Chapter 23
Tenten took a deep breath, her small hands forming seals slowly. Then, she slammed her palm down on the rune. The next second, with a poof, a shuriken appeared on the scroll.
"I-I did it! I have space-time ninjutsu talent!"
Tenten jumped up with joy, her face full of bright smiles. The frustrations she had about her lack of strength, the confusion about her future—all of it was swept away in an instant.
It was like she had finally found her path.
Yes, maybe she really had found her path!
Natsuki watched Tenten's radiant expression, genuinely happy for her.
Even though he already knew Tenten had a natural talent for space-time ninjutsu, being a plot-knower was one thing—seeing it firsthand was another. A cute girl's smile really was contagious.
As for those suggestions he gave earlier—genjutsu, medical ninjutsu—Tenten didn't have any talent in those areas. But he still brought them up so she would try everything and find out for herself. Otherwise, how could she believe it? Luckily, she was still young. Testing talents early meant she could settle on the right path sooner and work toward it with full focus.
Since Natsuki had decided to stick with this little rich girl, he was naturally going to help her however he could. After all, getting stronger together was the ideal outcome.
Tenten carefully returned the shuriken to the scroll, then respectfully handed the scroll back to Shino. She bowed deeply to both him and Natsuki, her eyes filled with gratitude.
"Natsuki, Shino, thank you both so much!"
"You're welcome." Shino's expression shifted ever so slightly. Maybe, just maybe, in that moment, it wasn't about helping Natsuki chase a girl—it was about the joy of helping a friend.