Chapter 40: The Hallway Gang and the Tomato's Tears
The hallway outside Classroom A was far from a place of punishment; for Shinra and his friends, it had become a makeshift lounge.
"Don't be so stingy, Choza! You give them to him, why not me? You're hurting a classmate's feelings!" Nawaki whined, pointing a desperate finger at Shinra, who was calmly munching on a rice cracker.
Choza clutched his precious stash of snacks protectively to his chest. "Shinra often shares his lunch with me! You, you're a known tightwad, Nawaki! I won't give you any!" he declared, his round face set in a stubborn frown.
"It's not that I'm stingy! I'm broke!" Nawaki cried, his shoulders slumping in despair. "My allowance all gets taken by my old sister! I had to secretly save for a whole year just to buy that game console!" He pointed an accusatory finger at Shinra, who was now holding the very device.
Seeing the genuine misery on Nawaki's face, Choza's resolve wavered. With a sigh, he reluctantly pulled out a bag of potato chips and held it out. "Fine. But you have to pay me back later."
"Don't worry! When I'm rich, I'll treat you to a full-course meal at the best barbeque place in Konoha!" Nawaki promised, his spirits instantly skyrocketing as he snatched the bag.
"Ha!" Shinra looked up from the game console, a smirk playing on his lips. "You, rich? Let's talk about that after we graduate and actually start getting paid for missions."
Choza's eyes widened in panic. "He's right! Give them back!" He made a grab for the chips, but Nawaki was too quick, dancing back a step and triumphantly tearing the bag open.
"It's just one bag! Look how many you have left! Don't be such a miser," Nawaki said, inhaling the salty aroma with an expression of pure bliss. "Ah, heaven..."
Shinra couldn't help but kick him lightly in the shin. "It's a bag of chips. Is that really necessary?"
Nawaki clutched his leg dramatically. "It is necessary! The last time I had snacks was six months ago!"
"Ha. You guys seem to be having a great time out here," a lazy voice drawled. Nara Shikaku, looking thoroughly bored, emerged from the classroom and slumped against the wall.
"What are you doing out here?" Nawaki asked around a mouthful of chips.
"Shikaku drew fake eyes on his eyelids again, didn't he?" Shinra said without looking away from his game. "He's been asleep since the lecture started. It was only a matter of time before Ueno-sensei noticed."
Shikaku merely grunted in confirmation, his eyes already closed. He blindly reached out, his hand unerringly finding Choza's snack pile and procuring a bag of shrimp crackers for himself.
The four of them remained there until the bell rang—Shinra playing the game, Nawaki offering unsolicited advice, Choza steadily munching, and Shikaku napping against the wall.
When Ueno Kuri finally stepped out, his face was a thundercloud. He took in the scene of utter leisure and his eye twitched violently.
"You four... you are hopeless! Rotten wood cannot be carved!" he spat out, too exasperated to muster a longer lecture. He turned on his heel and stormed away.
"Ueno-sensei seemed really mad," Choza mumbled, suddenly feeling a little guilty.
"It's fine, it's fine," Nawaki waved a dismissive hand. "Ueno-sensei is angry all the time anyway. Hey, Shinra, my game! Be careful with it!"
"Nawaki," Shinra said, finally handing the console back. "Those two Uzumaki transfer students... they're staying with your Senju clan, right?"
"How did you know that?" Nawaki asked, surprised. "Yeah, they are. But I live with my grandma, so I've only seen them in passing a few times."
"The Uzumaki and Senju are distant relatives. I do pay attention in history class sometimes," Shinra replied smoothly. He then stood up and walked back into the classroom.
The moment he entered, a loud "Hmph!" greeted him. Uzumaki Kushina sat stiffly in her (Mikoto's) seat, her back to him, radiating indignation.
Shinra glanced at her and decided the best course of action was to simply ignore her. He started walking toward his own seat.
Seeing him disregard her so completely lit a fresh fuse on Kushina's temper. An uncomfortable, prickly feeling rose in her chest. Before she could think, her hand shot out and shoved his arm.
"Hey! Are you... are you still mad?" she demanded, her voice a mix of aggression and something else. "You can't still be angry! You're the one who hit me, you know! It hurt!"
Shinra looked down at her. "I'm not angry with a little girl."
"Who are you calling a little girl?! I am not little!" Kushina retorted, jumping to her feet.
A faint, teasing smile touched Shinra's lips. "Heh. Where exactly aren't you little?" His gaze flickered down to her chest for a split second.
"AHH! You... you big pervert!" Kushina shrieked, crossing her arms over her chest and staring at him as if he were a bug.
Shinra's smile turned into a lazy, infuriating smirk. "There's nothing to see anyway. You think I'm interested? Talk to me again after you've grown up a bit."
"You... just you wait!" Kushina's cheeks puffed out, round and red with fury.
"Don't tell me," Shinra said, his voice dropping to a murmur meant only for her. "They call you a tomato for no reason."
That was the final straw. "You bastard!" With a cry of pure rage, Kushina lunged forward, grabbed his arm, and chomped down with all her might.
"Are you a dog?!" Shinra exclaimed, but his body reacted on instinct. He immediately relaxed the muscles in his arm and halted the automatic flow of chakra that would have hardened his flesh.
[Host's physical defense has neutralized incoming blunt-force trauma. Countermeasure: Iron Body (deactivated by user).]
A notification flashed in his mind, which he dismissed just as quickly. He was glad he had reacted in time; if he had been using his Iron Body technique, a defensive skill from the Marine Six Styles that made his skin hard as iron, she would have shattered every tooth in her head.
"Bleh!" Kushina finally let go, sputtering. She looked at his arm, then up at his face, her expression one of utter confusion. "Your skin looks so pale and soft! Why is it like tough leather? I couldn't even leave a mark!"
"Shinra, what's going on with you two?" Nawaki asked, walking over and pointing at Shinra's arm, which was still in Kushina's grip.
Then, a look of exaggerated understanding dawned on his face. "Wow. You. Mikoto is absent for one day, and you're already getting cozy with another girl? You're the worst, Shinra! A total scum!" he declared loudly, his voice carrying across the suddenly silent classroom.
Every pair of eyes in the room snapped toward Shinra and Kushina. The boys wore looks of mixed contempt and hidden envy. The girls glared at Kushina with undisguised jealousy.
Shinra simply shrugged. There was no point explaining. No one would believe the truth, and honestly, he didn't care to. Besides, he found he didn't actually mind Kushina's fiery antics that much. Anyone else who tried to bite him would be nursing a broken jaw right now.
"All of you! Stop talking nonsense!" Kushina yelled, her face flushing a deep, brilliant scarlet.
"Look at her, all red! With that hair, she looks more like a tomato than ever! She's nowhere near as gentle and pretty as Mikoto. I can't believe Shinra has a taste for tomatoes. How weird," a voice muttered from the back of the room.
The comment hit its mark. Kushina's fierce expression crumbled. Her bottom lip trembled, and her eyes welled up with tears, which she desperately tried to hold back.
"Enough."
Shinra's voice was quiet, but it cut through the chatter like a knife. It wasn't loud, but it was flat, cold, and carried a finality that silenced the room instantly. Even Nawaki, sensing the shift in atmosphere, quickly sat down and shut his mouth.
Shinra turned back to Kushina, who was trying and failing to look defiant through her unshed tears.
"You know," he said, his voice softening considerably. "Red hair isn't ugly at all. And your face, with that baby fat... it's actually quite cute. In this entire ninja school, besides Mikoto, there isn't a single girl who is prettier or cuter than you."
Kushina sniffled, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand. "R-really?" she asked, her voice small and uncharacteristically vulnerable.
"Of course it's true," Shinra said, his tone matter-of-fact. "If you don't believe me, look around. Even Uzumaki Tomoko, who came with you, isn't as pretty and cute as you are."
A tiny, hopeful smile touched Kushina's lips. She nodded slowly, absorbing his words. Then, she straightened her shoulders, her fiery spirit rekindling.
"Yeah!" she said, her voice gaining strength. She looked him dead in the eye, her expression turning serious. "Thank you for comforting me. To repay you, I promise... I will only beat you up a little after school today."
Shinra could only stare, completely dumbfounded. So, he thought, even after all that, her main plan for the afternoon was still to ambush and pummel me. He wasn't sure if he should be annoyed or impressed by her sheer, unshakeable determination.