Chapter 74 Wine and Girls, Fireworks and Youth

"Ah~~ How refreshing!"

Kurenai Yuhi took a large gulp of sake, then used her chopsticks to pick up the wasabi octopus and put it into her mouth.

The spiciness of the wasabi and the spiciness of the alcohol mixed and intertwined, erupting on Kurenai Yuhi's tongue and throat. The strong liquor went down her throat, while the wasabi flavor shot straight to the top of her head.

Naruto sat cross-legged opposite her, not understanding Kurenai Yuhi's preferences but respecting them. He chose to drink sweet rice wine, devouring grilled chicken skewers, completely oblivious to the oil splattering onto his forehead protector.

Hinata sat beside Naruto, shrinking her body. The lively atmosphere of the izakaya made her a little shy. She held a bowl of red bean mochi soup, sipping it in small sips, the rising steam making her cheeks flush.

Occasionally, she would stealthily finish the grilled bird skewers Naruto handed her.

Ino Yamanaka, on the other hand, sat with her legs crossed opposite Naruto, propping her chin on one hand. With the other hand, she pulled out a tissue to wipe the oil from Naruto's forehead protector and asked curiously, "Dead-last, you're not a Shadow Clone again, are you?"

"Again?"

Kurenai Yuhi immediately reacted, leaning forward and bending over, cupping Naruto's round face with both hands, kneading and pinching it. With a touch of drunkenness, she said, "Oh, oh, you brat, you actually only sent a Shadow Clone for my survival exercise?"

"I knew you were being too honest, thinking of other answers and not acting, so you were afraid of being exposed by me."

"Tell me, are you a Shadow Clone now, are you?!"

Kurenai Yuhi kneaded Naruto's face as she pleased, seemingly trying to expose Naruto's true body.

"Damn it, Ino, why did you have to say that, mumble mumble!"

Naruto mumbled his complaint with puffed cheeks, his gaze struggling to move away from Kurenai Yuhi's chest, which was covered by a black mesh top, and he couldn't help but glare at Ino Yamanaka a few times.

Hinata hastily intervened, "Kurenai-sensei! Naruto-kun's real body didn't come... it... it's for a reason..."

Kurenai Yuhi let go of Naruto and sat back on the tatami mat, laughing heartily, "I don't care what the reason is. Tomorrow, I'll have to give Naruto extra after-school tutoring to see what the top graduate of this Ninja Academy is really made of."

"After-school tutoring, no sending a Shadow Clone, understand? As for you--"

Kurenai Yuhi, who had already finished a flask of sake, suddenly leaned close to Hinata, her hair brushing the girl's flushed earlobe. "From the moment we came in until now, you've peeked at Naruto twenty-seven times, you know?"

"Kurenai-sensei!" Hinata was so embarrassed that her hand trembled, and the spoon clattered into the bowl, splashing red bean soup onto her sleeve.

Naruto was stunned, a grain of rice clinging to the corner of his mouth as he turned his head and asked, "Huh? Hinata, why do you keep peeking at me?"

We're like an old married couple, just look openly.

Ino rolled her eyes, picked up the vodka, and refilled Kurenai Yuhi's glass, "Kurenai-sensei, you don't know, once in school, when we were writing a mission report, Hinata peeked at Naruto so much that she wrote the scroll as 'Uzumaki Naruto-kun Side Profile Observation Record'."

Hinata's head almost sank into the soup bowl, the steam rising from the top of her head as if it could hatch chicks.

Kurenai Yuhi sipped her drink, her gaze sweeping across Ino Yamanaka's cheek, then suddenly reached out and flicked her forehead protector, "Hinata peeks, but you stare openly!"

"I..."

Ino Yamanaka's face turned beet red from Kurenai Yuhi's "sneak attack." She propped her chin on one hand, turned her head, and mumbled, "I didn't..."

Outside the window, a string of fireworks suddenly exploded, golden-green cascades of light streaking across the night sky, and the izakaya erupted in excitement.

"It's Hanabi! The fireworks are being set off by the Naka River!"

"Hinata, Ino, come quickly and see."

Naruto came to the window, calling for the two girls to come and enjoy the fireworks with him.

Hinata and Ino squeezed over together, their three figures bathed in the flickering light.

Kurenai Yuhi propped her chin, watching the young boy and girls play, the liquor in the rough pottery bowl swaying into a fragmented galaxy.

"Kurenai-sensei, aren't you coming to see?" Hinata turned back and asked softly. Naruto immediately grabbed her wrist, "Hinata, look! Doesn't that firework look like a super big heart?!"

Ino scoffed, "Idiot Naruto, fireworks won't explode into a heart shape... Wait, wow, it really looks like a heart, it's so romantic and beautiful."

Kurenai Yuhi gazed at the sky full of fireworks outside the window and couldn't help but murmur, "Youth is truly wonderful, is this what youth is..."

Naruto suddenly turned around, raised his rice wine, and shouted, "A toast to Kurenai-sensei, forever eighteen!"

"Idiot! Your rice wine splashed into my vodka!!"

"Cheers~~"

"Kurenai-sensei, forever eighteen."

"Hahaha, this toast, I dedicate to the fleeting beauty of the epiphyllum, and the transience of glory."

When they left the shop, Naruto was about to take Hinata home, but Ino grabbed him and dragged him in the opposite direction: "The Hyuga main residence is to the east! Why are you rushing south? Is your home over there?"

Ino Yamanaka put her hands on her hips and continued, "Also, I'm drunk too, aren't you going to see me home?"

Kurenai Yuhi walked behind, as she was treating them and responsible for paying the bill today.

When the izakaya proprietress handed her the bill, Kurenai Yuhi's face, which had been flushed and charming from drunkenness, instantly turned green.

The bill was so long it dragged on the floor.

Kurenai Yuhi: "..."

"Hundreds of grilled bird skewers? Are you trying to bankrupt Kurenai-sensei?!"

Kurenai Yuhi said indignantly.

Prices in Konoha Village were already high, low-level Ninja missions didn't earn much, and Kurenai Yuhi usually enjoyed a drink, which nearly bankrupted her with this izakaya feast.

The curtain was lifted, and the soft light of the lantern cast a long shadow of Kurenai Yuhi.

The izakaya proprietress chased out and handed her a small flask of sake, comforting Kurenai Yuhi's wounded soul.

The gurgling sound of the Naka River couldn't drown out the laughter and merriment drifting from afar.

The night in Konoha was still long, and the galaxy hung low, seemingly within reach. Naruto, Hinata, and Ino walked along the banks of the Naka River, the atmosphere serene, filled with the pure beauty of young boys and girls.

As agreed, Hinata was taken home first, followed by Ino Yamanaka.

They arrived at the Yamanaka clan's residence.

Inoichi Yamanaka, who wore his hair in a high ponytail just like his daughter, stood guard at the main entrance. When he saw his only daughter chatting and laughing with Naruto, his fists instantly clenched.

Naruto, keenly sensing the "killing intent," immediately stopped and looked towards the Yamanaka clan's gate, saying with a smile, "Yamanaka, I'll see you this far. Hurry home, don't let your parents worry."

"Naruto, from today onwards, we are members of the Seventh Team. From now on, we will advance and retreat together, entrust our backs to each other, and be teammates on missions. There's no need to be so formal, just call me by my name."

Ino Yamanaka held her right wrist with her left hand, her arms behind her back, and walked two or three steps forward. She suddenly turned around, her golden ponytail drawing a beautiful arc under the dim streetlights.

She smiled brightly, "My name is Ino, 'Ino' from 'well' and 'field,' Ino oh~"

Inoichi Yamanaka: "..."

In an instant, the old father felt his fists clench even harder.