NS

The warm summer evening at Ichiraku Ramen was supposed to be a celebration after a long mission. Friends laughed, bowls of ramen disappeared as quickly as Ayame could serve them, and someone had the bright idea to play Truth or Dare. It started harmlessly. Until Kiba smirked across the table. “Naruto… I dare you to ask Destiny out.” Naruto rolled his eyes. “Seriously? That’s the dare?” Shikamaru immediately frowned. ”…Kiba, don’t.” Sai tilted his head. “This experiment has approximately a fifty percent success rate.” Sasuke sighed, already annoyed. “You’re all idiots.” Gaara glanced toward Destiny, who was laughing with Sakura, Ino, Temari, Hinata, and Tenten. Something about the dare didn’t sit right with him. But before anyone could stop it… Naruto stood up. ⸻ Across the restaurant, Destiny was laughing at one of Ino’s stories when she noticed Naruto walking toward their table. He wasn’t looking at anyone else. He was looking at her. Her smile slowly grew. “Is… is he coming over here?” she whispered. Sakura’s heart dropped. ”…Oh no.” Hinata nervously clasped her hands together. “Please don’t let this be what I think it is…” Naruto stopped in front of Destiny, rubbing the back of his neck. “Hey.” She smiled brightly. “Hi, Naruto.” He smiled back. “I was wondering if maybe… you’d want to go out with me sometime?” For a second… Destiny couldn’t breathe. Her eyes sparkled. A huge smile spread across her face. ”…Really?” Naruto nodded. “Yeah.” She laughed happily, tears already threatening to spill. “I’d love to.” She covered her face, trying to hide how emotional she was. “I honestly thought… you’d never ask.” Behind her, Sakura looked away. Ino quietly whispered, ”…She really thought this was real.” Temari folded her arms tightly. “This is going to destroy her.” ⸻ On the other side of the restaurant… The guys had stopped smiling. Choji quietly muttered, ”…I’ve got a bad feeling.” Gaara watched Destiny’s expression.