Chapter 91 Apron is Great Too

"I got scared by Uchiha Itachi."

Naruto spoke honestly as he skillfully twirled his sword before slowly sheathing it with a click.

"Here, my mother asked me to send this to you."

Ino took out a bag of food from behind her back, her expression somewhat unnatural.

"If you didn't like it, you shouldn't have said so. You mentioned last time that you liked it, and my mother took it seriously. When she heard you were back, she insisted I bring it to you."

"I wasn't lying. Please thank Auntie for me." Naruto casually hung his sword on the wall by the entrance, then turned around and said lazily, "I'm going to put on some clothes. Make yourself comfortable."

Ino pursed her lips, showing a hint of dissatisfaction. She then lightly stepped into the entryway, her hands behind her back.

She leaned against the wall and began taking off her shoes, revealing her smooth, alabaster ankles. Her delicate feet stepped firmly onto the floor as Naruto, now dressed, emerged from his room without glancing at Ino, yawning as he headed to the kitchen to boil some water.

The apartment Naruto had moved into this time was much more spacious than his old, rundown one. The decor was far more refined, and all the furniture and appliances were top-of-the-line.

"Just got back?" Ino leaned against the kitchen doorframe, watching Naruto tiredly open the refrigerator and prepare to cook.

Sunlight streamed in through the large, south-facing windows, filling the clean and tidy living room, crossing over the sofa, and falling onto Ino's neatly positioned legs.

Her smooth, white calves were flawless, and the firm and tender tight are clearly visible.

"Yeah."

Naruto turned on the electric kettle with a click, then leaned lazily against the marble counter, glancing at Ino before his gaze settled on her legs.

Ino's face twitched, and her originally proper smile gradually became unsustainable.

"Where are you looking at?"

"Your legs." Naruto answered with a yawn.

Naruto originally thought that Ino would look at him with contempt and then make sarcastic retort. But instead, her face flushed, and she seemed utterly flustered.

"You're not thinking of anything weird, are you?"

"Absolutely not." Naruto denied flatly.

"Not that I'd mind being the object of a fantasy." Ino laughed awkwardly, her eyes darting around, "Usually, guys your age start becoming perverts, right?"

Even though she said something so outrageous, her face was still unmistakably red. It was not difficult to see that Ino was just trying her best to hide her embarrassment and was just trying to act tough.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Naruto's expression became dull, then he pointed at Ino's outfit and asked, "But what's up with what you're wearing?"

"My outfit? What's wrong with it?" Ino blinked rapidly, her expression turning adorably confused as she answered the question irrelevantly, "So, uh, what's for lunch?"

"Is it omurice again?"

"Hey…"

"I had it last time, so maybe try something different this time."

"Hello…"

"And also, um…" Ino suddenly turned away and flopped onto the sofa, staying silent.

"Strange."

Naruto glanced at the ingredients and then at Ino lying on the sofa. He felt like he shouldn't be standing in the kitchen, but rather lying on the sofa too.

"Ino."

Hearing the voice coming from right next to her, Ino froze for a moment, and quickly lifted her head, only to find herself nose-to-nose with his dead-fish eyes. The distance between the tips of their noses was only about the length of a finger, and their eyes locked.

"Ah!!" Ino let out a scream, then her face turned completely red. She buried her face in the sofa and begged in a muffled voice, "Stop asking, please stop asking."

"Okay, I won't ask." Naruto plopped down on the other side of the sofa, his entire demeanor instantly transforming into that of a dried-up sardine, lifeless and drained of energy.

"Ino, I'll leave the cooking to you."

"I was badly injured outside, got a hole through my chest. It's not fully healed yet."

Hearing this, Ino was stunned, then she sat up and nervously crawled over to him. She stared at Naruto's closed eyes, and her golden hair brushed against his face, tickling him slightly.

Naruto opened his eyes, and their gazes locked once more.

Ino's face gradually turned red, the blush spreading all the way to her neck. Her warm breath touched his face, and she awkwardly straightened up, looking away as she hastily tucked her hair behind her ear.

"I want to see the wound."

Naruto, not wanting to cook, lifted his shirt without hesitation, revealing a slightly terrifying scar was visible on his chest, though it had already scabbed over and was nearly healed, it still looked scary.

"How did you get it?" Ino was really startled. She gently touched the scar and asked carefully, "Does it hurt?"

"If you're asking like that, then yes, it does."

"That's not how you answer!"

Ino's attention was entirely on the scar, while Naruto, feeling sleepy, barely kept his eyes open, completely unaware that Ino was almost sitting on top of him.

A cool summer breeze passed through the window, and the next moment, Naruto had dozed off on the sofa.

Ino remained leaning over him, her pupils dilating slightly. Even though they weren't physically touching, her heart began to race inexplicably, as if a storm was brewing within her.

She stood up and walked silently to the kitchen, almost wondering if her brain was malfunctioning.

"Ahhhh!!"

"Die, you jerk!"

Boom!

The sound of a kitchen knife hitting the cutting board echoed as Naruto slept soundly on the sofa near the balcony. The wind chime jingled softly. Ino leaned against the kitchen doorway, biting her lip in a daze.

The cicadas' summer chorus continued, but their noise no longer reached the girl's ears.

Naruto fell into a deep sleep, his consciousness sinking into the seal space.

The mountain-sized Kyubi was curled up within the red bar, watching something on the DVD player. When he noticed Naruto's arrival, he didn't even blink.

"What are you doing here?"

"I fell asleep and ended up here." Naruto sighed, "What? Not happy to see me?"

Kyubi said nothing, merely performing a very human-like gesture.

"Ptui!"

Naruto suddenly snapped awake, sitting upright on the sofa. His consciousness was kicked out of the seal space by gesture. That time, Itachi's Amaterasu had struck Kyubi, and it was not until he escaped back to the seal space that he was safe.

Previously, Kyubi had also forcibly extended Naruto's life when he was near death, which was considered to be the most he could do.

"Awake?" Ino's voice called from the kitchen.

Moments later, Ino, now wearing a light blue apron, emerged from the kitchen with a steaming hot stone pot. Her hair was different from usual, as it was loosely draped over her shoulders.

"What are you staring at? Wash your hands and get ready to eat."

Ino, unaware of how she looked, stood by the dining table, looking at Naruto in confusion. While biting a hair tie in her mouth, she reached behind her head and skillfully tied her golden locks into a ponytail.

Naruto wondered if he had somehow crossed over again, 'Had I suddenly gotten a wife this time?'

'Milady, please control yourself?'

"Huh? You're not thinking anything weird, are you?" Ino asked with a frown.