Chapter 124 She held onto her own moon
In the end, Sasuke Uchiha let go of Haruko Hayama's hand because Naruto Uzumaki and Choji Akimichi were so fast at grabbing the meat that Sasuke, who was putting meat on Haruko's plate, had to stand up and fight with them.
How could we possibly lose to them?!
Uchiha Sasuke directly confronted them, and the battle for meat was about to begin.
"Hey you guys, at least leave some for others after eating so much!" Uchiha Sasuke said with a displeased expression.
Choji Akimichi's eyes sharpened. "Grilled meat is all about timing. It's most delicious when you pick it up at the moment it's cooked through, and its deliciousness reaches its peak when it's being fought over!"
Naruto Uzumaki retorted without backing down, "I didn't eat much; Choji stole it all!"
Seeing the three boys fighting over it so fiercely, Haruko Hayashi shook her head helplessly.
Kakashi Hatake and the other teachers were raising their glasses to drink. When they saw him about to take off his mask, all the children except for Class 7 were distracted and paid attention to him. After all, he was really arousing their curiosity!
As it turned out, they saw that when Kakashi Hatake took off his mask, what was revealed was... a mask with an open mouth.
Everyone: ...
Haruko Hayama: You all underestimated Kakashi's abilities!
Kakashi Hatake took a swig of his drink, put down his glass, and saw that the group of children all looked dejected.
Kakashi Hatake: ?
Haruko noticed that Sakura Haruno seemed to be in low spirits. She quietly left her seat with her bowl, walked over to Naruto Uzumaki who was sitting next to Sakura, whispered a few words to him, and then switched seats with Naruto.
Sakura Haruno was still lost in thought when she suddenly caught a glimpse of her protagonist, Haruko Hayama, smiling at her from the corner of her eye. She was so startled that she almost stood up.
"What's wrong, Sakura?" Haruko asked, puzzled by her terrified expression.
"No...it's nothing, hahaha."
He couldn't very well say that he had been thinking about her the whole time...
Sakura Haruno picked up her water glass and took a sip of her drink to cover up her panic.
Haruko, not noticing anything amiss, quietly asked her, "Sakura, don't you have much of an appetite?"
"Huh? No, how could that be? I was eating something," Sakura Haruno quickly explained.
"Is Sakura unhappy?" Haruko asked softly, seemingly not wanting to put pressure on her. "I noticed Sakura hasn't been saying much."
Sakura Haruno paused, her grip on the water glass tightening unconsciously. "I..."
How should I put it? Should I say that I feel out of place here? Or should I say that I feel like an outsider sitting here?
Her only connection to these people was Haruko Hayama. At this moment, their laughter and joy belonged only to them, while she was only there because she happened to have participated in the mission.
Everyone else seemed happy, and it seemed like I was the only one who felt awkward...
Haruko Hayama ignored her growing reluctance and grabbed her right hand.
"Sakura, would you like to go out for some fresh air with me? I'd like to look at the moon with you."
Upon receiving her invitation, Sakura Haruno's previously low spirits couldn't help but rise with a little joy. While despising her own two-sided stance, she tightened her grip on Haruko Hayama's hand.
She heard herself say, albeit cautiously, "Is that alright?"
Haruko didn't answer. She got up and pulled her up, ignoring the astonishment of everyone around them. She led her step by step toward the door, pulling her, who was always sensitive and fragile, toward the dawn.
At that moment, it was as if they were eloping to the moon, witnessed by everyone.
The bright moon hung in the sky, and the door behind them seemed to separate them from the hustle and bustle. Haruko looked at the full moon in the morning, and Sakura Haruno looked at her.
Haruko suddenly looked at her in the morning, "Does Sakura hate me?"
"Huh?" Sakura Haruno was taken aback for a moment, then immediately retorted, "Of course not, I really like Haruko!"
"That's great, then I can rest assured." Haruko Hayama took an exaggerated deep breath. "I thought you were upset because I hadn't taken good care of Sakura. Sakura is always so kind."
"You should be the one who's gentle..." Sakura Haruno silently thought to herself.
They were never close from the start, they should have been rivals, and they had no contact after graduation, but... because of Haruko's sudden request for help, Sakura Haruno couldn't help but feel happy.
Her classmates all felt that Haruko Hayama was like a starry sky and a bright moon, someone who could only be admired from afar and not approached.
At the time, Sakura Haruno didn't understand why everyone had an unconscious distance from Haruko Hayama, feeling that they weren't qualified to get close to her.
Now she understood that Haruko Hayama was not an unattainable beauty, but a gentle and kind person. It was precisely because she treated everyone with kindness that people felt inferior in her presence.
"But...why did Haruko approach me?"
Sakura Haruno silently clenched her hands behind her back, pretending not to care as she asked about the knot in her heart that had been there for her all along.
Haruko didn't answer for a long time, seemingly deep in thought. With each second of silence, Sakura's heart sank a little lower.
Finally, as Sakura Haruno struggled to hold back her tears, Haruko Hayama slowly spoke.
"Because I like Sakura."
Sakura Haruno couldn't hold back her tears as one fell, biting her lip tightly.
Haruko was still gazing at the bright moon in the sky when she woke up. "I noticed Sakura when I was studying at the Ninja Academy. She was so pretty and cute, and she really attracted me. It's a pity that we didn't have much contact after that."
"I've been worrying about how to strike up a conversation with you. Actually, I'm also a little worried that Sakura won't like me."
"I was worried that Sakura would reject my advances, and this time is no different. I'm afraid you'll be unhappy, afraid you'll be dissatisfied, afraid you'll hate me..."
After all, she had asked Sakura to join without her consent. What if Sakura was unhappy but she didn't want to refuse? She was so conflicted!
As Haruko pondered these thoughts, a look of frustration unconsciously crept into her eyes.
As Sakura listened to her recount her thoughts, which were almost identical to her own, she was filled with disbelief.
How could this be? How could someone as outstanding as her have the same worries as me?
But……
So happy, so happy...
I was so happy I almost cried, so blissful my heart was practically overflowing with joy...
Sakura Haruno clutched her clothes tightly, tears welling in her eyes and falling to the ground one by one through her blurred vision, striking her heart and creating ripples.
What exactly is this inexplicable joy and excitement...?
"Sakura? Sakura, what's wrong!"
Haruko was at a loss and wanted to comfort her, having no idea how she had made her cry again.
"I'm fine, Haruko!" Sakura Haruno ignored the tears streaming down her face and instead looked at her with a bright smile.
Then Sakura murmured, "So I'm your friend now..."
“Of course! Sakura is a very important friend!” Haruko Hayama replied immediately and affirmatively.
Sensing Haruko taking out a handkerchief and carefully wiping away her tears, Sakura Haruno tentatively took her other free hand.
Haruko didn't think much of it and smiled as she held her hand in return.
Sakura Haruno, facing the hazy night, held her own moon in her hands.
******
The list of recipients of gratitude as of March 8, 2024:
grateful--
K, the one who sent the update reminder charm
Please give a like and a flower to zimeng.
A love letter from the osmanthus tree in front of the mountain
Lin Weiyang from Long Island, the suave old man Xiao, the red-clad Xiangyi Saigao, early summer starry sky, fisherman's song, the stars are boring, A Ning who likes poplar leaves, love will prevail, Xuan Chun, summer night and fireworks, Mi Li loves to eat knives, Wei Shang (AoTu Fan), want to let the alpaca travel to all the books she likes, Lin Lao Ji, Zha Tian Bang seaweed rolls, Jin Xiula from Nanning, Osmanthus tree in front of the mountain, purple sweet potato porridge, Kui Sen Jiang A, G's cat, sunny Mio, the love-powered gift from Sanhao Squirrel
Thank you for the gifts! The author is so touched! Neji will perform the Eight Trigrams Palm for you all ( _ )
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