This was Team Naruto's first meal together, and it wouldn't be their last.
Naruto thought for a moment and extended an invitation to Sasuke and Sakura, "Would you like to come to my place? I'll cook you a feast."
"I have no problem with that," Sasuke said coolly, arms crossed.
Rock Lee had once visited Naruto's home and enjoyed a meal personally cooked by Naruto. His feedback afterward was: "Cuisine fit for the gods."
This made Sasuke rather uncomfortable. After all, as Naruto's best friend, he hadn't even been to Naruto's place.
So, after Naruto proposed it, he feigned indifference and agreed.
Sakura, on the other hand, naturally raised both hands in enthusiastic agreement.
Inner Sakura was even more ecstatic, cheering, This is great! This time we go to Naruto's house, next time we sleep over at Naruto's house, and the time after that, we can...
Girls in the Naruto world really did mature early.
Naruto led Sasuke and Sakura to his home.
The tiny apartment was quite surprising to a young master like Sasuke.
However, though small as a sparrow, it had all the vital organs.
All essential living facilities were present.
A bed, a simple kitchen, a table, and chairs.
The room was tidy and spotless, not at all like a place a boy lived in.
Even Sasuke couldn't help but think in surprise, Even my old house, with servants, wasn't this clean.
His mood instantly dipped.
Before, his family had servants dedicated to cleaning. But now, forget servants, there wasn't a single living soul in his house besides himself.
Moreover, the house was large, making cleaning a huge problem.
After the massacre, Sasuke had been forced to learn everyday skills like cooking and cleaning.
But no matter how hard he tried, his culinary skills were terrible.
In his eyes, cooking was the most difficult skill in the world to learn.
Naruto's talent was indeed impressive, but could he possibly also possess excellent cooking skills? Could he truly be all-powerful?
Naruto paid no mind to Sasuke's skeptical gaze. He twirled a kitchen knife with a few impressive flourishes and said confidently, "We don't have enough ingredients at home. Sasuke, could you go buy some meat? Sakura, could you please buy some vegetables?"
"Okay, Naruto~~~ I'll be back soon! I'm really looking forward to your cooking; it must be delicious~" Sakura felt her heart bursting with happiness.
If she told Ino about this, Ino would definitely shriek with excitement alongside her.
When they returned home after buying the ingredients, Naruto was already wearing a white apron, greeting them with a gentle expression. "Thank you for your hard work."
He began to process the ingredients swiftly.
Washing, chopping, marinating.
His practiced movements clearly indicated an experienced hand.
"Wow, a man who cooks is so handsome!" Sakura sat on a chair, cupping her face, looking utterly smitten.
In her eyes, Naruto was wielding the kitchen knife, elegantly gliding it through the meat. In the blink of an eye, the meat was perfectly cut into uniformly sized pieces.
Watching Naruto handle the ingredients was like watching the conductor of a symphony orchestra—elegant and confident. Every ingredient was perfectly processed in an extremely short amount of time.
Under Sasuke's puzzled gaze, Naruto took out a sheet of plastic wrap, placed it under a piece of meat, and his knife moved with extreme speed, processing the ingredient.
"Cooking is actually a form of training. You calm your mind, focus on handling the ingredients, and use the most appropriate amount of force, not a bit more, not a bit less."
Naruto finished processing the meat in a very short time, set it aside, and picked up the plastic wrap from underneath it.
It was still smooth and pristine, completely unmarked by any cuts.
Sasuke watched this scene with a stunned expression, a glimmer of understanding in his eyes:
"So that's it! I finally understand why you're so strong! It's because you've integrated training into your daily life! I get it now!"
As Naruto and Sakura stared in bewilderment, Sasuke's hands began to fly through hand seals with incredible speed, a confident smile playing on his lips. "From now on, no matter the situation, I will use all my effort to practice hand seals, making use of every spare moment!"
"Effort is good, but it needs to be balanced with rest," Naruto nodded.
He then fully immersed himself in cooking. Half an hour later.
A table laden with dishes, appealing in color, aroma, and taste, was ready.
Mapo Tofu, Salmon Sushi, savory Fish Soup, Steak, and Stir-fried Pork with Green Peppers.
"Come on, try it and give me some feedback, please~~" Naruto made a courteous gesture.
"Hmph, my standards are very high, you know," Sasuke cleared his throat, secretly swallowing a mouthful of saliva.
After the massacre of his clan, he hadn't eaten a decent home-cooked meal in a very long time.
"Then I won't stand on ceremony!" Sakura, at the side, eagerly picked up a piece of tofu and popped it into her mouth.
The spicy, savory, and fresh flavors exploded in her mouth. Sakura's eyes widened, feeling as if her entire being had ascended to heaven.
"How... how can it be... so delicious?!"
Sasuke, still skeptical, took a bite of the stir-fried pork with green peppers. His eyes widened slightly, and all his doubts about Naruto instantly vanished.
"This cooking..." He looked at Naruto in disbelief.
Naruto's culinary skills had actually surpassed those of his own mother, Mikoto.
How was this possible?
He clearly spent every day training.
"Well, how does it taste?" Naruto wiped his hands, sat down at the table, and asked with a smile.
"It's wonderful! Naruto, you're too amazing! Your future wife will be so happy," Sakura praised lavishly.
"Hmph, it's passable, I guess," Sasuke snorted, his gaze slightly evasive, but the speed of his hand didn't slow down.
"Barely edible," Sasuke's chopsticks darted quickly towards the other dishes.
"Hey, you're really not honest, are you?" Sakura pouted, looking a bit disdainful. In that instant, Inner Sakura possessed her, speaking her mind.
Seeing Sasuke's slightly displeased look, Sakura gave a delicate huff, placed a piece of meat in Naruto's bowl, acting entirely like the lady of the house. "Naruto, you worked hard. Eat more."
"Tch!" Sasuke couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. Naruto was his friend; what right did this interloper Sakura have to act so familiar?
So, Sasuke said to Naruto, "The steak is good. Eat more of it."
"But you haven't even eaten the steak yet," Sakura immediately retorted.
"You!!!" Sasuke's eyes widened.
Naruto paid no attention to their bickering. He adjusted his glasses and first sampled his salmon sushi.
It tasted pretty good.
However, there was a small flaw in the knife work when preparing the salmon, which affected the texture.
This was an error he shouldn't have made. Indeed, he still wasn't focused enough.
"By the way, Naruto, why do you wear glasses?" During the meal, Sasuke asked curiously.
"Yeah, yeah! Naruto-kun, you're not nearsighted, are you? I really want to see what Naruto-kun looks like without his glasses!" Sakura chimed in from the side.
Hearing the question, Naruto was visibly stunned for a moment, then a meaningful smile appeared on his face:
"Until the right time comes, I won't be taking off my glasses, you know."
Sasuke and Sakura were completely bewildered and wanted to ask more, but they were interrupted:
"Eat up, eat up. You need strength when you're full. Tomorrow will be a tough battle."
Time passed in a relatively heartwarming atmosphere.
In the blink of an eye, night fell. The three of them parted ways and headed home.