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Konoha’s Street No. 404.
Naruto returned home, swapped his shoes at the entry, and walked into the living room. He first glanced at Kurama calmly. At this moment, Kurama had drunk himself into a stupor and was sprawled out on the couch, snoring away.
Thankfully, Kurama is a Biju made of Chakra, so his body does not get dirty and he does not need to pee, otherwise, Naruto would’ve kicked that drunken fox out for sure.
The living room carried a faint scent of alcohol. Naruto quietly went to his room, shut the door behind him, and retrieved the good sake Hinata had brought him from the Hyuga Clan.
Then, he pulled out ten fancy bottles he had bought from the market, then set them neatly in a row on the floor.
He poured the high-quality Hyuga sake from the jade bottle into one of the fancy bottles, and then filled the remaining nine bottles with the cheap sake stored in his seal space.
After completing the task, he cleaned up the tools and nonchalantly strolled into the living room. Shortly after sitting down, he took out the bottle of good sake.
The bottle was opened with a pop, and delicate fragrance of alcohol slowly filled the air.
The sleeping Kurama’s nose twitched as he stirred from his slumber, and his eyes suddenly snapped open. His gaze was instantly drawn to the sleek and luxurious bottle on the table, and his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets!
"Good sake!!!" Kurama leapt up, reaching out to touch the bottle, but Naruto smacked his hand away.
“What are you doing!!!”
"What are you doing?" Naruto resealed the bottle and glanced at the clearly ravenous Kurama slowly, "This is for a ritual offering."
"You little brat! What kind of ancestors do you have to offer to? I’ve never seen you perform any rituals before. You might as well just offer it to me instead! It's a waste to keep it anyway, why not give it to me?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? Do you think money grows on trees?" Naruto retorted without holding back, "Kurama, if you want to stay in this house, you’d better contribute something. Otherwise, why should I give you the sake meant for a ritual?"
“I, uh…" Kurama was immediately at a loss for words.
"Besides, there are only ten bottles of sake for the offering, and I didn't prepare any extras." Naruto casually pulled out the other nine identical, inferior sake from the seal space.
"Ten bottles! Isn’t that enough?" Kurama asked in astonishment.
"There are many ancestors, so no, it’s not enough."
"What’s the point of you offering to ancestors anyway?" Kurama’s eyes never left the ten bottles of sake on the table. He once again stretched out his claws to reach them.
"I already told you, it doesn’t matter. You wouldn’t be of any help anyway, so don’t ask." As he said that, Naruto swiftly put away all ten bottles, though he left behind two regular ones as an afterthought.
"I have some things to take care of, so I’ll head out now."
Seeing the good sake disappear, Kurama instantly lost interest, but when he thought about the guy's habit of playing mind games, especially when it came to luring him out, Kurama didn’t bother stopping him and let him go.
The door slammed shut with a bang, and the living room returned to silence. A refreshing breeze blew in from the balcony, causing the curtains to flutter lightly. Suddenly, Kurama felt life was utterly dull.
He slumped heavily back onto the couch, staring blankly at the two bottles of regular sake on the table. He reached for one out of habit, but found he had no desire to drink. His eyes wandered aimlessly toward the ceiling, the dim light casting shadows in the room.
Those ten bottles of top-tier sake, with their elegant, jewel-like packaging, reminded him of ten female foxes, their fur as white as snow, eyes like shimmering pools. In his mind, they teased him, making him itch.
Ten seconds later, with a loud thud, Kurama stood up on his feet and cursed angrily, "Damn it! That fishing brat is so infuriating!"
The sun set in a golden hue.
The shadow of the Hokage Tower stretched long, standing tall in the orange dusk.
On the fifth floor, the door of Hokage’s Office was pushed open from the outside.
Tsunade, lying back in her chair with her head tilted up, didn’t even bother opening her eyes, and said, "We’re off the clock."
There was only one person in the entire village who never knocked on the door of Hokage’s Office. Tsunade had been working non-stop for nearly a month, utterly exhausted like a dog. Having finally finished all the works, she naturally had no energy to deal with him.
Ino was standing at the filing cabinet, sorting out documents and preparing to leave. When she turned around and saw Naruto, whom she hadn’t seen in days, walk right in, she instantly tensed up, wanting to hide inside the cabinet.
It was just an ordinary evening in the Hokage’s Office, and the windows were wide open.
The setting sun poured in unabashedly from outside, drenching the office in a layer of soft, orange light.
Tsunade lay in her chair, looking utterly drained. Ino, dressed neatly in professional attire, stood nearby. The white long-sleeved shirt she wore highlighted her slender figure, while her lower half was clad in a black pencil skirt.
Her long, pale legs were bathed in the glow of the setting sun, her expression one of flustered haste.
Naruto stood at the door, dressed entirely in black, including a matching black hat. He wasn’t just a Shinobi who trained relentlessly to become Hokage, he also paid attention to his appearance occasionally.
Even under the loose clothing, his youthful energy was hard to conceal. His frame was broad-shouldered, and as the wind blew, his athletic build was outlined against the light. He looked lean and, with his deep-set eyes, somewhat more serious than usual.
Ino’s heart started to beat a little faster, and she felt as though she had done something wrong. Glancing at Naruto’s sharp jawline in the doorway, she quickly turned her head away.
"Tsunade-sama, what have you been busy with recently?" Naruto took off his hat with a smile, and strode in.
The atmosphere finally relaxed a little. Ino, still standing by the filing cabinet, kept her head down and continued organizing the files, as if she were a student punished to stand in the corner after doing something wrong.
"Why? You planning to help me out?" Tsunade yawned, and the exposed part of her body was snow-smooth and upright.
"No way. I’m just not cut out for desk work." Naruto placed his hat on the desk and glanced at Ino, who was standing in the corner with her back to him.
While keeping his gaze there, he said, "If there’s any dangerous missions, you can call me. After all, I’ve got a tough life, and I’m meant for that kind of work."
"Just keep talking nonsense, we’ll talk when Jiraiya comes back." Tsunade raised a hand to cover her eyes and said lazily, "Right now, only Neji and Shino have active missions."
"This summer, with their qualifications, they should be able to be the first batch of those promoted to Jonin."
"Jonin, huh? I wonder when I’ll become a Jonin too?"
"Don’t kid yourself. You don’t even care." Tsunade replied lazily, "Stop pretending. It’s after hours. If you’ve got nothing else, leave already. Stop standing here and annoying me."
Tsunade had already given her dismissal. She was too tired to banter with Naruto, so she just waved her hand, signaling for him to leave.
"So, it’s really after hours now?"
"Then, can I take her with me?"
At those words, Ino, who was sorting out documents in the corner, suddenly stiffened for a moment, her heart pounding wildly, ‘Did he just say…? No way, but…’
"Ask her, not me." Tsunade shifted her position in the chair and continued resting on her side.
Ino wanted to continue sorting out the files, but found that her mind was already in a mess. Just as she was about to pull herself together and resume her work, she suddenly felt someone grabbing her shoulder. She shivered all over, then realized that Naruto was right beside her.
‘Crazy! This is the Hokage’s Office, and Tsunade-sama is still here! How could he do this…’ Ino felt so nervous that her heart was about to leap out of her chest.
Warm breath brushed against her ear, and Naruto leaned in close without any hint of restraint, "Nee-chan, I’m sorry."
Ino’s mind went completely blank at this moment.