In Konoha, This Naruto Has Decided To Take It Easy

Chapter 308 New Year Festival Again

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/IamPoorGuyToo

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"Why would you go home for no reason?" Naruto leaned back in his soft chair, slowly sipping some juice as he glanced at Choji, "After today, it'll be hard for you to see me."

"A mission at this time of year?" Choji was a little surprised. His small eyes narrowed, leaving just a tiny slit.

"No mission, just staying at home." Naruto replied shamelessly, "Once the new year passes, I’ll be sixteen. I don’t want to be dragged into something, so I might as well stay at home."

"What kind of excuse is that?" Choji was a little speechless, "You’re not talking about Tsunade-sama, are you?"

"Who else but her?" Naruto responded, completely indifferent. He reached out for the barbecue, only for Ino to slap his hand away.

"Not yet." She said, then turned her head and looked at him seriously with a frown, "You can’t really skip out on all the missions, can you?"

"If you keep this up, forget becoming a Jonin, even your Chunin status will be revoked."

"That won’t happen." Naruto replied, reclining even further with an air of nonchalance, "Nobody’s gonna mess with me anyway. After all, I am..."

"Ah!!! Ino, what are you doing!"

Ino pinched him and glared at him, "Didn't you just say that nobody could mess with you?"

The ‘Konoha Prince’ crumbled on the spot and immediately became weak.

"Fine, I’ll report to the Hokage Tower after the New Year Festival. How about that?"

"Hmph."

Choji ate the barbecue with a sour look on his face, unsure of what was going on between the two of them, and decided not to bother thinking about it. Seeing that the meat on the table was ready, he grabbed his chopsticks and started eating with both hands.

He would eat these two rich fools into the ground!

The three of them, all well-off, spent the entire afternoon indulging in barbecue, only finishing by evening. Naruto and Ino sat openly together, the soft light above casting a warm glow on them.

The two of them watched with boredom as Choji performed beyond his level, finishing plate after plate of barbecue. Eventually, Choji looked at the pile of plates and patted his now full stomach with satisfaction.

"Burp, I’m stuffed." He said.

Naruto was about to get up to pay when Ino pulled him back. He turned around and saw Ino looking at him with concerned expression.

"I'll pay." She said.

"Alright." Naruto sat back down and made way for Ino to get up and pay.

"Naruto." Choji looked at him straight, almost biting his handkerchief out of grievance, "So I ate all afternoon, and none of it came out of your pocket?"

"What? You want to eat me until I go bankrupt?" Naruto leaned lazily in the chair as if his bones had melted. His voice was a little drowsy, but a smug smile was plastered on his face.

"You... you made Ino pay? Damn, isn't this unfair?" Choji squinted his eyes in protest.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"I never said I was going to pay. Besides, it was Ino who said she’d treat us to barbecue." Naruto replied with a smug grin, completely unfazed, leaving Choji no room for argument.

"Next time, next time it’s my treat."

"I’m done." Choji raised his plump middle finger in defeat.

By then, Ino had already returned, having paid the bill. As the only daughter of the Yamanaka Clan’s Clan Head, she was never short on money. And her father, Yamanaka Inoichi, spoiled his only daughter to no end.

"Let's go." She stood in the aisle in a heroic manner, raised her index finger and pointed in the direction of the door.

Snow is falling outside the barbecue restaurant.

The dimly lit streets of Konoha were adorned with a few glowing lamps. It was just getting dark, and the streets were packed with people. They had managed to avoid the peak dining time when the restaurant was offering an 8% discount, thus skipping the long lines.

Choji, full from the meal, went home with a tinge of jealousy. He planned to ask Shikamaru in a few days what it was like to be friends with people who were even closer than he was with his best friends.

‘Well, Shikamaru would probably groan in annoyance and tell me something like, ‘Life’s short, so eat your meals on time’.’

Soon, the New Year Festival arrived as scheduled.

Naruto had more money than he could spend, so he simply bought a bunch of gifts. Since Ino had paid for the meal last time, he figured it gave him the perfect excuse to invite her out again. He ended up picking out a bracelet for her as a gift.

The price wasn't too high, just the right level for someone in that space between friend and something more.

In order to avoid being accused of favoritism, Naruto bought gifts for everyone he could think of. From the top down, he made sure no one was left out, even if he might not give all the presents away. But better to be prepared just in case.

However, handing out gifts left and right would be too flashy, so for now, he only planned to secretly give gifts to two people.

As for the others, he’d decide later depending on the situation. Thinking about how much of a hassle it was to give gifts made him restless, as it wasn’t something he was used to. He tossed and turned the night before the New Year Festival, barely sleeping, and ended up oversleeping the next day.

When he finally woke up, the sky was already getting dark. With a loud bang, dazzling fireworks exploded in the distance outside his window.

There was no light in the room and his mind was still a little groggy.

When the light of the fireworks flashed on his face, Naruto realized that it was already the New Year Festival. The reason why the gifts he hadn’t given out the gifts during the day was perhaps because he unconsciously wanted to avoid working.

"I'll just send it tomorrow." He lay back down with a thud.

A little while later, the door creaked open, and bright beams of light from the living room spilled into his room. Kurama sauntered in, walking with an arrogant swagger like Tom Cat, and said in a very annoying way, "Buy me some takoyaki."

Naruto lightly kicked him, "Wait outside."

After getting ready, Naruto knelt at the entryway, tying his shoes as Kurama eagerly opened the door, standing by it excitedly. The colorful fireworks lit up the hallway, casting shadows over Naruto as he finished tying his shoes and the dog who stood waiting at the door.

The scene looked strange, no matter how one looked at it. With a loud thud, the door shut, locking all the coldness and solitude behind them.

The man and the dog walked downstairs slowly, and headed towards the busy streets of Konoha with hungry stomachs. The shops along the street were bustling with people, and the sounds of clinking bottles and boisterous chatter could be heard everywhere.

Naruto and Kurama wandered around, eating and shopping. They bought some takoyaki and a large supply of booze just for Kurama. Crowds of people in yukata walked past them as they stood at the edge of the throngs, craning their necks to see what was happening.

After they were full and satisfied, they slowly made their way back. Their shadows stretched long under the streetlights, a stark contrast to the festive, lively atmosphere around them.

"How are we going to spend tonight?" Kurama suddenly asked.

"Sleeping, what else can we do?" Naruto gave Kurama a sidelong glance and asked casually, "Do you Biju also celebrate the New Year Festival?"

"Celebrate? I don’t even know what that is.” Kurama looked around and after seeing that there was no one around, he stood up on two legs and began walking, "But it seems like you humans do. Aren’t you going to celebrate?"

"Just the two of us, a man and a dog… what’s there to celebrate?" Naruto lazily looked at Kurama, " Unless you want to kneel down and bow to me on the New Year's Day?"

"Shut up!" Kurama flipped him off with a middle finger.

Naruto raised his eyebrows and suddenly remembered the middle finger that Choji raised at the barbecue restaurant last time.

‘It seemed like this gesture was becoming a trend… it’s spreading way too fast.’

After dragging their feet up the stairs, Kurama fell silent. Naruto didn’t think much of it, assuming Kurama just ran out of comebacks, as usual. After all, Kurama had lost many arguments with him.

Standing at the door, Naruto slowly fished his keys out of his pocket. It took him a moment of fumbling before he found the right one. He aimed for the keyhole and shoved the key in.

The door swung open, and light from the living room spilled out like a spiderweb.

Naruto was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head and asked Kurama, "I turned the lights off when we left, didn’t I?"

"How should I know?" Kurama mumbled softly and stepped in first. However, before he could get comfortable, he noticed a figure in the living room and was instantly frightened.

"Meow?"

Naruto stood outside the door and saw Ino standing there wearing a light purple fuzzy sweater. The fireworks outside seemed to be reflected in her eyes, making them shine brightly.

"Why are you just standing there like an idiot?" She frowned.