Leaving the Uchiha to their fate, Sukuna once again made his way towards his favorite bathing spot, cleaned himself up, and headed back to the village. He was late today.
That was fine, though — since it was his first day earning money, he was planning to throw a small party for his friends.
"Ramen on me. Come on."
"Really? That's great!" Naruto beamed.
"What? Really? Cool, I'm coming!" Karin yelped and rushed over with enthusiasm, only for her excitement to fade a little when she saw Naruto there too.
"What's he doing here?" Karin glared at the blonde. They had agreed on a temporary truce to defend against the evil forces of daily training and taijutsu matches with Sukuna, but outside of that, they still didn't get along.
Sukuna would argue, though, that they were practically carbon copies of each other in some ways — enough that people might even mistake them for siblings.
Guess Naruto finally got that one family he was looking for after all, huh? Now he knows it's not all sunshine and rainbows. Sukuna smirked.
Once they were done bickering, the three of them went straight to Sukuna's house to pick up Sakura as well. She would never let him hear the end of it if she found out they'd gone without her.
He could have asked Shikamaru to come, but that lazy ass wouldn't move. And on the off chance that he did, he'd bring Choji Akimichi with him.
Now, Sukuna had no problem with Choji — he was pretty cool, honestly. But hosting a ramen treat with both Naruto and Choji together…
Yeah, he wasn't earning that well yet.
"Huh? Your treat? How do you even have the money for it? Didn't you waste all of it buying those silly glasses?" Sakura narrowed her eyes.
Because of this damn guy, her Sasuke-kun had to wear glasses like the rest of the class. It still looked good on him, though… Sakura drifted off into la-la land for a moment.
"Earned more than twice that by selling those glasses to others. I've got some money, so… you in?"
"Nah, I'm on a diet. Ramen will just ruin my figure." Sakura shook her head in distaste.
"What diet? You're still following that silly notion from earlier? Didn't I say our bodies will turn most of that into nutrients anyway? Aren't you hungry after our daily exercise?" Sukuna was speechless. How could someone do all that heavy exercise in the morning and then not eat well? That was practically suicide — her body would collapse like this.
At that, her face turned red. She remembered hungrily gulping down food after the first day of training with them. Her resolve to follow that diet had wavered heavily since then.
For a moment, she even considered quitting the training — until she remembered her Sasuke-kun was there.
"Hmph… it's all your fault. Who wakes up this early in the morning only to break their body every day? You're turning me into a freak too." She decided to throw the blame at him instead.
"You wanna come or not?" Sukuna was too tired to go through this nonsense.
"Tsk… fine. I'm coming. You better not be stingy with those ramen bowls."
And so it went — four kids eating ramen, quietly and… not so quietly.
"Ah, Uncle Teuchi, you make the best ramen I have ever eaten!" Naruto shouted.
"Hahaha, glad you like it, Naruto. Here, take this one as well." When the hidden boss of the ninja world gives you something, you better take it.
"This one's on the house," Teuchi said with a big smile.
"Ah, you don't have to do that, Teuchi-san. It's my treat today — I'll pay," Sukuna spoke up.
"Hahaha, don't worry, boy. It's fine. Seeing Naruto making friends just makes my old bones happy. Take it — all of you get one bowl for free." He laughed again and went back to cooking.
"So, what's up with this ramen treat? Did something good happen?" Sakura was the first to ask, still stuffing her face with ramen. She actually had a big appetite — maybe a side effect of this heavenly restriction — but she always forced herself to eat less.
However, since starting daily morning training, the urge to eat until she was full had completely taken over.
"Nothing much. Just got some cash at the end of the month, so I thought… why not? Consider this Karin's welcome party or something." He shrugged.
Karin blinked. She looked from the ramen to the boy.
For me…?
Her eyes softened. Why for me, though?
She'd been asking herself that question a lot recently. Sukuna had been really good to her from the start — saving her, giving her a home. She couldn't figure out what he wanted.
Everyone was after something, right? She'd seen that firsthand in her short life.
My healing abilities? But he can heal himself — why would he need me for that?
My bloodline? But then why tell me to hide my powers from the Hokage…?
Perhaps… it's my body… Karin's face started to turn red. The small head started thinking big thoughts.
"Oh, for Karin, huh…" Sakura smirked teasingly. She wasn't missing a single chance to get one over on her annoying brother.
"Ah, Sakura-chan, I'll throw a ramen party for you too!" Naruto took mental notes.
"Idiot! Who wants you to throw a ramen treat?" A tick mark appeared on her face.
Bang!
"Ah! What was that for?!" Naruto complained.
"What for? For annoying me!"
Bang!
"Ouch, bastard! Why'd you hit me?" Sakura suddenly felt a sharp jab on her head, pain shooting through her skull.
"Don't hit others over your anger issues. Remember, you can always get hit back — and you wouldn't like it when he does." Sukuna's tone was stern.
He had to iron out these little things while she was young, or she'd grow up thinking she could get away with them.
"You… you…" tears threatened to spill from her eyes.
"Ah, Sukuna, you shouldn't hit a girl like that," Ayame said, trying to disperse the tense atmosphere while also consoling Sakura.
"Oh, so just because she's a girl, she has the right to hit others? What's next — she starts bullying three-year-olds because of this ridiculous reasoning?" Sukuna retorted.
He never understood what was so funny about anime characters hitting people left and right for laughs. And Perverts peeking over bath houses in anime.
Well, he'd definitely cut down the man who peeked on his sister — and the same courtesy would extend to her. With reason? Sure. But hitting people for no reason? That was borderline bullying.
"Ah, that… it's just a harmless little prank. Don't mind it too much." Ayame's mouth twitched — even she had to admit Sakura was violent at times.
"Not when that three-year-old turns out to be someone important. Let's say… the Hokage's grandchild. What's she gonna do then, huh?" Sukuna pressed.
Ayame was speechless — there really was no retort to that.
"And you…"
Bang!
"Why'd you hit me too?!" Naruto clutched his head in pain.
"I get it, you like her, but give it a rest, will ya? Even I'd hit someone constantly hovering around me like a fly." Sukuna barked.
Sakura wasn't completely in the wrong this time.
"Oi, now it's just you hitting everyone," Ayame retorted.
"Ah, well, there's a good reason for that…" Sukuna shrugged.
"Oh? And what's that?" Ayame put her hands on her hips with a huff. This boy never acts like a child. In fact, he's the most unruly of them all.
"It's simple, actually — there ain't anyone capable of hitting me back." He winked, earning tick marks from everyone around.
They couldn't deny it, though. They'd tried — it always ended in a one-sided beating.
In Sukuna's defense, he wasn't bullying them — those hits only stung for a second or two. He wasn't doing it to be cruel.
Definitely not because he enjoyed it.
NOT AT ALL.
Karin watched the whole thing with a fond smile. They were loud and noisy, yes — but she was finally starting to feel like she had people around her who accepted her, who thought of her as a friend.
"…Thanks."
"Huh? What'd you say?"
"Nothing. It's just… I knew it when I first met you. I was absolutely right about you. You're just a bad guy.
Bad guy." Karin joined her fellow oppressed individuals, raising her voice against the cruel oppressor.
"Really? I thought I was your onii-chan…" Sukuna feigned hurt as his fingers started dancing in the air, sending shivers down Karin and Sakura's spines — they remembered that tickle attack.
"I knew it — you shameless guy!
Hentai… hentai…"
The ramen booth was filled with laughter and giggles. Even the ramen guy was laughing, though his eyes remained closed. His secret was harder to uncover than figuring out who Sarada's real mother was.
By the time they were heading home, Sukuna felt a little tug on his sleeve. He looked down to see Karin pulling an anime-cute-girl move.
"Hm?"
"Hm, you. Why are you doing all this for me? It's… it's not like you have to, right? I don't have anything you want, so… why be so nice to me?" she asked.
Naruto was back to irritating Sakura, and Sukuna — seeing the blond wasn't getting the point — gave Sakura free rein to hit him, as long as her random hitting was limited to one Naruto Uzumaki. Because, honestly…
Not always, but most of the time, the blond genuinely was annoying. And deserved those hits.
"Why I help you? Hmmm… I told you, didn't I? I saved you back then, so it's my responsibility to make sure you're okay. I brought you here — it's on me to make sure you're all right, no?" He shrugged.
Karin pursed her lips. Was that it?
"Look, don't worry about other things. I've got your back. Just stay out of trouble and accept life here."
"Hm." Karin nodded.
"What if those Kusa shinobi found out I'm here? Wouldn't that make trouble for you?"
"They won't. No one knows who took you, and even if they do, there aren't many willing to mess with Konoha — especially not some random, no-name village like Kusa.
And even if they did come, I told you, didn't I? I've got your back." He shrugged. Those little villages? He didn't even put them in his eyes anymore.
While he couldn't do it yet, one opening of his Domain could wipe that entire village from the map.
"Hm." Karin nodded again, feeling a weight lift from her chest.
A small but cute smile appeared on her face — though Sukuna couldn't see it since her head was down. She was finally safe. No one was coming to bite her, drink her blood.
She would not be given to a group of men for reproduction.
She was really safe now. Her eyes burned, but as strong as she was, she held the tears back.
Her earlier tug on his sleeve turned into a firm grip on his hand.
And at the height of her emotions, when she couldn't think of anything else to say, she simply closed the distance and wrapped her arms around him.
"…Thank you."
xxx
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