Chapter 74: Sunflowers Always Face the Sun
"Well, there's also this!"
Little Hanabi, who was only five at the time, jumped out from behind her sister, holding a bouquet of pure white daisies in both hands.
"This is from Hanabi to Big Brother!"
The little girl stood on tiptoes, saying earnestly, "Thank you, Big Brother Naruto, for teaching us new taijutsu!"
Naruto in her memory was first stunned, then showed a smile warmer than the sun.
He bent down and solemnly accepted the bouquet:
"You're welcome!"
At that moment, his clear blue eyes were filled with tenderness, as if he had received not an ordinary bouquet, but an incredibly precious gift.
Recalling this, Hinata unconsciously pursed her lips and smiled.
It turns out that even back then, her sister knew better than her how to express her feelings to important people.
Thinking of the sunflower bouquet she had given Naruto, Hinata unconsciously lowered her head, her fingertips gently twisting the corner of her clothes.
In the Land of Fire, sunflowers have a special meaning—"The sun in my heart."
She had always cherished this flower language in her heart, never telling anyone. Because to her, Naruto-kun was that warm and dazzling sun.
It was he who stood up for her when everyone mocked her; it was he who illuminated her path when she was most lost and helpless.
That light pierced through the gloom that enveloped her heart.
But... Hinata quietly looked up, gazing at Naruto, who was laughing and chatting with her sister.
That smile made her heart tremble, and she quickly lowered her eyes again.
But whenever her eyes met his clear blue ones, she always scurried away as if fearing a strong light.
It was the light she yearned for most, yet she never had the courage to look directly at it.
Just like sunflowers always bloom towards the sun, she couldn't even muster enough courage to look up at it.
Looking at Naruto, whose smile was still brilliant, Hinata's fingers gripping her chopsticks tightened slightly, and the Narutomaki on the edge of the bowl trembled gently. She took a deep breath, finally picked up the food, and slowly brought it to her mouth.
For some reason, the taste was a bit bland compared to before.
Naruto noticed Hinata's sudden low mood, and his eyes blinked gently.
He looked at Hinata, who was silent with her head bowed, and immediately understood.
"I'll go buy some snacks for Hanabi," he stood up, deliberately lowering his voice, "I'll be right back."
"Okay!"
Little Hanabi immediately raised her small hand, her eyes sparkling.
"Big Brother Naruto, I want takoyaki! Double katsuobushi!"
Naruto stood up, smiled, and ruffled her hair, then subtly glanced at Hinata as he turned away.
Ino saw everything and a knowing smile appeared on her lips.
She quietly nudged Hinata's elbow, giving her an encouraging look.
Although they were likely rivals in love, they were still friends.
Seeing Hinata always too shy to look up at Naruto, Ino felt both amused and a little pained.
As soon as Naruto's figure disappeared around the corner, Ino immediately put her arm around Hinata's shoulder intimately and whispered in her ear:
"If you also like Naruto, then you have to be bold and pursue him!"
Hinata looked up in surprise, meeting Ino's cunning gaze.
"Hmph! What's wrong, surprised?"
Ino raised her chin, full of confidence.
"Naruto is so excellent, of course there won't be few admirers. But—"
She deliberately drew out her words, her eyes flashing with determination.
"He will definitely choose me in the end. No matter how many rivals there are, I will defeat them one by one. One more of you won't make a difference, and one less won't matter."
On the other side, Konohamaru, seeing Naruto leave, called Moegi and Ise Udon to follow him.
Naruto arrived in front of a takoyaki stall and handed over the money.
"Four portions of takoyaki, one with extra katsuobushi."
The owner clearly recognized the 'Nine-Tails' and his face was cold.
"Alright."
After taking the hundred ryo Naruto gave him, he had no intention of giving change.
Seeing Naruto buying things, Konohamaru's eyes lit up. What a chance!
Konohamaru and his two companions, attempting to ambush Naruto, were deftly pinned to the ground by Naruto before they could even see his movements.
"I'm the Third Hokage's grandson!" Konohamaru yelled defiantly from the ground.
Once he knows my identity, this guy will surely become respectful like everyone else!
Naruto ignored his shouting and instead turned to the takoyaki vendor, saying, "Could I trouble you for three more portions of takoyaki, for these three children?"
Hmph, just as expected.
Konohamaru's lips curled upwards, but he also sighed inwardly.
It seems this guy is just like those snobs in the village!
After speaking, Naruto finally looked down at Konohamaru, who was still struggling, a faint smile on his lips: "So what? Even if you're the Third Hokage, it doesn't matter.
You want to ambush me but don't want to get beaten? Where's such a good deal?
The Third Hokage is at my house right now, do you want to go see him?"
This remark immediately made the vendor, who had intended to sternly refuse the "guy who bullied the Hokage's grandson," change his mind.
He silently lowered his head, skillfully flipping the takoyaki on the griddle, as if suddenly deeply interested in the sizzling batter.
Konohamaru's momentum instantly withered, but he still stubbornly mumbled, "You, you're lying..."
Seeing Konohamaru's obvious guilt, Naruto let go, pulled the three children up, and handed them the freshly made takoyaki from the owner: "Want to try it? The takoyaki here is delicious."
Before he went to school, when he was still hungry and hadn't met Ino, Naruto had asked Sakura to buy some for him, but later Sakura also became somewhat distant from him.
Later, Ino told Naruto the reason Sakura was distant was because a few girls bullied Sakura, mocking her as a broad-foreheaded monster who followed the Nine-Tails.
Naruto would never bully the elderly or children, but those girls were clearly not elderly.
Later, when he was training with Might Guy, he encountered those girls and even beat them up.
Might Guy didn't blame Naruto after he learned the cause.
Naruto left the takoyaki with double katsuobushi and gave three steaming hot takoyaki from the first batch to the three children. After the owner finished the second batch, he carefully packed the four portions of takoyaki into his ninja tool pouch.
"You all eat slowly, I'm going back to eat."
"Mmm! Big Brother, walk safe!"
Moegi and Ise Udon were instantly bought over by the food, happily waving goodbye to Naruto.
Konohamaru snorted and turned his face away, but still couldn't resist opening the takoyaki box. The aroma wafted out, and he secretly swallowed.
Watching Naruto's receding figure, a strange feeling welled up in Konohamaru's heart.
Whether it was his private tutor Ebisu or the other villagers, they always treated him with extra leniency because of his status as the "Third Hokage's grandson."
But Konohamaru detested this special treatment from the bottom of his heart.
He wanted to earn recognition through his own strength, he wanted people to stop calling him "Young Master Konohamaru" and instead call him simply "Konohamaru," or even "Lord Konohamaru" in the future.
That's why he often challenged the Third Hokage.
This big brother with yellow hair was the first person who didn't treat him differently just because he was the Hokage's grandson.
He bit into a piece of takoyaki, exhaling sharply from the heat, but his eyes grew even more determined.
After dinner, Naruto walked Hinata and Hanabi to the vicinity of the Hyuga Clan Compound.
As dusk deepened, the lanterns at the clan compound gate had already lit up with a warm glow.
Just as Hinata was about to say goodbye, Naruto took out a bright bouquet of sunflowers from his ninja tool pouch.
The golden petals were still radiant in the twilight, as if holding onto the last ray of sunlight.
"Sunflowers always face the sun."
Naruto handed the bouquet to Hinata, his voice exceptionally gentle.
"They symbolize 'bravely pursuing happiness.' Hinata, I remember you gave me a bouquet before, and now I'm giving you one too."
Hinata dazedly took the bouquet, her fingertips gently stroking the soft petals.
"I hope you can be brave."
Naruto looked at her, his gaze clear and firm.
"In my heart, Hinata has always been a very formidable person—your strength, your efforts, I see them all. You are no worse than anyone."
These words made Hinata's eyes well up slightly. She hugged the sunflowers tightly, as if embracing this precious encouragement.
Hanabi subtly smiled beside them, discreetly moving a few steps away.
The evening breeze brushed past, and the sunflowers swayed gently in the twilight, like a heart finally touched by sunlight, quietly blooming.
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