manynovel Chapter 173 Naruto and Sasuke are naturally incompatible
Chapter 173 Naruto and Sasuke are naturally incompatible
Chapter 174 Naruto and Sasuke are naturally incompatible
A few days later, Konoha Village.
The chill of late autumn was replaced by the biting cold of early winter; the air was dry and cold, and breath turned to frost.
The bare branches stretched out under the gray sky, desolate yet carrying a touch of winter's crispness.
Mianma tightened his black coat, burying half his face in the rough fabric, leaving only his bright blue eyes visible.
"As expected." He went to the mirror and examined the changes in his eyes.
The Sharingan and red eyes that were originally transplanted turned a deep blue color when they were closed. Just how powerful are the genes of this body?
Was Minato Namikaze, the cheap father, really just an ordinary commoner ninja?
Menma scrutinized those deep blue eyes that were exactly like Naruto's, a calmness beyond his years, and even a hint of barely perceptible weariness.
He had just returned from the Land of Stars using the Flying Thunder God Technique. The distance of thousands of miles did not bring much physical burden, but Shisui's distraught appearance and the ever-expanding structure of the Land of Stars weighed on his heart like an invisible stone.
Today is the weekend, the day I made plans with Naruto to go eat at Ichiraku Ramen.
Thinking of Naruto's optimistic figure, a hint of warmth flashed deep in Menma's eyes, and he quickened his pace.
In Konoha Park, the evergreen pine trees stubbornly retain their dark green color, but the grass has long since turned yellow.
Several children were playing a ninja game with their necks hunched over, wooden kunai and shuriken scattered all over the ground.
"Hey! Can't you watch where you're going?! You bumped into someone, do you even realize that?!"
A familiar voice, raised in pitch and full of anger.
Menma looked in the direction of the sound and saw Naruto Uzumaki standing at the park entrance, hands on his hips, glaring angrily at the person in front of him like a kitten whose tail had been stepped on.
His signature blond hair still shone brightly in the dim winter light, his cheeks were flushed with anger and cold, and two small flames burned in his blue eyes.
The person he yelled at was a black-haired boy named Uchiha Sasuke, wearing a dark blue turtleneck short-sleeved shirt with a table tennis racket crest printed on the back.
Sasuke had his hands in his pockets, his chin slightly raised, his delicate face displaying undisguised indifference and a hint of offended stubbornness.
He had clearly just turned from another road, and the two brushed past each other at the narrow entrance.
"Hmph." Sasuke let out a soft snort, his dark eyes glancing sideways at Naruto, his tone carrying the Uchiha's characteristic arrogance and a hint of barely perceptible annoyance.
"You're the one who's been running around like a headless fly." He emphasized the words "headless fly" with particular clarity.
"Who are you calling a headless fly?!" Naruto instantly bristled, his voice rising an octave higher, almost jumping up: "I'm the man who's going to become Hokage! You arrogant brat!"
"Heh, Hokage?" Sasuke's lips curled into an undisguised sneer. "An idiot who can't even walk properly is better off daydreaming."
Too lazy to argue any longer, he lifted his foot to walk around Naruto.
"Stop! Apologize to me!" Naruto persisted, taking another step to block Sasuke's path, his neck stiff and his aura fierce.
The two were about the same height, one like a burning little sun, the other like a cold obsidian. Their gazes clashed fiercely in the frigid air, sparks flying.
The children around stopped playing and looked at the two of them with a mixture of curiosity and fear.
Mianma sighed silently and walked over quickly.
He was already used to this kind of scene.
Naruto and Sasuke seem to be born with some kind of peculiar magnetic field. As long as they get close, even if it's just an unintentional eye contact in a crowd, it can instantly ignite a battle of words.
"Naruto." Menma's voice wasn't loud, but it carried a strange penetrating power, instantly breaking the tense atmosphere between the two.
Naruto turned his head and saw Menma. The anger on his face was instantly replaced by surprise, and his eyes lit up: "Menma-nii! You're here!"
He immediately forgot about Sasuke, hopped over to Menma, and instinctively reached out to put his arm around his shoulder.
"Let's go! Let's go eat ramen! I'm starving!" He exaggeratedly rubbed his stomach.
Menma subtly stepped to the side, avoiding Naruto's hands, which were covered in grass clippings and dust, but his gaze fell gently on him: "Yes, let's go."
He glanced at Sasuke out of the corner of his eye.
Sasuke's dark eyes swept quickly between Menma and Naruto, a hint of curiosity and inquiry flashing deep within them.
Just then, a faint, barely audible voice, tinged with obvious tension, rang out: "Menma-kun... Naruto-kun."
The three turned their heads and saw Hinata Hyuga standing timidly a few steps away.
She was wearing a simple light purple cotton-padded jacket and a white scarf. Her face was a little red from the cold, and her pure white eyes were slightly lowered due to nervousness. Her hands were nervously twisting the hem of her clothes.
She found her way here by following Naruto's signature loud voice.
"Hinata!" Naruto's smile widened when he saw Hinata, and he waved enthusiastically.
"Come on! Let's go eat Ichiraku-san's Super Ramen!"
"Mmm!" Hinata responded softly, took small steps over, stood next to Menma, secretly glanced at Menma, her face turned even redder, and then quickly lowered her head again.
This shy demeanor clearly indicates that she is "Little Hinata" rather than "Big Sister Hinata".
Menma nodded to Hinata as a greeting.
He looked at Sasuke again and found that Sasuke's gaze was on Hinata with a scrutinizing look, before he looked away and resumed his indifferent expression.
"Let's go." Menma didn't linger any longer and turned to walk towards the shopping street.
Naruto immediately followed, making a lot of noise.
Hinata responded softly, following closely beside Menma.
The three formed a small group and headed towards the commercial street, which was filled with the aroma of food and warm lights.
Naruto gestured excitedly, seemingly describing to Menma and Hinata how delicious the huge portion of char siu they had last time was.
Menma had his hands behind his head, while Hinata blushed, and the two occasionally exchanged a word.
Uchiha Sasuke stood still, without moving.
The cold air swirled up a few withered leaves, sending them flying past his feet.
He put his hands in his pockets and watched the three figures gradually disappear into the distance.
The blond Naruto was loud and boisterous, the young lady of the Hyuga main family was shy and quiet, and there was also the one named Menma who slightly furrowed his delicate brows.
Those eyes—azure blue, exactly like Naruto's, yet deep and serene like a frozen lake.
Moreover, Sasuke keenly sensed a faint, different kind of scrutiny from the other villagers in the way Menma had looked at him. That gaze seemed to penetrate his cold, hard shell and see something that even he himself did not yet understand.
A strange feeling, like a pebble thrown into a deep pool, rippled gently in Sasuke's heart.
He pursed his lips, but finally took a step and walked towards the clan's territory.
The familiar warm yellow lights and rich, mellow aroma of Ichiraku Ramen, like a cozy haven, instantly dispelled the chill outside.
The small shop was steaming and bustling with people, with several long benches almost full of diners.
"Uncle, three super-sized bowls of flavorful char siu ramen! Extra char siu! It's on me!" Naruto rushed in first, squeezing his way to the bar counter with practiced ease, slapping the counter loudly, full of energy.
The busy middle-aged man looked up and saw Naruto's signature smile followed by Menma and Hinata. His face immediately broke into a kind smile: "Oh! It's Naruto, Menma, and Hinata! Please, have a seat! Extra-large portion of flavorful char siu, extra char siu! Coming right away!"
When his gaze swept over Menma and Naruto, it carried a hint of gentle pity for the orphans that was barely perceptible.
The three of them squeezed into the last remaining space at the bar.
Naruto rubbed his hands together impatiently, staring longingly at the bubbling pot in the kitchen.
Hinata sat carefully next to Menma, sipping the hot barley tea that Ayame-san had brought her to warm her hands, occasionally stealing a glance at Menma's profile.
Menma sat quietly, took off his scarf, revealing a slightly tired-looking young face.
Soon, three steaming bowls of ramen, piled high with tempting char siu pork, were placed in front of them.
The rich aroma forcefully filled his nostrils. "I'm starting!" Naruto cheered, grabbing his chopsticks and eagerly picking up a large bunch of noodles. He slurped them up, panting as they burned, but he didn't want to spit them out, his face beaming with pure satisfaction.
"Be careful, it's hot." Menma looked at his bratty younger brother with some annoyance.
Hinata picked up her chopsticks, gracefully picked up a noodle, and blew on it gently.
Mianma didn't pick up his chopsticks immediately.
He watched Naruto wolf down his food, soup dripping from his lips, yet he laughed carefree. In those azure eyes, exactly like his own, the rising steam from the ramen was clearly reflected.
In a daze, the image of that blonde-haired, blue-eyed woman briefly overlapped with that of her mother, Kushina Uzumaki, deep in her memory, who also had a radiant smile and a fiery personality, in a blurry yet heartwarming dinner scene.
My heart felt as if it had been gently touched by an invisible hand, a subtle, bittersweet warmth spreading through it.
He silently picked up his chopsticks and carefully picked up the few thick, glistening pieces of char siu from his own bowl, one by one, and gently placed them into Naruto's already overflowing bowl.
"Huh?" Naruto was engrossed in his work when he felt the amount in his bowl increase again. He looked up blankly, soup still dripping from his lips, and saw the extra char siu in his bowl. Then he looked at the bowl of noodles and side dishes that were left alone and stunned.
"Brother Mianma? You—eat it yourself! Why are you giving it to me?"
"I'm not very hungry." Mianma's voice was calm and expressionless, revealing no emotion. He simply lowered his head, picked up a piece of noodles with his chopsticks, and ate it slowly, as if he were doing something completely ordinary.
His gaze fell on the rising steam from the bowl, his long eyelashes casting a small shadow under his eyes, concealing the complex emotions surging deep within them.
What was given away was far more than just a few slices of char siu.
It was more like they were carefully and clumsily trying to bridge the chasm between them, a chasm that had stretched for years, and perhaps even decades, between them, forged by conspiracy and time.
Every approach, every small act of kindness, feels like tentatively touching a fragile dream.
Naruto blinked, looked at Menma's lowered profile, then looked down at the extra meat in his bowl, and the boisterous expression on his face slowly subsided.
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he only managed a forceful "thank you," then lowered his head and continued to eat his noodles heartily.
The movements seemed a little slower than before, and the chewing was more forceful.
A strange, warm feeling, mixed with the steam from the ramen, spread from my stomach to my heart, dispelling all the chill of winter.
Hinata sat quietly to the side, eating her noodles in small bites, her pure Byakugan taking in all the subtle interactions.
She could sense the unspeakable, profound tenderness towards Naruto beneath Menma's calm demeanor, which seemed beyond his years.
Her cheeks were flushed, whether from the steam of the ramen or from the silent warmth flowing between the brothers, it was hard to tell.
The ramen shop was bustling with activity; the clinking of bowls and chopsticks, the laughter of diners, and the loud shouts of the ramen vendor mingled together, creating a warm and lively atmosphere.
The rising nitrogen and argon vapors from the bowl of noodles blurred the contours of his lowered face, leaving only his deep blue eyes, faintly visible behind the billowing white mist, reflecting thoughts that no one could understand.
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