Aoba nodded and said honestly, "Because I still have other girlfriends, as well as two fiancees."
Isaribi froze stiff on the spot, the hand holding the spatula a little at a loss.
Aoba laughed, "Did I disappoint you? Actually, I'm not a good person."
Isaribi instantly came back to her senses, lowered her head, "To me, Aoba, you are the best person in the world."
"If it weren't for you, I might never have been able to recover."
Aoba explained, "That bottle of potion was sent over by Orochimaru…"
"That was also because of you. Without you, I probably would have still," Isaribi knew very clearly who her greatest benefactor was.
To her, if even Aoba didn't count as a good person, then who in this world could be called a good person?
Although he was a little bit of a playboy, there must have been a reason for it.
"What are you two talking about?", After bathing, refreshed and radiant, Anko walked in with a bright smile.
"Isn't dinner ready?", She looked at the empty dining table, somewhat puzzled.
"The dishes got cold, so I reheated them first," Isaribi's expression was awkward. She should have waited until the food was hot before going to call them, but at that time her mind was in chaos.
Afraid her eavesdropping would be discovered, when she heard the voices stop, she immediately knocked.
She hadn't even had time to…
"Sorry, Isaribi, looks like we wasted quite a bit of time, and even made you go hungry with us," Anko pressed her palms together and sincerely apologized to Isaribi.
"No… no problem, reheating is quick," Isaribi lowered her head, her fair little face flushed red. It was really her own fault she hadn't controlled herself.
She subconsciously rubbed her legs together.
She had been too nervous just now, and forgot to change.
"What were you two talking about just now?", Anko sat down next to Aoba, elbowing him.
"I said that having too many girlfriends makes me not much of a good person, and then Isaribi said I'm a really good person," Aoba simply summarized their conversation.
Hearing this, Anko rubbed her chin, then tugged at his cheek, laughing as she spoke, "You really are a good guy, but a little too lu*stful."
"Well, if I wasn't lu*stful, then I wouldn't have had a chance."
'Chance…'
Watching the two being affectionate, Isaribi glanced at Anko, then at herself.
She couldn't help but feel she was a bit too plain and ordinary.
———
[Land of Hot Water]
Aoba leisurely soaked in the hot spring at the inn, the huge hot spring pool occupied by only him.
The Land of Hot Water was a tourist country, usually with a lot of visitors every day, but Aoba had used a little concealment trick, so no one else came to this hot spring.
He enjoyed the happiness of having the whole place to himself.
The warm water nourished his body, and the fatigue of these past days of travel was instantly healed.
The Land of Hot Water really was a pretty good place.
Speaking of which, the Land of Hot Water… the Hidden Hot Water Village…
[A/N: Some say Hidden Hot Water Village is in the Land of Rivers, others say in the northeastern Land of Fire—let's just take it as in the Land of Hot Water.]
Aoba decided to go take a look sometime later.
Just treat it as compensation to Asuma for accidentally getting involved with Kurenai.
After soaking for quite a while, Aoba finally got out of the pool.
Changing clothes, he came to the inn's front hall.
"Sir, are you heading out to have fun?", the innkeeper greeted very enthusiastically.
"Mm."
"Our town has a street that's pretty nice, very suitable for young people like you to enjoy," the innkeeper said with a squinty smile.
Aoba: "…"
"I came with my girlfriend."
The innkeeper's face immediately showed an apologetic expression, quickly correcting himself, "Next to the inn is a night market, very suitable for couples to stroll together."
"Thank you."
Aoba nodded to the innkeeper, then stood in place waiting.
It wasn't long before Anko and Isaribi came out together in yukata.
Both had purple hair, only their eyes held slight differences. With their wet hair draped down, they really did look like a pair of sisters.
When Anko saw Aoba, she immediately waved her hand.
"Aoba, did you wait long?"
"No, I just came out too."
Aoba smiled, "Just now the boss said there's a night market nearby, should have quite a lot of good food, perfect for us to have dinner."
"Great, great!"
At the mention of food, Anko's eyes instantly lit up.
Isaribi looked at the two, feeling that if she tagged along, it might be too out of place.
"Onee-san, you two go have fun, I'll just go back to the room to rest."
"Isaribi, are you not feeling well?", Anko asked in puzzlement.
"Huh? No, I'm fine," Isaribi answered honestly.
"Then why rest, play first and rest later," Saying that, Anko grabbed one hand each and pulled them out the door.
The night market was bustling, the street lively, most people in yukata, couples everywhere, stalls on both sides filled with dazzling goods.
"Boss, three takoyaki, one with teriyaki sauce, one with vinegar chili sauce, and one with honey sauce."
Anko stopped at a stall and directly ordered three servings.
"Anko-nee, it's dinner time now."
Aoba pointed at a restaurant not far away, "Let's eat dinner first."
"I want to eat this!", Anko said willfully.
Aoba was helpless.
Before long, the stall owner handed over three skewers of steaming hot takoyaki. Anko happily accepted them, impatiently biting into one.
"Mm, hot hot hot!", She tilted her head back, mouth wide open, puffing out hot air.
Aoba couldn't help but laugh at the sight.
Isaribi also covered her mouth, secretly giggling.
"You two eat as well!"
Anko handed the other two skewers to Aoba and Isaribi.
"Thank you."
Isaribi softly thanked and began eating.
Aoba didn't reach out his hand. Instead, he leaned forward slightly, head close, and bit off one piece from the skewer Anko had just eaten.
His brows furrowed slightly.
"What's with that expression?", Anko also frowned.
"Too sweet."
Aoba snatched the takoyaki from Anko's hand, "You eat that skewer."
Anko widened her eyes, "A little sweetness doesn't matter."
"You'll definitely still eat dango later, so you have to control it a bit."
Aoba finished off the takoyaki in two bites.
"..."
Anko could only glare at him as he ate up her takoyaki, her eyes already shifting toward another stall.
"There's taiyaki too!"
"You're not planning to have dinner anymore?"
"No problem, girls have two stomachs."
Anko's eyes didn't blink as she stared at the taiyaki on the stall.
"Here's your taiyaki."
The stall owner bagged them in paper, smiling as he handed them to Anko.
"Thanks."
Anko took them, pulled one out, and popped it in two bites.
"Mm~ delicious!"
Her face was full of joy. Then she pulled out another, stuffed it in her mouth, and handed the other two to Aoba and Isaribi.
Aoba took a small bite, still finding it cloyingly sweet.
He looked again at Anko, who seemed to guess his intention. She bared her teeth defensively, a full-on food-guarding expression.
"Eat two fewer dango later."
"Eh?"
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