The familiar training ground sat quietly on the outskirts of the Uchiha Clan Compound. It was very close to the Clan Estate and was originally a simple training ground used by Satsuki and her older sister, Uchiha Itachi, when they were children.
Time flew by, and things had changed. Now, Satsuki's most admired older sister had become an enemy she had to defeat. This ground, therefore, carried many complex memories.
However, this was also the place where Satsuki and he—Uzumaki Naruto—first truly met, trained, and shared bento boxes.
On that bright, sunny afternoon, Uzumaki Naruto clumsily yet sincerely burst into her world. Although the memory of training here with that woman made Satsuki feel disgusted, now, this ground was more often imbued with a new, warm meaning.
This was... the place where she could 'monopolize' Naruto. Although Sakura sometimes came over now, most of the time, it was just the two of them. Naruto would guide her in Taijutsu here, spar with her using Ninjutsu, or simply rest and chat together.
The ground was also no longer the simple setup it once was. In the beginning, there were only a few crooked wooden stake targets. But now, after occasional repairs by Naruto and her, there was a simple running track, wooden benches for resting, and those targets had been replaced with sturdier, more standard new ones.
At this moment, Satsuki was staring intently at a target in front of her, riddled with kunai. The red part of the bullseye was densely packed with shuriken and kunai, leaving almost no gaps.
This was the only way Satsuki could think of to forcibly calm her intensely fluctuating emotions, besides being with Naruto—training until her physical strength was exhausted, until her mind had no energy left to think about those embarrassing and chaotic things.
"So, why not just go directly to him and frankly tell him: 'The reason I've been doing those strange things is because I like you and want you to pay more attention to me.' How about that?"
Kakashi's last'simple and crude' idea echoed in her mind again and again.
To directly open her heart... to reveal her truest, most vulnerable feelings to Naruto without reservation?
Just imagining that scene made Satsuki feel all the blood rushing to her head, her mind so hot it felt like it would burst into a fever! Her heart pounded so fast she could barely breathe.
But... would Satsuki do it?
The answer was definitely yes.
Anyway, she had already lost all face in front of Naruto, and her experience of social death was already at rock bottom. At this point, what was there to be afraid of? Satsuki was completely throwing caution to the wind! Rather than continuing this awkwardness, she might as well go all out!
But before that, she needed to completely calm this wildly beating heart, filled with various chaotic emotions. She needed to gather her courage and prepare herself mentally for the 'confession' that might once again change her life.
So, she picked up another kunai, her gaze sharply locked on the already overwhelmed bullseye, and swung her arm forcefully—
"Swish!"
The kunai, with a whooshing sound, accurately embedded itself into the metal jungle.
After taking a breath and calming her rapid breathing from the intense exercise, Satsuki walked towards the scarred target, preparing to retrieve the densely packed kunai and shuriken one by one.
However, her mind had long since drifted far away. Her fingers mechanically pulled out one ninja tool after another, but her mind was like a floodgate that had opened, uncontrollably running through various scenarios and lines for 'confessing' to Naruto, each one making her cheeks flush and her heart beat irregularly.
"Naruto! You, listen! I... I actually like you the most! Please... please stay by my side always, always from now on!"
"You idiot Naruto! Can't you tell? Everything I've done... those bento boxes, those words... it's all because I like you! I like you the most in the whole world!"
"Hey... Naruto. From now on... can only I train with you, okay? Did you hear me?...Why? No, no reason! It's an order!"
"Naruto... you can only look at me. If you dare to smile at other girls... or make bento for other girls... I'll do something very scary, you know."
"Listen, Uzumaki Naruto. Your future has already been reserved by me. Whether you agree or not... you can't escape."
"Naruto's scent... Naruto's smile... please only open them to me from now on! Let them all belong only to me!"
"I want to see Naruto every morning when I open my eyes... I really want to tie you to my side and not let you go anywhere..."
Each imagination made Satsuki's finger movements slow down by a beat, and her cheeks' temperature rise by a degree. Her movements in pulling out the kunai became absent-minded, and she even almost cut her hand.
"Ugh..." She let out a frustrated whimper, lowered her flushed cheeks, and quickly chased those chaotic thoughts out of her mind, trying to cool down.
"No, no, no... These... these can't be said at all! How on earth should I start?!"
Satsuki, who was anxious and agitated after this wild and extremely embarrassing daydreaming, instantly had her mood, which had barely calmed down from the frantic throwing, thrown into complete disarray again.
She paced frantically in the center of the training ground, especially the last few 'obsessed woman' fantasies, just thinking about them made her feel like a pervert.
Just as her mind was in a mess, completely unsure how to organize her words, and even more unsure how to face Naruto.
Rustle... rustle... Not far away, a clear, gradually approaching sound of footsteps suddenly came!
Who is it?! Could it be Naruto?!
Satsuki's heart instantly leaped into her throat! Not many people knew the location of this hidden training ground. Her mind was a complete mess right now, she hadn't thought of any lines, and she wasn't at all ready to face Naruto!
Extreme panic and the instinct to escape instantly took over!
In her haste, Satsuki almost reflexively leaped, silently jumping into the woods next to the training ground. She quickly formed the simplest basic hand seal.
The next moment, Satsuki's figure rapidly transformed into a very ordinary-looking tree, blending in with its surroundings, in a slight puff of white smoke.
Just as she completed her Transformation Technique and held her breath, the owner of the footsteps had already walked into the clearing of the training ground.
Through the strange vision of the Transformation Technique, Satsuki nervously looked over—only to see that the newcomers were not one, but two familiar figures.
Walking in front was the blond boy who had been unsettling her—Uzumaki Naruto. He seemed to have a look of worry and searching on his face, looking around.
And walking beside him, talking to him, was her teammate—Sakura Haruno.
"Naruto... and Sakura?"
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