Kaito and Naruto were walking towards Ichiraku Ramen, discussing ninjutsu and other things.
They quickly arrived at Ichiraku, and just as Kaito was about to sit down, he noticed someone peeking behind a pole. Upon closer observation, he realized it was a girl spying on Naruto. As their eyes met, she quickly hid.
'She's so cute, it's a shame Naruto ignores her throughout most of the anime. I promise to help you, Hinata.' Kaito silently vowed in his heart. He was determined to help Hinata start dating Naruto sooner than what happened in the anime.
With that in mind, Kaito looked around and wondered if there was a chance to get Hinata to come and sit with Naruto. It was then that he noticed Ino Yamanaka approaching, and he smiled.
"Hey, Ino, over here!" Kaito called out to Ino, waving at her.
Ino, surprised at the greeting, quickly smiled and walked over to where Kaito was sitting, while Naruto looked on, as if beginning to understand something.
"Hey, Kaito. You're here again, huh?" Ino said as she sat down next to Kaito, while Naruto observed the two, sensing a peculiar atmosphere.
"Yeah, this place serves the best ramen, so of course, I'll come here. By the way, your team seemed to be in a hurry yesterday," Kaito replied with a smile.
"Yes, we encountered a Chunin team outside the village. The opponents were strong, and we had to rely on our sensei's intervention. They seemed like a bunch of lunatics, taking hits just to land a blow on one of us," Ino explained, shuddering at the memory of the previous day's events.
Kaito immediately thought of the two teams that he and his team had defeated. He was genuinely curious about what they wanted because this had not happened in the anime's storyline before.
"I encountered two of those teams myself. They were truly insane. One of the guys kept smiling like a lunatic every time he got hurt," Kaito recounted, surprising Ino, who didn't expect him to have met those people too.
Naruto, who was listening to their conversation, became curious about the similar mission that Kaito and Ino had carried out. Kaito then detailed the events, recounting how he had been wounded.
Ino was shocked, imagining Kaito being injured in the abdomen. She raised his shirt and carefully examined him from top to bottom to check for any injuries, blushing when she realized what she had done.
'I reacted on impulse and accidentally lifted Kaito's shirt. He's so handsome, look at those muscles, that smooth skin. Oh no, he's going to think I'm a pervert.' Ino thought, her mind a jumble as she struggled to react to her actions while Kaito was left uncertain of how to respond to Ino's actions, which were unexpected and outside of his thoughts.
Ino slowly let his shirt fall back into place, her face completely red from embarrassment, and they fell into an awkward silence.
Both were speechless while Naruto looked at them with amusement, enjoying the situation.
"Ino, I need you to do something for me," Kaito finally spoke after a minute of silence, and Ino's heart began to race. She imagined a scenario where Kaito would ask her to kiss him, and her face flushed even more.
"S-sure, what do you need me to do?" Ino asked, stuttering at first.
Leaning closer to Ino's ear, Kaito whispered something, making Ino blush further, feeling a little disappointed but ultimately agreeing. She glanced at Naruto, then at a spot across the street and smiled.
After that, Ino stood up and walked away.
At that moment, Kaito turned and placed an order at Ichiraku Ramen.
"Give me four bowls of ramen, please," Kaito said to the chef, Ichiraku.
"Four bowls coming right up," Ichiraku responded, immediately getting to work on the ramen.
Naruto was puzzled as to why Kaito ordered four bowls of ramen but didn't dwell on it. It would simply mean more food for himself.
At that moment, Ino Yamanaka had rounded the corner of the street and was making her way back to Ichiraku through another path. Soon, she arrived and was directly behind Hinata, who was hiding behind a post, observing Naruto.
"Hi Hinata, what are you doing there?" When Ino said this, Hinata was startled and quickly looked back, realizing it was Ino. She felt relieved but returned to her shy self, fidgeting with her fingers.
"I-I was just looking," Hinata said timidly.
"Hahaha, Hinata, I know you have your eye on Naruto. You don't need to deceive me," Ino said directly to Hinata, who, upon hearing this, blushed furiously and was about to run away.
"Relax, Hinata, I just came here to tell you that I'll help you with Naruto, but you need to approach him. If you continue like this, you won't be able to get his attention," Ino said, trying to reassure Hinata.
However, she still had a red face, but hadn't escaped yet.
"Let's go, I'll sit with you, and you can try talking to him."
"O-Okay," Hinata nodded after hearing what Ino had said.
Soon, the two started walking towards Ichiraku.
They didn't take long to arrive.
Kaito and Naruto noticed their arrival.
"Hinata, I didn't expect you here," Naruto said genuinely, making Hinata blush and want to run away, but Ino was still holding her.
"Hi Naruto-kun, I came here because Ino called me to eat something," Hinata stuttered and spoke quietly.
Upon hearing this, Kaito sighed, and Ino was shocked by how shy Hinata could be in front of Naruto.
"Hi Ino, hi Hinata," Kaito said as they sat down next to him and Naruto. Kaito had intentionally left two empty seats between him and Naruto, leaving Hinata next to Naruto.
At that moment, four bowls of ramen appeared, surprising Hinata as they had exactly four servings. She was beginning to doubt whether this was intentional or not.
"Hehehe, Kaito, we'll have to order more food," Naruto smiled, speaking to Kaito.
"No problem, make more dishes, please, chief. It's on me today," Kaito smiled and ordered more food.
Naruto smiled at this, while Hinata became even redder, and as she saw Naruto's smile, she began fidgeting with her fingers.
"Naruto-kun's smile is so beautiful," Hinata murmured softly.
"Did you say something, Hinata?" Naruto asked, as he heard her whisper but didn't understand the content.
"N-Nothing, Naruto-kun," she replied, lowering her head.
Ino and Kaito, who were next to her, were almost facepalming at this. How were they going to progress like this? She was so shy, and Naruto was either dense or clueless.
They all started eating ramen while conversing among themselves, with Naruto and Hinata's interactions always ending with her speaking quietly and Naruto not understanding.
Until Naruto's chopsticks fell on the floor, and as he went to pick them up, Hinata also reached out, causing Naruto's hand to touch hers.
"Thanks, Hinata," Naruto smiled, taking the chopsticks from Hinata's hand.
'Darn it,' Kaito thought, watching the scene.
Hinata's face quickly turned red, and smoke seemed to come out of her head, and she fainted on the spot.
"Hinata, Hinata, wake up, is something wrong? Hey, Kaito, help here," Naruto became worried immediately, shaking Hinata, but no matter how hard he tried, she didn't respond.
Kaito began to smile as he placed his hand on his face. The mission to bring Naruto and Hinata together was going to be much more challenging.
Kaito approached Naruto and asked him to let go of her. The problem was the touch of Naruto on Hinata. The more he touched her, the worse it could get.
Kaito then formed a water bubble with his chakra and gently wet Hinata's face. He swore he could see steam rising when the water touched her face.
At that moment, Hinata slowly woke up, and as she did, she remembered Naruto's touch, turning red again, but there was no sign that she would faint again.
Kaito sighed and returned to his place as Naruto asked if she was okay and what had happened.
They resumed eating while Ino was talking to Kaito and Hinata, and Naruto was devouring the food while Hinata watched shyly.
Soon the first plates on the table were finished, and more arrived. Kaito and Naruto wasted no time attacking the dishes, while Ino and Hinata ate slowly.
The afternoon passed quickly as they talked among themselves. It was the longest time Hinata had managed to stay close to Naruto, and her signs of shyness seemed to be decreasing slightly. At least there was no more fainting. Ino was conversing cheerfully with Kaito, a harmonious atmosphere.
"I think it will be very difficult, but it seems to be working. But Naruto is very clueless. I'll talk to him about it later," Kaito said quietly to Ino.
Ino agreed upon hearing this and looked at Hinata and Naruto. They seemed like a really decent couple, and since it was Kaito's request, she would make sure Naruto and Hinata got together.
At that moment, Ino looked at Kaito again and got up.
"Kaito, I'm sorry, but I have to go home. I need to study, and my parents have strict schedules. We'll meet again later. If you want to come to my place to talk, you're always welcome."
"Sure, Ino, see you later. Let's have ramen here again sometime," Kaito smiled.
Hinata was startled as she didn't imagine being alone with Naruto.
"I-I have to go too. See you later, Naruto-kun."
"See you, Hinata," Naruto replied as he finished the rest of the ramen.
Hinata blushed and nodded.
Ino and Hinata began to leave slowly, sometimes Hinata looked back just to see Naruto, and soon they disappeared from Naruto's sight.
"Hey, Naruto, don't you think about any other girl?" Kaito asked Naruto, who was eating ramen.
Naruto was startled by the question but soon thought of Sakura.
"Yes, I think a lot about Sakura, but she's always after that idiot Sasuke," Naruto thought angrily.
"No, Naruto, I'm talking about another girl, one who doesn't hit you or ignore you," Kaito said again.
Naruto didn't understand because he only thought about Sakura.
"Ah, Naruto, sometimes you're clueless. Did you not see how Hinata was looking at you?" Kaito looked at Naruto, trying to make him notice Hinata.
"Huh, Hinata is kind of weird. She faints or keeps her head down," Naruto said.
"That's because she likes you, Naruto. She only gets shy when it's about
you, and unlike Sakura, she doesn't hit you. She simply likes you," Kaito said directly, not wanting to beat around the bush as he knew Naruto wouldn't understand otherwise.
Naruto was surprised by what Kaito said because he didn't expect that. He thought Hinata was just like that.
"Really?" Naruto asked incredulously.
"Yes, Naruto, it's true. You should rethink your feelings, Naruto. Maybe you don't really like Sakura, and it's all because of your rivalry with Sasuke," Kaito said.
Naruto looked at Kaito as his brain tried to process what Kaito had said.
"But relax, Naruto. You'll realize it slowly," Kaito said, consoling Naruto, and returned to eating. Naruto thought for a while and also returned to eating his ramen.