Hinata had almost lowered her head into the snow beneath her.
Aoba couldn't see her expression at all, but from the tips of her bright red ears, he could still feel her current embarrassment.
He could already see steam rising from her head.
'Is it really that embarrassing?'
Thinking about Hinata's personality, it did seem like it was.
"Grrrr..."
After a long time, Aoba still hadn't seen any Hyuga clan guards come over, but instead, he heard Hinata's stomach growling again.
"Sigh...", Aoba let out a sigh.
"S-Sorry...", Hinata thought she had somehow made him unhappy.
"Do you have money?"
"Y-Yes, I do!", Hinata hurriedly answered, even frantically searching through her small pouch, ready to take out money.
"Stop, stop, stop! I don't want your money," Aoba quickly stopped her actions. Hinata had clearly misunderstood something. While he did want her money, now wasn't the right time.
"Let's go eat ramen together," Aoba originally thought about inviting her to eat at his home since he lived nearby, but then he considered Hinata's appetite and decided against it. The ingredients at home wouldn't be enough for her to consume.
Besides, as the eldest daughter of the Hyuga clan, she wouldn't lack money for a meal.
"Eh?", Hinata stopped rummaging through her bag, looked up in confusion, only to see Aoba's back as he turned around.
"Follow me."
"O-Okay," Not knowing how to refuse, the young lady Hinata cautiously followed behind Aoba.
"T-That... Excuse me..."
"Hm?", Aoba seemed to hear the sound of a mosquito buzzing. He looked around but saw only an expanse of white snow, 'How could there be mosquitoes?'
Finally, he stopped walking, turned around, and curiously asked the girl whose mouth was moving, "Were you speaking just now?"
Hinata instinctively wanted to avert her gaze but forced herself to remain calm and looked at Aoba.
"I-I'm Hyuga Hinata...", Hinata's voice was soft and sticky, making people feel an urge to bully her a little.
"I'm Shirakumo Aoba," After introducing himself, he turned back around and continued leading the way.
But after just a few steps, he asked again, "Since you're from the Hyuga clan, you should be strong, right? Why did those three guys bully you?"
Hinata didn't expect Aoba to suddenly talk to her, and she blurted out her thoughts, "Father taught me to treat everyone in the village kindly."
"They weren't kind to you, though."
"That's because... because..."
"Because you're easy to bully?", Aoba interrupted directly.
Hinata's face immediately turned red again.
"Your father told you to be kind to others, but that doesn't mean you should just accept being bullied without resisting. If you keep being like this, even though I helped you this time, the next time you encounter them, they'll still bully you just like today. When that happens, who will you wait for to help you?"
"I think even your father, if he knew that you wouldn't resist even when being bullied, would probably be even more disappointed in you," This last sentence hit the mark directly. Hinata immediately thought of the disappointed expression Hyuga Hiashi often showed her. Her small hands couldn't help but clench a little tighter.
After a long while, Hinata's soft voice sounded again, still stammering slightly, "I-I won't let it happen again next time."
"Hope so," Aoba had just casually said a few things. Whether she took it to heart or not was up to her.
As they talked, they arrived in front of a ramen shop.
Looking at the sign that read [Ichiraku Ramen], Aoba led Hinata inside.
"Welcome!"
As soon as they entered, a crisp and cheerful voice from Ayame greeted them.
By the time the two of them sat down in a corner, Ayame had already walked up to them.
"Oh, it's little Aoba! Huh? This time, you brought a little girlfriend I haven't seen before," It was clear that Ayame knew Aoba.
Hearing her teasing remark right upon entering, Aoba couldn't help but roll his eyes, "I've told you, she's not my little girlfriend. We're just ordinary friends. Pure friendship."
Hinata, on the other hand, didn't even understand what 'little girlfriend' meant. She only felt that the big sister across from her was looking at her strangely, making her lower her head in embarrassment.
"Little Aoba, I'm just worried that you might accidentally become a heartbreaker in the future. In the novels I read, guys like that always have tragic endings... they even lose their heads," Ayame put on a serious and concerned expression, as if giving him a heartfelt warning.
But Aoba didn't want to entertain this topic and said directly, "I'll have one bowl of signature tonkotsu ramen."
"Hinata, what do you want to eat?"
"Ah? I-I'll have the same as Shirakumo-kun."
Hinata, who had been listening to their conversation, was startled and spoke softly. This was her first time eating dinner outside.
"Then two bowls of signature ramen."
"Got it," After placing the order, Ayame went back to work. Since it was the dinner rush, she had only taken a moment to greet them.
.
.
.
"Here are your signature tonkotsu ramen bowls."
Soon, two bowls of ramen were placed in front of them.
Aoba pushed Hinata's bowl toward her. The rich aroma instantly hit her nose.
"Thank you. Then, I'll begin," Hinata put her hands together for a brief moment before starting to eat.
Aoba didn't bother with such formalities and dug in right away, enjoying the food.
Slurp!
'Delicious!', Hinata's eyes lit up as she ate the ramen.
Aside from the fact that she was truly hungry, the ramen was indeed delicious.
At home, all her meals were nutritionally balanced, and most of them were lightly flavored. Rarely did she get to eat something as rich in flavor as this ramen.
Before long, she had finished a whole bowl.
Then, she blankly stared at the now-empty bowl in front of her.
Unconsciously, she licked her cherry-pink lips, which had a slight sheen of oil.
The thought of having another bowl surfaced, but she quickly shook her head, pushing the thought away.
'I shouldn't behave so impolite outside.'
Still slurping his noodles, Aoba noticed her expression, put down his chopsticks, and seemed to ponder something.
"Hinata."
"Are you full?", Aoba asked softly.
"I... I...", Hinata froze and timidly lifted her head.
She wanted to say she was full since she usually ate much less at home.
'Will eating more make me seem strange?'
But looking at Aoba's serious expression, she hesitated.
His expression grew even more serious.
She really wanted to muster the courage to answer honestly, but she didn't dare.
Yet, despite feeling shy, she also felt strangely happy. This was the first time someone had noticed that she actually wasn't full.
"N-No, I'm not full...", Although her voice was small, Aoba heard it and smiled warmly.
"How many more bowls do you need?"
"...", Hinata clenched the hem of her clothes again. She wanted to say a lower number but was afraid Aoba would be upset.
Since there were no guards around, she could eat a little more. No one would notice...
"F-Four more bowls should be enough."
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