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Chapter 12 – Ichiraku

  The next day, Ayari made good on her promise to introduce Makoto to a girl.

  She brought him to her house, where a girl with short chestnut-green hair and the telltale pale eyes of the Hyuga cn was already waiting in the living room. Her delicate features and demure posture gave her the look of a gentle, well-mannered girl.

  “Makoto’s here,” Ayari announced cheerfully.

  The moment the girl saw him, she stood up with a hint of curiosity in her pale eyes. Though she’d heard of him within the cn, this was her first time meeting him in person.

  “This is Natsu—you probably know her,” Ayari said.

  Makoto nodded. He did recognize her. There weren’t that many kids their age in the cn, and even if they didn’t interact much, they at least knew of each other.

  Her older sister, Harucha, served as Ayano’s maid.

  “And this is Makoto,” Ayari introduced in turn.

  “Nice to meet you.”

  “…Hello.”

  “So, what do you think? Isn’t our Natsu adorable?” Ayari said with a teasing smile. “You wouldn’t believe how many boys trip over themselves trying to impress her.”

  Natsu flushed and quickly tried to stop her. “Ayari-nee…”

  “She is pretty cute,” Makoto replied evenly.

  “…Thank you,” Natsu answered politely, though her voice was soft.

  Makoto noticed she kept sneaking gnces at him, only to look away quickly whenever their eyes met. No doubt she was curious about his eyes—or the ck thereof.

  He caught Ayari giving him a series of exaggerated winks and sighing inwardly, decided to just go with it. “It’s almost lunchtime. Why don’t we grab a bite together?”

  “Now that you mention it, I am getting hungry,” Ayari jumped in, fshing him a “well pyed” look.

  Makoto just shrugged. He was only going along with this because Ayari seemed so invested. No point making a fuss.

  “What do you two feel like eating?” he asked offhandedly.

  “I’m good with anything. What about you, Natsu?”

  “I’m okay with anything too,” she said quietly.

  Makoto: “…”

  Realizing he’d just asked the worst possible question, he made an executive decision. “Let’s get some ramen.”

  “Ra… Ramen?” Ayari froze, looking at him like he’d just suggested eating out of a trash can. Her expression practically screamed, Are you seriously taking a girl to a ramen shop on your first meeting?

  Even Natsu seemed caught off guard. Most boys who asked her out tried to impress her with fancy restaurants—dessert cafés, yakiniku joints, sushi pces. This was the first time someone had offered… ramen.

  “You…” Ayari frowned, as if trying to give him one st chance. “You sure you don’t wanna think that over?”

  “No need. Ramen it is,” Makoto said firmly.

  Ayari was speechless. She had honestly thought Makoto had potential, but now she felt she may have overestimated him.

  Natsu, on the other hand, didn’t seem particurly bothered. Aside from a mild curiosity about this cnmate who’d lost his Byakugan, she was mostly here out of obligation to Ayari. Meeting a boy, having a meal—nothing more.

  Makoto paid no mind to their reactions. The only thing on his mind was the ramen shop he’d spotted in the vilge a few days ago—Ichiraku Ramen. He hadn’t expected it to be open this early in the timeline. Naturally, he was curious.

  The three of them left the Hyuga compound together.

  “I heard Makoto-kun’s already a chunin,” Natsu said along the way.

  She’d noticed Ayari constantly winking and signaling, but Makoto seemed completely oblivious. Amused, she kindly tried to help the conversation along.

  “Yeah,” Makoto replied. “Managed to scrape through the exam.”

  “I heard the chunin exams are pretty tough. If you passed, it couldn’t have just been luck,” Natsu said softly. “I’m still just a genin.”

  “Genin’s fine. Making chunin’s only a matter of time. It doesn’t really mean much.”

  No one in the Hyuga cn stayed a genin for long, after all.

  “You’re too humble, Makoto-kun. I heard you made quite a name for yourself on the front lines,” she said with gentle sincerity.

  “Just lucky I didn’t die,” Makoto replied with a faint smile.

  Ayari chimed in, “He’d already infiltrated deep behind enemy lines. Even a jonin wouldn’t be guaranteed to get out safely.”

  “That dangerous?” Natsu said, eyes wide.

  Ayari replied as if it were obvious. “How else are you supposed to bring back real intel?”

  She wasn’t just hyping him up to py matchmaker—it was all true. And Natsu’s impression of Makoto was clearly improving.

  Though she was a ninja, Natsu had never seen war herself. Most of what she knew came from stories and the wounded soldiers returning from the front. Hearing these things firsthand made her respect Makoto even more.

  Makoto, for his part, didn’t act like any of it was worth bragging about. He just let Ayari talk, sitting quietly as if the story was about someone else entirely.

  Before long, they reached the modest storefront of Ichiraku Ramen.

  It was a humble little pce. Ayari let out a sigh the moment she saw it.

  She felt like all her effort today had gone to waste. She’d have to give Makoto a serious lecture ter.

  “This pce is actually really good,” Natsu said with a small smile, showing no hint of disappointment.

  “I thought so too,” Makoto said with a soft ugh. Something about standing in front of this familiar shop stirred a strange, nostalgic feeling in him. He lifted the noren curtain and stepped inside.

  “Welcome!” called the young owner, a guy in a white chef’s cap and apron. His eyes were barely open even when he wasn’t smiling—when he did smile, they disappeared entirely.

  “What can I get for you three?”

  “I’ll have the house special,” Makoto said.

  “Same,” Ayari muttered half-heartedly.

  “I’ll take the tonkotsu chashu ramen,” Natsu said.

  “Coming right up. Please wait a moment.”

  They found seats at the counter. Natsu ended up sitting between the two of them—mostly because Ayari had already chosen a seat that left one gap between her and Makoto, and it would’ve seemed rude for Natsu to sit even farther away.

  “I came here once when it first opened,” Natsu said. “There were so many people, the line was out the door.”

  “Too bad I missed it,” Makoto said.

  “No worries. There’s always next time,” said the ramen shop owner as he pulled noodles. “Regurs get discounts, too.”

  Ayari rolled her eyes beside them, silently wondering what was so great about ramen anyway.

  “Looks like you really like ramen, Makoto-kun,” Natsu said with a soft smile.

  “No.” Makoto leaned on one elbow, chin propped up in his hand as he turned to gnce at her. “I just like good food. Sticking to only one thing and ignoring all the other fvors out there—now that would be a real shame.”

  He caught Ayari gring at him again. Their eyes met, and she gave him a pointed look. He knew she wasn’t happy with how he was handling this.

  Natsu blinked at his words, then nodded. “You… make a good point, Makoto-kun.”

  Steam rose as the ramen was pced in front of them, rich broth glistening with a light sheen of oil. The aroma filled the air.

  “Let’s eat,” Makoto said.

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