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Natsuki accepted Ino's praise without hesitation.
After all, Tenten really was adorable.
"Ino, what are you doing here? It's your day off, shouldn't you be helping out at the flower shop?" Natsuki asked, puzzled.
"Hehe, I came here just to see your girlfriend."
Ino looked smug. "I already knew this morning that you'd be here. I was busy earlier, so I couldn't come over. But when I saw you carrying a lunch box, I followed. I'm really interested in your love story—tell me how you won over Tenten! I might use it as reference for chasing Sasuke!"
No wonder she was so enthusiastic—not just gossip, but also here to learn!
For someone like Ino who was all about looks, Natsuki really had nothing to say.
She probably didn't even realize it herself, but what she liked wasn't Sasuke—just handsome guys. Otherwise, why was it that when Sasuke left the village, Sakura was devastated, while Ino barely reacted?
Because she liked Sasuke's face, not his heart!
Lots of transmigrators liked to pursue Ino in fanfics, and honestly, she was very pretty. Once she grew up, her figure was amazing too. But the catch was—if the transmigrator wasn't super handsome, Ino wouldn't even glance at them.
And well, Natsuki simply wasn't handsome enough.
He didn't really feel like talking about it—besides, his relationship with Tenten wasn't official yet.
Thankfully, Shino stepped in. "Ino, I know I probably shouldn't be commenting on others' business, but as your classmate, I think I should say this..."
Ino blinked. "Ah? Shino, you're here too?"
Didn't she know the thing Shino hated most was being ignored? This girl really had no filter.
Shino muttered under his breath, clearly annoyed, but Ino quickly apologized. "Sorry, sorry! I was too focused on Natsuki's girlfriend and didn't notice you. Please, go on—what did you want to tell me?"
Fortunately, Shino didn't hold grudges and continued, "Ino, you're the daughter of the Yamanaka clan leader. You'll likely inherit the clan head position one day. Your family will expect you to take in a husband. But Sasuke is the son of the Uchiha clan head—even as the second son, there's no way they'd allow him to marry into another clan. So... you and Sasuke are basically impossible."
Ino froze, eyes wide in shock.
She'd probably never thought about it that deeply before, being so young. But now that Shino pointed it out, it really did make sense.
So what had all her obsession with Sasuke been for? She even fought with her best friend, Sakura, over him. Did that mean she'd failed both in love and friendship?
Ino looked completely deflated.
Seeing this, Natsuki couldn't help but chime in. "Ino, as a classmate, I have to say something too. I think... maybe you don't really like Sasuke. Maybe you just like handsome guys. Your feelings for Sasuke might not be as deep as you think. Think about it—could that be the case?"
Ino's mind was spinning.
She'd come here to gossip about Natsuki's love life and pick up some tips. How did things flip around ?
Shino said she and Sasuke were impossible. Natsuki said she didn't really love Sasuke. What was going on?
Natsuki pressed on, "Think about it. If one day you met a super handsome guy—way more handsome than Sasuke, and even more talented—wouldn't you forget about Sasuke and fall for him instead?"
Super handsome guy...
Ino couldn't help imagining such a figure. She even started drooling without realizing it.
Come to think of it, that... kind of sounded right. Maybe she really just liked handsome guys, and Sasuke wasn't irreplaceable. So why had she even fought with Sakura?
Still, as a proud Yamanaka, she wasn't about to just admit it outright. That'd make her look super shallow.
So she stiffened and said, "Ahem! I-It's not like that! I'm... I'm pretty loyal, you know. Even if I did meet someone more handsome than Sasuke, I'd just... sneak a few glances, that's all..."
Her voice got lower and lower—even she didn't believe herself by the end.
Natsuki and Shino exchanged glances. They could both tell this girl was in denial.
Unless, of course, she really did meet a super handsome guy. Just like in the original timeline—when Sasuke left the village, Ino later met Sai, who insulted Sakura as ugly but praised Ino as beautiful. Sai was definitely a looker too. Naturally, Ino moved on. After all, there'd never been anything real between her and Sasuke.
This girl—advice wouldn't help.
Natsuki laughed and teased, "Once you've figured things out, go apologize to Sakura, alright? You don't want to throw away a precious friendship, do you?"
Ino seemed slightly moved but remained stubborn. "Hmph! Mind your own business! Why would I apologize to that big forehead?!"
Just then, Tenten let out a sleepy murmur and began to wake up.
Ino quickly apologized, "Oops! Sorry! Was I too loud and woke you up? Want to go back to sleep for a bit?"
Tenten shook her head. "It's fine. I've had enough rest. You are...?"
Ino gave her a friendly smile. "I'm Yamanaka Ino, a classmate of Natsuki and Shino. I saw Natsuki bringing lunch over here, so I followed to take a look. Wanted to see his girlfriend for myself. You're Tenten, right?"
Tenten blinked, suddenly realizing she'd been mistaken for Natsuki's girlfriend. What's more, she'd been sleeping on his shoulder the whole time... while this girl had been watching.
Her face turned bright red.
Still, Tenten was cheerful and open by nature. She wasn't like Hinata, who might faint from embarrassment.
And she didn't explain either—almost like she was accepting the role of "girlfriend."
"Yes, I'm Tenten. Nice to meet you."
Ino was quick to make friends. "I saw you and Natsuki holding hands while grocery shopping the other day. I was wondering where he found such a cute girlfriend."
Tenten's cheeks flushed again, but she remembered Ino. "You're the girl from the Yamanaka flower shop, right? I think I saw you when I bought flowers."
"Yup yup! My family owns the Yamanaka Flower Shop. So we've already met before..."
"My family runs a ninja tools shop..."
The two girls actually started chatting. With both of them being outgoing—one loving gossip, the other full of witty banter—they got along surprisingly well.
Just like that, they became friends.
Natsuki and Shino exchanged amazed looks. Girls really were mysterious creatures.
"Wow! So you're in the middle of training, Tenten? You're already learning water-walking?" Ino asked, surprised.
"Mm. I didn't know how before, but Natsuki's been teaching me. Shino's helped a lot too, so now I'm determined to work hard."
"But you're still so young! Girls our age should be learning how to dress up. Look at your hands—they're all rough."
"It's fine, Ino. My dream is to become a strong kunoichi like Tsunade-sama, someone who'll be famous across the ninja world. Since I have that dream, I have to work hard for it. Besides, Natsuki and Shino have helped me so much—I can't let them down. Natsuki is amazing. I want to stand by his side in the future, and I can't do that if I'm not strong enough!"
Ino stared at Tenten's serious face, and for a moment—she was speechless.
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