Knock, knock, knock.
The bathroom door echoed with the sound of knocks.
Hearing this, Tayuya felt a bit exasperated, "Didn't you just come in without knocking earlier?"
"Did I? I don't remember." Naruto's voice came from the other side of the door, "Anyway, it's rude not to knock. Can I come in now?"
"Whatever." Tayuya replied irritably, burying her head in the bathtub. She really didn't know what to do, so she decided to just let things go.
Her life had always been dark and twisted, so it didn't matter how things turned out.
Earning money seemed meaningless now. She felt a bit dejected, an emotion she had never experienced before, and had no idea how to handle it. She didn't particularly dislike it, nor did she like it, but instinctively, she wanted to escape.
The door was pushed open.
Naruto took the hair towel, placed it on the shelf, and turned to leave. But noticing Tayuya's unusual silence, he paused to ask, "What's wrong with you?"
"I'll give you the money back." Tayuya said while curled up in the bathtub.
"Why are you saying that all of a sudden?" Naruto realized that picking her up earlier might have caused some issues, but he didn't regret it much. He just wanted to take care of Tayuya.
She didn't understand much, and there was something wrong with Orochimaru's education, leaving her as expendable cannon fodder. This gave Naruto an opportunity to deceive her into staying.
"I don't want to stay here anymore. I'll give back the money I owe you." Tayuya said in a muffled voice.
"That won't work."
"Why?" Tayuya turned her head, not caring about her embarrassment, causing the water to splash around her. "I'll pay you back, then I won't owe you anything. All the debts will be cleared."
"This isn't just about money. It's not that simple."
"Isn't it all about money? I was just trying to get some cash from you, maybe scam some food." She said.
"I know all that, and I don't mind." Naruto's eyes were calm, looking unfazed. He had anticipated this day long ago, even considering the possibility of Tayuya disappearing without a trace one day.
He thought he might have to spend time searching for her, but fortunately, that troublesome situation hadn't happened, saving him a lot of hassle.
The reason why Naruto was so determined to keep Tayuya around was simply to have a backup plan. He was no longer a Jinchuriki of the Kyubi, but he already possessed the strength equivalent to having one and a half Yang Kyubi on his own. Including the dog he kept around like a pet, who knows how people in the village would react if all these things came to light someday.
Moreover, Konoha's leadership wasn't solely in Tsunade's hands. Shikamaru's personality differed greatly from his father, and he seemed to have no interest in politics.
Among the Konoha 12, with Naruto's current connections and power, becoming Hokage would be easy. Tsunade had subtly hinted that if Naruto wished, the Hokage's position would be his eventually.
He was backed by Tsunade, the Godaime Hokage, and Jiraiya and Kakashi, who are Hokage candidates. Moreover, the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi Clans were friendly with him.
The same is true for the established Hyuga Clan, Inuzuka Clan, and Aburame Clan. As long as Naruto didn't do anything reckless, he could remain in the pool of Hokage's candidates and eventually walk the path to becoming the strongest Hokage.
But nothing is certain, and Naruto had never actually desired to be Hokage.
His presence in Konoha wasn't driven by any sense of belonging but rather because his strength wasn't overwhelmingly high, so he didn't want to stir things up for now.
However, his refusal to become Hokage meant he couldn't stay in Konoha indefinitely. If Kakashi succeeded Tsunade as the Rokudaime Hokage, that would be fine, but who would take over after Kakashi's term ended?
Inevitably, suspicion would arise, so Naruto knew he had to plan for his departure early.
After leaving, he might even consider rebuilding the Land of Whirlpools. The twenty-seven masks had given him new direction.
But he didn't want to wander alone, so he would most likely take Tayuya with him. The future was uncertain, but Tayuya was the backup plan Naruto had kept in mind. If the worst came to pass, he could always turn to Tayuya.
That's why, from the beginning, Naruto had never intended to restrict her freedom. She could go wherever she wanted.
Whatever she wished to do was fine, and he had no objections to her taking bounty missions. But avoiding him? That wasn't acceptable.
The so-called soul debt was just a mark, a reminder for Tayuya to always think of him. Repeatedly, over and over, the debt was imaginary, yet it would continue to build as their feelings deepened.
"What do you mean by 'you don't care'?" Tayuya felt a bit wronged. If it weren't for him, she wouldn't have ended up so obsessed with money.
Originally, she didn't care about money and never really spent much. But he had said something about her selling her soul to him, so now she found herself caring about money. But now, this bastard actually said he didn't care!
"You don't need to repay me. I can give you plenty of money, as long as you need it." Naruto said bluntly.
"Then, what are you after?"
"What am I after? Do you need a reason to give someone money? Do you? I give it because I want to."
"You like me?" Tayuya asked.
Naruto had to admire her line of thinking, but in a certain sense, he was after something. So, she wasn't entirely wrong.
"Yes." He nodded.
Tayuya was taken aback for a moment. She curled up in the bathtub, not blushing, nor showing any joy or disgust. She simply stared blankly ahead, lost in thought as her gazed fixated on a plain ceramic tile.
Naruto subconsciously sensed that something was off but kept his composure. He looked at Tayuya, who was curled up like a kitten who had just left the house for the first time, with a nervous look on her face.
He wasn't sure what Tayuya was nervous about, but he knew he needed to say something to soothe her emotions.
"I am willing to give you money, and it's not entirely without reason. Do you remember when we were in Konoha? We ate a lot of things together."
"Back then, I didn't have many friends, so we should be considered familiar with each other, even though you deceived me back then. Well, I had already guessed your identity back then, and I didn't care."
Naruto blinked, struggling to express this part.
"We have an emotional foundation. Eating and playing together makes it easy to develop good feelings. So I'm willing to give you money, mainly because I don't lack it."
"You gave me money because you like me?" Tayuya asked in a muffled voice, "So all those times you were kind to me in Konoha, that was because you liked me?"
"Yeah." Naruto nodded.
"But there's nothing about me that's worth liking. I don't even know what liking is." Tayuya said, feeling lost, "Is liking someone just about giving them money?"
"It's not entirely like that. Giving money is just one way to show affection." Naruto wasn't sure why the conversation had circled back to money, but at this point, he could only try his best to explain.
"There are many things about you that are worth liking, like…"
"Like?" At this time, Tayuya had lifted her head to look at him.