Four days had passed since Naruto began leading Konohamaru and the others. Today, he got up early to check their training progress and complete a D-Rank mission he had accepted the previous evening: helping an old man weed his medicinal herb field. Ever since the graduates' training exercise began, the Genin leading the teams had snapped up practically every D-Rank mission in the village. Naruto had only managed to wrest this weeding mission away from Choji at the cost of ten bags of potato chips.
When Naruto woke up, he found Karin sprawled over him, sleeping soundly. He had long since grown used to her sneaking into his room every night and hugging him as she slept. Especially over the past few days, he had learned to accept it without batting an eye.
Naruto carefully shifted Karin off him, climbed out of bed, and tucked the blankets around her. Seeing how deeply she slept, he gave a wry smile and headed for the door. A few months ago, he would still have felt awkward, but now he could accept it without blushing or his heart skipping a beat.
As Naruto approached the door, he muttered, "Habit really is a terrifying thing." Then he left the room.
After Naruto walked out, the corners of the supposedly sleeping Karin's mouth lifted slightly. She looked utterly happy.
When Naruto reached the downstairs living room, he saw Kushina preparing breakfast, but Minato was nowhere in sight. Thinking it over, he realized he had not seen Minato for quite a few days. Curious, he asked, "Mom, why haven't I seen Dad lately? Where did he go?"
Kushina smiled. "Your dad? He's on a mission. He's been away for days. Honestly, how can you be so oblivious? Oh, has Karin gotten up yet?" These days, Kushina