For this chapter, there'll be no fights, or anything that involves killing Devils, Demons, Exorcists, or anything out of the ordinary. Just going to be a chapter where Naruto takes a very well-deserved break from it all by going out with a girl. Will there be some drama? Maybe. Also, college is a bitch, especially when cold weather is involved.
OP: HOT BLOOD by Nana Mizuki
Friday
5:45 pm
The days leading to his date with Shino were very busy and painful for Naruto. After he got back to work for Seekvaira, he found out Alivian had destroyed his fight simulation machine. When asked why he did that, the Queen responds by saying humans this age relied heavily on technology and that training with a fake computer-generated version of himself would be an insult to him before letting his fellow Peerage member know that he'll make sure to increase the difficulty of his training in order to beat some skills into him, a smile forming on the Queen's face. Of course, Naruto was scared. Alivian wasn't a bad trainer, he learned a lot from Seekvaira's Queen. It's just that whenever the Rook trained with him, it felt as though Alivian enjoyed beating the living hell out of him. As the days went by, Naruto gradually got better at fighting to the point that the Rook could fight on equal grounds with him for 5 hours straight.
Thanks to Infernus's teachings with controlling his magic energy, Naruto had developed newer moves in his arsenal, like the Inferno Grenade, the Armor Piercer(Long/Mid/Close-Range), and more. With his talent to create his own spells and attacks, Naruto began the process of replicating some attacks from his favorite video games and anime, much to his joy, and Infernus's annoyance, though in reality, Infernus actually thought the supers Naruto replicated were cool. Even Seekvaira had stars in her eyes when he performed the Erupting Burning Finger, imitating Domon Kasshu from "G-Gundam".
As of now, Naruto was on his way to catch a train ride home. All day, he was going around and looking into places girls like Shino would like to go to for their date while writing it down on his notepad. As he was jotting down the last few sets of notes, he noticed a girl panicking a bit. She had wavy, greyish-brown hair that reaches a bit below her shoulders, and blue eyes. She also had fair skin. Her attire consisted of a blue t-shirt with colorful stars all over, a yellow cap with a dolphin image on the front, a pair of white jeans, and Nike brand running shoes. Not one to look away from someone who was troubled, Naruto went to the girl and asked her why she was panicking.
"I lost my wallet and I fear that someone might've taken it. It had my train ticket and everything," she answered.
"Not that it's bad if you help people or anything, but we have to go buy a train ticket and go home to put your date plan together," Infernus informed Naruto. Naruto insisted that they help the girl, however, all Infernus cared about was trying to make the upcoming date a success so that Shino can get it on with Naruto and refused to help the girl. But as soon as the girl gave them the puppy eyes telling them "Please help me", Infernus changed his mind, being reminded of a memory that involved children pleading with him to help them.
"...Just make it quick dammit." With that, Naruto agreed to help the girl find her wallet.
"...The puppy eyes are your weakness as well?" asked an amused Naruto. Infernus had no choice but to admit that back when he was alive, he would usually help children whenever they were troubled or in trouble. This caused Naruto to tease Infernus on how soft he can be despite being an all-swearing, violent demon that thought about sex.
"Fuck off Naruto...Oh shit, I'm becoming you." After half an hour of searching and retracing steps, they found it. Apparently, she left it at her usual cafe and the waiter had to keep it for her. After retrieving the wallet, both Naruto and the girl managed to catch the train on time.
"Thank you for helping me find my wallet..."
"Naruto."
"Right...I'm You, You Watanabe." Naruto shook the girl known as You's hand before focusing on his notes for tomorrow's date. You took notice of it and asked him what he was looking at. Embarrassed, Naruto hid the notepad behind his back.
"No-Nothing! Nothing at all!" Not convinced, You yells "What's that over there!?" while pointing at something, distracting the blond long enough for her to take his notepad.
"Hey, you can't just-" Naruto stopped as soon as You looked at him with an amused expression on her face, having read his notes.
"Oh man, she saw your notes," said Infernus.
"Are these plans for a date?" asked You.
"My first date, and yes, they're plans for it," he replied. "I just want to make this first date...good, and I want her to enjoy herself."
"...Yousoro! Since you helped me find my wallet, I'm going to give you some good advice in return. Getting advice from a girl's perspective is the best advice you can get when it comes to first dates. These notes you have will have to be used to plan dates for later." You replied, with Naruto surprised that she'd help give him advice for a good first date.
"First off, tell me what you have planned for her on the first phase of your date?" Naruto told You of his plan to meet her at Ōkoku no Okashi (Kingdom Sweets) at 9 in the morning. The girl complimented Naruto's choice of meeting spot before suggesting he takes her to an amusement park after, stating that he can never fail the first date if it's at an amusement park. When asked which one to take Shino to, You informed him of one where BiBi was going to perform at. Naruto remembered Maki telling him how she was going to perform in the arena of a new amusement park on Saturday and had asked Naruto to come to see it. He didn't really plan to go to an amusement park on the day of the date, but since You suggested it, he'll have to ask Maki if she can get him the usual Backstage VIP Tickets.
"Always finish an amusement park date with a Ferris Wheel Ride that allows you to have a nice view of the sunset. A good thing to remember, girls like it if the guy pays for everything. You should never let a girl pay for anything, and don't be cheap, or you're asking for it."
I don't think money will be an issue." he assured. It was the right choice for Naruto to save up most of the money he earned from missions and his part-time job instead of just going on a spending binge. "For dinner choices, take her to an Italian or Sushi restaurant. No ramen shops, save those for a later date. Make simple, short, and interesting conversations from time to time. Silence for a whole date is boring. Most importantly..." Before she said anything else, You leaned her face towards Naruto's, with a cute but somewhat angry expression on her face.
"No matter what, always end the first date by offering to walk her home, and finish it with a kiss." Hearing that he HAD to kiss her made Naruto turn a bright shade of red.
"Ki-Ki-Ki-Kiss her!? But I don't know if she'd allow it," Naruto replied.
"You have to kiss her Naruto. Or else you'll just end up in the friend zone by her. If you're writing down notes to make this first date good, that says a lot about you. You really like her, it's obvious by the way you've been acting, and how you're listening to every single piece of advice I'm giving you without losing focus. I bet this girl you're planning this date for is interested in you." You said, smiling.
"You'll do great." As soon as she said that, the train stopped. You said goodbye to Naruto and thanked him for helping her before getting off. The blond had thanked You for the dating advice she gave him. As the train doors closed and proceeded to move again, Naruto saw You giving him her trademark "Yousoro!" and a salute before leaving his field of vision.
Namikaze Residence
Entering his house, Naruto found Akame and Maki watching a Korean Drama series on TV before noticing his presence.
"Welcome home Naruto!" said Maki, with Akame doing the same.
"Hey...Maki, can I ask you to do something for me?"
"Is it about your date tomorrow?" Naruto was surprised when Maki asked. He mentioned it to her, but he never told her that it was a date.
"Chelsea told me." Of course, it was always Chelsea. "If it's about the Backstage VIP Tickets, I can easily get them for you."
"I know that it's just that I don't like feeling...spoiled." Smiling, Maki assures Naruto she doesn't mind if she spoils him, stating that even if he didn't like it, she'd still do it because he's her favorite cousin and he usually asked for nothing in return whenever he helped her.
"However, in return, I want to know the details for after the date, once you're done. Does that sound fair?" Naruto agreed to it before Maki voiced how happy she was that Naruto was doing something new and "exciting" before letting him know she'll do her best when she performs. "In fact, I know just the song to sing for your date!" Naruto turned red before telling Maki that it wasn't necessary.
"Oh no, I insist!" As Maki kept on talking about her plans, the Rook sighed knowing that she was going to go on for a good 20 minutes before he can leave.
[Persona 3 Original Soundtrack - Changing Seasons]
Saturday
Ōkoku no Okashi (Kingdom Sweets)
8:55 am
Naruto had worn an open white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up over a black short-sleeved t-shirt, blue jeans, and brown shoes for his date. He was planning a different set of clothes for it, but Chelsea wouldn't have it and took it upon herself to dress him up properly. For almost an hour he acted as Chelsea's Ken Doll, trying on outfits before deciding upon the "right combo". As he waited for Shino's arrival, he was approached by a waiter.
"Hello sir, are you ready to order?"
"Oh, not yet I'm waiting for- JoJo!?" Talking to Naruto was none other than a butler uniformed Joichi Johjima.
"It's Joichi to you!" yelled Joichi.
"Sorry...A tough guy like you works here?" Naruto asked.
"While I may be tough and tend to get into fights with assholes who piss me off, I am also a hard worker who is capable of keeping a job like this for six months," answered Joichi. "Having answered your question, before my annoying boss yells at me for making small talk with customers, and for not asking my customers this, what brings you to Kingdom Sweets? If you're on a date, then we have a 30% discount on our breakfast and lunch menus, and you get free refills on drinks."
"I'm...waiting for my date," Naruto replied.
"Is it with that girl who just arrived?" Joichi asked, pointing at someone. When Naruto focused his attention on who he was pointing to, he couldn't help but blush. Shino had just arrived, and she looked lovely. Shino had on a white blouse with a blue spring summer nautical style lace skirt and a pair of brown ankle boots over white socks.
"Uhh...Uhhh..."
"I'll take that as a yes," Joichi said with a smile. "I'll give you and your date some time to order." As soon as Joichi left, Shino spotted Naruto and gave him a smile before walking over and taking her seat on the opposite side of him.
"Am I late?" asked Shino.
"No, you're...on time..." Naruto couldn't help but look away, which caught Shino's attention.
"Is there something wrong Namikaze-kun?"
"No, no it's just...you dress...really nice Asada-chan." Shino couldn't help but feel embarrassed when Naruto complimented her look.
"To be honest, I didn't choose to wear this. A girl named Rechka, whom I met and became friends with yesterday, helped me dress up...It wasn't pleasant."
"Chelsea did the same with me." The two shared a laugh when they told each other their reason for how they're dressed now, stopping as soon as Joichi came back to ask for their orders. Minutes passed, and the two slowly bonded over sweets and coffee.
"So why Kuoh Academy?"
"It was all Jiraiya's idea," Naruto replied.
"Kuoh Academy's pretty famous for the girls that attend there."
"So I've heard..."
"...What kind of girls do you like Namikaze-kun?" asked a curious Shino.
"Someone like Moka I guess." Shino raised a brow when he gave his answer.
"Like her...Have you two...ever dated?"
"No, not at all. We just hung out, nothing more...Nothing more..." Listening to Naruto and realizing that he had a "one-sided love" for Moka that was never realized had Shino giving him a look of sympathy. Realizing he's bringing his feeling for his childhood friend into the conversation, he decides to not go further, asking Shino if she would like to go to an amusement park.
"Waaahhh, I haven't been to an amusement park in a while," Shino replied, voicing her joy.
"Gotta thank that You girl for suggesting an amusement park, given that there's a chance that you'll ever meet her again," said Infernus. Naruto mentally told Infernus to fuck off, telling him he wasn't supposed to say anything during the date as he promised, earning a bored groan from Infernus. On a train ride to the amusement park, the train they were on suddenly got cramped, causing Shino to press up against Naruto, to their embarrassment. Naruto could feel Shino's breasts pressed against his chest.
"Are you all right? Your face is all red." Naruto asked.
"I'm fine. It's just...a little tight in here is all..."
[Persona 4 OST - New Days]
Phantasia Dream Park
Arriving at the now-opened theme park, Phantasia, Shino's eyes lit up like a child who just went to Disneyland for the first time. While it wasn't Disneyland, Phantasia was still an amazing sight to behold. Naruto smiled as Shino tried to decide on a ride they should go on first. The first ride they went on was the Mystic Dragon Ride, a popular roller coaster in the shape of a red dragon that surrounds the whole park, giving the feeling that it's the park's protector.
Next, they went to the Underwater Tunnels, gazing at the aquatic life as they swam around them. 40 minutes later, at a prize booth, Naruto tried his hand on winning a prize for Shino that involved a game called Eagle Eye, where he had to throw 3 balls at three separate stacks of metal bottles that were 10 feet away from them. To Naruto's embarrassment, he missed all three shots. After failing 10 more times, Shino decided to step in and try her hand at the game. To his surprise, she scored a perfect and won a little gold medal that said "3-Shot Wonder", smiling as she held it in her hands. While she went off to go to the bathroom, the guy behind the counter told Naruto, "Tell you what, I'll give you a little-stuffed cat plush for free and you can tell her you got a shot in when she gets back."
Naruto silently thanked the man just before Shino returned. After handing her the little light-blue cat plushie, they continued their amusement park date. Half an hour into their date, they played a public 2v2 rhythm dancing game known as DanceSync together, challenging a cocky couple that kept on bragging about their skills and insulting people trying to have fun. The two were perfectly in sync with their steps as the other couple had trouble keeping up with the two teens. In the end, Naruto and Shino won, earning an S-Ranking and putting their opponents to shame. Taking a break, the two had a quick but filling lunch at the Secret Dungeon Restaurant before moving on.
The next ride was a cinematic attraction that involved four tech-wielding magical girls fighting an evil witch and winning. There, Naruto witnessed Shino's inner otaku as she yelled the names of their attacks alongside the characters. Exiting the ride, Naruto commented on Shino's behavior during the ride.
"I've been a fan of the series for almost five years. I can easily memorize all of their attacks from the anime, as well as imitate how they do them."
"Would you recommend the series?" Shino happily said, "For sure!" Looking at the time on his phone, Naruto realized that it was time for BiBi's small concert to celebrate the amusement park's opening.
"I've been a huge fan of µ's ever since I went to their First LoveLive Concert. Our doctor was the "father of one of the members" who was kind enough to hand me a ticket to sit close to the stage."
"You were there? I was listening from backstage with my sisters for the whole concert." Shino was surprised that Naruto got to go backstage. Curious on how Naruto managed to obtain Backstage VIP Passes that were too expensive to obtain, Shino asked the blond. Awkwardly scratching his head, Naruto confessed, saying, "The doctor who gave you the tickets...Dr. Nishikino...That's my uncle."
"Eh...EHHHHH!?" Naruto swore that this would be a norm for him. "Don't tell me...Maki's your cousin!? Oh my god, oh my god...This is too much..." Shino said to herself as she used her fan to cool herself down. "I think I'm going to faint..."
"No, don't do that!" Naruto yelled.
[Music End]
Going forward a few minutes, Shino had cooled down after taking a sip from a large soda, happily sighing in relief. "Ahhhh, that felt better..." Right now, he and Shino were walking towards the Fantasy Prism, a large, cube-shaped arena that is used for performances, be it a concert or stage play, even the first screening of a movie. Making sure no one saw them, Naruto guided Shino to the back of the attraction, entering through the back door. Maki had given Naruto an extra key that he could use to enter through the back of the stage. Shino couldn't help but feel her face getting hotter as Naruto made sure she took a sip of her soda. As the BiBi's were preparing for their small concert, Maki noticed that Naruto had arrived with Shino. Looking at the glasses-wearing girl, Maki couldn't help but blush. In her mind, she commented on how cute Shino was, thinking she was like an innocent kitty cat.
"Hey Maki, I've got-" Before Naruto could say anything, Maki went up to Shino and put her hands on her cheeks as she inspects the girl.
"You brought another nice one Naruto!" Maki yelled as she happily hugged Shino, who was beet red on her face. "She's so precious, she's like a cat!" Naruto had to gently pry Maki off of the brown-haired girl, who was nearly close to passing out.
"Sorry about that, I couldn't contain myself." Shino stuttered as she said, "I-It's fine, really..."
"Maki, one of the lights aren't working, we'll need the tech guys to fix it," said Eli. Knowing that it'll take too long for maintenance to arrive, Maki apologizes to Naruto and asks if he can fix it, Naruto goes over to fix them as he tells Shino to stay with Maki before running over to the light that wasn't working.
"Namikaze-kun knows how to fix lights?"
"Naruto can do more than just fix lights. Whenever we had big or small concerts, I sometimes have him tag along whenever he doesn't have any plans. At our first concert, some of the special effects machines and monitors weren't working. The concert was going to go on in half an hour, and maintenance wasn't really good. Naruto volunteered to fix them right away and managed to do it in 25 minutes." Shino eyes grew in awe as she focused on Naruto working.
"He's pretty amazing in his own way, even if others don't take notice of it. Those who do take notice look up to him. Before graduating junior high, he had a few kohais and teachers who looked up to him." As Maki told Shino more about Naruto, the girl slowly began to understand what sort of person he truly was.
"Can I ask you something?" Curious about what Shino has to ask, Maki allows her to ask a question. "No one knows that Naruto is related to you, do they?" asked Shino.
"It was Naruto who wanted people to not know that we're related. I remember Naruto telling me, "If you're related to someone famous, there's a high chance that people would use you to either get close to them or worse...Plus, if they knew who I was related to, I wouldn't be Naruto Namikaze, but Maki Nishikino's cousin. Not calling someone by their name and being called someone's cousin is like not being your own person. I want to be Naruto Namikaze, not "Maki Nishikino's cousin."
"I never knew being related to someone well-known would be like that," Shino replied.
"It has its ups and downs from time to time. I should know..." Maki added, still remembering "that night".
"Listen...Shino was it?"
"Yes."
"You're genuinely interested in him, right?" Shino looked away as she hid her flushed cheeks.
"I'll take that as a yes...It's been a long time, but finally, he gets the date her deserved." Looking at Maki, Shino has an expression on her face that asks the idol, "What do you mean by that?"
"Naruto has had several crushes on girls throughout his school life. All of them usually end up being setups for pranks on him, as well as rejections. On some occasions, some of the girls he had a crush on had boyfriends, and they would just lie to them saying that Naruto was hitting on them and wouldn't leave them alone." Looking at Naruto, Shino had a look of sympathy towards the blond.
"I've only known him for a short time. I usually hang out with him online. So far, he's gotten a hang of it. From what I've seen from playing online with him, I had the impression that he was secretly a violent person on the inside." When asked what she meant by that, Shino just tells Maki, "Let's just say that Naruto and I had a run-in with some players whom he knew in real life and...He was a different person from what he was now. I had to pull him away before it got worse." Maki was wide-eyed when Shino told her Naruto had a violent side that he showed online and that he inflicted pain on the ones who wronged and bullied him. Maki figured that as long as he didn't do it in real life, it wouldn't be considered a crime, and he got all that anger out of his system. (Note: This will be shown in another chapter since this is a date chapter and I promised no fighting.)
"I had a feeling that there was more to it. To think that Namikaze-kun went through all of that in the real world...What's he like?"
"He was like you. Polite, kind, and quiet. Of course, he's still polite and kind, but lately, he's been a lot less quiet, especially when talking about the new friends he made. Oh! I forgot to mention that he also wore the same pair of glasses like yours." Hearing that he used to wear the same kind of glasses she has on now, Shino frantically adjusts them in embarrassment. Maki gently laughed a bit as she watched the flustered girl act the way she was now.
"I'm glad he gets to experience dating a nice girl like you Shino." As she said that, Maki leans towards Shino and whispers in her ear, "I'm going to say this to you, just for you to hear. You're really cute Shino. I don't think you give yourself much credit for it." Shino couldn't understand why anyone would find her cute. Truthfully, she didn't stand out at school. She was labeled as a meek and timid girl and had been called several names for reasons only she knew. To be called cute was not only a rare thing to be called for her but an embarrassing one as well.
"Oi Maki, repairs are done. Hm?"
"Thank you Naruto, you're a life saver." Looking at Shino, Naruto asks why her face was red.
"Let's just say that we had a nice talk between girls." Maki interrupted as she puts her hands on Shino's shoulders and gently massages them.
"About what?" Maki answers by saying that it was rude for a boy his age to ask a question like that. Naruto quickly apologizes after. Smiling, Maki hears that she has two minutes before the concert starts.
"Well, that's my cue, enjoy the small concert you two." Maki happily leaves the two along as Naruto and Shino got ready for the show. As soon as it began, Shino had on an innocent and enamored look in her eyes as the BiBis got onstage to perform.
The first song, Diamond Princess No Yuutsu (Jazz Version), made the two teens uncomfortable. The song was really good, Maki having written the lyrics herself. It's just that, from what Maki told the audience before performing it, that the song was of being in love with love, of girls you only see within dreams. During the song's performance, Naruto and Shino looked at one another, realizing that the song was directed towards them before quickly focusing their attention towards the concert, both red in the face and unable to maintain eye contact with each other. After the song had finished, the audience was on fire. Lots of cheering voices could be heard echoing throughout the arena.
"That's µ's composer for you..." Naruto commented.
"I forget that your cousin writes the songs for the group," Shino replied, her face warm from listening to the song after realizing the meaning behind the lyrics.
1 hour later...
Having finished watching the concert, Naruto and Shino said goodbye to Maki and her friends before resuming their date.
"Do you have any male relatives in your family Naruto?"
"I do, however, it's rare for my mother's side of the family to produce male offspring. To have a son is considered rare within her side of the family, and it was considered a sign of good luck to both the parent and the child."
"That explains why you're the only boy in the family. Must be nice to have people you can see whenever you come home..." It was already known to Naruto that Shino lived in an apartment in Tokyo on her own. While it was nice to be living on your own, after a while, one would seek companionship to ignore the loneliness.
"...This is out of the blue, but a neighbor we knew very well just sold his one-room house and moved. It's across from where I live. How about I help you move there? I'll even convince my perverted godfather to help me pay for it. And when we start our first year at our schools, you can come to our house whenever, and I can come over some time, maybe tag Akame and Moka along whenever they're available," Naruto suggested, scratching the back of his head in a shy manner.
"You'd do that?"
"I think it'd be nice for you to be around people you know, plus, you'll have a bit more space and-"
"I think I'll take your offer," Shino interrupts, smiling. "While you were in Germany, I got myself well acquainted with Chelsea, Akame, and her girlfriend Kagura. I even played a few games with Akashiya-chan." Naruto, hearing that Shino had been in contact with Moka during his time away from Japan, asks the girl if Moka was okay, having been unable to talk to Moka about what happened when Seekvaira first came to his house. Shino was informed by the silver-haired girl herself that Naruto got angry with and yelled at her, something he rarely did.
"I felt bad about it after, and I don't know if she's angry with me or not still, even when I invited her over to celebrate us passing our exams and played "Fatal Bullet" with you."
"You must really care for her."
"I do, after all, she's my best friend and the first friend I ever made. What's more, she's the one person whose friendship I don't want to lose."
"...She's not mad at you at all, Namikaze-kun, at least not anymore. When we were playing Fatal Bullet, she told me she was visiting a friend from another country and that she couldn't get any internet from where she was for quite a while due to a blizzard." Naruto sighed in relief. "So that's why I couldn't contact her."
"She wanted me to tell you that once she gets back from her visit, she'd like to have dinner with someone named Seekvaira, in order to make amends."
"I'm sure she'd love to have Moka over," he replied. When asked who Seekvaira was, Naruto simply answered, "Someone I owe my life to." Shino didn't understand what Naruto meant by that but decided not to question him about it. As minutes and hours went by, Naruto and Shino went through nearly half the rides in the park, some of them they went on a second time just for another thrill.
"The sun looks like it's about to set, where should we go last?" Remembering what You told him, Naruto shyly asks, "How about we go on the Ferris Wheel of Fate? I hear it's a great way to watch the sunset."
"I'd like that a lot, Naruto. We should-"
"Just now, you called me by my first name?" Naruto replied. Now aware of it, Shino's face turns red in embarrassment, turning away from the blond and denying it.
"Okay..."
Ferris Wheel of Fate
Naruto and Shino enter one of the capsules and take their seats opposite of each other before the ride begins.
"Namikaze-kun?"
"Yes?"
"Maki told me you used to wear glasses."
"Oh, she told you that?" Naruto replied.
"Yes, and I was wondering, what do you look like with glasses?" Naruto replied by saying that he looked really nerdy with them on. "I see...Can I see what you look like with them?" After thinking about it, Naruto agrees to it. However, he would need a pair to try on. To his surprise, Shino took off her glasses and offered to let him try them on.
"Are you sure?" Naruto asked.
"Don't worry about it, I can see perfectly fine without them."
"If you say so..." Putting them on, Naruto asks her how he looks. Shino starts by telling him he looks like a nerd, but a handsome one. "I don't see why people assume that those who wear glasses are nerds. Sounds ridiculous, don't you think?"
"Yeah..." As soon as the sunset is in view, the two gaze upon it. "The sunset's really beautiful to look at from up here..." As they're watching the sunset, Naruto takes a quick glance at Shino, before smiling. She takes notice of this and asks him why he was staring at her in an embarrassed tone. Naruto panicked a bit and told her he liked seeing her have fun. After getting off the ride, Naruto and Shino made their way to the exit from the park.
"We should go to another amusement park again sometime," Naruto said to the girl, having enjoyed his time at the amusement park with her.
"I wouldn't mind going to another one. We should definitely try Amagi-" Before she can say anything, the glasses-wearing brunette's stomach growls. Shino's face turns red as Naruto noticed.
"Want to go grab something to eat?" he asked.
Sugamo, Tokyo, Japan
To Naruto's dismay, the restaurant he had in mind was fully booked. Naruto apologizes to Shino before suggesting another place. However, she stops Naruto before pointing at Tsuta, a Japanese Ramen restaurant across from the restaurant Naruto wanted to bring her to.
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"Trust me Naruto, I know a good restaurant when I see one."
Tsuta
Shino had scarfed down 5 bowls of char siu ajitama shoyu soba, while Naruto was simply eating a bowl of char siu ajitama shio soba as he looked at the girl eating her sixth.
"So good!" Shino blissfully said as she finished her 6th bowl.
"I guess as long as she enjoys the food here, it's okay." he thought.
"Another bowl please!" Shino told the chef, shocking Naruto.
"Another!?" Were all the girls he meets gluttons?
3 more bowls of soba later...
"Sorry about the bill Namikaze-kun. I'll be sure to-" The blond assured her that he was fine but was impressed that she could eat that much.
"How rude of you to comment on a girl's food intakes." The two go silent before laughing. As they were walking, Shino looked at the light-blue cat plushie Naruto "won" for her before noticing a small drop of water falling on one of its eyes. Immediately, the couple had rain pouring down on them.
"Rain!?" Naruto yelled. "Shit, we have to get out of it." Shino looks around and noticed a love hotel. Tugging at Naruto's jacket, Shino points to it.
"Let's stay there for tonight," Shino said, hiding her beet-red face from the blond.
"Are you sure?" Shino only nodded her head to answer him.
Unnamed Love Hotel
Deluxe Room
Shino was taking a shower in the bathroom as Naruto sat on the bed, processing everything. Why here? There were other hotels, but a love hotel? Could it be that Shino wanted to "do it? Was he even ready for this type of relationship? This was just the first date. Looking around, he assured himself it was just a room before noticing a glass bowl full of strange square packages. Picking one out, Naruto observes it before realizing it's a condom.
"Why would they have a bowl of these in every room?" Naruto asked out loud before putting it back in the bowl.
"Ahhh, that shower felt nice," Shino said as she came out wearing a white bathrobe while using a towel to dry her hair. Setting the towel on the couch, Shino sits next to Naruto on the bed.
"Never thought I'd be inside one of these..." Naruto commented.
"It was raining, so it couldn't be avoided," Shino adds.
[Persona 5 OST - Sweet]
"...This whole day...is like a dream."
"A dream?"
"Yeah, one that I wouldn't wake up from...The days I lived before meeting you were colorless and empty, my only salvation being my family, and the friends I only see once in a while...Now it's bright and full of color and joy..." At this moment, Shino's hands trembled. "...Is it wrong for someone like me to be happy and wish for more moments like this?" she asked Naruto as tears streamed her face.
"I too wondered the same as you, time and time again..." he replied. "From the years I've lived up to the past several days that went by...I can honestly tell you, it's never wrong for you to be happy. And I'll be sure to help you make more happy moments like this. That, I can promise you, Shino," he finished, looking into Shino's eyes. The girl's eyes widened when she heard Naruto call her by her first name. Realizing this, he turned red and looked away.
"Th-That is if you're okay with a guy like me helping you. I mean, it's not like I-"
"Naruto..." Looking back at Shino, the blond is caught off guard when the girl pushes him onto the bed, with her on top of him. Staring at each other, Shino plants her lips on Naruto's. Giving in, he passionately kissed Shino before they parted lips.
"That was..."
"Our first kiss..." Shino lovingly smiles at the Rook before kissing him again. This time, she inserts her tongue into his mouth, massaging his tongue with her own.
"Daaamn Naruto I wake up and you're going first base!? Nice!" Surprised by Infernus, Naruto stops the kiss.
"Is there something wrong, Naruto?" she asked, worried.
"I'm fine, the kiss was...amazing. I just...don't want to rush things..."
"That's understandable," Shino replied as she smiled. "I don't mind just laying here with you..."
"I don't mind if we made out more..." Shino smiled at Naruto's suggestion before giving him a small peck on the lips. "There'll be more time for that later..." As an hour passed, Shino was happily sound asleep as Naruto looked at her sleeping form.
"Look at you, finally got yourself a girl."
"I thought I told you not to say anything during the whole date," Naruto replied, annoyed.
"I couldn't help it, you were actually locking lips with a nice girl for a change. Does this mean that you're over Moka?"
"...There will always be a part of me that will never be over her. But now that I finally have someone, I want to make sure that I give Shino the same love I felt towards Moka."
"Good to know. Well, I've seen what I wanted to see. Can't wait for the second, third, and fourth base." After saying what he wanted his host to hear, Infernus fell silent, leaving Naruto and Shino alone.
[Music End]
Morning
Exiting the love hotel, Naruto, and Shino, hand in hand, decided to go to the former's house. Looking at his hand holding Shino's, Naruto smiled to himself.
"This feels right..."
"Naruto!?" Looking behind them, the Rook went wide-eyed when Chelsea and Kagura came out from the same love hotel as them.
"Ch-Chelsea!?"
"NARUTO, YOU BETTER TELL ME WHAT THE HELL YOU AND SHINO WERE DOING IN A PLACE LIKE THIS!" she yelled.
"IT'S NOT WHAT YOU THINK!" As Naruto and Chelsea yelled at each other, Kagura and Shino looked at the two interacting.
"There they go..." Kagura said to herself.
"Don't tell me, you and she immediately went to fourth base!" Shino turned red when Chelsea asked Naruto the question.
"At best we went first base!"
"And then what!?"
"Then nothing!" The two continued to argue as Kagura decided to take Shino to a cafe until the two siblings cooled down and joined them.
Kuoh Airlines
Japan
A fair-skinned woman of average height and slender build with onyx eyes exited her plane. The woman had straight jet-black shoulder-length hair with bangs that cover her ears and frame her face. She had on a sun hat, a pair of red sunglasses, a white summer dress that complimented her figure, and sandals. Taking off her glasses and looking up at the blue sky as the light warm wind gently blew, she smiled.
"I'm back..."
TO BE CONTINUED...
ED: arcadia†paroniria by Eri Kitamura
I'm not really sure if I did this date chapter justice, but I think I did it well enough. It's weird to write stuff like this but...it's not so bad to try new things.
Rechka, the girl mention by Shino, is from SAO: Memory Defrag, a mobile game. She will eventually make an appearance soon.
Moka and Seekvaira will return next chapter, as will the clerk girl Naruto saved since I promised in five chapters, she'd return. Will Koneko make a slightly long but short cameo? Maybe. Keito will be shown as well, and a glimpse of what his life is like will be interesting. Who knows, I might even have his sister make an appearance in Japan later on in the future...
I wanted to do a karaoke scene with Naruto and Shino but I scrapped it, and I wanted to have Naruto utterly fail to find a fancy restaurant to go to but I didn't want Shino's growling stomach to suffer.
As you know, Shizune makes an appearance. Why? It's minor but very important in some form.
I feel like Seekvaira doesn't stretch her legs much. How many want to see her fight? Does anyone want to see her fight Naruto in the next chapter for training?
I've been thinking about doing a chapter focused on deleted scenes, what do you guys think? I still have the Moka chapter I wanted to do. And I wanted to delve deep into Xenovia's psyche since I haven't touched upon her insomnia, or her being plagued by a twisted version of Naruto. Should I do it? Xenovia will undergo a design change, mainly her outfit. It'll stay the same. However, she'll have a kick-ass black trench coat, a pair of holsters for her guns, and arm guards similar to Saber's (Artoria) from the Fate/stay night series.
