Konoha: Naruto's abnormal life choices

Ino stood frozen in place, stunned by Naruto's cold response.

"…What did you just say?"

"I said, don't come looking for me again."

Naruto's voice was louder this time, making sure she heard him clearly. "If you want to stand here all night, be my guest. But I'm going home to rest."

"You're not allowed to leave," Ino snapped. "Not until you make everything clear. No matter what happens—you're not leaving!"

"And what if I do leave?"

"Then knock me out and go home. Isn't that what you're best at anyway?"

To prevent Naruto from slipping away again, Ino did something bold—she reached out and grabbed his wrist, holding on tightly.

Naruto frowned and shook her off. His gaze turned cold.

"You should know by now—I'm not some bleeding heart who wouldn't hit a girl."

"Then hit me if you want! Go ahead!"

Tears began falling down Ino's face, one by one, as she stared him down defiantly. Her jaw was clenched tight, lips trembling.

Naruto sighed, suddenly feeling exhausted. He wanted to explain. He wanted to get the reward for clearing this so-called misunderstanding. But he didn't even know what the misunderstanding was. Where was he supposed to start?

…Maybe he could fake it?

He'd have to feel things out first. Figure out what she was even talking about.

Taking a chance, Naruto raised his hand and gently wiped away the tears on her cheek.

Ino flinched at first—she almost dodged instinctively. But after a moment's hesitation, she stayed still. She was afraid that if she moved, he'd turn and walk away again.

Her face warmed under his fingertips, and she huffed. "Hmph. I knew it—you were just trying to scare me. Saying you'd hit me… what a liar."

"…???" Naruto blinked, baffled. Did she seriously forget he already knocked her out once? Was her memory really that bad?

"If you want to get hit so badly," he muttered, "I'll slap you next time."

"Hmph! You wouldn't dare!"

"I definitely would."

"Then do it! Hit me right now!"

Naruto raised an eyebrow as Ino shoved his hand away, wiped her tears with the back of her arm, and glared at him.

He narrowed his eyes, examining her face.

Embarrassed, Ino turned away and stared at the ground. She couldn't hold his gaze anymore.

So that's what this is…

Naruto clicked his tongue. "Tch. Fine, forget it. No reward, I guess. You talk first."

Teenagers, especially during puberty, always had the wildest thoughts. Something was clearly going on in that head of hers.

Naruto leaned casually against a wall, hands stuffed in his pockets. His voice was much gentler now.

"Ino. Why don't you tell me what you're thinking?"

Ino's heart skipped at the sudden shift in his tone… but then she remembered how he'd made her cry today, and a bit of resentment crept back in.

"Why didn't you say it first?"

That stubborn tsundere attitude returned full force.

Naruto nearly rolled his eyes. Girls are so much harder to deal with than older women. At least the older ones are reasonable.

"Fine, forget it. I'm leaving," he said, turning away.

But he hadn't made it more than a few steps before Ino grabbed his sleeve and tugged him back again.

"You're doing it again! Why are you so stingy?" she said, sniffling, her eyes still red from crying.

After all this back-and-forth, her real feelings finally started slipping out.

Ino lowered her head and spoke, her voice softer this time. "Last time, maybe I was a bit too much… but it wasn't entirely my fault. You picked on me first. That's why I went and cheered for Sasuke."

The sun had all but set, and the sky dimmed. The streetlights flickered on, casting a soft glow over Ino's face—delicate, vulnerable, filled with guilt and frustration.

Naruto studied her expression and let out a quiet sigh.

"Yeah… You're right. I was wrong too. I shouldn't have provoked you first."

Hearing him admit that made Ino bite her lip, holding back a fresh wave of tears.

"Exactly! You never explained anything… How was I supposed to know what you were feeling?" she said. "You were doing all these weird things, saying weird stuff—who can guess what any of it means?"

That's rich coming from you, Naruto thought, but held his tongue.

He looked at her and, sensing the timing was finally right, said, "Alright then. Ino, smile. Let's call it even."

Ino blinked. "So… you're not mad at me anymore?"

Naruto shook his head slowly, letting her emotions settle before grinning playfully. "If you smile now, then I won't be mad."

Ino's eyes widened. Her face reddened a little, and her earlier boldness completely vanished.

"Who cares whether you're mad or not?" she mumbled, "But… if you really want to reconcile… I guess there's no reason to say no. We're from the same village after all."

Then she turned her back to him and let out a light, embarrassed chuckle—just loud enough for Naruto to hear.

And with that, she ran off.

Naruto watched as her figure disappeared down the street, blending into the crowd under the soft glow of the streetlamps.

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing Option 1. Reward: (Talent: Mouth Full of Lies) has been issued and automatically equipped.]

[Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing Option 2. Reward: (5% Nine-Tails Chakra Control) has been issued.]

Naruto grinned at the familiar system voice and began walking home again toward his small apartment.

Two completions in one go. Four rewards in total today. Not bad at all!

Still a shame I couldn't get the Devil's Contract… I'll need to wait a bit longer if I want to pull Sasuke into that one.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts of the Uchiha compound, Kiba, Shino, Shikamaru, and Choji had just found Sasuke.

Shikamaru had to explain multiple times that Asuma hadn't meant anything malicious about the whole "orphan" comment. Only then did Sasuke reluctantly agree to return with them.

As they walked, Choji glanced at Shikamaru and asked quietly, "Hey, are you sure it was okay to let Ino go find Naruto on her own?"

"If we'd gone with her, that would've been the problem," Shikamaru replied flatly. "Ino's been dying to talk to Naruto. If she didn't get what she wanted, you and I would've been her punching bags."

He sighed and muttered, "Man, girls are such a drag."

Choji thought about it and nodded. Ino did have a temper, and she wasn't above taking it out on innocent bystanders.

Kiba, walking ahead with Shino, felt annoyed. Those two had gone off whispering again.

Man, no one ever wants to talk to me, he grumbled internally. Shino never said anything, and now the other two were deep in conversation. It wasn't like he could just have a chat with Akamaru all day.

Out of boredom, he slowed his pace and fell in step with Sasuke.

"Hey, Sasuke. You gotten stronger since becoming a Genin?"

"Yeah."

"Did Kakashi-sensei teach you any new jutsu?"

"No."

"Well, you're still the strongest in our class, that's for sure."

Sasuke didn't respond. He just stared ahead in silence.

Kiba kept talking anyway. "I mean, you've always been number one. Naruto only beat you last time because he got lucky. And then he had the nerve to act all dramatic, crying to Kurenai-sensei. Total embarrassment. Once I finish my training, I'm gonna teach him a lesson—"

"Shut up."

The sudden venom in Sasuke's voice made everyone freeze.

They turned to look.

Kiba blinked in confusion. "Huh? What's your problem?"

Sasuke's expression was cold and cutting.

"You're seriously overestimating yourself, Kiba. Since when does someone like you think he's strong enough to take on Naruto?"

In that instant, the atmosphere dropped several degrees.

Silence fell over the group.

The tension was ice cold.