"I'm leaving."
Click—
Sakiya gently closed the door behind her and let out a sigh.
She rubbed her face with both hands, trying to wake herself up.
Today was supposed to be a day off. She had planned to stay home and relax, but her mother had other ideas.
She had slept until noon, gotten up just to eat, and then planned to lounge around for the rest of the day.
But instead, she was kicked out.
Still groggy, Sakiya blinked a few times, standing there in a daze.
"Hmm... I guess I'll go find Ino."
She wasn't sure what she wanted to do, but visiting Ino was always a safe bet.
With that, she started walking toward Ino's house.
---
Meanwhile, just behind a nearby wall...
Tsuchiya and Sakuragi were pressed against it, carefully hiding as Sakiya passed by.
They held their breath.
Only when she was far enough away did they finally exhale in relief.
"She finally came out."
"We've been waiting forever."
"But it was worth it!"
The two exchanged excited smiles before quickly moving to an intersection ahead of Sakiya's path.
Through a small gap, they watched as she approached.
Sakuragi pulled out a handful of candies.
Tsuchiya hesitated for a moment.
"Are we really doing this?"
Sakuragi grinned.
"Of course! This is Plan A."
Tsuchiya scratched his head.
"Wait... but we don't even have a Plan B."
"Stop overthinking! Hurry up, she's coming!"
Without another word, Sakuragi began dropping candies in a neat, straight line along the path.
Tsuchiya kept watch, making sure Sakiya was still heading in their direction.
Sure enough, as soon as she turned the corner, her eyes immediately locked onto the row of candy on the ground.
She stopped in her tracks and smirked.
"Hah! Did they really think they could trick me with something this simple? My eyes see through all deception!"
With that, she ignored the candy completely and kept walking straight ahead.
Tsuchiya stared in disbelief.
"Wait... did our trap really fail that badly?"
Now that he thought about it, it really was a pretty simple trick.
Of course, someone like Sakiya wouldn't fall for something so childish.
Sakiya walked forward with determination but suddenly stopped. She glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then sneaked a look at the candy on the ground, hesitating.
After a brief pause, she bent down and picked one up.
Tsuchiya, watching from his hiding spot, held his breath.
She picked it up!
Sakiya examined the candy for a moment, unwrapped it, and popped it into her mouth.
One second. Two seconds...
Her eyes lit up instantly, sparkling with excitement.
Without hesitation, she started collecting more candies, following the trail left on the ground.
Tsuchiya was dumbfounded.
Didn't she just say she wouldn't fall for such a simple trick?!
He could only watch in disbelief as Sakiya followed the candy path right to an intersection.
Now, it was time for her to make a choice.
She looked to the left—toward Ino's house.
Then she looked to the right...
More candy.
After a brief 0.5-second thought process, she made her decision.
Right!
Tsuchiya's eyes widened.
"She just gave up on her original plan that easily?!"
He sighed.
"Well... I guess Sakiya's priorities are easy to understand."
---
At Training Ground No. 8
Sakuragi smirked as he observed the scene unfold from a distance.
Nearby, Ino, Shikamaru, Naruto, and the others were watching as well.
Ino frowned.
"You guys are awful. You actually made a bet on Sakiya?"
Shikamaru chuckled.
"Relax, it's just a joke between friends."
"But I'm betting you're going to lose, Ino."
Ino crossed her arms and huffed.
"No way! Sakiya isn't that gullible!"
Naruto scratched his head awkwardly.
"Ino, Sakiya-chan isn't stupid. She's a genius."
Shikamaru nodded.
"Exactly. And don't take it too seriously. It's just for fun."
Sakuragi chuckled.
"Sakiya is an absolute genius... just a little absentminded."
Ino sighed, not really angry. She knew her friends meant no harm—otherwise, she wouldn't have joined the bet in the first place.
"Absentminded? That's an understatement," she muttered.
They waited for a while until Tsukigami Tsuchiya came jogging toward them.
Sakuragi, seeing his confident expression, smirked.
Tsuchiya gave him a nod, and the others exchanged knowing looks.
Ino, however, felt a little uneasy as she stared at the intersection.
Sure enough, within moments, a familiar figure appeared—a blindfolded girl with her arms full of candy, carefully picking up each piece from the ground.
Bend. Pick up. Repeat.
Suddenly, she reached the end of the candy trail.
Sakiya blinked in confusion and looked up, finding her friends staring at her.
Her small, puzzled expression made Ino sigh.
Without hesitation, she walked up and gave Sakiya a light chop on the head.
Smack!
"Ow!"
Sakiya shrank back, wincing as the candy spilled from her arms.
She looked up at Ino with a blank expression.
"Why did you hit me?"
Ino crossed her arms.
"Because you're an idiot! How could you fall for such a simple trick? Even kids wouldn't be fooled!"
Sakiya's cheeks flushed as she quickly tried to defend herself.
"N-no! I wasn't fooled! I was just following the candy trail to uncover the enemy behind it! My 'Eye of Death' sees through all traps! There's no way I'd fall for such a childish—"
Ino interrupted, pinching the bridge of her nose.
"You do realize how ridiculous you sound, right?"
Sakiya ignored her, crouching down and stuffing the spilled candy back into her pouch.
"It's fine. I still got all the candy," she said, pulling out two pieces and offering one to Ino.
Ino hesitated, then sighed and took it.
"Sakiya, do you ever stop to think that this might be poisoned?"
Sakiya tilted her head, confused.
"Huh? No. I've eaten way worse."
Ino facepalmed.
"Your obsession with food needs serious fixing."
Sakiya, completely unfazed, popped two more candies into her mouth.
"Mmm."
Ino sighed in defeat.
"Forget it… maybe you'll grow out of it."
The group exchanged amused smiles.
Ino turned to Shikamaru.
"Alright, a bet's a bet. I'll treat you all to dinner tomorrow."
Chōji raised his fist in excitement.
"Yes!"
Naruto, who had also lost the bet, grinned.
"I want ramen!"
Sakiya perked up instantly, eyes gleaming.
"Me too!"
The group laughed.
"Of course, Sakiya, we wouldn't leave you out."
And just like that, they all enjoyed a fun and carefree holiday together.
---
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