Naruto: If I ask you to kill Sasuke, you will become a succubus?

I was deeply moved by his unreserved smile and frank and enthusiastic words.

It just so happens that now that the serious business has been discussed, it is time to deal with those personal matters that have been delayed until now.

Shikamaru sighed, "This guy...after you disappeared from his arms, he thought he had accidentally killed you and was so anxious that he was breathing too fast."

I was taken aback.

And for some reason, Tenten and Sakura looked at Shikamaru in amazement.

Tenten: "You actually took the initiative to tell me this...?! Shikamaru...you are too strong."

Shikamaru: "...Don't look at me like that!"

I am a little confused. Why did Shikamaru tell me this matter and why did he associate it with "power"?

Naruto also looked confused: "What does this have to do with him being strong?"

"It doesn't matter. Don't listen to them." Shikamaru had a complicated expression: "I just think... you should know. This guy really likes you."

Naruto immediately smiled and said, "Right! Shikamaru knows it very well!"

Sakura murmured, "How horribly slow..."

She whispered to Tenten, "When your senses become dull to a certain extent, even if Shikamaru has another brain, he won't be able to deal with it..."

Tenten responded in a low voice: "So Shikamaru didn't confront Naruto head-on. He used the tactic of 'Although he likes you very much, I am generous and tolerant and will not be jealous. As long as you are happy, I am happy' to create a perfect personality..."

Sakura suddenly realized: "I see!"

Shikamaru said speechlessly, "Hey! I can hear you!"

Tenten and Sakura looked back at him, then they retreated further away, hand in hand, and whispered to each other in a lower voice.

Shikamaru gritted his teeth in anger and amusement: "These two guys!"

I smiled and said, “They have such a good relationship.”

A three-person team usually consists of two men and one woman. It is rare to see two girls in a team. Apparently, Tenten and Sakura have become very familiar with each other because of this.

I stared at their beautiful figures for a while, then looked at Naruto: "Naruto, can I talk to you alone?"

Naruto's eyes lit up, "Alone? Just me and Asaka? Great!"

"I'll bring Itachi with me..." I'm still not used to losing my manners... Every time I have to call someone "teacher" by their name, I always feel very uncomfortable: "But just pretend he doesn't exist."

In order to prevent any accidents from happening if Itachi-sensei was left alone, I gave him a look, signaling him to follow.

Looking at Itachi Sensei in his Akatsuki robe following obediently behind me, everyone in Konoha couldn't help but stare at him. Not only did they think the scene was very strange, but I also found it very funny.

I tried hard not to look at Itachi-sensei's face, for fear that if I met his gaze, I would burst out laughing.

I led Naruto deeper into the woods, leaving Itachi-sensei guarding a short distance away.

I mustered up my courage and looked up into Naruto's clear blue eyes.

There was no cloud in his eyes and his expression. As soon as I saw him, I felt relaxed, as if I had seen the rainstorm stop, the clouds and fog dissipate, and the dawn break.

I solemnly said again: "I'm sorry."

"Asaka keeps saying sorry..." Naruto scratched his head in confusion, "Why exactly?"

"Before, after I defected..."

"It's not a defection!" Naruto interrupted me, correcting me, "Asakaru just had to leave the village for a while!"

I smiled bitterly, "Okay. Well, didn't I meet Naruto once before when I had to leave the village? At that time, I treated Naruto very badly and even attacked him... I'm sorry."

"Eh..." Naruto's eyes widened in surprise, "I have forgotten everything that happened at that time! Chaolu, do you still remember it?"

I looked at Naruto, and after a moment of silence, I continued, "Also, before, you and Shikamaru tried hard to save me, but I..."

"That's not Chaolu's fault!" Naruto said, "At that time, Chaolu couldn't explain to us, so she had to do that."

"But if you can't breathe, it means you are in pain..."

Naruto lowered his eyes, and his usually energetic look rarely showed a hint of self-mockery: "I am too useless."

"No! Naruto, listen to me... I did something wrong, Naruto did nothing wrong."

I briefly mentioned the matter of taking roots, "After I left Konoha, I adopted a child. In order to educate him well, I read many books on parenting and psychology... The books said that there is a kind of love that hurts children the most, called 'conditional love'."

"what does that mean?"

"That is, I imposed my own expectations on Naruto, and I would only love you if I thought Naruto could meet my expectations. If I felt that you could not achieve it, I would criticize you, blame you, and be indifferent to you. ... I realized that my love for you before was conditional."

Naruto immediately refused to listen and shouted: "What conditional and unconditional love, it sounds so weird! Isn't love just love?"

Seeing that he was showing resistance, I stopped talking for the moment. After a moment of silence, I said, "Take off your clothes, Naruto."

Naruto was stunned: "Huh?"

"Will you be cold without your coat? If so, I'll go get Itachi and use his Akatsuki robe."

"No...it's not cold, but why do you have to take off your clothes?"

Having said that, he had already pulled up the collar and zipped down his coat.

"You don't even know what to do, so you take off your clothes?"

"Because Chaolu said you wanted it... Chaolu won't hurt me."

I took the orange jacket from him, looked at it carefully, and smiled, "Naruto, did you buy the same jacket as you wore as a child?"

"It's not the same style. The color of the collar is different, and the color of the zipper placket is different." Naruto said depressedly: "I would like to buy the same one, but after growing up, the original style and size are no longer available for me. I can't find an identical one that I can wear."

"Naruto is really nostalgic."

"Because I've always been wearing nice clothes before, why should I change? I have to think about buying new clothes, which is troublesome and a waste of time. I might as well focus on practicing."

I spread Naruto's coat on the grass and lay down.

I patted the empty seat next to me and invited Naruto, "Come."

Naruto looked at me in surprise, "Asaro?"

"Isn't it easy to turn around and avoid talking while standing? I think lying down can make people more relaxed and more able to talk about their true feelings, and..." I said, "Do you remember when we were little and I stayed at your house? At that time, we squeezed into one bed and had so many things to talk about. I miss it so much when I think about it occasionally."

After listening to what I said, Naruto sat next to me and watched me slowly lie down.

We lay on our sides, facing each other.

I smiled and asked him, "Does it feel like going back to your childhood?"

"But Chaolu, you've grown a lot... your hair has grown a lot longer."

"Naruto, you've grown up a lot." I put my hand on Naruto's arm. The book says that certain physical contact can have a soothing effect. "Let's get back to the point, Naruto. What I'm saying to you is not to deny everything that happened in Konoha before, nor to sever the bond between us. I just want to tell you what I've been through and what I've been thinking about during the years we've been apart. Just like when we were kids, I just want to share it with you... So, listen to me carefully, okay?"

When Naruto lay down, his blond hair, which always looked rough and messy when he was standing, would fall smoothly to the ground.

This made him look much calmer and gentler.

"……it is good."

"Thank you. I still remember that Naruto always responded to me attentively. Those nights when I stayed at Naruto's house were all very fond memories for me."

"So... can we still go back?"

"Naruto, wait until you hear what I say and then make your own judgement." I said softly, "As I said before, I realized that my love for Naruto was always conditional. I always thought that Naruto could fulfill my expectations, so I treated him well."

"Is it because I'm a Jinchūriki?"

"No."

"So, is it true that I resemble one of Chaolu's family members?"

That was the original lie that Orochimaru and Shikamaru-sama set for me.

Thinking about it now, I always said that I spoke my mind, but from the very beginning, I was living a lie.

"Naruto does look a lot like a very important and special person to me."

"If that's the case, what's wrong with conditional love?" Naruto frowned and said, "If there weren't such conditions... Chaolu wouldn't have come to me. I don't want that."

"But because of this, I lost confidence in Naruto, and when I felt that Naruto could not meet my expectations, I did something very excessive to Naruto. That person who was very special and important to me was very, very powerful, so I was too anxious when I was worried that Naruto's strength could not reach his level. I hope you will stop focusing on irrelevant people and irrelevant events, and I hope you can focus on becoming stronger."

"So, when you told me to stop bothering you, Chaolu, you meant that I should stop looking for you? But Chaolu is not an irrelevant person! The matter concerning Chaolu is definitely not an irrelevant incident!"

"Didn't you just say that you had forgotten about this?"

"Uh……!"

"Look, Naruto, you obviously remember everything."

"As soon as you mentioned it, I remembered it."

I smiled helplessly and put my hand on his heart.

Through a thin layer of black mesh inner wear, Naruto's body temperature is warm and hot.

"You actually remember everything just to get rid of the pain. You try not to think about anything, thinking that you have really forgotten. But, will the scars left behind really disappear so easily? I arbitrarily imposed my expectations on Naruto, and I was afraid that Naruto could not meet my expectations. Maybe I was dissatisfied with myself, I was angry at my incompetence, and I was afraid that I might fail, so I took my anger out on you."

"Morning dew..."

"But why isn't Naruto angry with me? I did something wrong, but Naruto desperately chased me, tolerated me, forgave me, and treated me gently..."

"Because I like morning dew!"

"Really? Naruto, instead of saying you like me, I think you are trying to please me."

Naruto was startled.

"You are afraid of losing... You are too afraid of losing. You long for recognition from others, long to no longer be ignored. For this, you can ignore your own needs, ignore the hurt you have suffered, and forgive others unconditionally... You said that I am important to you. What is important is me as the 'Morning Dew', or the person who is close to you, sees you, recognizes you, and becomes your only friend for a period of time? Does it make any difference to you whether this person is me or someone else? I have been wondering, is your love for me also 'conditional'?"

Naruto moved a little anxiously, as if he instinctively wanted to avoid topics that would make him feel uncomfortable. I put my arms around his waist, not allowing him to move away or get up and escape.

"Naruto…listen to me, thinking may bring pain, but leaving it alone won't lead to a way out. We may have to face some unpleasant memories and emotions, but I will be with you…we will find a solution together, okay? Because I still want to keep loving you."

Perhaps because he heard the word "love", Naruto calmed down in my arms.

"No matter if you are similar to the person I want to find, no matter if you can become him, no matter how many things you can do... just because you are you, you don't have to do anything, and I will love you unconditionally. I want to love you like this, and I am trying to do it this way."

Naruto's voice came out a little muffled: "Shikamaru said something similar to you..."

"Huh? What did he say?"

"He said that the reason I wanted to become Hokage was because I wanted to be recognized by others. This is not my own wish at all. I just wanted to meet other people's expectations."

I couldn't help but sigh, "As expected of Shikamaru."

Naruto immediately became unhappy: "Hey!"

“Are you pandering to me?”

"what?"

"Because I just told you that you wouldn't be mad at me, so you're pretending to be mad at me?"

"I'm not pretending! I'm really upset with Chaolu!"

"So Naruto, do you believe that you will be loved unconditionally? You don't have to consider the other person's thoughts, you don't have to guess the other person's emotions, and you don't have to pursue the other person's approval... You just need to wholeheartedly do what you want to do, express the emotions you want to express, and say what you want to say. You don't have to forgive those who hurt you, and you don't have to chase anyone for approval."

"..."

"I read in a book that... children whose parents are absent in childhood cannot find their place in 'love' because they do not receive any response. When they grow up, they find it difficult to distinguish the boundaries between themselves and others. They constantly seek the evaluation of others to judge their own value, their own position, and their own shape... However... if the absence of parents cannot be compensated, blindly indulging in self-pity and indulging in the emotions of a tragic life experience will only make life worse. If you do not establish your own value, your own position and shape, no matter how many people recognize you, it will be nothing."

"..."

"Naruto, as long as I think that you might be lost in such a void, I feel... Even if you think I am inexplicable and self-righteous, I must talk to you about this. Because I hope you can be happy."

Naruto whispered, "What about you, Asano? Have you found your own value, place, and shape?"

"Hmm... have you found the way?" I laughed a little embarrassedly. "After leaving Konoha, I got help and instruction from many people. So I hope Naruto can live more freely!"

I pulled out the picture I was going to give him and Shikamaru.

"This is the apology gift I prepared for you and Shikamaru. Shikamaru has always helped me a lot...so this is the message I wrote to him."

Naruto took the still, frowned slightly at the message on the back, and fell silent.

"I was going to give you the remaining two. But I hadn't figured out what message to write for you, because I had so much to say to you that I couldn't write it all down. But now I know what to write."

Naruto asked curiously, "What is it?"

“Please always put yourself first.”