Listening to her two teammates chatting, Hinata softly asked:
"I heard Shinju and the others are coming back in the next couple of days… is that true?"
Kiba nodded.
"Should be. It's been so long… they should be back by now."
A faint smile of happiness appeared on Hinata's face.
"Naruto-kun…"
At that moment, Akamaru — now grown into a large dog — twitched his nose twice.
"Woof! Woof!"
Akamaru suddenly barked excitedly.
Kiba frowned slightly.
"You really picked up his scent?"
"Woof!" Akamaru confirmed.
"Alright then."
Kiba turned to Hinata and Shino.
"Akamaru says he's picked up Shinju and Naruto's scents!"
...
On the streets of Konoha.
After nearly three years away from the village, Shinju and Naruto finally returned, their eyes full of curiosity and awe.
"Wow… after being gone for so long, the village really has changed a lot," Shinju said.
Naruto nodded.
"Yeah! Even Ichiraku Ramen got remodeled!"
As they talked, both turned to glance at Jiraiya behind them.
"Hey, Pervy Sage — I mean, Jiraiya-sensei — how about treating us to a bowl of ramen?"
Jiraiya laughed heartily.
"Sure thing! This great teacher of yours is always generous. Eat as much as you want!"
Naruto muttered under his breath:
"Generous, huh? During these three years, almost all our expenses were covered by Shinju…"
Jiraiya's eyes widened.
"Naruto, are you badmouthing me right now?! Ծ‸ Ծ"
...
Half a minute later…
A sharp scream erupted inside Ichiraku Ramen.
Teuchi's daughter stood there with flushed cheeks, sneaking glances at Shinju's flowing red hair. She mumbled under her breath:
"W-who is this guy… he's so handsome…"
Teuchi himself gave her a deadpan look.
"That's Shinju. Don't you recognize him?"
Realizing it, she carefully examined Shinju again… and the more she looked, the more entranced she became.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya and Naruto were completely unfazed — they'd seen this reaction plenty of times before.
Naruto, however, cupped Shinju's face and inspected him closely.
"I don't get it. Why do girls keep saying you're handsome? I don't see what's so special."
"Back off."
Shinju pulled away and scowled.
"You just lack an artistic eye. That's why you can't appreciate greatness."
As they chatted, steaming bowls of ramen were placed in front of them.
Teuchi warmly said:
"Shinju, Naruto, it's been three years since you've been here. This one's on me."
"No way, we can't let you do that, old man. You've already treated us so many times before."Naruto and Shinju looked a bit embarrassed — they weren't kids anymore.
Jiraiya, on the other hand, pouted.
"What's there to be embarrassed about? That just means I don't have to pay this time. Heh heh heh… (〃∇〃)"
Shinju & Naruto: (ー_ー)!!
"Can't you at least act like a teacher for once?"
In the end, after downing eighteen bowls of ramen between them, Shinju and Naruto paid the bill and stepped out of the shop.
Jiraiya glanced at his now-empty wallet, grumbling:
"The owner literally said it was free…"
"The owner said it's fine, but we'd feel bad if we didn't pay," Shinju shrugged.
...
Inside Ichiraku Ramen.
Teuchi's daughter reluctantly tore her gaze away from Shinju.
"I wonder when they'll come back to eat again…"
Teuchi: "Enough already! Get a hold of yourself! （｀Δ´）!"
...
Outside the ramen shop.
Shinju suddenly sensed several familiar chakra signatures approaching.
"They're here."
A few seconds later—
"Woof! Woof!"
A large dog bounded toward Shinju and Naruto, barking twice.
Although Akamaru had changed a lot, Shinju recognized him instantly.
"You've gotten so big, Akamaru," Naruto said in amazement.
Just then, a timid but familiar voice came from a nearby alley.
"Naruto-kun…"
Naruto turned around and saw a blushing Hinata. He waved energetically.
"Hinata!"
Wanting to give Naruto a little push, Shinju placed a hand on his back and shoved him forward.
"You've been away for so long. Go say hi properly."
Moments later, several figures approached, surrounding Shinju.
Kiba grinned.
"Three years without seeing you guys, and you've changed a lot."
Tenten nodded enthusiastically.
"Yeah, Shinju's gotten way too handsome. Totally falling for him here. (⌯︎¤̴̶̷̀ω¤̴̶̷́)✧︎"
Ino narrowed her eyes dangerously.
"You just like every handsome guy you see! One after another! (′д｀σ)σ"
Tenten shook her head furiously.
"No way! I've only said that about Shinju-kun! ( ˝ᗢ̈˝ )"
Lee said seriously:
"Shinju, you've grown taller too. I wonder how much your strength has improved."
Neji, beside him, wore a similarly intrigued expression.
"Indeed. Shinju, you haven't been slacking in training these past three years, right?"
Shinju smirked.
"Oh? Sounds like you guys want to spar with me."
Neji, Lee, Kiba, and the others nodded in unison.
"That's right."
Shinju chuckled.
"Alright then. Let's head to the training grounds."
Ino hesitated slightly.
"But you just got back…"
Shinju waved it off.
"It's fine. I'm super strong now, you know. ꉂ(ˊᗜˋ*)"
And so, the whole group headed for Training Ground Five, drawing plenty of curious stares along the way.
When they arrived, everyone gathered together and quickly worked out a battle plan.
"Let's do a one-on-one match," Kiba suggested.
Shinju nodded happily.
"Sounds good."
The next moment, Kiba, Neji, Lee, and Shino all stepped up onto the platform.
The most outrageous part? Even Naruto walked over to stand on the opposite side from Shinju.
Shinju: "???"
"Hold on, didn't you say one-on-one?! ∑(✘Д✘๑)"
Naruto grinned.
"Yeah, exactly. One-on-one. All of us… against you. ( ˝ᗢ̈˝ )"
For the past three years, Naruto and Shinju had trained together outside the village.
Technically, Jiraiya was supposed to be their teacher — but in truth, Shinju taught Naruto far more than Jiraiya did.
Which also meant… Naruto had been beaten up by Shinju countless times.
So today, finally, he had the chance to turn the tables and settle the score.
Of course, Naruto wasn't stupid. He knew that even with everyone together, they couldn't beat Shinju in a straight fight.
So he added one important condition:
"But you can't use Wood Release, Ice Release, or Flying Thunder God, alright?"
Shinju nodded confidently.
"Fine. Whatever rules you want. I'll play along today."
After Shinju agreed, Naruto glanced down at Shikamaru and Choji.
"Hey, Shikamaru, Choji, you guys are joining in too."
Hands stuffed in his pockets, Shikamaru lazily walked up onto the platform alongside Choji.
"What a drag… _"
"Alright then," Tenten, acting as referee, raised her hand.
"Battle start!"
...
Outside the training grounds.
Tsunade and Jiraiya met, exchanging knowing smiles as they sat down on a nearby park bench.
"Any new intel on the Akatsuki these past two years?" Tsunade asked.
Jiraiya shook his head.
"Not much. I only managed to learn the name of their leader in Amegakure — Pain."
"Because of those two kids, I couldn't dig any deeper."
Tsunade frowned.
"Never heard of anyone by that name in the entire shinobi world."
Jiraiya nodded.
"Same. After I got his name, I checked the bingo books of all the major villages — came up empty."
Tsunade sighed softly.
"Three years have passed… Akatsuki will probably start moving again soon."
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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