conquered by the barbecue before them!

"Sigh... I never knew Big Brother's cooking was this good. It's so delicious! I want to eat the barbecue Big Brother makes every day!"

After taking a bite of meat, little Hanabi stared at her brother with admiration, her eyes practically sparkling with stars.

Hinata, meanwhile, wasn't surprised in the slightest. Clearly, she had known about this for years.

Two years ago, Hinata and Naruto had begun secretly running to the place where Narak trained to find him. As time passed, they naturally ended up eating the barbecue Narak made, so the two of them had long known that Narak possessed superb culinary skills.

After a great deal of eating and drinking, everyone lay on the ground in satisfaction, rubbing their stomachs with both hands to aid digestion.

"Sigh... I can't do it anymore. I can't eat another bite..."

"I'm so full... I really wish I could eat Big Brother Narak's barbecue every day."

The girls, however, were suffering and enjoying themselves at the same time!

"Honestly, how many pounds am I going to gain from this meal? It's over. If I turn into a huge fatty, no one will want me anymore..."

"Big Brother Narak, if I get fat, it'll all be your fault. You have to take responsibility!"

Narak rolled his eyes. You weren't like this while you were eating. Back then, you hated having only one mouth. Now that you've finished eating, you're settling the score with me? Heh... women change so quickly!

"All right, everyone's eaten and had their fill. We should probably head back for today. I'll call you all out for barbecue again another day!" Narak stood up, clapped his hands, and spoke to everyone.

"Ah... We're going back already? Honestly, I still wanted to spend more time with Big Brother Narak!" Ino pouted and spoke in a pitiful tone.

"Ino-pig, I knew you were up to no good. Tch, didn't you say you liked Sasuke before? Why are you clinging to Big Brother Narak now?" Sakura mocked Ino from the side.

"Tch, that just proves people can't be compared. I used to think Sasuke was so outstanding, but after meeting Big Brother Narak, I finally learned what true excellence was. Compared to Big Brother Narak, Sasuke was left several streets behind. Hey, Forehead, from today onward, you can have Sasuke. From now on, Big Brother Narak is the only male god in my heart!"

"Damn it, you Ino-pig! Who said I wanted you to give him to me?"

The two of them began arguing again!

Narak couldn't help smiling bitterly. He had no idea what was going on. Perhaps his charm really was too great. In the original story, the two of them had loved Sasuke desperately, but after meeting Narak, they had switched their target to him. Sakura was still all right, but Ino had completely abandoned Sasuke.

After cleaning up, everyone headed toward the village.

As they passed a small hill, Narak's sharp eyes spotted someone standing on top of it.

That person wore a dark-colored dress and had long black hair reaching her waist. A hair clip held back the side of her bangs facing Narak. At that moment, she was holding a paintbrush and painting something on the canvas in front of her!

Narak looked at her curiously twice. The person seemed to have noticed. After all, there were ten people in Narak's group, including the unruly Naruto and Kiba, who had been noisily bickering the entire way. It would have been difficult not to attract attention.

She turned her head, facing Narak directly, and glanced at them. Then she turned back and continued painting on her own.

Judging by her appearance, she seemed to be about Narak's age—eleven or twelve at most.

Seeing her continue painting without a care, Narak suddenly became interested. He walked over and said, "Hello. Sorry to bother you. My name is Hyuga Naraku!"

The girl glanced at Narak, who was greeting her. She lowered her head at first, seemingly unwilling to acknowledge him, but then raised it again and timidly said to Narak, "Hello. My name is Yakumo!"

"Yakumo?" Hearing the name, Narak froze for a moment. So it's her!