At this moment, Ryun remained unaware that most of his "background" had already been exposed. He took the girl around the bustling market area of Konoha Village but couldn't find any ramen stalls.
The most famous Ichiraku Ramen from the original story was nowhere to be seen at this time. Ryun wasn't sure if he had gone to the wrong location or if the shop hadn't officially opened yet.
In the end, Ryun, who was not short on money, treated Kushina to a luxurious barbecue feast. Both of them ate to their heart's content.
After filling their stomachs, Ryun took her around the lively night market.
When passing by a small jewelry stall, Kushina took a liking to an exquisite butterfly hairpin. Without hesitation, Ryun took out his wallet and bought it for her.
The items at the stall weren't expensive, and Kushina accepted the small gift without refusing.
"Hmm, this bracelet looks nice. How much is it?"
Ryun noticed a finely crafted bell bracelet.
Aside from the small bells, the main body of the bracelet was made of gold. It was likely the best and most expensive piece of jewelry at the stall. The stall owner was clearly using it as a "showpiece."
"You have a good eye, young man. This is the treasure of my stall." The female stall owner smiled and gestured with a number.
"?"
The small bracelet was priced at an exorbitant amount.
"This is a bell bracelet my mother handmade for me. It was also part of my dowry. Last year, my mother passed away from illness. Even though I'm in urgent need of money now, I don't want to sell this item for too cheap."
The stall owner explained the origin of the item with a smile.
"If this item is so important to you, why did you put it up for sale?" Ryun asked casually.
"My husband passed away a few months ago, and I have two children at home."
The stall owner gave a brief explanation, her smile tinged with bitterness, which stirred sympathy in Ryun.
His mother, Asuka, was in a similar situation, but it seemed this woman's life was even harder. Or perhaps, ordinary people in the ninja world generally didn't have it easy, especially widows without a man to rely on.
If not for her circumstances, she wouldn't have brought out such a precious dowry item to sell.
"Ryun, let's go somewhere else." Kushina gently tugged at his sleeve.
In her opinion, the bell bracelet was indeed beautiful, but the price was simply too high.
She and Ryun were just academy students, after all. There was no way they could afford such an expensive piece of jewelry.
The stall owner also didn't think Ryun, a young boy, could afford such an expensive item. Her earlier explanation was merely out of courtesy.
"The materials aren't worth this price, but the craftsmanship is exquisite. It's clear your mother put a lot of effort into making this."
After carefully examining the bracelet, Ryun gave his evaluation.
Gold in the ninja world wasn't as valuable as one might think, but combined with the craftsmanship, the bracelet was definitely worth the asking price.
It was a purely handmade piece of jewelry, requiring genuine skill, considerable effort, and time to create.
Moreover, the material cost alone wasn't cheap.
"Are you really sure you want to sell this bracelet?" Ryun asked seriously.
A gentleman doesn't take what others cherish, unless the woman truly wanted to part with it. Only then would Ryun consider buying it.
"Yes. For the sake of my children, my mother would understand." The stall owner smiled faintly, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
"Alright, I'll take it!"
Without hesitation, Ryun took out a stack of bills from his wallet.
"Wha—what? You're really buying this bracelet?"
The stall owner's face was filled with shock. Since when did academy students have so much money? Had she encountered a rich kid today?
Kushina's expression mirrored hers.
Her monthly allowance was only a few hundred ryō, just enough for small snacks and trinkets.
The barbecue feast earlier had already cost a month's worth of her allowance, and Ryun's payment had stunned her. Now, he had casually taken out a "huge sum" of money!
'Is Ryun secretly a rich kid?'
The thought popped into Kushina's mind.
"Of course. Did you think I was asking all those questions just for fun?"
"Did you suddenly change your mind and not want to sell it? If you really don't want to, I won't force you."
Ryun smiled warmly.
"No! You misunderstand, young man. Let me pack it for you." The stall owner quickly replied, though tears had already begun to fall.
"Mm."
Ryun nodded and accepted the jewelry box handed to him with both hands.
After leaving the stall, Kushina seemed a little down.
"What's wrong?" Ryun asked knowingly.
"That older sister, we…" Kushina hesitated.
"You think we shouldn't have bought her bracelet?"
Kushina nodded subconsciously.
"If we didn't buy it, she might not have found another buyer so easily." Ryun stated the truth.
He had indeed earned money recently, but that didn't mean there were many wealthy people in Konoha. The bracelet's target audience was young people, but how many young people could afford such an item?
More importantly, would wealthy people even bother stopping at such a small stall? They probably wouldn't even glance at it while passing by.
"She needs money to raise her two children. By buying this bracelet, we're helping her through a difficult time, not taking away her treasure."
"If her mother were still alive, she would surely support this decision."
"Because to a mother, nothing in this world is more precious than her children."
"!!!"
As he spoke these words, Kushina's expression grew even more shocked than when Ryun had spent the large sum of money.
She hadn't expected Ryun to think so deeply and comprehensively.
There was no need to feel guilty about buying the bell bracelet. Once Kushina understood this, her mood visibly brightened.
"Ryun, where did you get so much money?"
She finally remembered to ask this question.
"Follow me. You'll soon find out why your big brother has money to spend."
Ryun smiled mysteriously. They weren't far from Yamazaki Akira's bookstore, and he wanted to take Kushina there.
"Then… then… who did you buy this bracelet for?"
Kushina's voice grew softer, her face redder, and her head lowered further.
"Heh… what do you think?"
In a quiet corner with no one around, Ryun moved closer to her.
"I… I don't know."
Kushina fiddled with the hem of her skirt, her voice barely audible.
The next moment, Ryun opened the jewelry box and took out the golden bell bracelet.
The clear chime of the bells sounded especially pleasant to Kushina's ears.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 Like the story? Read 120 chapters ahead!
🔗 patreon.com/atomelectron
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━