9 A Sudden Throb
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“But Haruna, your future will be tough. Let me handle the trouble for now.”
He said this without looking at her.
Uzumaki’s gaze was restrained, fixed on the ground before him to avoid causing her any discomfort.
His tone was serious yet carried a subtle hesitation, uncertain of her feelings.
“I will do my best to make my heart move for you, so that this mission can end quickly—does that sound okay?”
To be honest, Haruna didn’t quite know how to respond to such a question.
Meanwhile, the Third Hokage and Jiraiya sat silently as if deaf, one staring at the ceiling, the other gazing intently out the window.
So she let out a long breath, followed her heart, and nodded earnestly, “Thank you, I will try my best too.”
After speaking, she realized her mood was rather pleasant.
The Third Hokage secretly smiled, feeling even the village’s troubles seemed a little less heavy.
A harmonious home brings prosperity.
For the younger generation, living well was more important than anything.
Beside them, Jiraiya suddenly had an epiphany and slapped his thigh.
“So that’s it! I finally understand!”
The reason Naruto was called the prophesied child of world peace was because he was with Haruna.
Because their hearts were full of affection, the celestial broadcast could continue to trigger, allowing them to receive endless information from the future, furthering world peace!
In that case, there should be two prophesied children—Haruna too.
Or rather, judging by their contributions to the heart-value, whoever loved more was the true prophesied child.
But no matter who it was, Jiraiya was delighted.
Because this path had no bloodshed, no hatred—only pure love.
Indeed, this was a different way to save the world compared to Minato and Nagato.
The more Jiraiya thought about it, the more convinced he became, his inspiration surging along with his growing confidence in a bright future.
In his excitement, he promised the Third Hokage, “Leave it to me. I’ll be Naruto’s guidance counselor.”
“Planning beautiful dates is my specialty as the Hermit Jiraiya.”
“You?” The Third Hokage looked doubtful.
He would only believe it when Jiraiya could win over Tsunade.
“I’ve written so many romance novels; no one understands love better than I do.”
Mentioning the Love Paradise, the Third Hokage immediately frowned, “Don’t corrupt the youngsters!”
Jiraiya declared, “I’m turning over a new leaf today—I’ll only write sweet pure love stories from now on.”
“Sweet… pure love?”
The Third Hokage struggled to keep up with the trendy terms.
Jiraiya said solemnly, “Naruto and Haruna will be the protagonists of my final series.”
“That actually aligns with the prophecy of the Great Toad Sage.”
“So the title shall be Love—or no, ‘Date A Mission’! How’s that? Catchy, right?”
Jiraiya stroked his chin, muttering to himself.
“Feels like it’ll become a classic.”
The Third Hokage: ???
That name sounded rather offbeat!
*
But no need for the great literary master’s schemes, because just as he was planning the first date mission, a member of the Anbu came rushing in excitedly.
“Celestial anomaly: just now, the heart-value count reached 10!”
This was crucial intelligence, and very favorable to them!
The Third Hokage suppressed his joy and seized the critical point—
“When exactly?”
“Five minutes ago,” the Anbu confirmed confidently.
Haruna thought, ten points was quite a good score.
Calculating the time, it must have been when she took the initiative to speak and expressed willingness to change her fate.
But at that moment, she wasn’t thinking of Uzumaki Naruto, nor could she have feelings for him.
Could the change have come from Uzumaki?
Had he just developed feelings for her?
The girl thought uncertainly.
No, if Uzumaki liked her, he would have shown it long ago.
Love wasn’t something so rash, nor was liking a faucet you could turn on and off at will.
Besides, hadn’t the celestial broadcast made her marriage outcome clear enough?
Precognition was meant to avoid risks, not to force her to confront difficulties.
Haruna immediately sobered up and quickly grasped another key point.
Perhaps the heart-value demanded by the celestial broadcast wasn’t just the narrow, worldly meaning of love.
Any feelings that positively fostered their relationship could count.
In that case, the celestial broadcast was actually quite lenient with her, not simply toying or tormenting her.
Its sole motive seemed clear.
That was to push her to face her destiny and change it.
She would do it.
…
Chunin Exam Venue.
This number was public; everyone who hadn’t left the scene could see it.
Seeing the suddenly rising data, except for the imprisoned Sound and Sand ninjas, others’ faces showed varying degrees of astonished gossip.
Heart-value.
Did it need any further explanation? It definitely meant dating and romance had begun!
Wow, wow, wow!
“Are things really progressing this fast for those two? What did they do?!”
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“Their compatibility is so high, no wonder they’re the future couple.”
“But with the future foreseen, the Third Hokage involved, hopefully their marriage won’t be unhappy this time?”
The Leaf ninjas gossiped, and even many chunin and jonin couldn’t help but join in.
This wasn’t really dereliction of duty.
The celestial broadcast concerned Konoha’s safety; their attention to Haruna and Naruto’s progress was also to protect the village.
The celestial duo had gotten off to a good start, momentum was good, and the atmosphere was relaxed.
Shikamaru’s face was expressionless.
As a Konoha ninja, he should be looking forward to the celestial broadcast’s smooth reappearance.
He should appreciate their efforts and be glad the troublesome mission didn’t involve him.
But… it was really a headache.
Shikamaru irritably withdrew his gaze from the celestial broadcast, accidentally noticing two boys nearby.
Hinata Neji frowned tightly, seemingly upset by something Rock Lee said, while Tenten tried to mediate between them.
As for Uchiha Sasuke—
Everyone only saw the black-haired boy’s cold back.
Neither Haruno Sakura nor Hatake Kakashi could call him back.
*
Hokage Tower.
“All right, you all can go home and rest. Keep in touch, just don’t leave the village. If there are problems, contact me, Kakashi, or come straight to the Hokage Tower.”
“The lecherous hermit is so naggy!”
“You brat—don’t want to learn the Rasengan, huh?”
“I do! I do!”
Haruna said, “Lord Jiraiya, if there’s nothing else, I’ll take my leave.”
“No problem, but it’s getting late now.”
Jiraiya’s eyes darted toward Naruto.
Naruto was distracted, watching the tired but faintly smiling Haruna, replying to Jiraiya absentmindedly, missing the hint entirely.
Jiraiya: Traitor!
He decided to be more explicit.
“It’s not very safe for a girl to walk home alone at night.”
Haruna instinctively wanted to say she was not just a girl but a ninja, but Naruto blurted out.
“In that case, I’ll walk you home, Koharu. It’s on my way.”
Haruna was puzzled: “You’re east, I’m west—how is that on your way?”
Jiraiya: —You!
Jiraiya was uncomfortable with their banter, and figured Naruto’s emotional intelligence probably couldn’t handle such awkwardness.
But Naruto didn’t need any prompting.
“If I want to protect you, even if you live in the Sand Village, I’ll still be on the way.”
The blond boy’s words were straightforward and resolute, with his own unique logic.
“So, our homes are on the way.”
Jiraiya raised his eyebrows in amusement and exasperation, knowing he no longer needed to speak.
Being a simple fool was fine.
Because sincerity was always the ultimate secret weapon.
…
Haruna and Uzumaki walked side by side, their shadows stretched long by the streetlights.
The moon was bright and clear.
The air was slightly sultry; a night breeze rustled the camphor leaves, accompanied by the crisp chirping of cicadas.
Occasionally, the sound of their shoes scraping the ground intertwined, chaotic yet harmoniously.
After a day of turmoil, Konoha seemed unusually peaceful tonight.
Walking home, Haruna’s mood slowly relaxed.
To be honest, she was really tired today.
She hadn’t rested all day; even just sitting on the sofa earlier, she was tense.
But overall, there was more good news than bad.
She had gained the courage to change her fate, the first broadcast went smoothly, and preparations for the second broadcast had a good start.
If she had to point out a problem…
“Will the celestial broadcast always ask of us so gently?”
“If Haruna doesn’t want to, I can never marry.”
Two voices spoke simultaneously.
They spoke in unison.
Haruna was slightly startled but saw the boy’s serious expression.
“Let me speak first! I only said that because everyone was around during the day.”
“I really mean it—if Haruna doesn’t want to be with me, if that future scares her, then I’ll never marry.”
Uzumaki was speaking honestly.
Mainly, he didn’t seem like the type to lie well.
Haruna spoke candidly, “Not being together doesn’t mean I’m taking away your right to marry. No need to swear like that.”
“Because marrying someone else would feel like a betrayal, right?”
Uzumaki scratched his head and shrugged, “Since I already know the future is with you, how can I rightfully like someone else?”
She reminded him, “In the future, we’re going to get divorced.”
Naruto stubbornly childlike, “That’s still the same.”
How was it the same?
Haruna thought his answer was silly and vague.
But if he won’t marry, fine; she had no plans to marry either.
More than romance, Haruna was focused on improving her own life.
They chatted as they walked slowly, finally arriving at Haruna’s doorstep.
It was a small, modest welfare housing unit, the door worn at the edges, similar to Naruto’s home.
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“I’ll see you off here.”
“Okay.”
The blond boy stopped.
Haruna climbed the chipped concrete steps and suddenly turned back.
She looked at this orphan boy in ill-fitting, unfashionable clothes.
“What’s wrong?”
The blond boy looked up, gazing at her on the stairs, his eyes reflecting the faint streetlight—a star.
Haruna lowered her eyes to him.
“I used to think you were a mischievous jerk.”
“No one else bullied me, only you.”
Hearing this, the smile on the boy’s face vanished instantly, the star in his eyes seeming to flicker out.
He looked pitiful, like a dog doused with water.
Naruto had always wanted to bring this up but subconsciously avoided it.
But even he knew that to continue getting along with Haruna, he had to face this part of their past.
“I’m really sorry. Actually, I’ve always wanted to apologize, but…”
“But what?”
“You always gave me cold looks. Seeing you unhappy, I didn’t dare to speak.”
“If you were so afraid of me, then why did you bully me, deliberately mocking my appearance?”
That was Haruna’s real purpose in bringing up the topic.
She had analyzed her next plan of action and felt the prank incident was an issue they couldn’t ignore.
If she couldn’t let go of the past incident, they’d never reach 100 points of heart-value.
And the sooner it was resolved, the better.
So even if Uzumaki came up with a flimsy excuse to brush her off, it would be fine.
But upon hearing this, Uzumaki immediately panicked.
“I never meant to mock you! I always thought Haruna was cute!”
Such a falsehood would be dismissive.
Yet she continued earnestly to push the story, “Then why did you touch my bangs back then?”
“Because—”
The boy suddenly faltered, and even in the dim streetlight, it was clear his face flushed bright red.
“Because what?”
“Because—”
Uzumaki took a deep breath, then summoned his courage and declared resolutely.
“Because I really wanted to see Haruna’s eyes!”
Naruto had always thought Haruna’s eyes were beautiful and clear.
Especially when she smiled, they were like the first melt of spring snow, tickling the heart.
But she never smiled at him.
“So… can you forgive the old me, Haruna?”
“I really won’t bully you anymore—no, that’s not right!”
“I really never wanted to make you unhappy.”
At that moment, Haruna looked into the boy’s eyes.
Initially, she had only been preparing for the second broadcast, simply wanting a reason to feel better inside.
But she got an answer far beyond expectation.
And Uzumaki’s expression, the shy urgency hidden at the corners of his eyes and brows, all spoke of his sincerity.
He truly was terrible at lying.
So shy and awkward, yet so straightforward and passionate in his gaze.
She saw the star reflected in his pupils.
It seemed to be her.
“…Okay.”
She said on impulse.
Great, Haruna wasn’t mad anymore!
Naruto’s heart pounded fast.
Without the lecherous hermit nearby, without Kakashi-sensei, and without Sakura or Sasuke cheering him on…
But inexplicably fired up, the boy overcame his shyness and voiced the thought deep in his heart—
“Then, can I call you Koharu?”
“We’re partners on this mission, calling each other by surname feels too formal.”
He gave a somewhat unnecessary explanation—perhaps to convince someone, or just the air.
She nodded.
“All right, Naruto.”
“!!!”
Naruto blushed so fiercely one might think he’d faint.
But he was truly happy.
That was Haruna!
No, now she was Koharu!
If he did something good for her in the future, maybe Koharu wouldn’t be so cold as before, but would be a little happier?
Would she, like now, show him a faint smile?
On a sultry, windless summer night in Konoha, the residents’ windows in the alleys were open, only the cicadas chirped urgently.
Right.
Naruto looked up at the brown-haired girl on the stairs.
Behind her, the full moon hung in the night sky.
The alley was dim, but she seemed to be glowing.
She was smiling.
This scene, Uzumaki Naruto felt, he would never forget in his life.
[Destiny Deviation Value: 15]
A slight deviation toward the future fate appeared once again at this moment.
Simultaneously, it reflected into another timeline.