"Natsume-sensei, did you do that on purpose?"
Naruto Uzumaki complained with a pout.
Hearing this, Sasuke Uchiha lifted his head, suspicion glinting in his eyes as well.
Even Hinata Hyuga thought so.
From her perspective, getting the bells had been far too easy, with hardly any obstruction.
That clearly didn't match Natsume's strength.
He had obviously gone easy on them.
But Naruto had another gripe, too.
Why did he and Sasuke end up soaked and gulping water, while Hinata got off scot-free?
"You're blaming your teacher wrongly. That was the result of your teamwork."
Natsume said with a straight face, spouting nonsense. "Without the two of you engaging me head-on, Hinata wouldn't have gotten the bell."
"Really?"
It sounded reasonable, but Naruto instinctively felt something was off.
Sasuke snorted softly, not buying it at all.
Still, after this test, he acknowledged Natsume's strength.
The pressure Natsume put on him in battle far exceeded Kakashi Hatake's.
It felt utterly powerless.
His proud Sharingan, Fire Style, or Lightning Style—he couldn't even touch Natsume's real body, let alone injure him.
In short, unexpectedly strong.
"It's true. What would I gain by lying to you?"
Natsume shifted to a smiling expression, then praised them: "Through this test, I've grasped your level. You're absolutely top-tier among your peers. I'm confident you'll all achieve your dreams."
"Hahaha!"
Naruto jumped up, pumped his fist, and declared, "I really am the man destined to become Hokage!"
"Drop the last few words."
Natsume's face changed as he hurried to correct him. "It's 'become Hokage,' not 'become the man of Hokage.' Got it?"
"Huh?"
Naruto looked puzzled. "What's the difference?"
"A big one."
Natsume cut him off decisively. "If you want to be Hokage, then listen to me."
"Uh, okay."
Naruto didn't get it, but he nodded anyway. "I'm going to become Hokage!"
"Idiot."
Sasuke glanced at him and said.
Natsume was clearly teasing him—and enjoying it.
He didn't think there was any difference between the two phrases.
"You two go change clothes. We'll meet at Ichiraku Ramen."
Natsume paused, then asked, "Naruto, are you sure you're treating today?"
"Yeah."
Naruto scratched his head. "Is there a problem?"
Why did Natsume seem so weird today?
First nitpicking "man of Hokage," then asking if he's treating.
He was frugal, sure, but he wasn't broke.
A bowl or two of ramen—he could manage that.
"No problem."
Natsume thought about how all three of his students were loaded.
Naruto inherited Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki's estate.
Sasuke—no need to say—held the Uchiha clan's wealth.
Hinata, the Hyuga heiress, had plenty of pocket money.
Yeah, treating to a meal wasn't bankrupting anyone.
Though it might sting a bit.
"Off you go."
Natsume waved his hand.
Sasuke and Naruto, both drenched like drowned rats, vanished in a blur.
As he drew back his gaze, he noticed Hinata looking at him, her pale eyes saying she had something to say.
"Don't worry about eating."
He reached out to pat her head. "Naruto's loaded."
"Mm."
Hinata let out a small breath of relief.
She followed behind Natsume, eyes on his large hand.
Her heart pounded, but she didn't dare step closer. Her hands twisted together nervously.
"Hinata."
Seeing her fidget, Natsume took the initiative and held her small hand. "I had you graduate early. Do you blame me?"
Feeling the warmth of his hand, Hinata's face went scarlet and her head swam.
Hearing his question, she barely managed to stay clear-headed, whispering, "N-no… I don't. I'm really happy."
She was introverted, yes, but she still had plenty of friends at school.
Graduating early left her reluctant to part.
But being with Natsume eased that melancholy.
Besides, she could still see her friends anytime.
It wasn't like life and death.
"That's good."
Natsume smiled. "I was told to pick three students, and you came to mind."
"Mm."
Hinata quickly lowered her head, not daring to ask what she most wanted to know:
Now that she was his student, could their relationship go further?
After a moment's inner struggle, she lifted her head and looked at his profile. "Natsume-nii, how did I do just now?"
"You were great."
Natsume answered without thinking. "At your age, to already use Gentle Step Twin Lion Fists—an advanced secret art—so proficiently… you're working very hard."
Hinata unconsciously pressed her lips together and smiled.
Even though they saw each other daily, they didn't spend long together. Most of the time, she trained quietly on her own.
"Then… were you doing it on purpose just now, Nii-san?"
Hinata, cheeks pink, gathered her courage to ask.
"I was."
Natsume glanced down at her, and seeing her adorable expression, he added with a chuckle, "Hinata, you get a lot of special treatment from me."
As the words fell, he felt her grip tighten around his hand.
If he hadn't been supporting her, she might have fainted then and there.
Even so, she'd already turned into a steaming kettle of a girl.
Natsume didn't keep teasing her, lest she actually pass out—that would make him no better than a creep.
After a moment, Hinata recovered a bit, though still very nervous.
As they walked, she kept sneaking careful peeks at him.
She might not have realized it.
But Natsume certainly did. His strength aside—no one could sneak looks at him without him noticing.
So sneaky. So cute.
He didn't call her out. The two walked slowly onto the main street.
Hinata, startled like a rabbit, quickly let go of his hand.
Being alone was okay.
But in a crowd, she felt shy.
"S-sorry."
Hinata stammered.
"No need to apologize."
Natsume tousled her hair. "I don't want others seeing you this cute anyway."
"Eh?"
Hinata panicked, and before she realized it, they'd arrived at Ichiraku.
Noodles-maker Teuchi, in a white chef's coat, smiled. "Natsume, you haven't been around in a while."
"Dad, there's one more guest."
Ayame gestured at the dazed Hinata.
"Sorry, sorry."
Teuchi laughed and asked, "Hinata, what would you like?"
He remembered Hinata very clearly.
Who wouldn't, after seeing a little girl down forty-six bowls of ramen in one go?
"I'll have the same as Natsume-nii."
Hinata snapped back to herself and answered instinctively.
"I knew it."
Ayame gave a knowing look, then turned to Natsume. "What'll it be, handsome?"
"Someone else is treating today."
Natsume smiled. "He'll be here soon."
Ayame, a little dazzled by his smile, still blinked at that.
Treating Hinata?
Bold move.
As she wondered who it could be, Naruto rushed in.
"Teuchi-ossan! Ayame-nee!"
"So you're treating today?"
Ayame asked, somewhat impressed.
"Yeah, it's me."
Naruto nodded.
"Not surprising."
Ayame stroked her chin. "Did you bring enough money today?"
"Of course!"
Naruto patted his bulging frog wallet.
"He's treating. I'll have a bonito-tomato ramen."
Sasuke sat down without ceremony and ordered.
"No problem."
Ayame blinked. What a cute kid—this'll be a profitable day.
"Sensei, Hinata, order whatever you like."
Naruto adjusted his forehead protector, fired up. "Teuchi-ossan, extra-large chashu spare rib ramen—I'm gonna pig out today!"
"Oh, you graduated, huh?"
Teuchi noticed his headband. "I knew you'd make a fine shinobi."
"Thanks, Ossan!"
Naruto grinned.
"Tonkotsu ramen."
Natsume skimmed the menu and said.
"I'll have the same."
Hinata chimed in.
"Just a moment."
Teuchi turned around and got to work.
Soon, the bowls arrived.
Natsume casually handed Hinata a pair of chopsticks.
Sasuke twitched his lips and grabbed his own, even more convinced the test earlier had been staged.
Because Naruto's bowl was extra-large, he finished last.
He rubbed his stomach and noticed Natsume and Sasuke had already stopped, while Hinata was on her second bowl.
At first, he didn't think much of it. A girl who could eat two bowls wasn't that rare.
By the third bowl, he felt something was off.
At the tenth bowl, his eyes were wider than Kurama's.
And not just Naruto—Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki were shocked, too.
Minato couldn't help himself. "Is she Choza's?"
"What nonsense are you spouting?"
Kushina elbowed him. "Hinata's Byakugan isn't fake."
"A girl who can eat this much—Naruto won't be able to afford her."
Minato sighed.
"Why would he have to?"
Kushina glared at him. "Didn't you see? Hinata likes Natsume."
"She does?"
Minato scratched his head.
"Dummy."
Kushina chuckled despite herself.
They didn't expect the tenth bowl to be just the beginning.
Hinata didn't stop until her fiftieth.
Even the always composed Sasuke looked like he'd seen a ghost.
They had missed Ichiraku's "big eater" event due to training, so they didn't know about Hinata's record.
Seeing it firsthand was unbelievable.
"Naruto."
Ayame flashed a beautiful, gentle smile. "Since you graduated today, I'll knock off the small change—3,200 ryō even."
Naruto's heart cracked as he nodded.
He suddenly felt glad they'd had ramen instead of barbecue—much cheaper this way.
Even so, based on a genin's mission pay and split, he'd need to run a lot of D-ranks to earn it back.