Naruto: Freeloading is Great! 2 [48]

After finishing dinner, Hoshino propped his chin in his hand, watching the young girl before him eat at a snail’s pace.

Previously, whenever he saw this idiot stuffing her face with greasy food, he only ever felt disgust. Now, for some inexplicable reason, he found it oddly cute, even having the urge to grab a tissue and wipe her mouth.

…The power of psychological suggestion really is terrifying.

Although still shocked at this brat’s true gender, whether Naruto was male or female ultimately didn’t matter much to him.

After all, everyone knew Naruto had chased after Walking Wallet for nearly a lifetime. Besides, the two had already done half the deeds a married couple would. Though Sasuke had unilaterally cut ties for now, they’d surely reconcile eventually—lovers’ spats never lasted long.

She was already taken, and besides…

“Compared to this used, dirty thing, a fresh package like Hinata is still far more attractive.”

Although, strictly speaking, Hinata wasn’t entirely brand-new either, considering Hoshino had already kissed her.

But from his point of view, she counted as brand-new enough—after all, he was the only one who’d kissed her.

Hearing Hoshino muttering to himself, Naruto angrily hurled her chopsticks straight at him.

“Used—dirty… dirty thing? You’re talking about me!? You actually dare to say something like that!?”

“Ah… You heard that?”

“Even if I hadn’t heard it, you still shouldn’t say it out loud!! Have you forgotten who turned me into this ‘used’ thing!? How can you say such shameless stuff right to my face… Ah—I see now! I’ve finally realized just how scummy you really are! You never planned to take responsibility, did you!? No matter how I threaten you, your conscience won’t make you honor your promises! How are you even still alive!? Hurry up and die! At least die ten thousand times!”

This brat—actually blaming me now!? Have I really ever done something that terri…ble…

Recalling how he’d forced Naruto into nightly massages for nearly forever, Hoshino immediately felt guilty.

“I-I…I admit I messed up, but it’s already happened, so there’s nothing I can do now. Um… how about this? Tell me clearly what you were planning to threaten me into doing earlier. If I can manage it, you’ll forgive me. How about it? Is this satisfactory to you?”

“…You actually agreed? You don’t seem like the kind of ultimate scum who’d actually say something like that…”

“—Hey! Even if I’ve reluctantly admitted I’m scum, what do you mean by ‘ultimate’!? I still have some conscience left, you know! Don’t make me sound like a heartless beast!”

“…R-really? Since you’ve said you’ll agree to my request, I-I’ll say it now. No going back on your word, okay? Absolutely no regrets! How should I phrase this… If I’m too specific, you’ll definitely find loopholes… Oh, I know! Take responsibility for me—all of it!”

“Hah? Responsibility…for you? For what exactly am I taking responsibility?”

“Why are you acting so shocked!? You don’t want to? Were you just tricking me earlier!?”

“N-no… it’s not that I want to trick you, it’s just… sorry, give me a moment—I need time to think this over.”

Though Naruto wasn’t thrilled that Hoshino didn’t immediately agree, compared to her earlier despair, this felt like fantastic news.

So Naruto didn’t continue pressuring him, puffing out her cheeks as she waited for his reply.

She knew very well that asking for responsibility from a pervert like Hoshino, whose brain was full of lewd thoughts, was a tough sell.

Taking “full responsibility” was vastly different from just being “responsible.” It meant Hoshino couldn’t keep chasing after other girls.

Of course, that was just Naruto’s assumption.

...

Seeing Naruto had stopped her barrage, Hoshino let out a sigh of relief.

What exactly did she mean by responsibility? He genuinely couldn’t figure it out.

Yet he absolutely couldn’t ask her directly—otherwise, she might randomly burst into tears again.

No choice, he had to puzzle it out himself.

—Analysis Mode—

Responsibility. Normally, when a girl says this to a guy, it strongly implies dating or marriage.

And Naruto had indeed confessed to him once already. But there was someone whose existence couldn’t be ignored: Uchiha Sasuke.

SasuNaru or NaruSasu—these labels didn’t come from nowhere.

Their bond was something beyond ordinary comprehension. They constantly whispered privately together behind his back. Most importantly, they’d already slept together!

Although he’d learned the hard way that relying completely on Naruto canon was dangerous, the general outline still held true.

Hinata losing interest in Naruto was indeed a huge but understandable anomaly.

He’d been there when Naruto “helped” Hinata drive off those brats—or rather, it was actually him who’d done the heavy lifting. Naruto hadn’t lifted a finger, just hid behind him. And now knowing Naruto was female, Hinata’s lack of attraction made even more sense—probably female intuition, or perhaps Hinata just didn’t like girly boys.

Now that he carefully reconsidered, had Naruto really confessed to him?

Her words at the time had been incredibly ambiguous, and her expression had seemed profoundly reluctant.

Was it just words said in anger? Had she only said that to deliberately provoke Sasuke?

If it was just angry talk, why had she gotten so inexplicably upset afterward?

No, maybe not inexplicable. Maybe it was…long-suppressed frustration!

At this revelation, Hoshino’s mind cleared instantly. He’d finally grasped the truth!

Everything suddenly made sense: why Naruto, despite loving Sasuke, let Hoshino massage her; why she reluctantly confessed to him; and now, why she was bizarrely demanding responsibility—all could be explained by this single truth!

You damned beast, Sasuke—!!

The moment Hoshino connected all the dots, he abruptly shot to his feet, strode swiftly to Naruto’s side, and tightly embraced her.

“I’ll take responsibility! I never realized how much you’ve suffered—I’m sorry I didn’t notice earlier… From now on, don’t ever hold back. Tell me everything. No matter what, I promise to make you happy!”

“…Th-th-this is so sudden—I-I haven’t mentally prepared myself… It’s marriage, right? You’re talking about marriage, right? Isn’t this way too soon…?”

“Yes, I mean marriage. Relax, when you’re old enough, I’ll definitely marry you with a smile on your face. Tomorrow, right after school, run straight home, take a bath, and then wait in my bed. During that time, I’ll go settle everything!”

“T-t-tomorrow… You’re already scheduling next time!? That’s way too… F-fine, anyway, it doesn’t hurt like the books said it would… If you really handle things properly, then maybe… I-I suppose it’s not impossible… O-okay then! I’ll wait…wait f-for your good news tomorrow!”

Naruto’s face turned crimson as she spoke, her voice growing softer and softer as she finally agreed.

Since she’d already been dyed by Hoshino while unconscious, going another step further wouldn’t be too unacceptable. Besides, Hoshino had just promised marriage and even said he’d break things off with Hinata after school tomorrow. With conditions this good, how could she possibly refuse?

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T/N: :SKULL EMOJI:

This is a fan translation of 火影之软饭真好吃 by 肾亏能力者 All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!