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Sasuke’s question caused some people to choke directly. After the coughing subsided, the room fell into an eerie silence.
"That’s impossible!" It was Naruto, still clueless, who broke the silence. "How could Hinata be afraid of me!"
He had a look of confidence, patting his chest proudly. "During the Chūnin Exams, Hinata even gave me medicine! Right, Hinata?"
Hinata: "..."
Hinata’s face was already bright red, steam almost rising from her head, as if she was about to faint. Sitting next to her, Tenten quickly pulled Hinata into a hug, her expression awkward as she explained to Sasuke, "That’s not it. Hinata is just overly shy."
"Oh." Sasuke didn’t really understand. Why were they all reacting so strangely?
"Hinata-sama would never be afraid of this guy!" Neji, who had been silent, glared at Sasuke, his tone stiff.
"Hmm, I was just asking casually. After all, every time Hinata sees Naruto, she acts so nervous." Sasuke didn’t understand why Neji was getting upset.
’Unbelievable!’ Shikamaru was secretly amazed. As expected of the genius Uchiha who already obtain his Sharingan, he had the imagination to confuse shyness with fear!
Sakura’s face was tinged with a faint blush, and a small smile crept up her lips.
’Really! Who would have thought Sasuke-kun had such an adorable little flaw!’
Suddenly, Shikamaru felt a strong sense of responsibility.
’I have to step up. This bizarre reunion... I’ll be the one to set things straight!’
"Shikamaru, what’s with you?"
Chōji, swallowing a mouthful of food, looked up at Shikamaru, surprised. ’Why was Shikamaru suddenly so motivated?’
’I’m not suddenly motivated—I just don’t want to deal with more trouble!’ Shikamaru conveyed this with his eyes.
Then, using as normal a tone as possible, he asked Sasuke, "Sasuke, what are your plans now?"
"Yes, Sasuke-kun, are you going back to Konoha?" Ino followed up in a sweet voice, earning an approving glance from Shikamaru.
At that moment, everyone else also looked up at Sasuke.
"Hmm? No," Sasuke replied directly, "I am no longer considered a Konoha ninja. My stay here is only under the supervision of the Fourth Hokage and Kakashi."
"Is that so?"
"I guess."
Once again, the room fell into silence.
’Now it’s even more awkward!!! How should I respond?’ Shikamaru’s expression turned deadpan again as his rare burst of enthusiasm vanished.
Fortunately, there was a certain idiot to break the silence.
"Hahahaha..." Naruto laughed loudly, slapping Sasuke on the shoulder. "Even though you say that, Sasuke’s no longer an enemy, so we can still be friends!"
"Hmm." Sasuke nodded in agreement.
Shikamaru let out a sigh of relief.
"If Naruto says so, then I guess there’s no issue." Shino spoke up again. "After all, you probably know more than us thanks to the Fourth Hokage."
"The feud between Uchiha and Konoha was resolved by my uncle a long time ago." Sasuke said openly, "My current target is Uchiha Itachi."
"Uchiha Itachi?" Kiba appeared to be trying to remember. "I feel like I’ve heard that name before."
"Uchiha Itachi, a Konoha S-rank missing-nin. It’s said that he killed everyone in the Uchiha clan except for Sasuke," Neji suddenly explained. "And he’s also Sasuke’s older brother."
Sasuke glanced at him indifferently, without offering any further explanation.
"S-rank missing-nin!" Lee immediately became fired up. "That sounds incredible! Sasuke! Can you really face such a powerful enemy already?"
’Is that the point?’ Shikamaru couldn’t help but interject, "Alone? S-rank criminals are extremely dangerous. Be careful."
"I know." Sasuke nodded seriously, "But this is something I have to do."
"Hmph! Sasuke actually refused my help!" Naruto grumbled unhappily.
"Revenge isn’t something outsiders can help with." Neji suddenly commented.
"Right. Do you want revenge too?" Sasuke looked at him.
"Me?" Neji lowered his head, his tone distant. "Who would I even get revenge on?"
"Neji-nii-san..." Hinata had come to her senses, looking at Neji, wanting to say something but holding back.
"Isn’t your revenge against the Hidden Cloud Village?" Sasuke looked at Neji, puzzled.
"How do you know so much?" Neji stared back at Sasuke.
"It’s not surprising, right? My uncle investigated it through Root back then. Don’t you know who your enemy is?"
"I do, of course." Neji said bitterly, "But what’s the use of knowing? Can I start a war between Konoha and the Hidden Cloud?"
"True." Sasuke nodded in understanding, "With your current position, there’s not much you can do."
"Hah. A bird trapped in a cage can only live according to its master’s will." Neji smirked bitterly.
’Hey!!! What are you two talking about? These are forbidden topics!!! Read the room, please!!!’ Shikamaru was screaming internally, already considering running away.
This time, except for Chōji, who was still focused on eating, everyone else shrank back, trying to become less noticeable.
"Sasuke! Neji! What are you guys talking about?" Naruto, clueless, kept looking between the two, completely confused.
Sasuke and Neji exchanged a glance and shook their heads.
"What do you mean? Can’t you explain it more clearly?" Naruto scratched his head furiously in frustration.
"This is Neji’s private matter. I can’t tell you." Sasuke refused.
’But you two have already said it all!!!’
Everyone else except for the clueless Naruto understood what was going on.
"Hahaha..." Ino suddenly let out an awkward laugh.
’Damn it, what kind of bizarre class reunion is this? I can’t hold on anymore!’
"Ino? What are you laughing at?" Sakura asked, playing along.
"Oh, nothing, I just remembered a joke." Ino quickly responded.
"Really." Sakura’s mouth twitched.
’Oh no... What was I even saying just now?’ Ino suddenly felt utterly defeated.
’You’ve failed too, Ino.’ Shikamaru gave Ino a sympathetic look.
’I don’t care anymore!’
Ino glared at Shikamaru fiercely.
’Anyone else? Can someone say something, please!!!’ Shikamaru looked around, trying to meet someone’s eyes.
"Sasuke!" Chōji, who had been engrossed in eating, raised his hand. "Can I order more meat?"
"Hmm?" Sasuke looked at the empty plates on the table and nodded.
"Thank you!" Chōji gratefully beamed at him, then began calling for the waiter.
’As expected of you, Chōji.’ Shikamaru thought Chōji was the cutest person today.
The waiter brought out more plates of meat.
"Everyone, hurry up and eat," Shikamaru quickly reminded them. "Or Chōji will finish it all by himself!"
"Oh!"
Everyone quickly and "enthusiastically" began grabbing the grilled meat.
Then, Tenten took the initiative to bring up topics about their usual missions and training, and everyone joined in.
Of course, nothing confidential was mentioned.
’Finally, the atmosphere returned to normal.’
Shikamaru felt exhausted.