During the days Shukaku was free-roaming, it stayed obediently by Chizhao's side.
Aside from constantly clamoring for fish, it mostly acted like a couch potato, either snatching her bento or sleeping.
Upon closer inspection, the guy had even gotten quite a bit rounder.
This day, Chizhao finished her training early, walked through the lush forest, and started on her way home.
Carrying two empty bento boxes in her hand, she secretly congratulated herself that she had eaten quickly today, otherwise, Shukaku, that greedy cat, would have snatched it away.
After stuffing the bento boxes back into her backpack, she continued forward, feeling a little tired.
As she passed a tree stump, her peripheral vision seemed to catch a huge dark shadow, like a large black rat the size of a person squatting behind the stump.
This discovery made Chizhao scream in fright, retreat a few steps, fall to the ground, and frantically pull out a Kunai.
When she clearly saw the object in front of her, she let out a sigh of relief and put the Kunai back into her bag.
“You scared me to death! I thought it was a giant black rat, but it turns out to be Shino….”
Little Shino slowly stood up, looking at the stag beetle that had flown away in fright.
Shino looked at Chizhao through his dark glasses, and an aura of silent resentment seemed to emanate from around him.
Chizhao patted her bottom and stood up, a little helpless: “I didn’t mean to scare your bugs away, you know….”
“What do you mean by ‘giant black rat’….”
Shino’s voice carried a hint of displeasure.
Chizhao froze for a moment, then quickly waved her hands in explanation:
“Uh… I didn’t mean it like that, please don’t take it to heart.”
Although they were in the same class, Shino was always quiet and didn’t like to talk to people.
After all this time at school, this might have been the first time the two of them had spoken so closely.
Beneath his black glasses, Shino’s gaze was deep and calm, reflecting Chizhao’s slightly flustered face.
He didn’t say anything more, just turned around and walked deeper into the forest.
“Hey! The sun is about to set, are you sure you don’t want to leave together?”
Recalling her recent experience, Chizhao knew the dangers deep within the forest.
She quickly called out to Shino, inviting him to leave with her.
Shino just tilted his head slightly, his tone cold:
“I still want to look for more bugs, you go ahead….”
Seeing that she couldn’t stop Shino, she, feeling uneasy, quickly followed him.
“Then I’ll go with you….”
Before she could finish her sentence, a figure suddenly darted out not far ahead, knocking both Chizhao and Shino to the ground.
“Why am I so unlucky today? Scared and then knocked down, ouch, ouch, ouch….” Chizhao rubbed the sore spots, grumbling unhappily.
“Ah! Shino Aburame! Chizhao Shiratori! It’s great to meet you two, please help me!”
Looking up, the person approaching them was also her classmate — Inuzuka Kiba.
“Kiba? What are you doing here? What do you need our help with?”
Looking at the anxious Kiba in front of her, her displeasure instantly vanished.
“Actually, it’s all my fault. I brought Akamaru out to play to bond, but Akamaru chased a rabbit into the forest, and I couldn’t find him after searching everywhere. The sun is about to set, please help me!”
Wait, wait, wait, why does this script sound so familiar?
Isn’t this the same excuse Yu Chuanwu used to trick me back then!
She grabbed Kiba’s cheek, looking left and right.
“Are you really Kiba? You’re not trying to trick me, are you?”
Kiba winced and broke free from Chizhao’s grasp, rubbing his cheek unhappily:
“How could I possibly use Akamaru to trick you? He’s my important partner!”
Looking at the anxious Kiba in front of her, Chizhao was half-skeptical.
Shino, who was not concerned, stood up, preparing to leave.
Catching sight of Shino, who was about to slip away, Chizhao quickly grabbed his sleeve and moved in front of him.
“Shino, you should also help us look for Akamaru!”
Shino frowned slightly: “Isn’t she here?”
“Oh, come on, more hands make light work!”
Actually, Chizhao also wanted to avoid a similar situation to last time. If things went wrong, she would at least have a combatant by her side.
Seeing that Shino in front of her was unmoved, Chizhao thought for a moment and began to persuade him again.
“Kiba’s feelings for Akamaru are just like your feelings for your bugs.”
“If a bug you love were trapped somewhere, wouldn’t you also empathize with Kiba?”
Shino was slightly startled, as if what the girl in front of him said made a lot of sense.
He turned to look at the anxious Kiba, his eyes behind his glasses trembling slightly.
He remembered what Aburame Torune had told him not long ago: “Hurry up and adapt to school, and make some friends.”
Shino thought for a while, and a muffled voice came:
“Alright. I’ll look with you.”
“That’s great, thank you both!” Kiba stood up gratefully, hope returning to his eyes.
After the three figures discussed it, they spread out near the forest, shouting loudly.
Time passed bit by bit, and as the sun was about to set, Akamaru’s figure still hadn’t been found.
Inuzuka Kiba anxiously pounded a tree trunk, making a dull thud: “Akamaru… where are you?! Damn it! It’s all my fault!”
Chizhao, feeling sorry, walked forward and gently patted his shoulder: “Kiba, don’t worry, Akamaru will be fine.”
At this moment, an inconspicuous little bug flew through the air. Shino raised his hand and caught it, observed it carefully for a while, and then walked towards Inuzuka Kiba.
“Kiba, where on your body does Akamaru’s scent linger most strongly?”
Inuzuka Kiba was startled and sniffed himself: “Probably inside the clothes on my chest, Akamaru loves being in my clothes. What are you going to do?”
Shino placed a bug on Inuzuka Kiba’s collar and explained:
“This bug is special; it’s very sensitive to scent. Once it’s familiar with your scent, it can lead us to Akamaru.”
Chizhao, seeing the use of bugs for the first time, exclaimed: “Amazing!!”
“Aren’t you scared?” Shino asked, a little curious.
“Huh? Why? Isn’t it your partner? Just like Akamaru.”
Hearing this, a ripple stirred in Shino’s calm heart.
So far, he had never seen a girl praise his bugs, let alone see them with her own eyes.
Except for this one… special girl in front of him.
The bug flew up from in front of him and quickly flew in another direction. Inuzuka Kiba regained his spirits and followed closely.
Shino and Chizhao exchanged glances, then followed Kiba’s footsteps.
Passing through several patches of forest, they wound their way along, finally spotting a shivering white figure on a large tree – it was Akamaru, whom they had been searching for.
They had finally found the dog.
“Akamaru! I’ve come to save you!”
Akamaru on the tree whimpered, the little puppy too scared to make a sound.
When it saw Inuzuka Kiba rushing towards it, its tail involuntarily wagged slightly, but it was still too timid to move its feet.
The big tree was too tall, and Inuzuka Kiba tried several times but couldn’t climb up successfully, even getting covered in mud and becoming disheveled.
“Akamaru, don’t worry, I’ll definitely get you down.”
Seeing the anxious Inuzuka Kiba in front of her, Chizhao quickly went forward and pulled him.
“Don’t forget about us!”
“Can you climb up?”
Looking up at the tall tree, Chizhao shook her head; how could they, with their small stature, possibly climb it?
But, don’t forget, there were three of them with small statures.
So Chizhao explained her plan in detail to the two boys.
Although Shino was a little resistant, under Chizhao’s persuasion, he still agreed.
A small human ladder was quickly set up.
Shino stood at the very bottom, gritting his teeth and struggling to maintain his balance.
Inuzuka Kiba stood on his shoulders, carefully protecting Chizhao above.
Chizhao slowly approached the trembling Akamaru, almost touching it, but the swaying of the human ladder immediately pulled the distance away again.
“You two, stop swaying!”
“Quick… a little faster….”
Shino’s legs began to tremble slightly. He gritted his teeth, his whole body tense, and even the parasitic bugs inside him exerted themselves.
“Chizhao, just a little more, you can do it….”
“Akamaru, don’t be scared, come here… it’s okay….”
Chizhao gently encouraged the shivering white puppy.
Seeing it inching closer to her, she increased her encouragement.
“That’s right, you’re doing great! What a brave dog!….”
Suddenly, Akamaru mustered its courage and leaped, jumping into Chizhao’s arms.
【Good Deed Progress +8】
“Got him, I got Akamaru!”
“That’s great, Akamaru!”
Overcome with excitement, the human ladder formed by the three began to sway violently.
Instantly, Chizhao’s center of gravity was broken, and her body lurched, as if losing support, and she fell downwards.
Unexpectedly, she didn’t fall directly but felt her body land in a soft cloud, without feeling any pain at all.
Akamaru, in her arms, poked out its little head, barked happily, and furiously licked Chizhao’s cheeks.
“Hahahaha… that tickles… stop it….” Chizhao laughed and dodged, trying to stop Akamaru’s enthusiasm.
At this moment, Shino also stood up. He looked around, his gaze sweeping every corner, but he was surprised to find that Inuzuka Kiba’s figure was not among them.
“Where’s Kiba? Kiba!”
“I’m here….”
A weak voice came from beneath her bottom. Chizhao, holding Akamaru, awkwardly jumped away, finally discovering Inuzuka Kiba, who had been used as a human cushion.
“Oops, sorry, I didn’t notice….”
Akamaru happily jumped out of Chizhao’s arms, affectionately rubbed Kiba’s cheek, and continued its fawning mode.
“Akamaru, I’m glad you’re okay! Hahahaha!”
Inuzuka Kiba stroked Akamaru’s head, his worries instantly vanishing, replaced by overflowing joy.
“Woof!”
Shino pushed up his black glasses, also feeling happy for Inuzuka Kiba.
“Thank you both so much today, Chizhao, Shino!”
“It’s nothing, it’s nothing, as long as we were really looking for a dog….”
Inuzuka Kiba didn’t quite understand Chizhao’s meaning.
But from her eyes and tone, he felt her sincerity and kindness.
He couldn’t help but develop more respect and fondness for this girl, and he understood why she was so popular at school.
“Since we’ve found him, let’s leave here quickly.”
Shino, being thanked for the first time, shyly pulled his face further into his clothes.
The setting sun shone on his sparsely exposed cheeks, adding a touch of softness and warmth to him.
“No problem! Since your bugs led us to Akamaru, this time Akamaru and I will lead you out! Right, Akamaru!”
“Woof!”
Akamaru jumped down from Inuzuka Kiba’s head. It sniffed the ground, then ran towards the way they came.
The three exchanged smiles. They walked through the forest with light steps, bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun, moving slowly towards the Village, as if the whole world was enveloped by this warm glow.