Snow Charm

Although he found the conclusion hard to believe, Naruto still trusted it, because Yu had never lied to him.

"Yu, where did you get such a powerful Ninja Beast? Could you tell me? I want to catch one too—preferably one even stronger than Sasuke's." Naruto waggled his eyebrows at Yu as he spoke.

Naruto was very interested in where his friend had gotten such a powerful Ninja Beast, but he was even more interested in catching one stronger than Red Cat so he could get one over on Sasuke. Nothing made Naruto happier than beating Sasuke.

Back when Naruto had beaten Sasuke in their three matches, he'd celebrated by emptying his wallet and eating Ichiraku Ramen for several days.

However, Naruto had never considered that there was no way he could catch a Ninja Beast of that caliber right now.

"No need to trouble yourself by catching one. I brought one for you, too." Faced with Naruto's complete lack of tact, Yu could only shake his head helplessly.

Naruto's priorities were always different from everyone else's. Yu couldn't imagine how Naruto could possibly shoulder the responsibility of saving the world. He could only marvel at how wondrous the world was, and how anything could happen.

With that, Yu led Naruto to the trees beside the training ground, where he had left the cage he'd brought earlier.

"Here! This is my gift to you. You can't refuse it! It's just a little something from a friend, so you have to accept it," Yu told Naruto.

Naruto seemed like a cheerful, energetic person, but he had a strong sense of pride. When they went to eat Ichiraku Ramen together, Naruto never had much money, but he still eagerly insisted on paying.

Yu, on the other hand, had no such awareness at all. Whenever he was with Sasuke and Naruto, he just ordered and ate, never caring who paid. It was never going to be him anyway—he had no money.

Yu pulled the black cloth off the cage, revealing an exceptionally beautiful creature inside.

If Red Cat was cute, then the creature in the cage was beautiful. Noble, dazzling, elegant, and graceful—all these words suited it.

Naruto had been about to refuse, at least verbally, but the moment he saw the creature, he stared in a daze. For a while, his eyes were fixed entirely on the creature in the cage.

For some reason, the creature in the cage held an immense appeal for Naruto. He couldn't bring himself to say anything that might refuse the gift.

"Well? What do you think of my gift, Naruto-kun?" Yu tapped Naruto's shoulder.

"Thank you! I like it very, very, very much." Naruto nodded emphatically, repeating "very" several times. He didn't have many words at his disposal, but the repetition made his feelings clear.

"Good. Snow Charm is a gift I prepared especially for you. I knew you wouldn't turn her down," Yu said with a smile.

Snow Charm was the creature's name. In terms of strength, Red Cat could leave Snow Charm far behind, but in terms of looks, Snow Charm was on a whole different level.

On the frigid snow-covered mountains at the northernmost edge of the Land of Fire lived a wondrous creature called the Snow Female Fox. It was a fox with the same powerful bewitching ability as the legendary monster known as the Snow Woman. It could bewitch any hunter it encountered, leaving them unable to capture it and causing them to freeze to death in the snowy wilderness.

The Snow Female Fox was a powerful creature, but only in the eyes of ordinary people. To ninjas, it was merely a fox that could use a few Genjutsu. Any ninja who had learned even a few ways to dispel Genjutsu wouldn't be affected by it at all.

Snow Charm was a slime with Snow Female Fox blood, and one of the three intelligent slimes. She had fused two bloodlines: Snow Female Fox and Fluffy Ball Rat.

The important thing to note was the Fluffy Ball Rat bloodline. Slimes were jelly-like creatures that didn't grow fur. Even after absorbing Snow Female Fox blood, Snow Charm would have been nothing more than a jelly-like fox.

But after absorbing the Fluffy Ball Rat bloodline, Snow Charm gained her current, exceptionally beautiful appearance. The same was true of Red Cat.

Snow Charm now looked like a beautiful fairy born naturally amid ice and snow. Her pure white fur was like the most sacred snow, and her crystal-like eyes were especially striking. With every gentle blink, they gave off a soothing radiance.

Yu lifted Snow Charm out of the cage and placed her in Naruto's arms.

"Snow Charm will be with you from now on. She has very high standards for her living environment, so your doghouse won't do. You'll have to clean it up properly," Yu told Naruto.

The three intelligent slimes he'd raised each had a personality flaw—or perhaps just a defining trait. Ar Two was extremely dull, just like the teacher's saying, "A toad takes one step, then takes another." Unless given an order, Ar Two would never do anything. It most liked staying in one place without moving at all. The good thing was that whenever Yu gave Ar Two a task, it would do it thoroughly, leaving no room for criticism.

Red Cat, meanwhile, had a powerful urge to fight and loved causing trouble. She was like a hyperactive little kid.

Snow Charm cared deeply about her surroundings and couldn't stand any mess. She was like a little princess with a cleanliness obsession.

"Ah-choo! Ah-choo! Ah-choo!"

As soon as Snow Charm was in Naruto's arms, she sneezed several times. Clearly, she didn't like the smell of Naruto.

There was no need to explain how clean a ten-year-old boy living alone could be.

"I'm sorry. I'll clean all my clothes and my whole place as soon as I get back," Naruto quickly apologized to Snow Charm in his arms.

Snow Charm was about the size of an adult cat, so Naruto could hold her comfortably. Red Cat, by contrast, was almost as tall as Sasuke.

Although Snow Charm hadn't made a good first impression of Naruto, Yu had ordered her to go with him, so she could only accept her fate.

"Thank you, Yu," Naruto said solemnly, holding Snow Charm.

"Come on, you don't need to thank me. Besides, this is a gift. You can just give me one someday, and that'll settle it," Yu told Naruto.

"Th-this..."

Naruto looked at Yu, deeply moved, and couldn't find the words to speak.

"I think you should head back and clean your room and yourself up first. Taking good care of Snow Charm will take a lot of effort!" Yu patted Naruto's hand as he spoke.

After that, he put his hands behind his head and headed toward Sasuke's classroom.

"Yu's changed so much today!" Naruto murmured, watching Yu's retreating figure. He knew what Yu was really like, but this was the first time he'd seen Yu act so relaxed and carefree in front of so many people.

After Yu left, Naruto looked down at Snow Charm in his arms.

"I'll take good care of you."

Naruto promised Snow Charm.