True Delicacy

Of course.

This was not a good time to do anything, and Naruto knew very well that those ANBU were silently monitoring him. Even though they had withdrawn one team, another team still had not given up on watching him.

To ease the vigilance of the ANBU, Naruto would not foolishly do anything out of line, which was one of the reasons why the ANBU went from two teams down to one.

"Na... Naruto, is the grilled fish ready?"

Hinata's crisp voice rang out again, sounding as pleasant as a lark.

Hearing this, Naruto smiled gently. Knowing that Hinata was truly craving it, he picked up a piece of grilled fish and handed it over.

"Here, hurry up and try it."

"Thank you, Naruto."

Hinata gave Naruto a sweet smile, her small hands quickly taking the grilled fish, and stared at the golden-brown grilled fish with wide eyes.

As a true little foodie, she had actually been holding back for a while. Now that the delicacy was right in front of her, she naturally tasted it without hesitation.

"It smells so good, and it tastes amazing."

Hinata took a bite, her big eyes lighting up slightly, and then looked at Naruto with an admiring gaze.

This was the first time she had ever tasted such unique gourmet grilled fish, and that feeling of the fragrance filling her mouth was simply too appetizing.

This made her look at Naruto with even greater admiration, feeling that he was a person of profound inner depth.

[Experience Points +1]

Hearing the sound of the experience points, Naruto smiled and said, "If you like it, eat a bit more. There are five fish, enough for both of us to eat."

"Mm-mm, Naruto, you should eat too. It's really delicious." Hinata said, unable to resist tasting the grilled fish again.

"Okay."

Naruto picked up a piece of grilled fish and began to eat slowly as well.

The two of them ate lunch together under the warm sunshine, beside the clear stream, in the gentle breeze, amidst their joyous laughter.

A long while later.

Naruto, having eaten two grilled fish, nodded with satisfaction, then looked ahead to find that Hinata, having finished her two grilled fish, was staring blankly at the last piece of grilled fish with a look of lingering desire.

Naruto naturally understood her state. He picked up the last piece of grilled fish and handed it over. "Here, eat it."

"No... no more, Naruto, you eat it." Hinata said bashfully, her big eyes secretly glancing at that piece of fish.

"Don't worry, I'm full. Hurry up and eat it before it gets cold."

Naruto spoke indifferently, while also recalling Hinata's trait as a little foodie.

"Then... then I'll eat it."

"Hurry up and eat."

"Mm, thank you, Naruto."

Seeing how happily Hinata was eating, Naruto also felt a great deal of joy. Having Hinata's company during this tragic childhood added a touch of brilliance to his dark world.

[Experience Points +1]

"There's still a glimmer of dawn." Naruto murmured to himself as he listened to the experience point notification.

"Naruto, what did you say?"

Hearing Naruto's voice, Hinata looked up in confusion. A tiny speck of fish meat at the corner of her lips made her look exceptionally endearing and clueless.

"Nothing, it would be great if we had some oranges to eat right now." Naruto changed the subject.

"Oranges? Oh, that's right."

Thinking of something, Hinata quickly pulled two oranges out of her pocket and handed them to Naruto.

"Naruto, this is for you."

"Oranges?"

Seeing the two oranges in Hinata's small hands, Naruto felt a deep sense of surprise. He hadn't expected Hinata to have oranges, and at the same time, he recalled the scene of himself buying oranges earlier.

Without needing to guess, he knew.

This foolish Hinata must have seen that he couldn't buy any oranges, so she secretly bought two to give to him. The reason she was taking them out now was certainly related to her shy personality.

"You're clumsily adorable. Thank you, Hinata."

Naruto smiled in gratitude, reaching out to take only the oranges Hinata was handing him.

The moment he took them, he clearly felt the softness of Hinata's small hands—tender, smooth, somewhat like the most precious silk.

[Experience Points +1]

Opposite him.

Hinata also felt something. Her small hand retracted as if touched by an electric shock, and she lowered her small, embarrassed head.

At this moment, the atmosphere seemed to change somewhat, and even the sky seemed bluer right then.

"Hinata, let's eat the oranges."

Naruto spoke to break this inexplicable atmosphere, peeled an orange with Hinata, and tasted a segment.

"Mm."

Hinata began to eat in small, dainty bites, but her small head remained lowered the whole time, not daring to look at Naruto.

Naruto didn't know what else to say either. Instead, breathing in the fish aroma that had not yet completely dissipated, he silently gazed at the horizon.

In the distance.

Up in a certain large tree.

Four ANBU quietly stood on the branches, watching Naruto, with someone among them occasionally taking a deep breath.

"Captain, this is why I applied to be transferred from the monitoring post. Smelling such a rich aroma every day without being able to eat it—this kind of life is simply too agonizing." An ANBU wearing a fox mask said.

"Yeah, we've endured it for a long time. Ever since this kid started cooking outside, that aroma has gotten better and better, making people's mouths water more and more. Yet we can't eat it and can only watch helplessly."

Another ANBU also spoke, dejectedly recounting his own experience, and the ANBU next to him nodded in agreement.

"You can't stand just a little bit of aroma? You are elite ANBU."

The ANBU Captain rebuked angrily, though as he spoke, he swallowed a mouthful of saliva as well.

"Captain, the crucial thing isn't just this one kind of food. This kid is exceptionally good at cooking, and everything he makes smells particularly amazing every time, but we just can't eat it. That feeling of suffering could practically drive a person crazy."

The fox-masked ANBU explained again, clearly having had enough.

"Hmph, what is mere aroma? You are ninja..."

The ANBU Captain rebuked again, but halfway through his sentence, his stomach let out a loud rumble, and the atmosphere at the scene instantly became awkward.

"Cough, cough."

The ANBU Captain's old face flushed red, though fortunately he wore a mask so others couldn't see. He changed the subject and asked, "Have you guys inspected that tool for catching fish?"

"We inspected it. It's a pretty good idea. This matter has already been reported to Lord Hokage, but Lord Hokage didn't take it seriously." The fox ANBU replied.

"Mm, these things are just petty cleverness. It's natural that Lord Hokage looks down on them; after all, strength is the foundation. This Naruto has a bit of cleverness, I just don't know if he can be cultivated into a powerhouse." The ANBU Captain said.

"Captain, is the village going to cultivate Naruto? Didn't the previous orders say to delay his training? Even the refinement of chakra was taught very late." An ANBU asked in confusion.

"That was in the past. I received news that the higher-ups are preparing to cultivate Naruto, to nurture him into the Jinchūriki who guards Konoha and protect Konoha well." The ANBU Captain said softly.

"Is that so? Won't it be a bit too late? Although this Naruto is very good at catching fish, he has eaten very poorly since childhood, his nutrition is extremely unbalanced, and he's even worse off than an ordinary family."

"Yeah, look at how short Naruto is; it's obviously due to malnutrition. He eats very little vegetables and fruit. I'm afraid it will be very difficult to cultivate him."

The ANBU ninja murmured in discussion, not feeling optimistic about the matter of cultivating Naruto.

"Don't worry, the higher-ups have already made a decision, no need to worry."

The ANBU Captain replied and continued to monitor Naruto. But as for Naruto's grilled fish, he had firmly memorized it and decided that he definitely had to eat it once given the chance.

By the small stream.

After finishing lunch, Naruto and Hinata walked home together. After dropping Hinata off, Naruto walked back while checking his own status, because just a moment ago, a mechanical voice had rung out in his mind.

[Ding! Experience points reached 100, Infinite Crossover System activated.]

Looking at this message, Naruto felt a surge of excitement, but he didn't show it on the outside, silently inspecting the system instead.

This check made his excitement even greater, because he knew the opportunity to change his destiny had arrived.