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Sakura didn't know how long she had been dizzy, but by the time a pair of gentle hands pulled her out from the kimono, she felt like she was about to faint from the heat.
"Uh-oh, Sakura, do you have a fever?"
Ino quickly reached out to touch Sakura's forehead, but Sakura regained her senses and said, "I'm fine. It's just too hot."
"Then why did you wrap yourself up like that!"
As she handed Sakura some clothes, Ino said, "I bought these new clothes in your size. Go ahead and change."
Sakura quietly thanked her, then glanced at Shimada with a guilty expression.
Without needing Ino to push him out, Shimada had already left the room on his own.
Just as he closed the door, Sasuke, who had been holding back for a while, immediately walked up and asked, "You said you wanted me to do something. What is it?"
"It's simple," Shimada didn't beat around the bush this time. "Apologize to Sakura in a bit—and from now on, act like a well-behaved child in front of her."
Sasuke looked as if he'd just been deeply insulted. He growled, "Apologizing is fine, but what do you mean by a well-behaved child?"
"You don't get it?"
"No, I don't!"
"Well then…"
Shimada stroked his chin, then crooked a finger at Sasuke. When Sasuke suspiciously leaned closer, he whispered, "She might become my girlfriend one day. Got it now?"
Sasuke froze on the spot, then stared at Shimada in shock before finally scoffing, "I didn't expect your taste to be so low. You like that kind of boring woman?"
Shimada wasn't offended—in fact, he laughed. "I thought you weren't interested in girls. Seems you do have a type. So, what kind of girl do you like?"
"Obviously someone powerful. A woman who can help me become stronger. Any other woman is just a burden."
"I see…"
Shimada nodded knowingly. "In that case, I'll introduce you to a woman someday—one as strong as the Legendary Sannin Orochimaru. She can be your teacher."
Sasuke's eyes lit up. "You're serious?"
"I swear on the Sage of Six Paths."
"Fine. I'll apologize to Sakura in a bit and from now on… I'll try to stay quiet in front of her."
Sasuke's lips twitched a few times, but he still couldn't bring himself to say words like "obedient."
Shimada didn't mind the minor detail—he knew that in the future, every time Sasuke recalled this conversation, he'd be grinding his teeth.
After all, the "strong woman" Shimada would introduce him to one day… was Aunt Snake.
Half an hour later, Sakura emerged from the room, freshly dressed and neatly groomed.
"Look! What do you think? Don't I look pretty?"
Ino took the initiative to liven up the mood. "Shin, I didn't know you had a talent for styling hair. Maybe I should ask you to cut mine too?"
"Sure, as long as you're not afraid I'll mess it up."
Sakura subconsciously wanted to say: Shimada likes long hair, Ino. Please don't cut it short.
But for some reason, she swallowed those words.
Noticing Sakura didn't respond, Ino was about to say something when Shimada stepped aside, revealing Sasuke leaning against the doorframe.
Sasuke immediately straightened up. Though reluctant, he still turned to Sakura and bowed deeply.
Sakura blinked in surprise, then reached over and pinched Ino's cheek.
Ino didn't get upset—she retaliated by pinching Sakura's nose.
After both of them yelped in pain, they gave each other a baffled look, then turned to Shimada.
"Shin, did you use some kind of genjutsu on him?" Ino asked.
"Or did you catch him doing something shady?" Sakura added quickly.
Sasuke looked up, his expression stiff. "It has nothing to do with Shimada. If I did something wrong, I need to take responsibility. The Uchiha don't tarnish their name."
"Haruno Sakura, I can compensate you with money. I don't have any now, but once we graduate and start doing missions, I'll pay you back."
"No… that's not necessary…"
Sakura was about to refuse when Ino quickly covered her mouth and said, "We'll talk about this later. The important thing is that you remember—you owe Sakura a favor now. Got it?"
Sasuke nodded, and only then did Ino let go of Sakura. She immediately grabbed her friend's hand and dragged her away.
"Why would you try to refuse him? Isn't this a good chance? Now it'll be easier to get closer to Sasuke… Wait, don't tell me… you don't like him anymore?"
Ino stared at her, puzzled, while Sakura also looked a little lost.
Earlier in the room, all Sakura felt toward Sasuke was fear.
But after seeing him bow, she felt nothing at all—just a dull emptiness.
It was like a fan finally meeting their long-admired idol in real life, only to find out he was just a regular, boring guy—with a terrible attitude. And the fantasy crumbled.
"Well, maybe it's for the best. With Sasuke's personality, I wouldn't feel comfortable letting you get close to him anyway."
"How about this—I'll help you find someone even better. Then neither of us has to fight over some brat."
Sakura couldn't help but laugh, locking eyes with Ino. "Wow, since when did Sasuke become a 'brat' in your eyes? Who changed you? It's really hard to tell!"
Ino's face flushed slightly, but in front of Sakura, she didn't feel the need to act shy. "Shin doesn't have those kinds of feelings yet. And besides, he gets along really well with Tenten. Who knows what might happen in the future."
"But don't go making jokes about me in front of him. I still need to maintain my perfect image."
"Shameless. Absolutely shameless!"
Sakura teased her back, but deep inside, a wave stirred.
So… Ino's feelings are one-sided, huh?
On the other side, Sasuke asked, "Can I go now?"
Shimada nodded. "Don't forget to come to the Hokage's office tomorrow and sign the contract. Also… if anyone asks whether I learned ninjutsu from you, just say yes."
Sasuke paused, then asked suspiciously, "You have a teacher you don't want people to know about?"
"What, are you that curious? Or are you too scared to learn?"
Sasuke snorted. "Even if you're a rogue ninja or a spy, as long as you can make me stronger, I don't care."
With that, he turned and leapt away.
Shimada watched his retreating back and couldn't help but sigh—Sasuke's defection was inevitable.
After that, Shimada walked Ino and Sakura home.
The three of them chatted and laughed along the way, clearly having become good friends.
Since Ino's house was closest, Shimada dropped her off first, then walked Sakura to her door.
He was about to leave when Sakura said, "Um… Shimada-kun, can I come over with Ino sometimes?"
Shimada paused. "Why?"
"Because… I want to learn medical ninjutsu from you," Sakura quickly made up an excuse.
"Is that so…? No problem."
Shimada had planned to simulate Sakura tonight anyway, so he might as well use the knowledge gained from the simulation to teach her in return—consider it fair trade.
After they said goodbye, and the quiet of night settled in, Shimada eagerly began the next round of simulation.
This time—could he master Tsunade's S-rank techniques?
(End of Chapter)