Finally, Naruto finished fiddling with the vending machine, turned, and walked back quickly. He handed a can of drink to Satsuki.
"Here you go! Delicious strawberry milk!" he said with a grin. "This is a certain curly-haired person's favorite, you know. Anyway, drink it with gratitude!"
"Curly-haired?" Satsuki didn't quite understand who Naruto's sudden nickname referred to.
However, the moment her fingertips touched the can, an unexpected sensation came from her palm.
It was warm.
It was, in fact, quite warm, perfectly soothing her fingers, which were a little cold from her post-rain walk.
So… that while he was dawdling in front of the vending machine, he wasn't fiddling with anything else, but was using Fire Style Chakra… to heat this can of milk?
To actually use Chakra from training… to do something like this…
Satsuki held the warm can of milk, a little dazed for a moment. This meticulous thoughtfulness was completely beyond her expectation. Although she did feel a bit cold after the walk, wasn't this kind of care… a little too considerate?
Naruto had already sat back down on the warm bench beside her, holding a can of regular orange juice himself.
He turned his head, watched Satsuki lower her head, and slowly began to sip the warm strawberry milk, then asked expectantly, "How is it? Do you feel better? Are you warmer?"
The sweetness and warmth of the milk slid down her throat, indeed dispelling much of the chill inside her. Satsuki was silent for a moment, feeling that tangible warmth, and nodded lightly. "…Mm."
"Is that so… That's good then." Naruto shook the orange juice in his hand. "I'm thinking about what to eat for dinner later. If you could choose, would you want to go back and try my cooking? Or… should we go to Ichiraku Ramen?"
…It was about the topic of later.
If Satsuki were to choose according to her inner thoughts, she would undoubtedly choose for Naruto to cook for her personally.
However, at this moment, words about the future such as "later," "tonight," and "tomorrow" quietly pricked her fragile nerves.
Regarding tonight… for the first time in her life, Satsuki felt a bone-chilling fear of the approaching night. The mere thought that after night fell, Naruto might leave and return to his own home, while she would have to stay in this empty, large house alone… filled her with a suffocating panic.
But, reason kept warning her not to be like this. Naruto had already done enough for her, from his companionship yesterday to this warm can of milk… she had already caused him enough trouble. If she made even more excessive demands, it would truly be too willful and thoughtless…
Two emotions fiercely tugged at her heart, causing her to suddenly fall into a long silence, unable to answer Naruto's seemingly simple question about dinner.
Naruto looked at the little girl who had suddenly fallen silent, her eyes wandering uneasily, and thought she was just having a bit of trouble choosing. So he tried to break the deadlock in a consultative tone.
"How about… I cook tonight? But I remember there don't seem to be any tomatoes in the fridge… I'll have to go buy some more…?"
He stopped mid-sentence.
Because he felt a hand, carefully but unusually firmly, grasping the sleeve of his jacket.
Naruto looked down, meeting Satsuki's raised eyes, which were filled with moisture and an almost desperate plea.
"Can I… say something… very selfish…?" Her voice was as faint as a mosquito's buzz.
"Satsuki…"
Satsuki, as if using all her courage, looked directly into Naruto's eyes and spoke the deepest fear and plea in her heart.
"Don't go… Tonight… please… stay with me… at least until tomorrow's sun rises…"
Her voice was tearful, yet exceptionally clear, "Please… don't go anywhere… I can't… be alone…"
After saying this last sentence, she deeply lowered her head again, not daring to look directly into Naruto's eyes, afraid to see an expression of refusal or difficulty. Only the hand grasping his sleeve remained tightly clenched, not letting go.
A faint, suppressed sob came from under her lowered head.
"I only have you…"
"…So, please… please don't abandon me…"
After Satsuki, with a tearful voice, almost desperately uttered that plea, a brief silence fell in the air.
Although this silence lasted only a few seconds, it was so heavy that it almost completely crushed Satsuki, who had just mustered all her courage.
Every second of waiting felt like being judged; fear and regret began to grow—was she too willful? Was she hated after all?
Just as she was about to be swallowed by this silence, Naruto's familiar voice finally rang out, without the slightest hesitation or difficulty.
"…I see, I understand. Then let's go."
"…Go?" Satsuki cautiously raised her head, looking at him with tear-filled eyes, not immediately understanding what "go" meant.
"Yes, let's go." Naruto nodded affirmatively. "First, we need to buy some ingredients for dinner; the stock in the fridge probably isn't enough."
"We definitely need to buy tomatoes, your favorite… Hmm, let's see if there's any fresh fish too. We could grill fish or make fish soup tonight? Oh, right, we also need to buy some breakfast ingredients, like eggs, milk, and so on…"
"Uh… also, if I'm staying over… I don't think I brought a change of clothes or toiletries, so I might have to buy those too… Sorry, it might take a little longer to shop."
This string of rambling, yet incredibly specific and practical arrangements, instantly dispelled all the gloom and unease in Satsuki's heart.
She understood.
Not only did Naruto not find her willful or troublesome, but he readily accepted her excessive request, and even began to seriously consider and plan the details of how to stay over at her house.
The tightly strung nerve finally completely relaxed, and the fear that had almost drowned her receded like a tide. She suddenly felt… that her long-standing pretense of strength and disguise, at this moment, was finally unnecessary.
It truly… was unnecessary.
"…Mm…" She nodded vigorously, her voice tinged with a slight, relieved tremor. "Thank you… Really… Thank you so, so much… Naruto…"
Looking at the girl who was bowing her head and thanking him softly, Naruto felt a bit uneasy inside; he shook his head.
"No… Actually, I should be the one saying thank you."
This sentence was completely beyond Satsuki's comprehension. She raised her head in confusion, tears still clinging to the corners of her eyes, and looked at him, puzzled. "Wh-Why?"
Naruto looked at her, his eyes incredibly serious, "Because… you are willing to let me stay by your side. Thank you very much… for trusting me like this."
In his opinion, being allowed to be close and relied upon when the other person was at their most vulnerable and in greatest need was, in itself, a precious trust.
But this sentence made Satsuki shake her head vigorously, and her tears became uncontrollable again.
"Don't… don't say such silly things… Clearly… clearly it's me, right… I'm the one constantly causing you trouble… I really… really don't know how to thank you enough…"
"If you really don't know how to thank me…" Naruto's voice softened. "Then just owe it for now. We have plenty of time anyway. You can slowly repay me with many, many… 'happy smiles' in the future."
"…Just that kind of thing…" Satsuki shook her head. "It's not enough at all… Just that kind of thing… how could it be enough…"
She felt that what she had endured was far too heavy to be repaid by simple "smiles."
Naruto didn't let her continue. He interrupted her directly, "You don't believe it?"
Satsuki nodded gently. She couldn't believe it.
"Just now," Naruto continued, looking into her eyes, "Satsuki was afraid of waking up tomorrow and facing loneliness again, right?"
Satsuki's body trembled slightly.
"But who can say for sure what tomorrow will bring?"
Naruto changed the subject. "But there's one thing I can promise you—tomorrow, I will still be by your side, just like today. And tomorrow, if you still need me, I will make the same promise to you."
He leaned slightly forward, making his words clearer. "These things… are not because Satsuki asked me to, and I reluctantly did them. It's because I want to do them, that's all. Because being by your side… I truly feel incredibly happy."
"So, even if you don't believe now that 'happy smiles' can repay me, but… I will stay by your side, always, until you are willing to believe, until you genuinely feel 'it's good to be alive' again."
After speaking, he reached out and took Satsuki's cold hand.
"When you feel bad, just grab my hand like this! Although… this is my first time experiencing something like this too, and I don't know exactly what to do, but at least… I'm very confident in transmitting warmth!"
Satsuki's breathing suddenly quickened, her heart pounding wildly in her chest. The emotions surging within her were too complex, too overwhelming; she couldn't even identify what they were, only feeling her chest ache as if it were about to burst from some scorching emotion the next second.
In the end, a thousand words clogged her throat, condensing into that pale and repetitive phrase, with a stammering, tearful voice. "I… I really… don't know… how to thank you…"
Just then, Naruto's other hand gently, once again, stroked Satsuki's black hair.
"I told you, Satsuki doesn't need to thank me."
"Because you are not my 'burden.' You are my 'choice.'"
After a brief pause, he gave a warm smile and made his final declaration.
"And I—"
"Will never regret choosing you."