r18novel Chapter 32 Because he's good-looking.
Chapter 32 Because he's good-looking.
Ichiraku Ramen.
In the aisle, by the window, a boy and a girl sat facing each other.
They wore new, reflective ninja headbands, making them look like they had just graduated from the ninja academy.
The boy had a standard square face. Although he looked somewhat immature, he already had a rather long beard on his chin, giving people a strange feeling of "I am very mature".
The girl had beautiful curly hair that fell casually to both sides, making her features look somewhat charming and cute.
However, her deep red eyes added a unique sense of heroism to her.
Of the two, it was mostly the square-faced boy who was talking. He would occasionally put down his chopsticks and spoon and vividly describe something to the girl.
The girl simply nodded in agreement twice, then lowered her head and ate her ramen in small bites.
"Speaking of which, we'll be split into teams the day after tomorrow."
Sarutobi Asuma stroked his beard, glancing casually at the girl in front of him.
"Does Hong have any friends she wants to be paired with?"
His tone was very relaxed and casual, but his hand holding the soup spoon tightened slightly.
Kurenai raised her face and looked over, her eyes as clear as spotless snowflakes.
"You can decide this?"
"Uh, well..."
Sarutobi Asuma stammered a vague reply, then looked away in a flustered manner.
He certainly has no right to decide how other people's squads are assigned.
But if—and he meant if—Kurenai really wanted to be in the same squad as him…
Asuma thought he should sacrifice his dignity and go back to that wretched old man to plead for him to be assigned to Kurenai Yuhi's team...
It's not bad either.
For the rest of the time, neither of them spoke, each eating their ramen.
The atmosphere suddenly became tense.
Only after chewing and swallowing the last meatball did Kurenai look up at Asuma again, her eyes still calm.
Since graduating from the Ninja Academy, Asuma has frequently sought her out for training or meals, subtly expressing his goodwill towards her.
Girls mature earlier, so she naturally knows what Asuma is thinking.
But she didn't really feel anything, and you could even say she didn't like it.
Asuma always acts like he's "very mature," as if he can handle everything on his own.
As a result, whenever he encounters a problem, he subconsciously uses his background as the son of the Hokage to solve it.
Just like it is now.
Not only that, even during our conversation just now, Asuma would occasionally steer the conversation toward the Third Hokage.
Moreover, most of the conversations were about criticizing the Third Hokage, like a spoiled child throwing a tantrum.
How could Kurenai Yuhi, who had just been promoted to genin, continue the conversation?
I could only give a perfunctory reply before lowering my head to eat my noodles.
Perhaps it wasn't a big deal in itself, but it did affect her current impression of Asma to some extent.
"I don't really want any teammates."
Kurenai only slowly looked away and gently shook her head when she saw Asuma's movements becoming somewhat stiff as he ate the noodles.
"As long as the arrangements are reasonable, I have no objections."
"Alright..." Sarutobi Asuma felt a little disappointed, but still managed a forced smile:
"I hope we can all find teammates we can work well with."
Kurenai nodded without saying a word.
An eerie atmosphere once again enveloped the two of them, causing Asuma's eyes to wander involuntarily.
Until the ramen shop's curtain was pulled back.
Three figures walked in from outside.
The leader was a boy with messy hair and delicate features.
He had a faint smile on his face, and a large fan logo was printed on the back of his dark casual clothes.
This is clearly an Uchiha, but Asuma doesn't recognize him and thinks he's just a passerby.
However, Asuma recognized the two figures behind the boy.
The man with a full head of white hair, wearing a black mask, and with lifeless, half-dead eyes is Kakashi.
With his mushroom haircut and green bodysuit, Might Guy seemed to radiate an almost blinding light.
"Huh?" Asuma looked at the two of them with some surprise. "They're eating ramen together again?"
Kakashi and Might Guy have completely different styles and seem to be two people who are completely unrelated.
However, Asuma knew that they would occasionally go to the training ground to spar, and he would also see the two of them going out to eat together after training from time to time.
However, Asuma has never seen them eat together again since Kakashi's father, Sakumo Hatake, committed suicide.
And it wasn't just Might Guy; Kakashi seemed to have completely shut himself off, no longer having any contact with anyone. Whenever you saw him on the street from afar, he was always all alone.
But now...
How did they end up together again?
Asuma scratched his head in confusion, his gaze fixed on the two of them, unable to figure out what was going on.
Kurenai Yuhi also looked over, her ruby-like eyes flickering slightly, as if she were thinking about something.
Kakashi and Might Guy followed the Uchiha boy and found a seat.
Asma stared wide-eyed in disbelief.
He then realized that the guy he had treated as a stranger was actually the key to everything.
"Who is that person?" Asuma asked, pointing at the boy with a puzzled expression. "Why is he sitting with Kakashi and the others?"
Kurenai Yuhi answered softly, "Uchiha Ike."
"hiss--"
Asuma gasped, turning to Kurenai in shock: "How do you know his name?"
Kurenai Yuhi said, "He's a classmate of ours."
"Really?" Asuma couldn't help but stroke his beard, then, feeling it wasn't enough, he scratched his head. "There is such a person?"
If it's someone from his class, how could he have no recollection of them at all?
"He is indeed our classmate," Kurenai Yuhi nodded and said, "but he's probably a bit withdrawn and doesn't talk much, so you don't really remember him."
"Then why do you remember his name?" Asma was still puzzled.
"Isn't it normal to know your classmates' names? Besides..." Kurenai Yuhi rested her index finger on her chin and tilted her head slightly. "I feel like I can remember most of the girls in the class."
She's so cute...
Asuma stared blankly at Kurenai, instinctively asking, "Why?"
As he recalled, he did indeed remember that person from his class.
But this classmate had no presence at all. Despite being from the Uchiha clan, he was as ordinary as a commoner ninja.
So much so that he couldn't recall the other person's name or appearance for a moment...
"Is there even a question?"
Kurenai glanced at Asuma strangely, then said matter-of-factly, "Because he's good-looking."
"..."
Sarutobi Asuma choked up.
#
That night.
The garrison building, the captain's office.
Faced with the uninvited guest lounging on the sofa with his legs crossed, Fugaku Uchiha's eyelids twitched uncontrollably.
Looking at the wooden table that was originally neatly arranged with various documents, it is now piled with scattered playing cards.
Fugaku Uchiha felt a throbbing pain in his temples.
My blood pressure is high.
He quickly lowered his head and took deep breaths.
After calming himself down, he coughed and began to speak.
"Lady Tsunade..."
A slight smile forced across Fugaku Uchiha's usually expressionless face as he cautiously asked, "What brings you here?"