New Year

The holiday did not bring any particular changes for Ayato. His training and studies never stopped, and as his physique improved, he even spent increasingly more time on them.

And so, the days passed one by one until New Year finally arrived.

In truth, this day was nothing special to Ayato. It was simply that Sinai placed great importance on it, specially preparing several dishes they normally would not get to eat to celebrate having safely made it through another year.

So, seeing how happy Sinai was, Ayato chose not to go out and train. On such a special day, he would consider it a day off for himself.

When Sinai saw that her son had not gone out but stayed home to keep her company and help her out, she smiled, unable to stop a little sigh from rising in her heart.

The changes this year had truly been enormous. The greatest was that Ayato had finally entered the Ninja Academy and displayed exceptionally outstanding talent, something Sinai had never expected.

She had thought that even if Ayato's talent was good, he would only be a little better than his father. Becoming a Special Jonin in the end would already have been quite impressive. Now, it seemed she had underestimated her son.

After dinner, Sinai changed into a kimono she usually could not bear to wear.

Ayato did not choose to wear a kimono. It was not because he resisted the idea; he simply was not used to it. It felt troublesome to put on and inconvenient for doing things, though he still changed into a different outfit.

It was similar to what he had worn when meeting the Third Hokage, and Sinai's eyes lit up again when she saw him.

Years of training had given Ayato a particularly rugged air that none of his peers possessed. He looked quite handsome.

"Let's go," Sinai said with a smile.

Ayato nodded and followed Sinai. On such a special day, he was also more willing to spend time with his mother.

Soon, when Sinai led Ayato onto the streets, they found them already packed with people that night. The countless food and entertainment stalls were dazzling.

Sinai looked very happy amid such an atmosphere. Although she did not buy anything, this sort of lively ambiance probably made her happy.

To be honest, Ayato did not understand the feeling. He was not accustomed to this atmosphere at all. He preferred being alone or spending time with his friends; being squeezed among so many people did not feel good.

Still, even if he did not like it, he could endure it for just one day.

Before long, however, Sinai ran into colleagues from work, leaving Ayato even more helpless. He had to put on a polite manner and greet them.

What was even more helpless was that his reputation had already spread throughout Sinai's workplace, so every colleague she met would look at him and praise him.

Ayato had no choice but to smile and thank them in return.

At that moment, Ayato suspected Sinai had brought him out just to show him off. Wasn't she getting happier every time she ran into someone she knew?

Ayato sighed. Forget it. Even if he did not like it, as long as his mother was happy, that was enough.

Who knew how long had passed? Ayato felt that this day was unbearably long, but it should be ending soon, right? Sinai had probably met every colleague she was going to meet, right? His forced smile was making his facial muscles stiff!

Of course, Ayato also ran into some of his classmates along the way, but he generally did not approach them. Instead, they came to him on their own, making Sinai secretly laugh from the side.

Moreover, most of those who came to find Ayato were little girls, which made Sinai even happier. As expected, her son was quite attractive. It was just that his attitude gave her a headache—ignoring people like that could really hurt their feelings.

Yet what surprised Sinai was that those little girls did not get angry. After all, they were already used to being treated that way in the past. Today, at least, he would still greet them!

So what was there to be sad about? It was enough if they did not secretly delight in it.

And most importantly, she had suddenly discovered today that Ayato looked quite handsome dressed like this. He was almost as handsome as Sasuke!

"Little Ayato, this won't do!" After seeing off another one of Ayato's classmates, Sinai could not help saying, "At this rate, when will you ever find me a daughter-in-law?"

Ayato was instantly speechless. He pointed at himself and said, "Mom, I'm only six. I'll be seven soon, but this is way too early for that."

"What's too early about it? Your father started pursuing me in Third Grade. It's fine if you start a little earlier," Sinai said in exasperation.

Ayato was at a loss for words. When he had watched Naruto, he had felt that the people here seemed somewhat precocious, but he had not expected it to be this extreme.

"Ayato!"

Suddenly, a familiar voice reached Ayato's ears.

Sinai looked over at the sound and spotted a little girl with pale golden hair. She seemed somewhat familiar, but Sinai felt the girl probably had no chance either. Her son was simply too disappointing in this regard.

"Ino, happy New Year."

What Sinai had never expected was that her son seemed to have suddenly caught on. This time, he did not merely give a brief reply and ignore the other person afterward. They seemed to know each other, and... there might actually be a chance.

Sinai's eyes immediately lit up.

"Oh, Sinai. Long time no see." At that moment, another voice sounded beside Sinai. Looking over, Sinai spotted the adult beside the little girl, who was greeting her.

"Inoichi? It's you. Then this must be the Yamanaka Matriarch. Happy New Year." Once Sinai saw Yamanaka Inoichi, she realized why the little girl had looked familiar. She was the young lady of the Yamanaka Clan.

"Mm, happy New Year," Yamanaka Inoichi and the Yamanaka Matriarch replied. Then they watched their daughter run right over to Ayato's side.

Yamanaka Inoichi felt a little dejected. It seemed his precious little daughter was about to be whisked away. The Yamanaka Matriarch, on the other hand, was rather pleased to see it. Unlike Yamanaka Inoichi, she had been paying attention to matters at the academy.

The Yamanaka Matriarch knew of Ayato's reputation. Although he was only in First Grade, he had already displayed extremely outstanding talent.

Back then, the Yamanaka Matriarch had already held a favorable impression of Ayato. He was sensible and knew how to care for his mother. Now that she also knew of his talent, he looked even more pleasing to the eye.

At that moment, the Yamanaka Matriarch could not help looking toward Sinai. Their gazes met, and as if they shared an unspoken understanding, they both glanced at Ayato and Ino.

Then the two women exchanged smiles and called out to Ayato and Ino respectively.

"I haven't seen my old classmate in a long time, so we have plenty to talk about. Take that little girl around and have some fun first. Take this money—buy her whatever she wants to eat, and don't worry about the cost!" Sinai said.

Ayato was somewhat speechless. How could he not know what his mother was planning? Still, he agreed.

On Ino's side, the Yamanaka Matriarch said, "Ino, your father ran into an old classmate and needs to chat for a while. If you want to go have fun, go with your classmate."

Yamanaka Inoichi had originally wanted to say something, but after the Yamanaka Matriarch shot him a glance, he immediately shut his mouth. Fine, he was the one who had something to discuss with Sinai.

Ino did not think too much about it. The important thing was that she had wanted to find Ayato anyway, so she agreed.

And so, Ayato, who had only intended to accompany his mother for a stroll, ended up taking Ino with him after arranging a meeting place with their parents.