"Hey, hey! Damn it, we're still here!" Jealousy twisted Inuzuka Kiba's face.
Akamaru poked his head out from Kiba's jacket and barked in agreement, "Woof woof woof! Woof woof!"
Kurenai-sensei watched Feng An and Hinata with an amused, almost aunt-like smile.
Realizing the attention, Hinata quickly scurried behind Kurenai-sensei to hide.
Feng An glanced at Kiba and silently began forming hand seals.
Recognizing the familiar movements, Kiba immediately thought of that terrifying Great Fireball. He quickly ducked behind a house and shouted, "Kurenai-sensei, he's going to kill me!"
Kurenai raised an eyebrow, her interest in Feng An growing. Is he specializing in Fire Release? His hand signs were slow enough for her to easily identify the Fire Release:Great Fireball Technique. But she sensed no chakra building within him, so she saw no need to intervene.
Seeing Kiba hide so quickly, a slight smile touched Feng An's lips. His intention was only to scare him; otherwise, a single Tiger seal would have sufficed.
"The mission is complete. Let's head back," Kurenai announced.
"Wait a minute, Kurenai-sensei," Feng An said. "Kiba, come help me too."
Kiba peeked out a few times, realized Feng An was just bluffing, and ran over with an awkward grin. "What's up?"
"To bring back these spoils of war, of course," Feng An replied, then swung a wild boar nearly his own height toward Kiba. "Catch."
Immediately, the two each grabbed a pair of pig's trotters, carrying four boars between them. But with their hands full, several carcasses remained on the ground.
Seeing their dilemma, Hinata offered, "I'll help too."
Feng An quickly shook his head. "No need. We can't even finish these four. Besides," he added with a glance at their sensei, "even if we took more, Kurenai-sensei is here. How could she possibly let you carry them?"
Hinata nodded. "Understood."
Kurenai crossed her arms and gave him a look. This kid is quite the sarcastic one. I wonder who he learned it from.
"Let's go quickly. The sun is almost setting," she said.
Feng An and Kiba then hoisted two boars each onto their backs and hurried back to the village.
By nightfall, the team had returned to the training ground to report the mission's completion. After Feng An put down his boards, he did a quick count and found the numbers didn't add up.
"Kiba, did you bring back three?"
"No, I wanted to carry one more, but I didn't have a free hand." Kiba was nearby, gathering firewood.
That's strange.
"I brought it back," an emotionless voice stated beside Feng An.
Feng An jumped in surprise and looked sideways. "Oh, it's Shino. That makes sense. Your stealth technique is amazing, completely silent."
Shino Aburame: "..."
Feng An then found a suitable spot and set up a makeshift roasting stand. Before long, Kiba and Hinata returned with large piles of branches.
With everything ready, Feng An quickly formed hand seals.
Poof!
Instantly, a fireball one meter in diameter shot from his mouth.
Fortunately, Kurenai-sensei was alert. She quickly scooped up the nearby Hinata and flashed backward.
Feng An immediately noticed his chakra control had slipped again and had already moved away himself. Only Kiba wasn't quick enough to dodge, yelping as the flames singed his rear. Akamaru promptly… extinguished them.
"What are you trying to do with that kind of power?!" Kurenai questioned.
Feng An looked awkward. "I didn't mean to. I was holding back, but I didn't expect it to still be so strong."
Kiba, now flame-free, climbed up with a mournful face. "You did that on purpose! You're getting back at me for interrupting you and Hinata earlier! Kurenai-sensei, please side with me!" He ran toward their teacher.
Behind him, Hinata fidgeted, her hands twisting together shyly. "We… we weren't being like that at all…"
What is that awful smell?! Kurenai frowned, sniffing the air. She realized it was coming from Kiba. "Don't come any closer. Go get your revenge on Feng An; I allow it." She held one index finger to her nose and used her other hand to push Kiba's face away, preventing him from getting closer.
"How am I supposed to fight him? I'm a close-range fighter! Am I supposed to chase after someone who can casually spit a five-meter fireball?" Kiba was on the verge of tears. It wasn't that he didn't want to fight; he simply couldn't. Fire Release's wide-area advantage made engaging Feng An foolish.
"Ahem." Feng An scratched his head and coughed twice. "Although there was a small accident… look, the branches are burning."
Everyone: "..."
Before long, the group had polished off several boars, leaving only half a roasted pig. Everyone seemed full—except for Hinata, whose eyes remained fixed on the remaining meat. She swallowed her saliva but didn't suggest eating more, not wanting to seem gluttonous.
But how could Feng An not know her thoughts? She was a girl who could set records at Ichiraku Ramen. No wonder she seems so petite; she must not be eating properly.
However, with everyone around, he couldn't very well point out that a girl could eat four pigs and still be hungry. That would be dangerous.
Feng An barely stopped himself from asking Hinata if she was still hungry. "Kurenai-sensei, should we roast this last half too?"
Kurenai wiped the oil from her mouth and waved a hand. "I'm much too full."
Feng An then looked at Kiba. "Kiba?"
Kiba first asked Akamaru, who was lying in his arms. "Akamaru, are you still eating?"
"Woof woof." Akamaru shook his head.
Kiba lay back in a sprawl. "I can't eat anymore. Can you still eat?"
"Hmm, I'm not full yet," Feng An stated without batting an eye.
Kiba stared at Feng An's visibly bulging stomach. Are you serious?
Feng An turned his head. "Hinata?"
"I…" Hinata hesitated for a long moment. "I'm not hungry. You eat."
Feng An nodded. "Then I'll just roast and eat it myself. You all head back first; it's getting late."
"Don't eat yourself to death," Kiba said, standing up and giving Feng An's stomach a scornful look.
It was very late. Everyone had wanted to leave for a while, but no one had taken the initiative.
Kurenai-sensei patted the dirt off herself. "Then we're really leaving. You don't need us to stay with you a bit longer?"
Feng An blinked, sizing up Kurenai-sensei. "Sensei can stay with me if she wants."
Feeling his intense gaze, Kurenai glared at him. "You can just stay here and feed the wolves." With that, she leaped lightly away.
Seeing Feng An seriously preparing to roast more, Kiba didn't linger either. "Feng An, I'm leaving first." He called to Hinata, "Hinata, you don't need to stay with him either. By the time he finishes, it'll be ages."
Hinata nodded, but her body showed no intention of leaving. She just stood up and paced back and forth.
Once everyone was gone, Feng An's lips curved into a smile. "It'll be ready soon, Hinata. Come here quickly." He added more firewood, making the flames leap higher.
He just said he was very hungry. If I join him, he definitely won't get full… Hinata reluctantly tore her gaze from the roasting pig. "I'm not hungry. I'll just stay here with you for a bit and then go back."
"But Hinata… the drool at the corner of your mouth…"
*****
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