Dating Hinata

The two of them made their way to the little river together. Naruto turned to Hinata and said, "Hinata, let's have fish later. Wait here for me."

"Eat... eat fish? Are we going fishing? We didn't bring any fishing gear." Hinata gathered her courage and finally managed to say something.

"Not fishing. That's too slow. I have a better way," Naruto said confidently.

"A better way? What kind of way?" Hinata looked at Naruto with a hint of anticipation.

"You'll find out in a moment."

Naruto smiled mysteriously, walked to the water plants by the riverbank, and crouched down to rummage through them. Soon, he pulled out a fish trap covered in weeds.

The instant he lifted the trap, several plump fish were seen leaping about inside.

"So many big fish! What is this net-like fishing tool called? Its structure is so strange. Is this what you use to catch fish?"

Hinata ran to Naruto's side and curiously examined the large fish trap, her eyes full of obvious curiosity.

"This fish-catching tool is called a fish trap. As long as you put it in the water with some bait, you'll definitely catch fish the next day," Naruto explained with a smile. He had used fish traps in his previous life too, but he had only caught small fish. However...

This world was clearly different. The fish here were huge, and there were so many of them. He caught several fish every time. He had even considered selling them for money, but eventually gave up.

After that incident, Naruto understood that Konoha was even darker than he had imagined. Before he had strength, keeping a low profile could only be a good thing.

Of course.

Playing with Hinata was still fine. They had known each other for years and often talked together. Going out like this was perfectly normal, and no one would stop them.

So, without any qualms, he placed the fish trap on the grass for Hinata to inspect.

"Naruto, did you make this fish trap? It's such an amazing design. The fish can't get out," Hinata said, crouching beside the trap and looking at the large fish inside.

"That's right. Fish can enter this trap but can't leave. Of course, I only want to catch big fish, so the mesh is fairly wide. Small fish can get out, but big fish can't escape."

Naruto pointed at the trap's structure and began explaining it, sharing some knowledge about fish traps.

After hearing Naruto's explanation, Hinata felt that it sounded incredibly impressive. She blinked her large eyes and praised him.

"Naruto, you're amazing. How did you come up with this? I've never seen anyone in the village catch fish this way."

"What can I say? Life forced me to."

Naruto tried his best to maintain a smile, but it carried a trace of bitterness. When even eating was a problem, all he could do was rely on himself.

"Naruto."

Hearing those words, concern appeared in Hinata's eyes. Though she was young, she was sensitive enough to instantly understand the bitterness behind Naruto's smile.

"It's fine, it's fine. Go gather some firewood. I'll clean the fish. There's a stove I made before and some cooking tools over there. We'll have grilled fish in a bit," Naruto said, changing the subject.

"Mm, I'll go right away."

Hinata nodded her little head and ran off on tiny steps, though she kept glancing back at Naruto from time to time. Clearly, she was still worried about his mood.

[Experience Points +1]

Without showing any reaction, Naruto took out a kunai and began cleaning the large fish from the trap.

Throughout his conversation with Hinata just now, he had continuously gained Experience Points. That made Naruto very happy, and he was especially full of anticipation for what Experience Points could do.

"I wonder what they'll be useful for. I can't wait to find out," Naruto muttered.

"What is it, Naruto?"

Hinata's pleasant voice came from the distance. She was clearly keeping an eye on him the whole time.

"It's nothing. Hurry and gather the firewood. I'll have the fish cleaned soon," Naruto responded.

"Okay."

[Experience Points +1]

For the next while, Naruto and Hinata busied themselves with their tasks and soon had everything ready to begin cooking.

"Naruto, let me cook."

Hinata was fairly skilled at cooking, so she decided to take on the task.

"How about this? You make the fish soup, and I'll grill the fish. We'll work together," Naruto suggested.

"Mm-hm, okay."

[Experience Points +1]

As Hinata began busily making fish soup, Naruto started grilling fish over the nearby fire.

Considering that they trained every day and expended a great deal of energy, both of them had fairly large appetites. Naruto grilled five whole fish.

The fish were very large. Given their ages, two fish each would be about enough, while the extra one could be kept as a spare.

After deciding that, Naruto took out seasonings from the cooking supplies he had hidden away and began grilling the fish.

He had a lot of these ingredients, all gathered from the wilderness. Since he did not have enough money to cover his living expenses, he had to save wherever possible.

Fortunately, nature in this world was a treasure trove, filled with abundant materials for daily life. Naruto could find everything he needed and even had plenty to spare.

More importantly, the ingredients here were excellent. There was no pollution, no artificial growth acceleration, no pesticides, and certainly no chemical fertilizers. Everything was natural, so the flavor was naturally much better.

He had even left his cooking utensils and ingredients outside for this very reason. Unfortunately, there were no orange trees nearby, so he could not eat his favorite oranges. That was his greatest regret.

Shaking his head, Naruto stopped letting his thoughts wander. He quickly set up the grill rack, placed the large fish on it one after another, and began his great grilled-fish endeavor.

But Naruto, who usually ate alone, failed to realize that combining the grilling techniques from his previous life with the outstanding ingredients of this world created an aroma more than enough to make food lovers drool.

Take Hinata beside him, for example. She had originally been diligently making fish soup, but she soon caught that astonishing fragrance. She swiftly turned to look at Naruto and watched as he sprinkled on ingredients bit by bit, roasting the fish to a golden color.

"It smells so good! Naruto, what ingredients did you put on the fish? Why does it smell so amazing?"

Hinata blinked her large eyes at the grilled fish, her fair throat moving slightly as though she were secretly swallowing her saliva.

As the young lady of the Hyuga Clan, Hinata had eaten a great many delicacies and knew far more about food than ordinary people. Yet she had never seen this method of grilling fish or these ingredients before. They were incredibly novel to her.

Watching Naruto skillfully grill the fish until they turned golden and smelling the rich scent of fish, she was surprised to discover that her best friend had such an outstanding side to him. It truly made her see him in a new light.

Grrrr.

The sound of her stomach growling rang out. Hinata's little face flushed red as she lowered her head in embarrassment, covering her small belly with both fair hands and not daring to look at Naruto.

"It'll be ready soon. Just wait a little longer, and we can eat grilled fish."

Naruto smiled slightly. He felt that Hinata was even cuter like this, and her rosy little face made him want to pinch it.

[Experience Points +1]