With Anko on his left, Tenten on his right, and Aya in front of him, Kamizuki Hikari felt that this was the most difficult al he had ever endured.
As a real man, the only thing to do in this situation was... to eat as fast as possible.
Thirty seconds later...
"I’m done, thanks for the al!"
"Enjoy your food, everyone! This one’s on . Oh, and Shikamaru—after you finish eating, don’t forget to head back to training early!" Hikari flashed Shikamaru a warm smile.
’Ugh, this is such a drag. I was here to watch the drama! Do I really deserve this?’
Despite his inner complaints, Shikamaru returned the smile. Then, as he watched Hikari vanish with a Body Flicker, his mood instantly improved.
"Aya-nee, one more bowl of signature tonkotsu ran, extra at, please."
" too! Three more bowls!" Chōji had mostly recovered by now. That sickly-sweet dango had nearly made him question life itself. Ran was the perfect way to wash away the taste.
"Ino, you want anything?" Shikamaru turned toward her.
Ino shook her head. "I’m fine with this."
’Stupid Shikamaru! Can’t you see all these people around? Asking like that makes it seem like I eat a lot!’
Of course, shinobi generally ate a lot—even kunoichi were no exception. But as a girl who cared about appearances, Ino would rather endure a bit of hunger than lose face. More importantly, as she observed the three won subtly competing around Hikari, she felt like she was learning a lot.
How does a guy like Hikari-senpai, who’s such a jerk, have so many won fawning over him? Is it because he’s good-looking?
But can good looks really fill your stomach?
Lost in thought, Ino found herself seriously considering the question.
In the end, she realized it wasn’t an easy question to answer. At the very least, if she were picking a future husband, strength aside, looks couldn’t be too bad. Otherwise, she wouldn’t even have an appetite at ho, let alone anything else.
"Ino, let’s go!"
Shikamaru called out to her, then politely addressed Maito Gai. "Gai-senpai, we’ll head to training now."
"Go ahead! Next ti we’re free, I’ll have Lee and Neji spar with you guys again!"
"We’ll look forward to it!" Shikamaru replied, his gaze lingering on Neji.
In his mind, Lee was Chōji’s match.
Tenten’s opponent would be Ino.
As for him, Shikamaru felt he and Neji were on the sa level—equally smart, equally handso... ahem, at least that’s what he thought.
"Next ti, I’ll definitely defeat you!"
Neji delivered his cool line while staring at the sky at a 45-degree angle, convinced that this pose made him look exceptionally cool.
"I’ll be waiting!" Shikamaru replied with a smile before dragging Ino and Chōji toward the training grounds.
"Alright, I’m full too. Aya, right? I’ll be back for dinner tonight—make sure you’re here!" Anko stood up, arms crossed, her ample chest emphasized by the motion.
Aya gritted her teeth, glaring at Anko.
Mockery. This was blatant mockery.
What was so great about that extra baggage? A balanced figure like hers was clearly superior.
anwhile, Tenten averted her gaze, her confidence taking a critical hit.
"Gai, I’ve got stuff to do, so I’m off!" Anko said casually.
Maito Gai glanced at his three students, then nodded. "Go ahead. I’m not done eating yet."
With that, Anko disappeared with a Body Flicker.
"I never realized Anko-sensei from the Chunin Exams was so close with Hikari-senpai." Tenten murmured after Anko left, her eyes flickering toward Gai.
"Aya, two more bowls for each of us!" Gai said, completely oblivious to Tenten’s gaze—or even her words.
Right now, his mind was entirely occupied by ran.
"Got it! Dad, eight more bowls of ran!"
Aya smiled sweetly at her father before turning back to the counter, her sharp eyes locking onto Gai.
"Gai-san, it seems Anko and Hikari are really close, huh?"
Gai scratched his head, thinking hard. "Well, they’ve been friends since they were kids. But after Hikari started guarding the gate, their relationship kinda faded. I thought they’d drifted apart, but it seems they’re still close! That’s a really great news!"
Aya kept her smile intact, but inside, she was fuming.
Tenten shot Gai a resentful look.
’Gai-sensei, you’re a jōnin! Can’t you see this woman is my rival? You shouldn’t be spilling confidential info like that!’
Neji glanced at Lee, who was wholly absorbed in his ran, and suddenly felt a strange emotion rise in his chest.
’Won are so troubleso... Honestly, hanging out with Lee doesn’t seem so bad.’
Just then, Lee shivered mid-slurp. He looked around suspiciously—had he caught a cold?
"Gai-san, do you think Anko and Hikari are a good match? Will they end up together?" Aya suppressed her anger and forced a sweet smile.
"They’re... fine, I guess?" Gai felt completely out of his depth.
His expertise was in taijutsu—that’s what gave him strength beyond ordinary shinobi. But when it ca to ssy things like romance, he was completely clueless.
If he had even the slightest understanding of it, he wouldn’t still be single—he’d probably have kids by now.
"Gai-san, you’re Hikari’s best friend, right? Don’t you know how he feels?" Aya pressed urgently.
Gai deeply regretted coming here for ran.
If he had known it’d be this troubleso, he would’ve taken his team hunting instead.
"Well..."
The mighty Maito Gai, who feared no enemy, was utterly flustered under Aya’s intense gaze.
"I think... whether Hikari and Anko end up together depends entirely on how they feel. Given Hikari’s situation, if he wanted to get married, his kid could already be in the Academy. My guess is that he might have so reservations and isn’t ready to settle down yet."
After spitting all that out, Gai looked at Aya pleadingly.
’Please, no more questions. If you keep this up, I swear I won’t co here for ran for a month—no, three days!’
As a jonin, Gai had once been decently well-off.
But ever since he took Lee as his student, that financial stability had vanished.
Most of Lee’s training expenses over the years ca from Gai’s pocket. Plus, his own taijutsu training required far more resources to maintain peak physical condition than the average ninjutsu-focused jōnin.
Especially in the past year, after becoming a team leader, Gai hadn’t taken on many high-paying missions. Most of his ti was spent training his squad or running low-rank missions for experience. As a result, his already tight finances had taken a nosedive.
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Read 40 advanced Chapters on my P@treon.
/KakuzuTL
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