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Chapter 130: Eliminating Hostility
"...Eh? Wh-what did you just say?"
Satsuki's eyes, which had been curved like crescents, suddenly widened! Her dark pupils instantly filled with caught-off-guard bewilderment, surprise, and rapidly spreading shyness that seemed ready to overflow.
Her cheeks visibly turned bright red in an instant, even her earlobes taking on a crimson hue.
Seeing Satsuki suddenly shed all her cold exterior and display such a rare and incredibly cute appearance, Sakura's heart traitorously skipped a beat again.
So cute!
She forced herself to stay calm, repeating the question and quickly offering sincere praise, "I mean, are you dating Naruto-kun? After all, you two look so well-matched and in sync! You're practically a perfect pair!"
"Eh? R-really?" Satsuki's voice unconsciously became smaller, carrying a trace of disbelief and secret joy, her gaze somewhat evasive, completely unable to look directly at Sakura.
"Yes! Of course it's true!" Sakura nodded vigorously. "After all, you're both super geniuses! Strong and practically inseparable every day. With your relationship at that level, it would be strange if people didn't think that way!"
"I see..."
Satsuki's tone softened, but then carried obvious disappointment as she lowered her head slightly, "But... we're not... we're not that kind of relationship..."
"Eh? Why not?" Sakura was confused. From her perspective, these two might as well have "we're a couple" written on their faces.
Satsuki pressed her lips together, saying somewhat aggrievedly and helplessly in a small voice, "I don't know... but Mom said... we're still too young... talking about this is too early... maybe... maybe we need to wait a while longer..."
"Really? What a shame..."
Sakura showed a regretful expression, but quickly offered optimistic comfort, "But it's okay! You're together every day and have such a good relationship, becoming that kind of couple should just be a matter of time! It's just a timing issue!"
I see... so that's how it is... Sakura... is actually a good person...
Enormous shyness, joy, and a sense of satisfaction from being acknowledged instantly overwhelmed Satsuki, making her brain nearly overheat and crash.
She shakily stood up with unsteady movements, her eyes still evasively avoiding Sakura's gaze, frantically finding an excuse. "Th-that... your drink seems to be finished, right? I'll... I'll go get you another bottle..."
"Time to eat! I made bonito rice balls, ginger-braised pork, and everyone's favorite hamburger patties!"
Just then, Naruto came out of the kitchen carrying steaming, aromatic dishes. The rich meat fragrance and sweet sauce aroma instantly filled the entire small apartment.
However, he immediately noticed Satsuki standing by the refrigerator with impossibly red cheeks, even seeming to have steam rising from her head, and asked in confusion.
"Hmm? What's wrong, Satsuki? Why is your face so red? Is it too hot?"
"It's... it's nothing!" Satsuki reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, frantically waving her hands in denial. "Let's... let's eat first! Oh right, Sakura, you should try it too! Naruto's cooking is the most delicious!"
She stiffly changed the subject, even actively calling out to Sakura.
"Ah, yes! Thank you!" Sakura was also drawn in by the tempting aroma of the food and quickly stood up. "Let me help serve the dishes!"
In an instant, the originally somewhat cold apartment became lively. Though Naruto didn't quite understand why the relationship between these two girls seemed to have suddenly eased and even become harmonious while he was just cooking in the kitchen, he was still happy to see this scene, cheerfully bringing the cooked dishes to the small table one by one.
Meanwhile, on a telephone pole not far from Naruto's small apartment.
Kakashi, who had just returned from the Memorial Stone, stood there silently.
Through the window, he could clearly see the scene inside the room—the blonde boy smiling as he brought out dishes, the black-haired girl no longer cold despite her flushed cheeks, and the pink-haired girl actively helping to arrange bowls and chopsticks. The three of them sat around the small table in surprisingly harmonious atmosphere.
Those two hadn't excluded that seemingly weaker, somewhat timid third teammate.
Seeing this scene, Kakashi's exposed eye curved slightly, showing a genuine smile filled with relief.
"Obito... it seems this time, I can really look forward to this."
The next second, his figure once again silently disappeared from the telephone pole.
---
At five o'clock the next morning, while the sky was still gray and dim, Naruto had already prepared everything, carefully placing three prepared lunch boxes containing carefully made sandwiches and that still-quiet Pokemon egg into his backpack, ready to head to Training Ground 3 for that well-known "bell-grabbing" exercise.
He knew full well that Kakashi would definitely be late, but considering that the other party was his elder and had been his father Minato's former student... Hmm? How should this relationship be classified? Uncle-in-arms?
He shook his head, deciding not to get tangled up in this complex relationship. Even though he wouldn't be late, he still prepared breakfast, not following Kakashi's mischievous suggestion.
With everything ready, he opened his door—
"Hey, Naruto, good morning."
A familiar voice rang out in the cool morning mist. Uchiha Satsuki was already standing gracefully not far from his doorway, carrying some of the morning's moisture on her.
"Satsuki? What are you doing here?" Naruto was somewhat surprised, then smiled. "Good morning. How long have you been here?"
"Not long," Satsuki immediately denied, "I just arrived recently too. I was getting ready to go to the training ground, so let's walk together since we're going the same way."
Naruto was silent for a moment. Intuitively, this "just arrived" and "same way" probably a lie. But he still just smiled and nodded, "Sure, let's go together then."
The two walked side by side in the dim morning light toward the training ground.
Only Satsuki knew in her heart that to "just happen" to catch Naruto's departure time, she had been quietly waiting outside his door for quite a while.
She calculated the timing, not wanting to disturb Naruto's rest while absolutely unwilling to miss any opportunity to travel with him.
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