【𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄】

𝐂𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄

          iruka cleared his throat. “today’s class is about survival cooking. field meals, prep basics, non-lethal food. you’ll be working in pairs.” he held up a box. “random draw.”

          the kitchen was alive with the sizzle of ingredients and the soft hum of cooking appliances. iruka's announcement sent a wave of groans through the room, with naruto whispering a repeated prayer, "please not sasuke. please not sasuke."

          shikamaru face-planted onto the counter, his arms sprawled out like a defeated warrior. "this is gonna suck." iruka pulled out the names, his voice steady and detached.

Iruka pulled the first names.“Uzumaki and Inuzuka.”“Haruno and Nara.”“Hyuga and Abarame.”

          and then, he announced "Kocho Ameiko… and Uchiha Sasuke," the room fell silent. eyes snapped to the unlikely pair, their faces a mixture of shock and curiosity.

          dead silence. like, full chakra-deadening, every-eye-snap-to-Ameiko silence.

          ino made a noise like a dying cat. “sasuke? with her?” she whispered, disbelief written in her face. on the other hand, sakura dropped her laddle—horror written in her face, while repeatedly say “ “no way! no way! ”

          hinata blinked hard, already imagining the mood. while, naruto just mouthed, “what—WHAT—” in increasing agony. across the room, kiba whispered, “that’s gonna be the weirdest vibe in the room, guaranteed.” beside him, shikamaru muttered, “troublesome. definitely explosive.”

“two most good-looking people.... in the same team....”

“i feel like i just lose in a war, that hasn't started yet”

“i hate to admit this, but they look perfect”

unfortunately, sakura and ino heard that. “shut your trap!”

          sasuke didn’t flinch. he just stood up, his expression a mask of indifference. ameiko followed, her movements smooth and unhurried, like a summer breeze on a still day.

          their station was quiet. tense. uncharted. two people who hadn’t even had a real conversation yet…

now sharing a cutting board.

          sasuke glanced sideways once. then twice. she was tying her sleeves back with the same gaceful, mechanical, and a𝗅most ceremonial moves.

          suddenly, “have you cooked before?” she asked, wearing her usual soft smile while gently adjusting a rice scoop—her head tilted, waiting for his response. sasuke paused, slightly taken aback but still replied a short—“not much.”

           ameiko hummed, smile never leaving her porcelain face. “i see. then we’ll both improvise.”

It wasn’t flirtation.It wasn’t mockery.but for sasuke, it was worse. it was polite.

          sasuke awkwardly peeled a potato. ameiko neatly trimmed radish petals like a surgeon. while the whole class was gawking at the duo.

           sakura kept looking over, hands tightening to the laddle. ino fumed. “why is she acting all serene like she’s hosting a tea ceremony?!” naruto slammed his spatula. “i don’t get it. he doesn’t even talk to girls!” eyes darkening as he watches both silent figures. hinata whispered to no one. “she’s… really gentle with her hands.” meanwhile, choji added, “i’d eat her food first.”

          shikamaru sat up just enough to see their station. “…they’re weirdly in sync,” he said. “no, no, no,” sakura muttered, proudly. “sasuke doesn’t sync with people. he broods. that’s his thing.”

          meanwhile, back at their table, ameiko poured seasoning over the pan with precise, feather-light movements. sasuke didn’t say anything, but his eyes narrowed with something like… focus. sasuke's gaze flicked to ameiko, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in her precise movements.

          then, when she handed him the knife, their fingers brushed.

barely. but he still went a bit still.

          sensing his sudden halt, she murmured—ever so softly, like mother's whispers. “careful. the edge is newly sharpened.” sasuke's response was only a curt nod, his fingers wrapping around the knife handle with a precision that bordered on reverence, ignoring the forming foreign feeling in his chest.

          by the time iruka checked their meal, their station was the only one not covered in steam, spilled water, or sauce explosions.

          sasuke’s half was plain but neat. ameiko’s was… delicate. Balanced. A little beautiful, somehow.

          Iruka blinked, then smiled. “You two… did well.”

          naruto yelled from the back, “they’ve never even talked before today!! how is this fair?!” ino practically combusted. “we need to redo the pairing system—that’s the problem.” sakura crossed her arms so hard it cracked a knuckle. “he’s not even smirking. this is worse than if he liked her.” she said with worry written on her face.

          during the chaos, ameiko’s smile was a gentle curve, her eyes crinkling at the corners as she offers offered sasuke a napkin—just as he wiped his hand on his own. Their hands hovered awkwardly in midair for a moment too long, a moment of hesitation. then, sasuke said nothing as he took the napkin.

          ameiko bowed. soft. elegant. like paying respect to someone important. “thank you for your help” sasuke stared, before saying “ hn. ” then, looks away. ameiko just smiled. as usual. as always.

𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐈𝐊𝐎 𝐊𝐎𝐂𝐇𝐎 didn’t charm with effort.she charmed by existing.

And somehow…the class had a new situation to obsess over.

【𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄】

when i wrote this chapter, i was fighting my sleep demon paralysis because it kept making me drowsy and sleepy like DUDE STOP FLIRTING WITH ME! (i wrote this at devil hours, so i was fighting the demon but the demon was actually me)

anyways, another update! yey! just bored, that's all. also, i forgot to mention—this book is SLOWBURN not too much tho. just a little. just slight. just enough. so yeah, if you're worried that ino, hinata and sakura might not be on the list, then don't worry! they are your og princesses (and many more), we can't have them gone in our list. and since this is slowburn, i made sure to SLOWLY yet SURELY attracts them to our main character. FEMALE LOVE INTERESTS!

and my birthday will be in a few days, four days to be exact. i'll definitely update on that day!

until then, 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐊 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆, 𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒 🫀