Chapter 40 Holding Hands?
Haruko turned her head in the morning and found Sasuke Uchiha with a slightly displeased expression.
He must have just finished his cultivation; he was covered in dust, and even his cheeks were smeared with dirt. But judging from how naturally he walked over and sat down next to me, he certainly didn't notice.
"Why... do you always train alone?" Uchiha Sasuke hesitated for a moment before finally asking the question.
These past few days, he and Naruto Uzumaki have been staring at each other blankly. At first, seeing that Haruko Hayama was busy taking care of Kakashi Hatake, they went to train first, but they couldn't wait for Haruko Hayama to come to them.
After finishing their training and returning home, they saw Haruko Hayama already helping to serve the dishes. It was a rare opportunity for Sasuke Uchiha to catch her returning home later than them.
Upon entering the room and discovering that Haruko was not there, Naruto Uzumaki couldn't wait to go find her and bring her back for dinner. He stepped out again just seconds after entering the room.
Upon seeing Uchiha Sasuke, who had walked out with him and seemed to dislike him, the two of them hummed in unison and went off separately to look for Haruko, as if they were having a silent competition to see who could find her first.
When Sasuke Uchiha caught a glimpse of Haruko Hayama sitting by the river from afar, a smile unconsciously crept onto his lips. Indeed, he was the one who understood Haruko Hayama the most.
He then composed himself, regaining his usual expressionless face, but quickened his pace towards her, then slowed down when he was only a few meters away, pretending to be just casually strolling around and bumping into her.
Haruko didn't think much of it, assuming that he had just seen her when he returned from his cultivation.
"Because I saw that you were cultivating very seriously, I didn't want to disturb you."
That wasn't an exaggeration. Seeing the intense scene of one desperately trying to catch up with the other and the other desperately trying not to let the other catch up, Haruko Hayama felt that it would be better to go somewhere else and not get involved in their childish squabble.
After saying that, Haruko Hayama also took out a handkerchief.
Just as Sasuke Uchiha was about to retort, he felt something soft against his cheek, and in the blink of an eye, he saw Haruko Hayama leaning in to carefully wipe his face.
"W-What are you doing!" Sasuke Uchiha's eyes widened, and he hurriedly leaned back.
"Let me wipe your face." Noticing his ears turning red quickly, Haruko pointed to her own face in surprise. "Sasuke has mud on his face, you probably didn't notice."
Upon hearing her explanation, Uchiha Sasuke not only failed to calm down, but also raised his hand in disbelief and wiped his face. When he opened his hand, he saw that there was indeed mud on it.
Recalling the image of him walking casually towards Haruko with his face covered in mud, Sasuke Uchiha clenched his muddy hands in embarrassment, his originally light pink ear tips turning completely crimson.
That Naruto Uzumaki guy! He definitely found out and deliberately didn't tell me!!!
A flame ignited in Sasuke Uchiha's eyes; he was determined to have a good "sparring" with Naruto Uzumaki when he got back.
Suddenly, his clenched fist was covered by a pale yellow handkerchief. Uchiha Sasuke subconsciously looked at Hayama Haruko, not understanding what she meant.
"If Sasuke's shy, then you can wipe it yourself." Haruko Hayama replied, suppressing a laugh, seeing his embarrassed and indignant expression.
Seeing her trying to laugh but holding back her laughter to protect her pride, Sasuke Uchiha felt even more ashamed and indignant.
After a few seconds of mental preparation, he picked up a handkerchief and roughly wiped his face a few times, seemingly trying to cover up his foolish behavior. After wiping, he stretched out his hand and handed it to Haruko Hayama, awkwardly avoiding looking at her.
As Haruko took the handkerchief from his hand, a faint, cool fragrance unique to Uchiha Sasuke wafted past her nose. Before she could fold the handkerchief, his hand, which she had just withdrawn, was extended towards her again.
"What's wrong, Sasuke?"
Haruko looked at her outstretched palm, then at Sasuke Uchiha, who was still not meeting her gaze, and was somewhat puzzled.
Uchiha Sasuke pursed his lips, and as he wiped his face, he felt too embarrassed. Only after handing the handkerchief back did he realize that he had given her the handkerchief that he had dirtied.
Explanation was too much for him to do; the epitome of tsundere, Uchiha Sasuke simply curled his fingers, wanting his handkerchief back.
Haruko Hayama: ?
What does that mean? Holding hands?
Haruko Hayama, who was usually the one who naturally held hands with Naruto Uzumaki, completely misunderstood his meaning and was secretly pleased that Sasuke Uchiha would act cute towards her.
Then, Sasuke Uchiha felt a texture in his palm that was completely different from a handkerchief—warm and unsettling.
Not a handkerchief?
Completely unprepared for this possibility, Uchiha Sasuke frowned and turned his head slightly to see what it was. Unexpectedly, he saw a fair hand resting on his own, and Hayama Haruko, who met his shocked gaze, gave him a mysteriously touched expression.
The scene fell silent for a moment, and Haruko watched as the blush that had initially been only on Sasuke's ears gradually spread to his entire face.
If Sasuke Uchiha hadn't remained stiff and silent, Haruko Hayashi would have thought he was so angry his face turned red.
Just as Haruko was wondering if she had misunderstood him, Sasuke Uchiha stared at her for a few seconds, seemingly wanting to say something but then turning his face away. The key point is that he didn't struggle when Haruko held his hand, and even silently held her hand back.
Haruko Hayama: ? ? ?
So, did she understand correctly or incorrectly?
If it was the right person, why was he looking at me with such a complicated expression? If it wasn't the right person, why did he shake my hand again?
Haruko felt deeply that even after spending so much time with the tsundere cat, she still couldn't fully understand its psychology, and couldn't help but sigh.
Upon hearing her sigh, Sasuke Uchiha immediately bristled, turning back with a resentful look in his eyes. "What do you mean? You didn't sigh when you held hands with Naruto, but you're so unhappy when you hold hands with me?"
Sensing his barely tangible resentment, Haruko quickly explained, "No! It's rare to hold hands with Sasuke, I'm so happy! Yes, it's a sigh of happiness!"
After she finished speaking, she nodded hastily, as if trying to make him feel her sincerity.
"Hmph." Sasuke Uchiha reluctantly accepted her explanation. To avoid appearing too petty, he changed the subject. "By the way, I rarely see you use techniques other than genjutsu."
Since teaming up with Haruko Hayama, Sasuke Uchiha has hardly seen her use any lethal ninjutsu, even though her genjutsu is powerful enough to trap enemies and force the two of them to defeat them.
“This…” Haruko lowered her eyelashes, “Illusion magic is quite good, isn’t it?”
"Um?"
"You can disable the enemy's ability to attack without killing them."
Understanding the implication in her words, Sasuke Uchiha couldn't hide his surprise, "You're afraid of killing?"
Haruko Hayama neither answered yes nor no.
She had been in this world for so long that she sometimes forgot she had a past life. While she was immersed in this peaceful world that belonged only to children, the news of the Uchiha clan's massacre was like a sharp sword that shattered her self-deceiving protective shield.
This serves as a stark reminder that this is not a peaceful utopia, but a ninja world filled with blood and tears.
From the moment she stepped out of the school, from the moment she was awarded the headband symbolizing Konoha, from the moment she faced the enemy's weapons, she was no longer a child, but a ninja destined to be stained with blood.
Even if she was afraid of killing, what could she do? She had to kill eventually, because she was a ninja.
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