CHAPTER 3
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TWO MONTHS LATER
"NARUTO, WHY HAVEN'T I met any of your friends before?" Yuri lifted her gaze so that she was looking at the yellow-haired boy. Her head was laying on his lap comfortably while he stared at the overhanging trees absentmindedly.
Naruto hummed in response, opening his eyes to look at the girl while managing to sit up on his elbows. "I don't know."
"That's not an answer." She crossed her arms stubbornly.
He sighed. "I guess... I finally have something that's personal and that's mine. I don't wanna share it, ya know? I don't want anybody to ruin it, 'cause it's the best damn thing I've had in a long time."
She smiled thoughtfully. "I respect that. I don't really need to meet them, as long as I know you have people in your life that make you happy."
The knucklehead smiled goofily. "You make me happy."
"That was cheesy." She laughed, nudging him affectionately.
"You do!" Naruto defended, bringing himself up a bit so that he could lean back on his arms.
"You make me happy too." Yuri smiled brightly.
He adjusted the lily flower behind his ear, the slightly wilted one that had turned a beautiful brown with a tint of white. "I think Sasuke and I made progress."
"Oh, really?" She inquired curiously, bringing her legs closer to herself.
"Yeah!" He nodded. "We don't fight so much anymore. I consider him a better friend now."
"That's so great, Naru." She smiled a bit.
"Hey, but what about you?" Naruto leaned downwards to get closer.
"What about me?" Yuri returned the question, humming.
"You've never talked about yourself. How old are you really? What's your last name? Do you have parents? Are you a kunoichi? Is there anything extraordinarily special about you?" He took a minute to think of the bigger words, but at the end he raised his brows in curiosity.
She answered in order. "I'm turning thirteen in a few days." She sighed. "I'm from the Hayashi clan."
"Whoa, you're part of the family with the best kekkei genkai, and heiress?" He quizzed excitedly, his eyes widening.
"Yes." She gave him an amused smile. "I'm a specially trained kunoichi, so I train under the Hokage, and I have a marking on my back that means that I'm from the main branch of my family." She finished, biting her lip.
"Can I... Can I see it?" He asked awkwardly, letting out a small laugh.
"Sure." She murmured, turning around so that her back was facing him. She then pulled the spaghetti straps of her dress off of her shoulders, causing her dress to falter a bit until it was shown.
"Wow!" Naruto breathed, running his warm fingers over the purple markings. She tensed at the sudden skin contact, but relaxed after a few seconds of him doing the same thing.
"It's not a big deal." Yuri murmured again.
Naruto forcefully made her turn back around so that he could look into her eyes. "I don't think I've ever told you this, but,"
"You're so pretty."