Rengoku, sitting to the side, picked up a plump, juicy shrimp and placed it into Karin's bowl, "I know you can eat, so eat more."
Karin looked at the shrimp in her bowl, stunned for a moment, then immediately started peeling it.
She skillfully handled the shrimp in her hands, but her big eyes kept darting around restlessly, occasionally sneaking glances at Rengoku.
Who knew what kind of little scheme she had in mind.
Before long, Karin finished peeling the shrimp.
But instead of putting it into her mouth to enjoy, she held the shrimp meat and slowly brought it up to Rengoku's lips.
Her clear, bright eyes were wide open, fixed intently on him.
Rengoku smiled and ate the shrimp. After that, Karin carefully started peeling another one for him.
"Don't just peel for me. Eat too. I like watching you eat more."
Rengoku said softly, then picked up a chopstick from the side and walked behind Karin.
Karin keenly sensed that her master had come to stand behind her, but she didn't turn around, because she already knew what he was about to do.
Thinking of this, a shy blush quickly spread across her fair cheeks like the glow of sunset.
Rengoku gently raised his hands and gathered Karin's smooth, glossy long hair, carefully smoothing it out. Then he took the chopstick in his hand and wrapped it around the hair twice.
Next, he pressed the hair in place, deftly twisting the chopstick, hooking the hair in reverse, and smoothly inserting the chopstick into it.
The entire process was natural and fluid. In just a little over ten seconds, Rengoku had successfully styled Karin's long hair into an exquisite and beautiful bun.
Seeing this scene, Ryuri, Kaori, Yakumo, and Shion all revealed warm, knowing smiles.
However, Hinata and Hotaru couldn't help but show looks of surprise.
After all, both of them came from ancient clans and understood very well what it meant to put up someone's hair like this.
At this moment, they were somewhat shocked by the relationship between Rengoku and Karin.
They could only look back and forth between the two with curious, probing gazes.
Only Ajisai remained completely confused, staring blankly at everyone.
Having grown up in the Hidden Rain Village as a helpless orphan, she wasn't familiar with this kind of cultural meaning at all and simply couldn't understand why everyone was reacting this way.
Naruto, on the other hand, was completely clueless. He lightly nudged Hinata with his elbow, wearing a surprised and curious expression as he lowered his voice and said, "Hinata, look! The principal can even do hair buns. That's amazing!"
At that moment, Rengoku happened to sit down slowly, his sharp gaze catching the small interaction between Naruto and Hinata.
A faint smile curled at the corner of his lips as he looked at Naruto, teasing him deliberately, "Naruto, you should learn this skill too. Otherwise, how are you going to put up Hinata's hair in the future?"
Hearing this, Naruto looked completely lost and replied foolishly, "No need. Hinata's hair is tied up."
Hinata also had long, smooth black hair, but since they were eating hot pot tonight, she had specially worn a delicate headband and hair ties to tie it up.
Hearing Naruto's words, Hinata couldn't help but shoot him a slightly reproachful glance, her eyes carrying both a trace of shyness and a hint of dissatisfaction.
Naruto was instantly baffled. He subconsciously scratched his head, muttering to himself, 'Did I say something wrong? Why is Hinata looking at me like that?'
Seeing this, Rengoku couldn't help but laugh silently. Shaking his head, he said to Naruto, "If I tell you to learn, then learn. Why so much nonsense?"
Then Rengoku turned to Hinata and joked with a smile, "Hinata, better not wear hair ties in the future."
Hinata naturally understood that Rengoku was teasing the two of them.
But Naruto had already been holding her hand every day for five years, and now they had long since confirmed their relationship. Her heart was filled with sweetness and happiness.
So Hinata nodded with a flushed face, replying softly and shyly, "I understand, Lord Rengoku."
Naruto might be a bit slow, but at this moment, he still vaguely sensed something unusual.
He nodded firmly and said, "I understand, Principal."
At this moment, Sasuke's eyes seemed to have lost focus, appearing somewhat empty and lifeless.
Beneath that calm exterior, however, his mind was racing like a high-speed machine, thinking frantically.
'No, that's absolutely impossible! Master used to dote on Karin a lot. He must be treating her like his own daughter.'
Sasuke muttered to himself inwardly, trying to convince himself with this line of thought.
Gradually, his gaze regained focus. As if persuading himself, he nodded seriously.
However, despite that, the way his eyes occasionally drifted toward Karin still betrayed his true thoughts.
Sasuke continued observing quietly while pretending nothing was wrong, eating his food as usual.
When he saw Rengoku constantly picking food for Karin and feeding her, for some reason, the tension he had been holding onto eased a little.
'Hmm… this doesn't seem that different from before.'
Sasuke thought to himself. After that, he finally relaxed completely and began to focus on enjoying the delicious dishes in front of him.
Everyone sat together, eating heartily and chatting happily.
The sense of unfamiliarity and distance brought by five years apart quickly faded away in this warm and harmonious atmosphere.
To them, Rengoku was still the same familiar Rengoku.
And for Rengoku, compared to two days ago, nothing had really changed either.
"Ajisai, how many summoning beasts do you have now?"
Rengoku wasn't worried at all about the training limits of the others, but Ajisai's situation was completely different.
She had already entered a bottleneck phase.
After all, the summoning beasts the Uchiha clan could contract were mostly support-type. Whether ninja cats or ninja crows, they didn't do much to enhance Ajisai's combat strength.
Ajisai raised four slender fingers and said softly, "I already have four summoning beasts. It's just that my chakra is too limited, so I can't maintain the contract with them for long."
Rengoku nodded thoughtfully, showing understanding. After all, Ajisai was still quite young.
Then he asked, "You have excellent spatial talent. Have you considered learning the Flying Thunder God Technique?"
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