Chapter 117 A huge mess at the same time
"Haruko! Haruko!" Naruto Uzumaki knocked loudly on the door.
Haruko opened the door in the morning and looked at the panting Naruto with a puzzled expression. "Naruto? Why are you in such a hurry?"
Naruto Uzumaki moved closer, grabbed her shoulders and swayed her back and forth to check if she was injured.
"Naruto... Naruto, what's wrong?" Haruko Hayama was a little flustered by his shaking.
Sensing her discomfort, Naruto stopped what he was doing, but his hands remained firmly on her shoulders, and his eyes welled up with tears when he met her worried gaze.
"What happened to Naruto?"
Haruko became anxious when she saw the golden retriever's pitiful expression, as if it was about to cry.
Naruto simply withdrew his hand and wiped his tears with his sleeve. "I've heard everything... Haruko, you were kidnapped after you separated from us."
Haruko breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, that's what it was about. It's okay, Naruto. I'm fine now, aren't I?"
"But it's because I didn't protect you!" Naruto said firmly, his eyes filled with regret. "If... if I could have gone back with you... if I could have noticed something was wrong in time..."
He always said he would protect her, but it was completely useless. Sasuke had the strength to protect her, Shikamaru had the wisdom to protect her, but he... couldn't protect her at all...
Seeing him caught in self-blame, Haruko Hayama helplessly took his hands and said, "If I had been more vigilant, this wouldn't have happened. It's my own fault."
Naruto Uzumaki kept his head down, his lips tightly pressed together, still stubbornly sticking to his own opinion.
"Okay." Haruko lowered her head slightly to catch his gaze and smiled at him. "I've been sticking close to Naruto these past few days, okay? I feel much more at ease with you protecting me."
Hearing her say that, Naruto immediately perked up, his fighting spirit soaring. "Haruko, I will protect you with my life!"
Meeting his resolute gaze, Haruko Hayama couldn't help but soften.
"Of course I know. Naruto has always protected me very well. I've never worried about that."
When Nara Shikamaru caught up with him, he saw that Naruto's face was unusually flushed and his eyes were fixed on Haruko Hayama, as if he were completely mesmerized.
"Hey! You ran off before I could even finish my sentence."
Nara Shikamaru broke the delicate atmosphere between them with an annoyed voice.
Seeing that it was him, Haruko was pleasantly surprised, "Shikamaru! What brings you here too?"
Nara Shikamaru was speechless. It was clear that Uzumaki Naruto had completely revealed all the information. He recalled Tsunade's instructions to him—
"This mission must be kept secret from Haruko," Tsunade said seriously, looking at him.
"Because you're afraid she'll be taken away again?"
"On the one hand, on the other hand..." Tsunade thought of Orochimaru's experiments to maintain his appearance and age, and couldn't help but grind her teeth. "In any case, it's better not to let her know about those studies."
Nara Shikamaru still can't understand why Tsunade specifically emphasized that Hayama Haruko shouldn't see it.
Since it was a mission requirement, Nara Shikamaru patiently explained it to Hayama Haruko, but she insisted on going.
"We can't just have Shikamaru, a Chunin, participate, can we?"
Haruko clenched her fist. Tsunade's attitude... perhaps a secret about her memories was about to surface...
So the three of them ran together in the street.
"So, do you have any other outstanding candidates besides me?" Naruto asked.
Nara Shikamaru, used to his arrogant farts, replied with a simple "Mm."
"So that's why you came up with the idea of luring Choji with potato chips?"
Haruko watched the two of them wolfing down potato chips, and was slightly speechless.
Nara Shikamaru poured out the last potato chip, his eyes sharpening. "Here it is."
The next second, the door to the Akimichi house was pushed open, and Akimichi Choji, still in his pajamas, fixed his eyes on the last potato chip in his hand and rushed over to snatch it away.
"As for potato chips, no matter who it is, I absolutely won't let them have the last bite!" Choji Akimichi said with a serious expression.
"..."
Haruko Hayama and Naruto Uzumaki exchanged glances, clearly sharing the same thoughts.
Nara Shikamaru explained, "I've been teaming up with Choji for a long time, so I'm most comfortable working with him."
Haruko tugged at his sleeve, and as Shikamaru leaned in to listen with a puzzled look, she whispered, "Can we call him Kiba?"
"Why?" Nara Shikamaru asked, curious about her reason.
"Because Kiba and Akamaru are very powerful!" Haruko Hayama blinked her eyes as she looked at him.
Because Akamaru is super easy to masturbate!
“…Okay.” Nara Shikamaru couldn’t resist her gaze and reluctantly agreed.
"I heard someone calling my name."
Kiba Inuzuka walked towards them with a flamboyant smile, accompanied by the obedient Akamaru.
"Kiba and Akamaru have really good hearing," Haruko Hayama remarked.
You definitely won't have to worry about English listening comprehension...
Kiba Inuzuka raised an eyebrow, tacitly acknowledging her praise, while Akamaru barked happily twice.
Naruto suddenly remembered, "Should we call Sasuke along?"
"Let's not disturb Sasuke and his brother's time together lately, since Itachi is often home." Haruko Hayama said considerately.
Sasuke Uchiha, whose brother complex has been exposed to everyone: ...?
Nara Shikamaru, as the team leader, assigned the tasks: "Then let's each find someone to join us, and meet at the village entrance in twenty minutes."
...
"Huh? Retrieving research documents, that sounds so exciting!" Yamanaka Ino immediately thought of the female ninja agent in the manga.
"It would be great if Ino could join us," Haruko Hayama asked again. "By the way, do you know where Sakura is?"
Yamanaka Ino paused in excitement, "Haruko, when did you become so close to that guy with the broad forehead?"
Under her questioning gaze that seemed to say, "Am I still your best friend?", Haruko quickly explained, "Since there are no Jonin involved, the more people the better."
"All right."
Yamanaka Ino sighed and, as Haruno Sakura's former best friend, went to their door with Hayama Haruko.
"Hey! Can I go?"
Sakura Haruno was a little surprised, since she hadn't had much contact with Haruko Hayama since graduating from the Ninja Academy.
“Of course, Sakura is meticulous and conscientious, and the mission will definitely be better with you involved,” Haruko Hayama said with a smile.
Sakura Haruno paused for a moment, then noticed Ino Yamanaka's displeased expression and agreed without hesitation.
"Hmph, you can rest assured with me here, Boar Well."
Sakura Haruno was walking down the street when she bickered with Ino Yamanaka.
Yamanaka Ino tossed her hair dismissively. "Really? Then I'll have to be careful, especially with you around."
Haruko, caught in the middle, gave an awkward laugh. "Haha, I'm relieved to have everyone here."
Finally, they gathered at the village entrance. Hyuga Neji was among the new participants, as Aburame Shino was unable to attend due to accompanying her father on a mission.
"Alright! Everyone, let's move forward together!"
Naruto raised his hand enthusiastically, but no one paid him any attention.
Nara Shikamaru facepalmed. "Hey, I'm still a squad leader, even though it's incredibly troublesome."
"Are you sure it's okay to hand the captain over to you? You don't seem reliable at all," Naruto Uzumaki said disdainfully.
Kiba Inuzuka arrogantly interjected: "You little brat, acting all high and mighty, Naruto. But it's a bit annoying to be bossed around by that unmotivated Shikamaru."
While the group of boys were arguing idly on the side, Haruko sighed deeply. Is it really okay for this kind of group to be like this?
"Speaking of which, isn't Sasuke coming?" Yamanaka Ino looked around but couldn't find him.
Haruko Hayama explained, "Sasuke and his brother are training, so they probably won't have time to come with us."
Sakura Haruno thought for a moment and realized that she didn't seem to have met Sasuke's brother. "So Sasuke has a brother. I don't even know what he looks like."
"Hmph, I saw a picture of Sasuke's brother when I went to his house!" Yamanaka Ino boasted to her.
Sakura Haruno clenched her fist with a forced smile. "Oh, really? So you only saw the photos after all."
Yamanaka Ino's eyes blazed with fury at her provocation, "It's better than someone not even being able to get into their own home!"
You wild boar!
"A broad forehead!"
Haruko Hayama & Shikamaru Nara: ...Destroy it.
******
Thank you for reminding me of the update reminder charm a dear friend sent me before! Your extra chapter has been delivered! *(ˊˋ*)*
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