Chapter 416: Inuzuka Kiba and His Little Fan
"I wonder if there are any bugs here?"
A man wearing a long trench coat walked through the estate of Tobitake Tonbo, observing his surroundings. He noted that the natural environment was exceptionally well-maintained—quite possibly an ideal habitat for insect cultivation.
Aburame Shino had grown up significantly, radiating a distinct air of maturity. His trademark trench coat had been updated to a sleeker, longer cut, largely because his physical stature had become considerably taller. He remained as effortlessly stylish as ever.
"Hey, at a time like this, can you stop obsessing over bugs for once? This is the wedding for Captain Tonbo's son and daughter. I heard it's going to be astronomically huge, with tons of VIPs invited," Inuzuka Kiba said from beside him.
Kiba now sported visible stubble along his jawline. A young woman walked snugly by his side, her hands wrapped around his arm as she leaned affectionately against him.
Woof! Woof!
Trotting beside his feet was a massive dog, barking cheerfully in agreement with Kiba's words. Akamaru was fully backing up his partner's point.
"Thankfully, Akamaru hasn't found a mate yet either. Otherwise, I would feel a bit left out," Shino remarked, staring down at Akamaru. He then began rambling incessantly, "I wonder what Akamaru's true thoughts are... Is it that you haven't looked for a mate for Akamaru? Or is it that you don't want him to find one, preferring to hoard Akamaru all to yourself?"
Woof! Woof!
Akamaru immediately lashed out with a swift kick toward Shino. Bad-mouthing me right to my face? Have you no respect for my dignity?!
Bang!
Shino dispersed his form into a swarm of insects to easily evade Akamaru's strike, reappearing beside the hound to gently pat his large head. "You're really not cute at all. After all these years, the two of us are the only ones who haven't found a companion. We ought to sympathize with each other."
Woof! Woof!
Shino's commentary nearly drove the poor hound mad.
Pfft!
The young woman clinging to Kiba's arm let out a soft giggle.
"Stop picking on Akamaru," Kiba said, sounding somewhat exasperated. "This guy keeps insisting that after I become Hokage and establish an official 'Dog Day' festival, he'll marry three wives and four concubines—so he refuses to tie himself down to a single tree just yet."
In this modern era, Kiba no longer harbored a desire to become Hokage. His current ambition was to achieve the status of a Three-Star Ninja; the dream of becoming Hokage was somewhat outdated to him now. However, Akamaru remained completely fixated on the idea of establishing "Dog Day." Since Kiba couldn't bring himself to shatter his partner's dream outright, he kept these thoughts to himself.
Still, if the opportunity ever arose, he wouldn't mind taking a shot at the Hokage position. After all, holding the title offered massive prestige and made it far easier to ascend to a Three-Star Leader Ninja if one performed well. It was realistically the most straightforward path available, as earning the Three-Star title through other routes required making extraordinarily monumental contributions in a specialized field—an exceptionally difficult feat. By comparison, becoming Hokage seemed almost simpler.
Woof! Woof!
Akamaru barked stubbornly, insisting on his plan. He had been looking forward to this for so long! He intended to awe all of Konoha and reign supreme as the king of all dogs.
Shino observed, "Speaking of which, Akamaru is getting quite old. By the time you actually become Hokage, won't he be far too elderly? If his body fails him, won't establishing 'Dog Day' then just make him feel even more miserable?"
Pfft!
That remark struck Akamaru straight in the heart like a spectral blade. The hound froze, his eyes reflecting deep, existential contemplation.
Back in his golden years, he had been a top-tier student at the Ninja Academy—a formidable hound whose academic record surpassed even Naruto's. He felt that Shino's logic was painfully sound. Precisely because it made so much sense, Akamaru felt as though a physical knife had been plunged into his chest.
"Woof! Woof!"
"You're saying that as soon as the wedding wraps up, I have to find you a mate? And she has to be pretty?" Kiba translated.
Akamaru nodded vigorously, his eyes filled with absolute seriousness. He had no intention of falling behind Kiba in life.
"Fine, fine, fine! Hey, Shino, I guess your rambling speeches actually come in handy sometimes!" Kiba laughed.
Gloom...
Shino instantly slouched into a dark, melancholy mood. Great, another comrade abandons the single life.
"Haha, let me drop that topic," Kiba said, changing the subject. "Shino, how do you think Captain Tonbo's kids' wedding is going to turn out? I wonder if it can outshine mine."
Due to various circumstances, Kiba had already gotten married, though he didn't have children yet. His own wedding ceremony had been quite grand—while it couldn't quite rival Naruto's massive event, as a prominent Konoha clan, the celebration had been exceedingly lively.
Shino mused, "I imagine there will be swarms of insects flying through the sky, aligning themselves to form glowing characters and illustrations. That would be truly romantic." A look of dreamy fascination crossed his face. Countless insects soaring through the sky, organizing themselves in neat formations like flocks of birds to perform intricate aerial maneuvers—that would be spectacularly cool. If that turned out to be the case, he resolved to work hard to find a partner so he could replicate the setup for himself.
"Uh..."
Shino's vivid description caused the couple and the hound to visualize the scene, and they collectively felt a wave of secondhand discomfort.
"That... might not be the best idea, Shino," Kiba said delicately.
Shino replied with a trace of quiet resentment, "Nothing in this world is absolute. One can at least indulge in the fantasy."
"Damn it, we need to brace ourselves later for the ultimate psychological assault from Neji, Naruto, and the others," Kiba suddenly recalled, his expression turning grave.
Hearing this, Shino froze. Swarms of insects instantly began hovering around his body. "An assault? Are there enemies?"
"What enemies?! Who would dare run wild at Captain Tonbo's estate? He's a sensory ninja and one of the absolute strongest figures in the Shinobi World! I mean Naruto, Neji, Choji, and the rest—they all have kids now. We need to mentally prepare ourselves so we don't end up completely breaking down when they show off."
Kiba spoke in a hushed, deadly serious tone.
Pause.
Shino felt an even deeper pang of misery. He swiftly recalled his insects, wishing an actual formidable enemy had invaded instead of having to endure such social torture.
The mere thought of Naruto and the others parading around in front of him with their children was painful to contemplate. As former classmates and comrades of the same generation, it was a agonizing scenario—not because the others had kids, but because he had none.
"I won't break down," Shino stated stiffly. "I've already qualified for the teaching profession. Moving forward, I will dedicate myself to being a full-time instructor at the Ninja Academy, devoting my life to guiding the next generation to become strong."
Yet, no matter how one listened, Shino's tone carried a clear hint of forced composure.
"Ah, you're becoming a teacher? I'm not cut out for that. I'll stick to helping out the village and taking care of the kids in my clan," Kiba shared his own plans.
The primary reason was that the position of clan head would soon be handed down to him once he accumulated enough experience. His disinterest in the Hokage seat stemmed largely from these competing responsibilities; there were simply too many personal factors at play. The younger generation of his clan required his leadership to grow, and navigating adulthood was no easy task.
It was a pity Captain Tonbo was far too wealthy and lacked the free time; otherwise, Kiba would have gladly paid top dollar to hire Tonbo as a private tutor for his clan's children. After all, half the credit for Kiba growing as strong as he was today belonged to Captain Tonbo's guidance.
"My husband is so cool," Tamaki purred softly, leaning into Kiba.
"Of course I am," Kiba laughed heartily.
In the end, Shino was the only one left suffering in this scenario. And knowing he would soon face psychological damage from Naruto's group, Shino felt as though attending this wedding was a form of self-inflicted punishment.
"Let's go, let's go! Let's head to the center of the venue to see how grand Captain Tonbo made this celebration. A joint wedding for two of his kids is bound to be incredible!"
Kiba led the way, stepping forward toward the heart of the estate. However, judging by the distant location of the fireworks, it would clearly take them quite a while to walk there.
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