[Land of Fire]
By a small stream, Karin's squad was camping here.
Hinata was on watch, Karin was setting up an alert barrier, and Sasuke and Naruto were grilling fish.
The forests of the Land of Fire are rich in resources. There are other game animals too, but fish are easy to cook and the meat cooks quickly.
They always choose grilled fish first.
In front of a big fire, no fewer than twenty fish were being grilled together.
With so many fish, Naruto and Sasuke grilling together kept things from getting chaotic.
"Karin eats so much," Sasuke muttered, his face full of helplessness.
If he objected, Karin would say, "Senior sister decides."
It was Karin's idea to grill so many fish this time.
Naruto, however, was in high spirits. He had not been on a mission for a while and had not eaten grilled fish.
Before, whenever he grilled fish, the Third Hokage would snatch it away.
Now that they were not short of food, he still wanted fish.
Also, he could grill fish for Hinata to eat.
Hehe!
A smile spread across Naruto's face; he paid no attention to Sasuke's complaints.
Sasuke looked up and saw Naruto grinning like an idiot.
"Naruto!"
"Ah! Sasuke, what did you say?", Naruto suddenly snapped out of it.
Sasuke rolled his eyes, "I said, we grilled so many, can we finish them?"
Naruto's face took on a mysterious smile, "Don't worry, we'll definitely finish them."
"Wahaha! With me here, who's afraid we'll run out?", Karin, who had already set the formation, flashed to the fire.
Naruto ignored Karin and only looked at Hinata who was nearby.
He waved to Hinata, "Hinata, come over, the fish are ready."
Hinata blushed a little, but she had gotten used to being with Naruto over the past few days, so she sat down next to him.
Karin picked a suitably grilled fish from the fire and bit into it.
Crunch!
The fish tail was crisp and fragrant.
"Mm... Naruto, your grilled fish tastes pretty good."
Naruto puffed up with pride.
"Of course. I've grilled many times."
He was right. Before, he was often hungry and only barely survived, catching fish to grill to fill his stomach.
Over the years, he gained a lot of experience.
Besides, he didn't just have salt now. Karin brought various spices, so the flavor was naturally good.
"Here, Hinata, this is the biggest one. Make sure you eat well today."
Naruto carefully handed the fish to Hinata, his eyes full of joy.
Hinata's face flushed. She took the grilled fish a little shyly, "Thank you, Naruto."
Naruto stared at Hinata intently. After she took a bite she said, "It's delicious, Naruto."
"Hehe! Eat quickly, we grilled a lot today."
With the praise, Naruto finally relaxed and took a skewer to eat himself.
When Hinata is in a sour mood, she turns sorrow into appetite.
Naruto had spent so much time with her that he had discovered Hinata's secret: she was a big eater.
He didn't know how much Karin could eat, but he definitely knew how much Hinata could eat, so he was not worried about waste.
"Mm mm... crunch! crunch! Although Naruto's grilled fish is very tasty, it's still a bit worse than Shishou's."
Karin, who recognizes people but not food, kept thinking of the time she ate grilled fish with her master at the Land of Fire's border.
"Karin, you really know how to flatter me," A familiar voice came from above.
Karin looked up with surprise, "Ah! Shishou, you're here!"
Naruto happily waved, "Gaara! Gaara!"
Rengoku had already folded his wings in the air.
He fell from the sky like a drop of water and merged into Karin's shadow.
Gaara landed on a sand cushion and floated down slowly.
Naruto and Sasuke assumed Rengoku had come on Gaara's sand cushion, not knowing Rengoku could use paper techniques.
"Gaara, your sand cushion can fly now?"
Before they graduated, Gaara had told Naruto about that technique.
Seeing Gaara use it now made everyone happy.
Gaara nodded but did not mention Rengoku's paper technique, "The sand cushion still does not fly fast yet."
"Gaara, try some of my grilled fish," Karin offered a fish like presenting a treasure.
"Shishou, try Naruto's grilled fish," Karin urged.
Rengoku was a clone. Although he could eat, it was just to satisfy the appetite.
Karin knew this, but she did not care.
"Fine, I'll taste it," Rengoku patted Karin's head and did not refuse.
Rengoku was about to sit on a rock.
Gaara was quick. A heap of sand became a stool.
Rengoku smiled at Gaara and took a bite of the grilled fish.
Naruto had grilled fish for many years, and his timing was very precise. As for flavor, Rengoku thought both had their merits.
"Mm, Naruto's is tasty too."
"Shishou...", Karin stuck out her tongue and stopped arguing. Taste is subjective, and he would not compete with Karin.
Naruto did not care about these things either. His attention was on Gaara and Hinata.
He felt this mission trip was really nice.
Very happy.
Sasuke stood to the side, sulking.
'Hinata is one thing, but why is Gaara here too?'
Sasuke felt even more awkward, as if he alone in the team was an outsider.
Flick!
Rengoku reached out and flicked Sasuke's forehead.
"Ouch... Shishou, what are you doing?", Sasuke covered his head and looked wronged.
Rengoku leaned close to Sasuke's ear, "Guess who Naruto cares more about, Hinata or Gaara?"
"S-s... that's none of my business... I won't guess!", Sasuke squirmed and said quietly.
Rengoku chuckled, "Naruto cares more about you."
Sasuke looked away, but a smile crept at the corner of his mouth, "No way."
Rengoku patted Sasuke's shoulder, "Because you are Naruto's older brother."
He was talking about Indra and Asura.
Sasuke thought Rengoku was encouraging him, and his fighting spirit was rekindled. His eyes shone when he looked at Naruto.
Naruto was talking with Hinata when he suddenly felt a hot gaze.
He turned to Sasuke and scratched his head, not understanding what Sasuke was doing.
Rengoku saw that Sasuke was no longer awkward, chuckled, and continued eating his fish.
After finishing one fish, he didn't eat more. One was enough.
There were still many fish left. Rengoku knew Karin and Hinata's appetites well.
So he quietly watched the two girls eat.
Sasuke, who did not understand this, was astonished. He could accept that Karin could eat so much.
But why was gentle Hinata also a big eater?
How could so much food fit into such a small body?
Naruto was very happy. Since he had grilled them, the more Hinata ate, the happier he was.
"This mission is not very difficult, but it will broaden your horizons."
Seeing that everyone had almost finished eating, Rengoku began to talk about the mission.
"You can compare the differences between a great nation and a small nation."
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