𝑾𝑰𝑻𝑯 𝒀𝑶𝑼 | 𝑲.𝑰𝑵𝒁𝑼𝑲𝑨

|I{•------» [45] «------•}I|

"What did you say?!" Naruto snapped, his anger flaring up.

The boy turned around to face them, a mocking grin on his face. "I guess you don't get much action in the Leaf Village, judging by how out of shape you look."

"That's it!" Naruto slammed his hand on the table and stood up, ready to confront the boy. Ruka let out a sigh and intervened, trying to calm her friend down. "Naruto, calm down."

The boy's brown eyes shifted towards Ruka, and he leaned on the table, bringing himself to eye level with her. "Hello there," he greeted, resting his elbow on the table and propping his cheek on his palm. "I'm Idate Morino. So... uh... what do they call you?" He stared at Ruka intently.

"Morino?" Ruka narrowed her eyes at him, but he just smiled cheekily in response. "Could be your last name in the future."

Naruto's frustration boiled over, and he shouted, "Are you gonna punch him in the face, Ruka? Or do you want me to?!"

"Ruka, huh? The princess of Konoha," Idate said, looking at her with awe. "I'm starting to think that fate has brought us together. Isn't it time we talk about our future?" He smirked.

Ruka looked at him with an amused expression. "Hm? What future?"

"You know, the part where you give up being a shinobi, run away with me, and have a normal life," Idate suggested, his grin widening.

"Hey! Quit hitting on her!" Naruto interjected, his anger flaring up. Idate glared at Naruto in annoyance. "You know, you're annoying," he retorted, standing up straight and turning to face Naruto. "There's one thing I can't stand the most: a shinobi. You better go back where you came from, or there'll be trouble. I'm warning you."

"Yeah? Bring it on, tough guy!" Naruto snapped, getting into a glaring contest with Idate.

"Naruto, stop it," Ruka commanded, standing up and stepping between the two of them. Idate grinned, amused by the situation. "Listen to the beautiful kid."

"You'll be much happier with me," Idate whispered, leaning in closer to Ruka. She looked at him with a deadpan expression. "You cannot fool me, you know."

"And you know what?" Idate's face was mere inches away from Ruka's, his eyes locked onto her blue ones. "That's what makes me like you even more."

Ruka felt her cheeks heat up at the proximity, and she instinctively moved her head slightly backward. "Um..." she muttered, feeling a mixture of surprise and embarrassment.

"Back off, you punk," Sasuke finally spoke up from his seat, his arms casually crossed over his chest and his expression still calm.

"What if I don't?" Idate teased, leaning even closer to Ruka. Before he could make any further advances, Ruka swiftly grabbed his cheeks and pushed his head down onto the table, catching him off guard. "What the!"

Raising her gaze, Ruka narrowed her eyes at him dangerously. "One thing you should know, I value my personal space."

Naruto, fueled by his anger, grabbed Idate's collar, ready to engage in a fight. But Sasuke intervened, calmly telling Naruto, "Just ignore the punk. We don't have the time."

"Get out of here, Sasuke!" Naruto snapped. "After what this guy said, don't you have any ninja pride? You can ignore it if

you want! I'm going to flatten him!" He shouted, but his words were cut short when they realized Idate had vanished in the blink of an eye. They had all taken their eyes off him for just a moment.

"Huh?"

"He disappeared."

"How did I miss that?" Ruka looked around in disbelief.

"Ah! I hate that!" Naruto yelled, frustrated, as he jumped back onto his seat. "He gets in his little digs and then runs away!"

"Language," Ruka scolded Naruto gently, as the lady arrived with their food and placed two bills on the table. Ruka furrowed her brow in annoyance, while Naruto pulled at his hair in frustration. Taking a deep breath, Ruka muttered, "It's on me, I guess."