Chapter 17: The Superglue Handshake and the Ramen Dilemma part-2
"This is problematic," Shino observed, inspecting our joined hands. "The chakra flow is looped. Until Hinata's chakra stabilizes, you are effectively one entity."
"One entity?!" I felt faint. "You mean... we are... married?"
"No, idiot," Sakura snapped. "It means you are glued together. Just calm down, Hinata!"
"Calm down? How can I calm down?" I looked at Naruto. He was inches away. Our hands were locked in an intimate clasp. I could feel the warmth of his skin. I could feel his pulse.
"Well, we cannot stay here," Naruto said, scratching his head with his free hand. "I am starving. I was going to get ramen. Hinata, you want ramen?"
"I... I suppose I have no choice," I whispered.
"Great! A date!" Naruto laughed, dragging me toward Ichiraku Ramen.
"It is not a date!" Sakura and I yelled in unison, though for very different reasons.
..................…..
Walking to Ichiraku Ramen was an ordeal.
Because our right and left hands were joined, we had to walk awkwardly side-by-side. Every time Naruto swung his arm to walk, he jerked me forward. Every time I stumbled (which was often), I dragged him back.
"Whoa, Hinata, watch the step!"
"S-Sorry, Naruto-kun!"
We looked like a three-legged race team that had forgotten the race was over.
We arrived at the ramen stand. Teuchi, the owner, looked at us. He looked at our joined hands. A massive grin spread across his face.
"Well, well! Naruto! bringing a girlfriend? And a Hyuga, no less! This is a special occasion!"
"It is not like that, old man!" Naruto protested, blushing. "We are just... temporarily attached!"
"Young love," Teuchi sighed happily. "Two miso ramens, on the house!"
We sat down on the stools. This presented a new physics problem.
Naruto sat on the right. I sat on the left. My right hand was stuck to his left hand. This meant my dominant hand was occupied.
Naruto, who was right-handed, was fine. He broke his chopsticks and started eating.
I sat there, staring at my bowl. I could not reach my chopsticks with my free left hand without leaning across my body awkwardly.
"Oh, right," Naruto realized, his mouth full of noodles. "You cannot eat."
He swallowed. He looked at me. He looked at the bowl. Then, a lightbulb seemed to go off in his simple head.
"I will feed you!"
My soul evaporated.
(Feed me? Naruto... feeding me? Like a baby bird?)
"N-N-No! That is... I couldn't possibly..."
"Come on, it is getting cold!" Naruto picked up some noodles with his chopsticks. He blew on them carefully. "Say ahhh!"
The steam from the noodles wafted into my face. Or maybe that was the steam coming from my ears.
I opened my trembling mouth.
Naruto leaned in.
[Ding!]
[Scenario Detected: "The Feeding Event." Romance Level: High. System Interference: Mandatory.]
[Activating Rito Effect Level 2: "The Overzealous Noodle."]
Just as the noodles entered my mouth, Naruto's elbow—the one attached to the hand holding mine—bumped against the counter.
The shockwave traveled up his arm.
He jerked the chopsticks.
The noodles did not go into my mouth. They slapped against my cheek.
But the real tragedy was the broth. The spoon he was holding in the same hand tilted.
Hot miso soup poured down my chin and dripped onto the connection point of our hands.
"Ah! Hot!" Naruto yelled.
He flinched. His flinch pulled my hand.
I was pulled off my stool.
"Wah!"
I fell toward him.
Since our hands were the pivot point, I swung around him like a tetherball. I crashed into his lap.
My face landed directly in his bowl of ramen.
Splash.
Silence filled the small shop.
I slowly lifted my head. I had a fish cake (naruto) stuck to my forehead. Noodles were draped over my ears like jewelry. My face was dripping with soup.
Naruto stared at me. Teuchi stared at me. Ayame, his daughter, covered her mouth to hide a giggle.
"Hinata..." Naruto whispered. "Are you... okay?"
I blinked. The fish cake slid down my nose and fell into my lap.
"I taste... salty," I whispered.
[Ding!]
[Achievement Unlocked: "Ramen Facial." You have used your face as a garnish.]
[Reward: 500 Shy Points.]
[Current Shy Points: 5,200.]
Suddenly, the shock of the hot soup and the extreme embarrassment caused a system reset in my brain. My anxiety overloaded and short-circuited into pure apathy.
My chakra flickered.
The bond broke.
My hand slipped free from Naruto's.
I immediately stood up, noodles falling from my hair. I bowed deeply to Teuchi.
"Thank you for the meal. It was delicious."
I bowed to Naruto.
"Thank you for the... date."
Then, I turned around and walked away with the stiff, robotic movements of a zombie, ignoring Naruto calling my name.
..................…..
I did not go home immediately. I went to the training grounds to wash my face in the river. I scrubbed the smell of miso from my skin.
(I cannot go on. I am a walking disaster. I should just quit being a ninja and become a scarecrow. Scarecrows do not have to hold hands or eat ramen.)
"You seem troubled."
I jumped, nearly falling into the river.
Standing on a wooden post behind me was a man with silver hair, a mask covering most of his face, and a headband covering his left eye.
Kakashi Hatake. The Copy Ninja. And the sensei of Team Seven.
"K-Kakashi-sensei," I stammered, bowing. "I... I did not see you."
"I saw you," Kakashi said, his visible eye curving into a smile. "I saw the incident at Ichiraku. And the incident with the wall. And the incident with the bandits."
My blood ran cold. "You... you saw everything?"
"I keep an eye on things," he said vaguely, pulling out his orange book (Make-Out Tactics) but not opening it. "You have an interesting chakra, Hinata. It is... volatile."
"It is cursed," I corrected him miserably. "I try to be a good ninja, but I just end up destroying dignity."