Since that was the case...
He would let Kushina adjust on her own!
Before long, Kushina would become the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Araki felt it would be better to keep a little distance.
With that said...
Araki pulled free of Kushina's arms, picked up his schoolbag from the ground, and made as if to head to class.
"You... you... you..."
Kushina looked utterly pitiful and on the verge of tears. Her emotions had only just surged up, and a few tears had come tumbling down. Before she could fully vent the helplessness in her heart, Araki had pushed her away.
How could he be like this!
Had the mental shock really been that bad?
Didn't he know how to treat a girl gently at all?
Besides...
I'm having a miserable time right now too!
Couldn't he at least comfort me?
Kushina silently complained to herself, rolling her pretty eyes and shooting Araki a fierce glare. She kept all those words inside and did not actually say them.
"We're going to be late."
Araki's tone remained flat. It suddenly struck him that this was a good opportunity.
Even if it did seem rather heartless!
Kushina's sudden arrival here had been completely unexpected. Everything had happened so unexpectedly that he had been on the back foot throughout his handling of the matter.
But now, he abruptly realized that this was an opportunity.
An opportunity to distance himself from Kushina!
Araki clearly realized that Kushina was at her most helpless right now, and her inner vulnerability had reached its limit.
If he comforted Kushina, it would inevitably increase her affection for him, making the relationship between them even more troublesome to handle.
After all, that would create a bond.
If anything happened to Kushina later, Araki would not be able to simply stand by.
Women really would affect the speed of his training!
But...
If he took this opportunity to act a little colder, dealing another blow to Kushina's already wounded heart, she would inevitably change her view of him.
Kushina was stubborn and strong by nature.
This would let him naturally widen the distance between them.
Araki silently mulled it over. He knew doing this might hurt Kushina, but this was not yet the time for him to stand out.
"Hmph!"
Kushina gave a resentful snort, raised her little hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes, and pulled herself out of her disheveled state.
During this, she seemed unable to swallow her anger, but stubbornly said nothing. She merely stamped her foot, expressing some of her feelings toward Araki.
Immediately afterward...
Kushina put on a brave face, picked up her schoolbag, and stood beside Araki.
Having just cried, her eyes were slightly red and swollen. She looked quite pitiful, enough to tug at the heart.
"Can't you show me a little concern?"
Kushina protested with a pout. Judging by how she looked now, she did not seem to have any intention of ending her friendship with Araki.
"You... didn't you say you couldn't tell me?"
Araki frowned slightly and spoke indifferently.
This time, it was his turn to be surprised.
He had already acted so infuriatingly.
If this had been the real world, he would definitely have made the other person angry and gotten called a scumbag to boot.
But...
Kushina seemed not to mind at all.
"I really can't tell you."
Kushina immediately lowered her head in dejection, repeatedly telling herself that she could not blame Araki for this. After all, she could not tell him anything. Araki knew nothing and had no way to comfort her.
"But..."
Kushina started to speak, then stopped. After thinking it over, she pressed her lips together, shook her head, and murmured to herself, "Forget it. Everything will get better."
After saying that...
Kushina seemed to have come to terms with things a good deal more.
In truth, she understood that she could only accept what had now fallen upon her. There were no other options.
Whatever emotions she felt could not change the final outcome.
She might as well accept it calmly!
Kushina slowly raised her head and looked toward Araki. The corner of her mouth, on a face that had only just returned to normal, twitched violently, and dark lines covered her forehead.
In her line of sight...
Araki had already walked off with his schoolbag without looking back.
"Araki, wait for me!"
Kushina immediately quickened her steps to catch up, but as she sped up, Araki sped up as well.
The distance between them did not shrink at all.
Kushina immediately ran a few steps, trying to close the gap, but it still had no effect.
It was as though Araki had eyes in the back of his head.
He kept matching her speed the entire time.
"We had an agreement."
Araki's emotionless voice came from a short distance ahead. It was not loud, but Kushina could hear it clearly.
"Damn it!"
Kushina stamped her foot resentfully. The distance between her and Araki was not particularly great, but she had spent the entire previous night talking with that lord and had not rested well. She simply had no strength left to speed up.
The distance between them seemed short, yet was actually long. She could never get close, as though they were within reach yet worlds apart.
"Araki, just you wait! One day, I'll catch up to you, and you won't be able to shake me off!"
Kushina wrinkled her nose and clenched her little fists tightly. Even she did not know why. The comfort she had hoped to receive from Araki had never come, and she even felt that he had not cared about her at all.
Yet she did not feel the slightest urge to blame or resent Araki.
Kushina's gaze focused on Araki, and a sense of challenge rose in her heart.
If making friends with Araki were that easy...
He wouldn't be without a single friend!
This was a challenge in itself!
A tiny setback was nothing at all. Sooner or later, Araki would acknowledge her!
Chapter 14: A Beauty Who Brings Trouble
Araki kept matching Kushina's speed, maintaining this distance so they would not look so close in other people's eyes.
"Why isn't this quite how I imagined it..."
Araki was secretly grumbling too. If this had happened in the real world he had lived in before, he would unquestionably have been a total scumbag. To put it more mildly, he might have been called a completely clueless straight guy.
Even in the ninja world, given Kushina's personality, she should surely have lost control and given him a savage beating with her fists.
He had already mentally prepared himself for Kushina's fury.
Then he could seize the opportunity to shake off this girl who had started following him as soon as she arrived in Konoha and might bring him a great deal of trouble.
I've acted like this, and she's still following me. Has water gotten into her brain?
Araki felt helpless too. When he had acted that way, he had also felt a little bad about it.
To some extent, he was hiding his abilities, doing his best to keep a low profile and make his presence as unnoticeable as possible.
He was not doing this because he was a loner by nature.
Everyone wanted to be noticed and become the star of the crowd.
But...
That depended on whether he had the strength to bear the price.
Araki knew very well that before he had enough strength to support his identity as a Wood Release ninja, he had to keep a low profile, develop cautiously, and move steadily forward one step at a time without inviting too much trouble.
Some time later...
Araki entered the Ninja Academy, went to his usual seat, and sat straight down.
Throughout the process, he remained as unnoticeable as ever, making no eye contact with any of his classmates.
The students in the class were used to this scene and paid Araki no attention at all. In their eyes, Araki simply did not exist.
Tap, tap, tap, tap...
Not long after Araki entered, Kushina rushed over, panting. She had been trying hard to catch up with him all along, but no matter how she ran, she simply could not.
"Damn it!"
Kushina raised her right hand to brace herself against the classroom doorframe, gasping for breath as her pretty eyes fixed fiercely on Araki, who was rummaging through his schoolbag for his books.