Duanti Lian dragged Naruto out of the classroom as though fleeing for her life, then sprinted all the way to the small pond behind the Academy. Panting, she said, "I'm exhausted! Ah... ah... I'm dead tired. Phew..."
Naruto took a bottle of warm water out of his storage space, poured a cup, and offered it to Duanti Lian. She took it without a second thought and drank. Only after finishing did she say, "Ah... I'm alive again. Thanks! Phew..."
Naruto laughed. "Hehe, you're really something. What's there to be afraid of? Why run so fast? Aren't you tired?"
Duanti Lian took a deep breath to recover, then saw Naruto's carefree smile. Annoyed, she thumped his chest and protested, "You're impossible! Who told you to call me Lian'er in front of so many people? Now they've got the wrong idea!"
Naruto smiled. "What? Is being with me that embarrassing?" As he spoke, he teasingly stroked her chin.
Duanti Lian slapped his hand away and gave him a meaningful look. "Stop it, you big jerk. You're always flirting with me. What, have you decided to be with me?"
Her words made Naruto freeze. "Let's talk about this training trip instead. This time, I..."
Seeing Naruto change the subject, Duanti Lian felt an inexplicable wave of desolation. She suddenly recalled the conversation they had had in the rear gardens of the Imperial Palace.
Back then, Duanti Lian had asked, "Naruto, do you like me? Do you really love me? Do you really want to be with me? Why do I always feel that someone else is on your mind when you're with me?"
Her words had sent a pang through Naruto's heart. "Lian'er, why did you have to wake me up? Sigh... couldn't we just stay together like this, happy and at ease?"