Chapter 13 Sasuke's Sister

"By the way, who taught you this genjutsu?" Sasuke Uchiha suddenly realized halfway through learning it.

Haruko replied somewhat embarrassedly, "It's my mom. Actually, this illusion technique isn't at my level, but I saw my mom use it before, so I kept pestering her to teach me."

“Your mother is so good to you…” Uchiha Sasuke clenched his fists, his expression somber.

He wanted to learn the Great Fireball Technique, a technique passed down through generations of the Uchiha clan, but his older brother said that he was not at the right level and that he should wait until he was older to teach him. His father also thought that he did not have the same talent as his brother and told him not to rush things.

Noticing his low spirits, Haruko smiled faintly and expressed her envy towards him.

"Sasuke is so lucky! He knows so many powerful ninjutsu. It must be because your family has high expectations for you that they push you to study so hard!"

Every time Haruko Hayama saw Sasuke display his extraordinary skills at school, she couldn't imagine how happy she would be if those skills became her own survival abilities.

"..." Sasuke Uchiha felt like he had been coaxed into a new mood all of a sudden, but that must be an illusion!

Naruto, unable to bear their constant talking any longer, squeezed into their midst and said, "What's so great about Sasuke? Haruko is clearly the strongest!"

"What right do you, a loser, have to comment on us?" Facing Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha immediately reverted to his usual arrogance.

"Anyway, Haruko is the best!" Naruto Uzumaki glared at him defiantly.

Haruko Hayama had already gotten used to mediating between them. "Alright, if you don't mind, I'll teach you!"

"Of course I don't mind! Haruko, I will definitely try my best to learn!" This is the honest puppy.

"Hmph...Teach me if you want." That's the arrogant cat.

Haruko silently wiped away her sweat in the morning.

They practiced by the pond for an afternoon, and after receiving a provocation from Naruto Uzumaki, Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki started a match outside the scope of their teaching.

As a result, the two of them had exhausted too much chakra and lost control during the fight. In addition, they were too tired to pay attention to their surroundings. In a flash, they both accidentally fell into the pond behind them.

"My God! What's wrong with you guys... Pfft, hahaha!"

Uchiha's mother had come to the door to welcome them home, but she couldn't help but laugh when she saw what was happening in front of her.

Three adorable little kids stood in a row in front of her, completely soaked, and she was too embarrassed to look at them.

Haruko was also soaked because she lost her footing while pulling Naruto up and accidentally fell down as well.

In the instant her foot slipped, she instinctively grabbed Uchiha Sasuke, who had just come up, and so Uchiha Sasuke was baptized once again.

Sasuke Uchiha, gritting his teeth as he climbed ashore: ...

"Mom." Sasuke Uchiha glanced at her shyly.

Uchiha's mother gently patted his head. "Go take a shower. I'll go find a blanket for you both."

"……Um."

Uchiha Sasuke pouted and turned his face away, but Haruko Hayama, who was standing next to him, noticed his reddened ears.

Haruko quietly looked away, deciding to pretend she hadn't seen anything. If he found out, he'd probably throw a tantrum again.

Since there were no girls' clothes available, Haruko Hayama and Naruto Uzumaki temporarily wore Sasuke Uchiha's clothes.

"I feel like I look like a female version of Sasuke when I wear this."

Haruko took a walk around in the morning and found herself increasingly amusing.

"Then what do I look like?" Naruto Uzumaki pondered, troubled.

Haruko hesitated for a moment before tentatively asking, "Like a golden retriever version of a cat?"

"...You two, stop playing around." Uchiha Sasuke couldn't stand their idiotic behavior any longer.

Especially when he saw Haruko in the morning after taking a shower and wearing his own clothes, the dampness and fragrance of her body wafted into his nostrils, and Sasuke Uchiha inexplicably dared not look at her.

As for Naruto Uzumaki, who was wearing his clothes, Sasuke Uchiha coldly declared, "Wash them clean and give them back to me."

"Eh—!" Naruto puffed out his cheeks, clearly sensing his double standards.

Seeing this, Uchiha's mother joked, "Haruko looks just like Sasuke's little sister."

younger sister?

Upon hearing her words, Sasuke Uchiha began to look at Haruko Hayama from a different perspective.

Her long, smooth black hair and dark, ink-like eyes did indeed resemble those of Uchiha Sasuke. Both of them had a refined and quiet temperament, and now that they were wearing the same clothes, they really did look like a brother and sister.

Even Naruto Uzumaki, who always disagreed with Sasuke Uchiha, snorted in annoyance after careful observation.

“But I want to be the older sister.” Haruko Hayama’s focus was different.

If I were Sasuke Uchiha's younger sister, I don't know how stifled I would feel. It's much better to be an older sister; if I don't like someone, I can use my authority as an older sister to boss him around.

Ignoring her inexplicable snickering, Uchiha Sasuke was still lost in his own thoughts.

If Haruko Hayama really is his younger sister, she's not badly strong, so she wouldn't be a disgrace to the Uchiha clan. Her looks... are passable, but she's a bit silly and seems easily fooled, like someone who would sell you out and still be counting the money for you.

Sasuke Uchiha's lips twitched. Recalling that scene, he didn't really want to accept that she was his sister.

"It doesn't look like it at all, it's so stupid." Uchiha Sasuke crossed his arms and scoffed at the assumption.

Haruko Hayama retorted, "What? If I were Sasuke's older sister, I would take good care of you and buy you lots of tomatoes. I guarantee I'd make you change your tsundere personality!"

There were so many things to criticize in her words that Sasuke Uchiha was the first to be provoked by the unfamiliar and embarrassing word "tsundere".

"What tsundere! I'm not!" Uchiha Sasuke swore he had never been so angry before.

Meanwhile, Naruto Uzumaki was adding fuel to the fire, with his arrogant tomato-head hairstyle.

"It's so noisy!!!"

To ease the tension between the two, Haruko pulled Naruto aside after dinner and talked to him.

Sasuke Uchiha, who was passing by, saw the two of them talking incoherently and glancing at him from time to time, which aroused his curiosity, but he was too embarrassed to ask them what they were doing.

So Haruko Hayama and Naruto Uzumaki glanced at him and noticed that his face had become even more sour. Haruko Hayama was so startled that she quickly patted Naruto Uzumaki on the shoulder and told him to remember her words.

Then Haruko changed to her official smiling face and beckoned Sasuke Uchiha over for a chat.

Although he was happy, Sasuke Uchiha, unwilling to show it, snorted and obediently walked towards them.

Haruko sat upright on the tatami mat in the morning, with Naruto Uzumaki sitting next to her, who was resentful but dared not say anything. Sasuke Uchiha paused as he walked over, and hesitated before sitting down opposite them.

“Sasuke.” Haruko Hayama looked at him intently.

"What are you doing..." Sasuke Uchiha was confused.

Receiving a meaningful look from Haruko, Naruto coughed sharply and, amidst Sasuke's bewildered expression, mumbled, "Could we... be friends...?"