"Feng, are you okay? Why don't you head back first?" Ino asked worriedly as she looked at Samu Kokaze's pale face.
"I'm fine. Maybe I really was overthinking it." He forced a smile, then lowered his head as everyone turned their worried gazes toward him.
But the instant he lowered his head, his fists clenched tightly. From the corner of his eye, he glanced toward somewhere behind them, his gaze bursting with icy killing intent.
He silently swore to himself, Just wait. Whoever you are, since you want my life, I'll send every last one of you to hell! I swear it!
"Feng..."
Seeing the sinister expression that briefly crossed Samu Kokaze's face when he lowered his head, Ino's face filled with concern.
Naruto walked over, glanced at Samu Kokaze's unpleasant expression, and his eyes darted as he said, "How about we go somewhere and have some fun? I know a place that gets especially beautiful every winter, especially at night!"
Ino's eyes lit up at those words, and she looked at Samu Kokaze expectantly.
Listening to Naruto, Samu Kokaze's thoughts raced.
Sensing that the person behind them was still following him, a flash of killing intent passed through his eyes.
"Whew... All right. Maybe I've just been too tired lately from carving wooden sculptures. I made everyone worry. Going out to relax for a while sounds good too!"
He let out a long breath, patted his stiff face to make himself look a little more energetic, then smiled and nodded in agreement.
"Haha!" Hearing Samu Kokaze agree, Naruto laughed twice, looking extremely happy. With his hands on his hips, he pointed down the road ahead and shouted excitedly, "Since everyone agrees, I, the great Naruto Uzumaki, will take you all to see my secret base!"
"What an idiot!" Sakura could not help saying as she watched Naruto run ahead.
The night was deep.
The place Naruto had mentioned was not far from where they were.
As time slowly passed, the group arrived at the place Naruto had mentioned amid their laughter and horseplay.
"Whew... It's so beautiful!" Slightly out of breath, Ino widened her eyes at the breathtaking sight before them.
This place was near the edge of Konoha. The clear lake had frozen over in the cold winter, and under the moonlight, an enormous full moon was reflected at the center of the frozen surface.
Scattered trees along the shore were coated in silver frost. The scenery before them was like a fairyland; merely standing there made them feel refreshed.
"Haha!" Naruto laughed twice and pointed at the moon reflected in the lake below. "Beautiful, right? Hardly anyone knows about this place, and even fewer people come here."
"It really is beautiful! Who would have thought you'd actually be useful sometimes?" Sakura, dressed in a pink coat, could not help telling the excited Naruto as she looked at the scenery.
"Hehe!"
Naruto grinned foolishly at Sakura's praise.
"Come down and play, everyone! Whenever I was alone, I loved coming here. As long as I looked at this scenery, all the unhappiness in my heart would disappear."
Looking at the moon reflected on the lake's surface, Naruto was the first to run down.
Ino and Sakura, still standing on the shore, exchanged a look and nodded. Holding hands, they followed him over.
Watching Naruto attempt fancy skating moves on the lake, only to fail at looking cool and fall down, they let out clear, pleasant laughter.
"Why aren't you two going down?"
Feeling much better as he looked at the beautiful scenery, Samu Kokaze walked over to Choji and Shikamaru and asked.
"It's enough to sit here quietly and admire the view. Going down there would be too troublesome." Sitting by the lake, Shikamaru looked at the people playing on the ice, then glanced up at Samu Kokaze.
"I'll stay here with Shikamaru and watch." Choji somehow pulled out a bag of chips from nowhere and answered while eating.
"You really are lazy, Shikamaru!" Samu Kokaze could not help laughing at Shikamaru's answer.
"Feng! Shikamaru! Choji! Come play with us!"
As the people on shore talked, Naruto, skating on the lake, shouted loudly toward them.
Samu Kokaze looked at Naruto waving to him from the lake and smiled as he nodded.
Lowering his head toward Shikamaru and Choji, who were sitting there, he said, "Come on, let's play for a while. It's rare for everyone to come out at night. Who knows when we'll get another chance to see a sight like this together?"
"Tch... Honestly." Seeing Naruto wave in their direction, Shikamaru wore a helpless smile.
He stood, brushed the snow from his backside, pulled Choji up from the ground, and headed toward the frozen lake.
As he looked at the magnificent sight before him, a smile still lingered on Samu Kokaze's face, but his eyes held no emotion. Sensing the chakra fluctuations from the trees beside the lake, he bent down, grabbed a handful of snow, clenched it tightly, and walked onto the frozen lake.
"Shikamaru, Choji, Naruto! Let's have a snowball fight! The three of us can form one team. Whoever hits someone first wins. How about it?"
With a slight push against the ice, Samu Kokaze instantly slid over to the others and made his suggestion.
Naruto's eyes lit up as he shouted his agreement. A trace of interest also flashed through Ino and Sakura's eyes as they looked toward Shikamaru and Choji.
"What a drag..." Shikamaru was about to say his usual line when he saw Ino's threatening gaze. He swallowed the words already at his lips and nodded with a pained expression.
"Great!" Seeing that everyone had agreed, Samu Kokaze nodded in satisfaction. "Then Naruto, Sakura, and I are one team."
"Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru, you're the other team."
"The winners can each pick any one of the wooden sculptures in my house as a prize. How about that?"
Shikamaru had been listless and uninterested, but at those words, a sharp glint flashed through his eyes. "All of them? Are you sure?"
"Yeah, of course!" Samu Kokaze nodded firmly. Then, turning to the somewhat bewildered Sakura, he said, "I carved all the wooden sculptures myself, like the birthday gift I gave Ino today. If you win, you and Naruto can each pick one from my house too."
"The same kind as Ino's?" Thinking of the life-sized wooden sculpture she had just seen at Ino's house, Sakura asked in surprise.
"Uh... They're still a little different from Ino's. The ones displayed in my room are all small ones, not that large!" Samu Kokaze said awkwardly at Sakura's question.
"Oh!" Hearing that it was not what she had imagined, Sakura looked slightly disappointed. But when she thought about getting a small wooden sculpture if they won, she quickly perked up again.
"You'd better not deliberately favor Ino!" Sakura said after thinking for a moment as she looked at Ino.
"Forehead girl! I don't need you to go easy on us!" Ino shouted angrily from the ice.
"Hmph!" Sakura glanced at Samu Kokaze and snorted.
"Shikamaru! Why are you getting excited too?" Choji, eating chips beside him, asked Shikamaru, whose eyes were gleaming as the two girls started arguing again.
"One of the wooden sculptures in Feng's house is worth a hundred thousand ryo!" Shikamaru did not spell it out, only giving Choji a look that told him to figure it out himself.
"Isn't that a little unfair?" Choji seemed somewhat reluctant after hearing that.
"When he tricked the two of us earlier, did he care whether it was fair? This is the perfect chance to get revenge and make him hurt for once!"
Whenever Shikamaru thought of the list Samu Kokaze had handed them, his teeth itched with hatred. He wished he could go back in time, drag out his past self who had agreed to it, and give him a thorough scolding.
Before you continue