Chapter 375: Entangled and Unclear
A new day, a new morning.
"Customer, would you like something to eat?"
The moment the first customer pushed open the door and stepped inside, Shunhi greeted them.
"Where's Shuyu? I'm here to see Shuyu."
The woman with a samurai sword at her waist—Tetsubaki—spoke.
Tetsubaki was a general of the Land of Iron, the personal disciple of Mifune, the leader of the samurai. After the Land of Iron was destroyed by Ability Beasts, she was rescued by Shuyu and brought to live in the Hidden Leaf Village. Because of this, Tetsubaki developed some inexplicable feelings toward Shuyu.
In this unfamiliar environment, it was only natural that Tetsubaki would rely more on the one who had saved her life.
"If you're not buying ramen, I'm not telling you."
"One bowl of ramen," Tetsubaki responded immediately as soon as Shunhi finished speaking, pulling out enough money for a bowl. "Now, can you tell me where Shuyu is?"
"Not enough."
Shunhi shook his head.
Left with no choice, Tetsubaki pulled out enough for another bowl.
"He's living with Sarada."
She didn't even wait for the ramen. Tetsubaki turned and left immediately.
"I saw that, you know…"
Just as Shunhi was about to pocket the money, a voice came from behind—Ayame.
"Ahhh, so it's you, junior sister. What a coincidence, haha…"
Ayame narrowed her eyes at him and said, "All earnings from the shop are supposed to go into the register."
"But that wasn't ramen money—it was intel money…"
"Still not allowed."
Ayame didn't look like she was joking.
"Alright, alright. I'll put it in, so stop staring at me."
"No way. I want to see you put it in with my own eyes."
"Jeez… You're like a housekeeper…"
Shunhi grumbled under his breath.
…
The doorbell rang, and the door opened.
"Huh? Tetsubaki? What's up?"
Sarada stepped out and looked at the unexpected visitor.
"I'm here to see Shuyu."
The mention of Shuyu instantly put Sarada on alert. Tetsubaki's feelings for Shuyu weren't exactly subtle—everyone except Shuyu himself had noticed.
After all, she was cold and distant with everyone else, but only softened around Shuyu. The change in demeanor was far too obvious.
Sarada had thought that the reason Tetsubaki hadn't shown up in a while was that she had finally given up on Shuyu. She didn't expect her to suddenly appear now.
"What's going on, Sarada?"
Because Sarada had been standing at the door for a while, a concerned Shuyu walked over.
"Shuyu."
Tetsubaki smiled slightly as she spoke.
"Tetsubaki, long time no see. What brings you here?"
Shuyu looked at her and asked.
"Mm. I'm here to repay a debt. Sorry it's taken me this long."
"Repay a debt? That's not necessary. Back then I only saved you because it was part of my mission."
Shuyu wiped his hands on the scarf tied around his waist.
"No! A life debt is a life debt, no matter the reason behind it. Whether it was because of a mission or anything else, that fact doesn't change!" Tetsubaki replied passionately. "I wasn't sure how to repay you before—but now I am! While the village is still being rebuilt, you probably don't have any missions, right? So during this time, Shuyu, please let me take care of you properly!"
Tetsubaki stepped past Sarada, practically squeezing her way inside.
"If you really want to help, then help me chop the vegetables."
Shuyu spoke while preparing breakfast.
"Mm."
Tetsubaki nodded. For a samurai who didn't even blink at cutting down people, chopping vegetables was nothing.
A flash of the blade, and all the ingredients in front of her were sliced with perfect precision.
Watching Shuyu and Tetsubaki work seamlessly together, Sarada—waiting nearby for breakfast—felt completely excluded.
…
"—And that's how it all turned out in the end."
Having found Chōchō Akimichi, Sarada rested her chin in her hands as she spoke.
"I knew it… I knew it would end up like this." Chōchō put down her bag of chips. "You actually let Tetsubaki move in, Sarada! You were way too careless!"
"Sorry…" Sarada lowered her head. "Wait—why am I apologizing?"
"Now's not the time to worry about that! From what you said, that means Shuyu and Tetsubaki are alone together in the same house, right? Are you really okay with that, Sarada?"
"I… I think it's fine… probably…"
Even though she trusted Shuyu, Sarada couldn't stop her mind from running wild with all kinds of inappropriate scenarios.
"No! Kids shouldn't be doing things like that!"
"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go, Sarada! We're kicking Tetsubaki out—together!"
Chōchō said, full of emotion.
"Kick her out… that might be going too far…"
Sarada hesitated.
"Sarada, listen—love is something you have to fight for. If you don't, you'll never get it."
Chōchō grabbed Sarada's hand as she spoke.
…
"I didn't expect you to be good at needlework."
Shuyu looked at Tetsubaki, who was weaving something.
Needlework was typically something only ordinary women had the time to learn. Ninja and samurai were constantly busy with missions and training—there was rarely any time or energy left for things like that.
"Mm."
Tetsubaki had once put in real effort to learn it.
Shuyu was cleaning the house while Tetsubaki continued weaving—together, they formed a peaceful, harmonious picture.
"Wait up, Chōchō—!"
"Tetsubaki!"
As Chōchō suddenly burst into the living room, Tetsubaki's expression instantly reverted to cold indifference. She set aside the yarn in her hands and said, "Is there something you need?"
"Miss Tetsubaki, I heard you're here to repay a debt, so I came to help you out!"
"No need. This is my own way of repaying him. It has nothing to do with outsiders."
Tetsubaki stared directly at Chōchō as she spoke.
"Chōchō…"
Sarada tugged lightly at her friend's sleeve.
"Don't worry, Sarada. I'm always on your side." Chōchō whispered back, then turned to face Tetsubaki again. "Don't be so cold. Aren't we friends?"
"No."
Tetsubaki replied without a hint of hesitation.
Whether she genuinely didn't understand social niceties or was just pretending not to, Chōchō couldn't deal with someone like that.
"Fine then, Tetsubaki. In that case, let's have a competition!"
Chōchō stared at her defiantly.
"No."
Tetsubaki preferred things to stay exactly as they were.
"That's enough, Chōchō." Sarada quickly pulled her friend back, then turned to Tetsubaki and said, "Sorry, Tetsubaki. Chōchō didn't mean any harm."
"I know."
Tetsubaki looked at Chōchō.
It wasn't that she didn't mean to—but that she absolutely did. That was how Tetsubaki saw it.
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