9 25: Chapter 25: Training Ground No.
9 In Konoha’s Training Ground No.
9, Naruto led Sora to a large tree with a small target drawn on its trunk.
“Little Sora, watch closely!
Let me show you your brother’s Shuriken skills!” Naruto puffed out his chest, his blond hair swaying in the wind as he grinned proudly.
Although his Shuriken skills were very poor at first—so bad that Sasuke had mocked him for months…
…after receiving pointers from Shisui, his skills had improved rapidly.
Now, when hitting stationary targets, he could manage nine out of ten hits, if not a perfect score.
Hearing this, Sora crossed his arms and watched Naruto’s movements intently.
He was also quite curious; since this silly brother was so confident, just how much had his strength progressed?
The wind blew through Naruto’s golden hair.
He took a deep breath and flicked his wrist.
*Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
* Three Shuriken flew out; two landed precisely in the center of the bullseye, while one veered slightly off, landing in the Eight-ring.
Naruto looked at the target and scratched his head awkwardly—he had wanted to get a perfect score to show off, but he had fallen just short.
Clap, clap, clap!
Sora didn’t think much of it.
Seeing Naruto achieve this result, a sense of relief welled up in his heart.
At first, he was afraid a Shuriken might suddenly fly toward him; after all, Iruka had almost been hit before.
Hearing Little Sora clapping for him, Naruto instantly tossed his slight disappointment aside.
Although his attempt to show off wasn’t perfect, it was enough that his younger brother acknowledged him.
Naruto twirled a Kunai on his finger while looking at Sora.
“Little Sora, do you want to give it a try?” Sora was about to answer when he suddenly felt a strange emotion—a feeling of nervousness and bashfulness.
He looked in that direction but only saw the branches and leaves of another large tree.
“What’s wrong?” Naruto looked at Sora in confusion and followed his gaze toward the tree.
“Is there something wrong with that tree?” Sora didn’t know how to explain it.
The emotion from atop the tree likely came from the Anbu, while the emotion behind the tree probably came from Hinata.
“Brother Naruto, is there any girl you like at school?
Or is there any girl who likes you?” Sora didn’t answer the previous question directly but instead threw another question at Naruto.
His voice wasn’t quiet, allowing Hinata behind the tree to hear him clearly.
“Ugh…
Naruto-kun…” She was nervous about Naruto’s next answer, and her heart began to race—a sensation that made Hinata feel rather uneasy.
“Huh?
Why ask such a question all of a sudden?” Naruto looked at Sora strangely, but he didn’t probe further and answered directly, “A girl I like…
none for now.
I feel like everyone is quite ordinary.
I don’t mean their looks; I mean their personalities are all very ordinary.” Naruto scratched his head, a bit troubled about how to put it.
He paused.
“As for whether any girls like me, there are a few.” “But what annoys me is that many of them only came to talk to me because they failed to pursue Sasuke.” Thinking about this made Naruto very angry.
When had he, Naruto, ever had to put up with such treatment?
Sora’s mouth hung open, unsure of how to react to Naruto’s words.
There were just too many things to roast!
Hinata, hiding behind the tree, breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
But a second later, she suddenly realized something was wrong.
What was she so nervous about?
And what was with this feeling of relief after hearing that answer?
The more she thought about it, the redder Hinata’s face became, and a faint wisp of white steam even seemed to rise from her head.
Behind a tree a bit further away, Hanabi looked at her older sister with concern.
Her sister had become so strange since coming out this time, completely different from her usual self.
Why was that?
Hanabi was baffled.
She followed her sister’s gaze but only saw a blond kid and a red-haired kid slightly older than her chatting.
Hanabi’s gaze shifted back and forth between her sister and the two strangers.
After thinking for a long time, she came up with a possibility: her sister might be getting bullied by these two guys!
At the thought of her gentle, frail sister being bullied in the woods by two strange characters, the fire of anger instantly ignited within her.
“Hmm?” Sora glanced toward the tree where Hanabi was.
Such a violent emotional shift was hard not to notice.
Sora thought for a moment and felt it would be best to find out the source of that emotion.
He then turned to Naruto and said, “Brother Naruto, how about we call it a day?
Let’s come back tomorrow.
I want to walk around a bit.” “Ah?
Alright…” Naruto wanted to ask him to stay, but seeing that Sora had already left after speaking, he had no choice but to lower his outstretched hand helplessly.
“Whatever, I’ll go find Shikamaru and the others then.” Over the past two years, Naruto had made many friends, especially Shikamaru and his group.
Although they had different personalities, they got along exceptionally well.
Thinking about meeting Shikamaru and the others, Naruto decided to buy some tasty snacks on the way.
Observing Naruto from a distance, Hinata pursed her lips when she saw him leaving.
Several times she wanted to step forward and talk to him, but she could never bring herself to do it.
Hanabi looked in the direction Sora had left, becoming increasingly certain of her suspicion that her sister was being bullied.
Without a second thought, she followed him, determined to find out the truth.
…
Walking to a stream, Sora took out a stick he had picked up along the way.
After tying a thin line tightly to the stick, Sora thought for a moment and took out an uneaten ham sausage to tie to the end—a simple fishing rod was ready.
Having done this, Sora cast it into the stream and waited quietly for a fish to bite.
Although the equipment was crude, there were quite a few fish in this stream, and he was confident in his luck.
Hanabi crouched behind a boulder, watching Sora’s movements in confusion: What is this red-head doing?
Sora set the stick aside, set up an iron pot, filled it more than halfway with water, and then started a fire.
He had noticed someone behind him long ago, and along the way, he had figured out who it was.
He just didn’t know why Hanabi’s emotions were so furious, or why she had followed him after he left but wouldn’t show herself.
Too many questions.
Whatever, since things have come to this, I’ll eat first.
Swish!
The fishing rod suddenly jerked.
Sora reacted instantly, pulling a fish up.
“Good luck~ This fish is quite big.” He took out a knife he carried with him, deftly sliced open the fish’s belly, removed the internal organs, and tossed it into the pot after washing it clean.
Behind the boulder, Hanabi grew even more confused: What on earth is he doing?
He doesn’t look like a bad person…
but the way my sister looked just now, she was clearly being bullied!
She knitted her small brows, staring intently at Sora’s movements, her heart becoming more conflicted: Should I rush out and ask?
But he looks like he might be strong…
While waiting for the water in the pot to boil, Sora called out toward the boulder as if casually, “Friend hiding behind the rock, do you want to come over and have some fish?” Hanabi froze, shocked that she had actually been discovered!
(Don’t ask me where he got the iron pot from, for our mind let’s say a storage seal he carries filled with cooking equipment, cause he is a foodie)