Birthday Banquet

The winter days were short. Biting cold winds swept in with dark clouds, blotting out the lingering glow of the setting sun. Inside a flower shop belonging to the Yamanaka Clan near the center of Konoha, bursts of laughter and cheerful voices rang out.

"Happy birthday!"

Several overlapping voices rang through the room. As Ino blew out the candles on the cake, the lights came back on.

Clap clap clap...

A round of applause broke out. Everyone in the room looked at Ino standing before the cake with blessings in their eyes. Shikamaru was the first to step forward and offer a gift wrapped in a purple box, followed one after another by the others with their prepared presents.

"Ino, happy birthday!" A cute girl with pink hair stepped forward and handed her a fluffy rabbit plushie.

"Thank you, Sakura! It's so cute!" Ino cried out happily as she accepted Sakura's gift.

As Sakura watched Ino take the gift, she furtively glanced around. Seeing Samu Kokaze standing off to the side with a smiling expression, she leaned closer and whispered.

"Ino! That's the person you told me about, right? He's so handsome!"

"Sakura!" Ino called out with slight displeasure. Looking at Sakura's lovestruck expression, Ino suddenly regretted inviting her to this birthday party.

Hearing Ino call her name, Sakura turned back with an amused smile. "Don't worry! I won't compete with you for him, even though he really is handsome!"

Even as she said that, she could not help sneaking another look at Samu Kokaze's perfect, handsome face.

"I hope so! Honestly, I'm starting to regret inviting you!" Ino pouted unhappily.

"Choosing a man over a friend! Ino, you're too stingy!" Sakura said indignantly.

"Who are you calling stingy..."

Thud...

Just as she was about to retort, something heavy hit the floor. Ino turned around and saw Choji setting down a huge burlap sack.

Choji leaned against the sack, panting heavily. He gave it one reluctant look, then flashed an honest smile. "Ino, this is my birthday gift for you. It's all the delicious food I secretly saved up at home. I'm giving all of it to you this time!"

As he spoke, a pained look flashed through his eyes.

Ino swallowed as she looked at the sack, which was as tall as she was. Seeing Choji's heartbroken expression, she found it both funny and touching. Who gave a girl this much food as a birthday present? Really...

"Thank you, Choji. I'll take it all. It'll be good for you to eat a little less too. Just look how fat you've gotten!"

As she spoke, she patted Choji's somewhat chubby belly.

At her words, Choji's round little face twisted in annoyance. "I told you, I'm well-built, not fat!"

"Alright, alright! You're well-built, okay? I'll make sure to talk to Uncle Chōza later and have him help you lose some of that well-built flesh."

Choji's chubby face twitched. With a snort, he ran toward Shikamaru and Samu Kokaze.

"Shikamaru, didn't you tell Choji what kind of gift to bring?" Seeing Choji give Ino an entire sack of snacks, Samu Kokaze could not help asking Shikamaru beside him.

"How was I supposed to know Choji would bring his own snacks? By the time I found out, it was too late to change it, alright?"

Shikamaru could not help retorting.

"Anyway, where's your gift? Why haven't you taken it out yet?"

Choji, who had just run over, heard Shikamaru's question.

With both of them looking at him, Samu Kokaze appeared completely confident.

"The main character always makes his entrance at the last moment. Just wait—I'll show you what the finest craftsmanship in the world looks like!"

Hearing Samu Kokaze's shameless boasting, Shikamaru and Choji snorted and turned away, refusing to look at his smug face.

"Look, Naruto went over too!" Choji said, stuffing a handful of snacks from the bag in his hands into his mouth without ever stopping eating, even at Ino's birthday party.

Hearing Choji's words, Samu Kokaze dropped his arrogant expression. Looking at Naruto as he walked over, he seriously said to Shikamaru and Choji, "Naruto doesn't have a good life. Unlike us, he doesn't have much allowance money. Don't laugh at whatever gift he gives her later!"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "Boring."

Choji, however, solemnly put the snacks in his hand back into the bag. "I won't laugh at a friend."

Seeing Choji's earnest expression, Samu Kokaze smiled. "Well, I was just saying. After all, you both know what Naruto's life used to be like."

While the boys were talking over here, Naruto had walked up to Ino. He stared at Sakura with what seemed like hearts in his eyes, until Ino's expression toward Sakura grew darker and darker. Then he coughed.

"Ah! Ino, this is my birthday gift for you." Looking a little embarrassed, Naruto handed over the purple hair clip clenched tightly in his hand. "I wanted to buy something better too, but this is the only thing I could afford!"

Ino smiled as she looked at the hair clip Naruto offered her. She happily accepted it. "I've received your heartfelt wishes, Naruto!"

"It's the kind of hair clip I like, and I like the color too!" As she spoke, she immediately put it in her hair.

Naruto was delighted by Ino's reaction, then promptly went over to try to get closer to Sakura.

"These kids really know how to make a mess!" In another room, Ino's mother looked at the chaotic scene next door and could not help saying.

"Aren't all children like that? If I could find a suitable match, sometimes I'd like to have a child too!" Muzi, the woman Ino called Aunt Muzi, said with a smile as she watched the children fooling around in the room.

"Muzi, if you wanted to find someone to marry, the line would stretch from the village entrance all the way to Konoha Hospital! Your standards are just too high!" Yamanaka Ichi, dressed in ninja attire, could not help saying when he heard Muzi speaking with his wife.

"Sigh! That's exactly why I can't find anyone suitable! If a man like the Fourth Hokage came after me, I'd definitely agree right away!" Muzi said with a slightly annoyed expression upon hearing Ichi's words.

Just as Yamanaka Ichi fell slightly dazed upon hearing mention of the Fourth Hokage, Muzi pointed at Naruto and asked, "How did that child become friends with your little Ino too?"

Yamanaka Ichi was slightly taken aback by her question. He looked toward Naruto and said, "It's Ino's freedom to be friends with whoever she wants. Besides, that child's nature isn't bad, so I let her be."

"Oh! Then what about that little boy called Samu Kokaze? Last time I saw little Ino, she seemed very concerned about him!" Muzi said teasingly as she looked at Ichi and his wife.