Chapter 10 "Yes, I should keep my promise and offer you..."

Life continued as before after returning to Konoha. Several years passed in the blink of an eye. The only change was that Itachi was giving you more money every month.

"I'm very rich now." You can say this with complete confidence now. That's right, the person standing in front of him is a successful capitalist across multiple fields. Oh no, I mean an entrepreneur. It's impossible for him to be short of money.

Itachi pretended not to understand what you meant, pushed the envelope you had pushed away back, and said, "This is just a small token of my appreciation."

The amount he gives me each month isn't even a small token of his appreciation, so you say, "You don't owe me anything."

When the topic of indebtedness came up, Itachi's expression became subtle. He said, "I just wanted to do that."

In the end, he had no choice but to accept the money.

Because of Itachi's example, his younger brother Sasuke followed suit after his first mission, sending an envelope containing the mission reward. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were exploiting the two brothers. If you could reluctantly accept Itachi's money, you absolutely cannot accept Sasuke's money. After all, accepting money from a child will make your already dwindling conscience feel inexplicably uneasy.

So you very firmly refused the envelope Sasuke offered, and he threw it down, saying something nonsensical like "One day I will surpass my brother" before storming off.

Sometimes I really don't understand the thought process of you Uchiha.

The next time you encounter Sasuke's teammate, the famous Naruto Uzumaki, ask him to keep an eye on Sasuke. Naruto, who was stopped on the street, was taken aback. This was not your first meeting with him. You had met him a long time ago, so long ago that you don't even remember. Back then, Naruto was being bullied by the village children who threw stones at him. Because of your arrival, the children's attention was drawn to you.

The reason is simple: humans are drawn to people and things that are extremely beautiful, like moths to a flame. Even Naruto looked up and pushed aside the whispers of others to look at you.

Just a simple profile view was enough to freeze him in place. Blood seeping from the wound on his forehead slid into his eyes, turning his vision red, yet he still couldn't help but look at you.

In a way, he should thank you. If it weren't for you, that one-sided bullying wouldn't have come to an end. But he thinks that you must have heard many people say thank you and express their affection, so his gratitude and affection seem so insignificant.

However, after graduating from the Ninja Academy, he was assigned to the same team as Uchiha Sasuke, which was incredibly good news for him. He thought he had finally gotten lucky. He and you had more contact now. In the past, you would never have taken the initiative to chat with him, let alone invite him to eat ramen.

With you sitting next to him, the ramen that usually attracts him doesn't taste so good anymore. Even the owner asked, "Naruto, don't you have an appetite today? Why aren't you eating right away?"

"Ah, ah—well, that." Naruto glanced at you guiltily and whispered, "Thank you for treating me to ramen."

"It's nothing, and I'd like to trouble you to keep an eye on Sasuke for me."

"I will, I definitely will!" he replied energetically.

You took a sip of ice water and asked him how his recent missions were going. Naruto knew you were concerned about Sasuke, and he felt like he was getting some of your attention because of Sasuke. Even just a little bit was enough to make him overjoyed. He talked rapidly about what had happened these past few days and the various details of the missions, forgetting to eat his ramen. By the time he finished, the bean sprouts on top of the ramen had gone cold, and only then did he start eating.

After finishing a few bowls of ramen, Naruto squinted his eyes contentedly, looking more like a little fox. You'd think it was getting late and he should be going home, right? He opened his eyes and said dryly, "Ah, oh, then I'll go home." But he actually preferred to call that place his apartment, since an empty place couldn't really be considered home.

Naruto once had the privilege of visiting Sasuke's home, which almost perfectly matched his imagination of a warm family: a gentle mother, a strict yet caring father, an excellent older brother, and you.

Although he only went once, that experience shaped his longing for a happy family and became the foundation of his imagination. After all, people cannot imagine things they have never seen before. After glimpsing a corner of a happy family, he was able to preserve the origin of this imagination.

Naruto never revealed this to anyone; he simply kept it quietly in his heart.

Until he said goodbye to you, he walked towards his apartment. After walking for a while, he couldn't help but turn back and saw that your figure under the streetlights was faintly glowing. Just like when he was a child, he stood there, watching you walk away little by little.

He told himself that since you wouldn't turn around anyway, he could keep staring at you for a long time, but then, in the next second, you suddenly turned around.

You saw him.

Naruto trembled in fright, the trembling sounding more like the lingering joy in his heart.

Please, act normal! He took a deep breath, waved at you, and said with a bright smile, "Goodbye—!"

You also raised your hand and waved.

*

When you returned to the Uchiha clan's territory, Sasuke, who was guarding the gate, complained as soon as he saw you, "Father said you didn't work overtime today, so why are you still coming back so late?"

Before you could answer, he sniffed again, checking your scent like a kitten. He frowned, "Have you eaten out? You smell like ramen."

"What a keen sense of smell! You said, 'Hmm, I ran into Naruto and treated him to a bowl of ramen.'"

"Ah," he said, his expression one of disbelief as if he'd discovered that the human in his household had not only gone out to find other animals, but specifically canines. "Why...did you do that? Are you that close to him?"

"Well enough."

As you walked past him to the entryway to change your shoes, Sasuke was frantic with worry because of your overly brief answer. When did you become so familiar with Naruto? Why did you call him by his name when he couldn't see you?

Although Sasuke was in a hurry, he didn't disturb your dinner. You didn't eat at the ramen shop because you thought the ramen was too salty. You sat down at the table and quietly enjoyed your own dinner. During this time, Sasuke looked at you several times with pleading eyes, but he didn't say anything. After you finished your dinner, he helped you take your plate to the kitchen and started washing it for you. Then he asked, "When did you become so close to him?"

He turned on the tap, and the water gushed out, drowning out his voice, which sounded muffled.

You said, "He's your teammate, and I get along very well with Sakura."

"Just because they're my teammates?"

You tilted your head. "So what kind of answer would you like?"

Sasuke didn't know either. He always felt that you were aloof from everyone, as if you never felt attached to anyone.

Frustrated, Sasuke buried himself in washing the dishes. You left the kitchen. Itachi had gone to the Uchiha gathering today and probably wouldn't be back until late at night, but that didn't concern you. After washing up, you leaned against the headboard and looked at the letter Haku had written to you, which included two recent photos of him. Although he was only a couple of years older than Sasuke, Haku was more mature and composed. You had been gradually transferring your responsibilities to him since the beginning of the year, and he should learn how to be a good secretary.

This will significantly reduce your work pressure and even free up some time to relax. It's really not easy; after all these years of being busy, you can finally enjoy yourself for a while.

You're reading a book when you suddenly hear a knock on the door. Well, this scenario has happened countless times. Even if you don't open the door, you know who it is. You're wondering if they have nothing else to do.

You got out of bed, walked slowly to the door, opened it, and saw the silhouette of a black-haired boy. Leaning against the door frame, you lazily asked, "Is the tea party over?"

When you described the Uchiha gathering as a tea party, Itachi wasn't angry. Instead, he laughed along, finding the description vivid and somewhat sarcastic.

“Yes, it’s over, so I wanted to come see you,” he said. His voice had become even deeper after puberty, but he didn’t seem to have gone through a very obvious puberty. He didn’t have the hoarse voice that most people his age couldn’t escape. It was so perfect that it was almost impossible to find any flaws.

You might wonder what's there to talk about so late at night, but upon closer inspection, as your attention shifts to him, your senses are also activated. First, you smell the refreshing scent of green tea on him, which seems to be the scent of the shower gel he specifically chose (you later find out it's because you seemed to really enjoy drinking green tea around that time). The hazy, warm steam from his shower surrounds him, and his silky long hair is draped over his shoulders, with a few strands sliding down to his chest. His eyelashes flutter slightly.

Okay, you're not some oblivious person; you saw through his true intentions at a glance. You said, "So you didn't just come here to chat with me, did you?"

"Ah... have I been found out?" His eyes flickered, and the corners of his lips turned up slightly as he smiled. "To thank you for your help back then, I'm just fulfilling my promise."

"Oh, you mean the reward for that help?" Because you have so many things to deal with every day, you've completely forgotten about it.

The boy's delicate and handsome face magnified slightly—he leaned closer to you, "Yes, I should keep my promise and offer myself to you."

A note from the author:

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