"I just feel a bit uneasy. Let's stop here for now." Naruto stood up swaying and said, "There's something I need to check. We'll drink again next time."
"Want us to come with you?" Choji was still a bit dazed and wanted to stand up, though he was already quite drunk.
"No need, I'll just take a walk!" Naruto waved his hand and left without looking back.
At the table, Shikamaru was still sleeping soundly. Choji and Kiba looked at each other awkwardly. At this time, they remembered that they had never been alone together.
Choji lowered his head and took a sip of his drink, thinking about how to talk to Kiba without being awkward. Kiba, on the other side, thought the same thing, so he raised his glass.
The awkwardness silently dissipated as the two clinked their glasses and continued drinking.
"So, you're getting married?" Choji asked dryly.
"Not really. Besides, Naruto isn't in any hurry, so why should I be?" Kiba said a little embarrassedly.
"That guy…" Shikamaru was suddenly speechless, thinking to himself, ‘If you had even a fraction of Naruto's skills, your kid would be old enough to run errands by now.’
"Take my advice and don't compare yourself to that jerk Naruto."
…
At the Yamanaka Flower Shop, the lights in Ino's room were still on.
After the incident in the Land of Fire's capital, no noble dared to obstruct the Intelligence Department’s communication plans anymore.
After more than half a year of effort, communication towers had been built in half of the Land of Fire's major towns.
Communication within Konoha had become quite convenient, and most Shinobi and nobles had started using communication devices, which were renamed ‘phones’ at Naruto's insistence.
Just like the range hood and television, the phone fit its purpose perfectly. It was palm-sized, and aside from making calls, it had a few extra features, like displaying the time and date. That was about it.
For now, the technology behind the communication devices wasn't fully mature. Without external technological support, Ino had managed to take the concept from paper to reality all on her own, which was already impressive.
You can't become fat in one bite, and technological progress doesn't happen in a single leap.
After all, the Land of Fire was too conservative. If only they could get help from the Land of Lightning or other technologically advanced nations… but that was just a pipe dream.
After all, why would they leak their technology to the Land of Fire?
Sometimes, when Ino felt overwhelmed, she could only fantasize about secret technology falling from the sky, like stumbling upon a legendary manual.
Buzz buzz buzz.
Her phone rang. Ino picked up the simple communicator and opened it. The voice of her mother, Yamanaka Rino, came out clearly.
"Ino? Your father and I have some things to take care of, so we won't be coming home tonight."
"Okay, got it, got it."
Under the desk lamp, Ino tilted her head to hold the phone while scribbling on a piece of paper.
"I'll lock up later, yeah, yeah, be safe."
"Ugh, I know, I know. I'm not a kid anymore. I've locked the door countless times. Don't worry, I could do it with my eyes closed."
"Mom! What are you saying? I would never…"
Even though no one else was on the second floor besides her, she still covered the microphone tightly and spoke in a low voice with a red face.
"I would never bring someone... to do that kind of thing at home. Absolutely not!"
"Huh? Last time?"
In an instant, Ino's face turned even redder, and she stammered, "Does Dad know? How much does he know?"
"Uh…"
"It wasn't like that back then..."
Rino hung up the phone amid gentle teasing, and mischievously guessed that her beloved daughter would probably toss and turn all night.
"Ah, youth. It's so wonderful." The corners of her mouth slightly raised, and the faint crow's feet at the corners of her eyes softened.
…
Late at night, Ino was still sitting by the window, revising the communication device construction plans. Whenever she encountered difficulties, she would stop, furrow her brows, and chew on her pen, looking utterly adorable.
Her mother's goodnight call had indeed flustered her, but she quickly regained her composure. She turned her attention back to the documents, diving into deep thought once more.
"Here…"
She stared at a section of the document, the room so quiet that only the sound of her pen spinning could be heard. The sound continued rhythmically.
Suddenly, the pen in Ino's hand stopped for no reason, and her pupils dilated slightly as if she discovered something. Just as she was about to act, a huge black hole suddenly appeared in front of her.
Looking up, she saw an orange spiral mask. The crimson Mangekyo Sharingan left her mind completely blank.
‘Why is an Uchiha here, in the village?’
Ino had no time to react before she was sucked into the Kamui Dimension.
Thud.
The room fell silent again. Obito looked down and saw the pink communication device that had fallen to the floor, then picked it up.
After looking through it, he didn't notice anything unusual, so he pocketed it and left.
…
Meanwhile, at the Hyuga Clan’s compound.
Zetsu quietly sneaked into the Hyuga Clan’s compound and emerged from a corner. He took a look at the neat and orderly buildings and his eyes are filled with confusion.
After hesitating for a moment, his eyes fell on the Clan Head’s residence not far away. Neji, who happened to be working, sensed something amiss and looked up just in time to see Zetsu on the wall.
‘Wrong place!’ Zetsu immediately sank into the ground and fled.
"Who's there?!" Neji wasn't about to let Zetsu escape so easily. He sprang to his feet and covered the distance in a few quick strides, but Zetsu had already disappeared into the wall.
The noise alarmed the clansmen who were on night patrol, and they all gathered around.
"Neji-sama! What happened?"
Hearing this, Neji didn't answer immediately, but frowned and glanced at the wall. Then, he turned his head to look at the night view of the courtyard, and finally looked at the people who had gathered around him.
"Did any of you see a shadowy figure running past here?"
"A shadowy figure?"
"No, I just ran over here because I heard the noise."
"Yeah, yeah, me too."
The group exchanged confused glances, looking at each other in disarray. The more Neji thought about it, the more suspicious he felt. He ignored them and walked straight out of the courtyard.
As Neji walked away, the others left one after another. The last person to leave glanced back at the Clan Head’s residence from the shadows before slipping away.