After stuffing the other hot spring ticket into Kakashi's hand, Naruto headed straight for the men's bathing area.
He didn't care whether Kakashi threw the ticket away and left.
Of course, if Kakashi couldn't bear to throw it away... he cared a little about that.
Tap, tap, tap.
Following the signs through the winding wooden corridors, Naruto soon spotted a white curtain, with steam billowing past it into the hallway.
"Tsk... isn't this just a communal bath?"
With a towel perched on his head, Naruto looked down at the contents of his wooden basin.
His face darkened at the sight.
"What the hell? Just shorts and a key? Where's the Rejoice shampoo? The soap? The scrubbing mitt? The token for a back scrub?"
"Seriously? A ticket costs 1,500, and all I get is a soak? I haven't bathed in days. Won't all the grime float off once I get in?"
Utterly speechless, Naruto lifted the curtain and froze.
Steam filled his view. Beyond the wooden walkway lay a cobblestone floor, with a steaming pool in the center. Its water was crystal clear and only about a meter and a half deep.
"Damn, they don't even have anyone to scrub your back?"
The thought of soaking the grime off his body without anything to scrub it away left Naruto so frustrated he didn't even have the energy to get angry.
"Ding."
"Got it." Naruto took off a sandal and felt its sole. Sure enough, it was rough. "That's me for you. There's always a way around a problem, right? I can scrub myself with the sole!"
Naruto set his things beside the hot spring and stepped into the pool with the towel still on his head.
"Wow... this feels way too good. I should invite Sasuke next time."
Naruto was just