Chapter 31: An Encounter with Naruko
Yu gazed toward the southeast—where the Uchiha compound should have been brightly lit, now only blood-scented ruins remained.
He calculated that he should wait at least until Shisui finished clearing up before going over.
"Once they're settled in..."
He crouched down, gently wiping the sweat from Sasuko's nose: "We'll go visit the clan members?"
Sasuko gave a muffled "mm."
Yu gently pulled the kunai from her palm, the metal sliding obediently into her ninja pouch under magnetic control.
"I know of an excellent ramen shop on South Street."
He deliberately made his voice light:
"The broth is made from beef bones..."
"With several pieces of char siu drizzled in sauce—Sasuko, you'd definitely love that flavor."
Sasuko finally looked up, Yu's gentle smile reflected in her pupils.
Yu took the opportunity to ruffle her bangs:
"Overtraining only harms the body."
"True strength... comes from knowing when to push and when to rest."
Yu's fingertips glowed with blue light as he gently pressed Sasuko's forearm. Where the chakra flowed, her aching muscles relaxed like soaking in a hot spring.
He slipped his arm under Sasuko's and easily lifted her up.
The little girl's training clothes were completely soaked with sweat, damp against his arms.
"Today's Sasuko..."
"Could already hit targets twenty meters away—very impressive."
"Leave some room for improvement tomorrow too, how about that?"
Sasuko buried her small face in Yu's neck, wrapping her arms around him in tacit agreement.
Space twisted as the two vanished.
————
Steam from Ichiraku Ramen mixed with noisy voices rising into the night sky.
Naruko huddled in the corner seat, her golden twin tails drooping listlessly as she propped her chin up, staring at the customers coming and going through the entrance.
The ninja uncle who always delivered her living expenses on time was already over 30 hours late.
Had they forgotten about her?
She fumbled in her pocket for her small purse, counting the remaining coins.
Six left...
In the glass reflection, her azure eyes had dimmed considerably.
She swung her legs, her worn sandals "tap-tapping" against the stool legs.
"Another bowl!"
The hearty shout from a ninja at the next table startled her.
Naruko touched her flat purse again as her stomach growled in protest.
People walked back and forth outside the shop, no one noticing the blonde little girl curled up in the corner.
She huddled tighter, as if this could block out the cheerful laughter around her.
The shop curtain suddenly lifted as a cold breeze flowed in.
Naruko glanced sideways—
A black-clothed youth appeared at the entrance carrying a small girl, who was comfortably curled against his chest.
That spoiled appearance made her unconsciously purse her lips.
"Tch..."
How pretentious!
She turned her head away in a huff.
So what if someone cared about her? The mature Lady Naruko didn't need that. She'd been cooking instant ramen by herself since age five.
"Two special tonkotsu."
A cool voice spoke, followed by rich bone broth aroma that made Naruko's stomach growl again.
What's so great about that.
She angrily buried her face in her arms, planning to ask Uncle Teuchi for a bowl of clear soup on credit after closing time.
Naruko's sneaky glances eventually caught Yu's attention. He put down his chopsticks.
The blonde girl in the corner had now stolen a third glance at Sasuko's char siu, each time shrinking back like a startled rabbit when their eyes met.
"Boss."
He tapped the counter with his finger: "A bowl for that young lady too, double the char siu."
When the steaming ramen was placed before her, Naruko's eyes lit up.
She looked up in confusion, meeting Yu's smiling gaze.
"My treat."
Three simple words left Naruko flustered.
As the "fox demon," she was used to being pierced by disgusted stares but didn't know how to handle sudden kindness.
"Thank... thank you..."
She said quietly, head down, then wolfed down the ramen.
"Burp~"
When the bowl was empty, Naruko mustered courage to scoot over to Yu's side.
The chair was a bit high—she had to use both hands and feet to climb up.
"I... I'm Uzumaki Naruko!"
"What about... you?"
Yu was wiping oil from Sasuko's mouth with a napkin when he looked up: "Uchiha Yu."
Naruko's cheeks turned as red as the remaining chili oil in her bowl, but she stubbornly tilted her head up: "Next time... next time I'll treat you!"
Yu smiled back: "I look forward to it."
Naruko fidgeted with her clothes hem, stammering: "Then, I... I can be your friend... friend..."
She seemed to bite her tongue, unable to get the last word out.
...
Sasuko suddenly looked up from her bowl, her obsidian eyes narrowing slightly.
What was up with this little blonde? She'd been chattering around Yu since earlier, only staring at Yu the whole time...
Sasuko felt uncomfortable.
"Gulp."
She deliberately slurped her soup loudly, finishing the remaining noodles in just a few bites.
Her small hand tugged Yu's sleeve: "Yu, I'm full."
Yu raised an eyebrow at the suddenly empty bowl—she'd seemed to have no appetite just moments ago.
"Alright."
He wiped the soup stains from Sasuko's mouth and nodded to Naruko: "See you later."
As he stood, Sasuko tightly hugged Yu's neck, burying her small face in his shoulder. At an angle Naruko couldn't see, her black pupils slowly rotated as the Sharingan manifested.
Seeing them about to leave, Naruko felt disappointed.
There had been so much more she wanted to say.
Her hand hung in mid-air, lips opening and closing.
"See... see you!"
She finally squeezed out those two words, fingers unconsciously twisting her clothes.
Yu nodded with a smile, but Sasuko in his arms suddenly started squirming.
"Let's go..."
The little girl buried her face in Yu's shoulder, her voice muffled.
Yu chuckled as they merged into the crowd.
Only after that black figure completely disappeared did Naruko slowly withdraw her gaze.
She kicked the table leg, suddenly giggling—someone had actually treated her to ramen today! The special kind with double char siu!
"Next time..."
Her smile suddenly froze.
Wait!
"Ah! I forgot to ask for his address!"
Her previously energetic golden twin tails instantly drooped.
But Naruko, who'd been alone since childhood, wouldn't be defeated by such a setback.
She clenched her small fists as a smile bloomed again on her face, still stained with oil.
It's okay—they're both in Konoha anyway. Next time, she'd definitely run into him again.
Today she'd made her first friend. Though she hadn't managed to say those last two words, that gentle big brother who treated her to ramen surely wouldn't refuse a request to be friends, right?
Naruko jumped down from the chair, her cute face beaming with smiles.
Pushing through the curtain, the night wind lifted her swaying twin tails, a piece of green onion from her hair falling onto her nose.
Naruko sneezed but smiled even brighter.
Today...
Was definitely a super lucky day.
***
20+advance chapters at patreon.com/Eatinpieces