"Uh, sorry about that," Naruto said sheepishly, scratching his head. Then he added, "I didn't know things were like this. I just felt something was off, so I…"
"It doesn't matter. I'm used to it already!"
Ganshi let out a cold laugh that only made him sound more annoying. His eyes darkened with bitterness as he continued, "Even the people from my own village always talk behind my back, and no one's ever wanted to talk to me face-to-face. Your reaction is perfectly normal."
"Why?" Instead of rushing into a fight, Naruto curiously asked, "Why do they talk behind your back?"
"Do you ever wonder why I'm covered in bandages?" Ganshi didn't answer directly but instead asked his own question.
"No," Naruto honestly replied.
"When I was seven, I was playing outside with some friends when we ran into a bear. I rushed forward to protect them and fought the bear. In the end, I survived until ninja from the village came to rescue us, but I ended up badly injured."
"Later on, after treatment by medical ninjas, although I lived, I was left with many lasting injuries—like my throat, which was hurt during the struggle with the bear, and for example, all these scars covering my body."
At this point, Ganshi's eyes filled with mockery. "Eventually, because those scars were too terrifying to look at, I had no choice but to wrap them all up with bandages."
"Scars?" Naruto stared at Ganshi's face. Two were clearly visible on his otherwise fully bandaged form. He suddenly didn't know what to say.
"You know what? I've actually been watching you for quite some time!" Ganshi suddenly said.
"What the heck!" Sakura couldn't help herself and blurted out, nearly crushing the railing in her hands. What did that mean? Was Ganshi… gay—and into Naruto?
"Stay strong," Sasuke patted Sakura's shoulder sympathetically, though his eyes sparkled with smug amusement. Even the corners of his mouth twitched upward.
"Shut up!" Sakura shot him a murderous glare. "If you keep making that smug expression again, do you really think I won't release those videos of your brother and Shisui getting intimate across the entire shinobi world?"
"Other than spreading those filthy lies and blackmailing people, what else can you even do?" Sasuke's face instantly turned an icy shade of pale. Although those videos were all fake—featuring nothing but Narutos' shadow clones impersonating them—outsiders didn't know that. If those videos were ever released, his older brother's reputation would be ruined for sure.
"It doesn't matter if the methods are shady—they work, and that's all that matters!" This time, it was Sakura's turn to be smug. As someone who deeply understood Sasuke's obsessive attachment to his older brother, she had long prepared countless countermeasures against Sasuke—all revolving around none other than Itachi Uchiha.
"You..." Sasuke's eyes nearly activated the Mangekyo Sharingan from anger, but in the end, he could only sigh and close his eyes in resignation, leaning against a stone pillar, choosing to ignore everything. As a mature ninja, he needed to learn patience. He absolutely couldn't damage his older brother's reputation—bearing some grievances was just part of the job.
"Don't worry, Sakura," Kakashi reassured on behalf of Kushina Uzumaki like a messenger, "If Naruto dares to cheat on you, we'll definitely beat him into a porky mess! That's what Kushina Uzumaki asked me to tell you! She also said she'd personally deal with that traitor and then have another baby with Minato!"
"Can you guys please stop making this up?" Sakura twitched visibly; blame these guys with their filthy minds—it was hard enough keeping her own thoughts pure anymore.
"Don't worry, Sakura," Hinata suddenly slung an arm over Sakura's shoulder and playfully flicked her chin, "Even if Naruto breaks up with you, you've still got us!"
"I'm so sorry, Hiashi!"
Startled, Sakura quickly hid behind Kakashi. Hinata's action struck her like a bolt of lightning—could it be that Hinata's preferences had somehow been accidentally influenced by her?
"Okay okay, I was just kidding," Hinata suddenly laughed, "It's just rare to see you look so shocked!"
"Now that you mention it, this is actually the first time I've seen Sakura wear such an expression," Ino seemed as if she'd just discovered something new, staring at Sakura for a while before suddenly stepping forward and imitating Hinata, lightly flicking Sakura's chin with her index finger.
Sakura's temple bulged with a vein popping out, and she immediately punched Kakashi in the waist. "You two are really asking for it!"
"Geez, sorry, sorry!" Ino nearly collapsed from laughing too hard, doubling over, "I just wanted to see that shocked look again! Seriously, after all these years, I've never seen you make that face before!"
"I can understand you teasing each other," Kakashi muttered in pain, clutching his waist, "But could you please stop dragging me into it all the time?"
"Ah—my bad, my reflexes kicked in—I thought you were a pillar!" Sakura finally realized she wasn't beside a column, but hiding behind Kakashi, realizing she'd punched Kakashi right in the waist.
"Kakashi, I told you long ago to train more with me and embrace youthfulness!" Guy lamented dramatically, "Look at you now—even one punch from Sakura is enough to cripple you! Your youthfulness… is already withering away!"
"Just shut up," Kakashi winced through gritted teeth, clutching the railing as he leaned forward, Guy's unsympathetic comments made his back pain even worse.
The bickering above went unnoticed by the two competitors currently inside the arena below. However, thanks to years of training under Sakura, Naruto somehow synchronised thoughts with her simultaneously—both had drifted off onto completely wrong—and rather inappropriate—interpretations of what had just happened.
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