Three girls looked at each other, stunned into silence by this shocking news.
Thinking they hadn't understood, Hinata fanned the flames, saying, "Well, Ryun-kun envies the big family lifestyle and wants to establish a big family, so he wants to marry the four of us—"
Her explanation only made things worse; after she finished, red steam rose from the top of all four girls' heads.
For an instant, the room fell silent, and even Ryun's own heart clenched with tension.
He knew he was taking a risk, but still, as the saying goes, what if it worked?
As for whether this would anger everyone and make them cut off all contact with him from then on, Ryun wasn't too worried about that.
Another way of interpreting "cutting off contact" was simply giving Ryun an opportunity to start over!
With the simulator in hand, it was only a matter of time before Ryun won them all back.
Meanwhile, outside the room, the two women showed different smiles.
Anko looked as if she was watching a play, even more excited than Ryun, the party concerned.
As for Kurenai Yūhi, while she also marveled at this youthful comedy, she felt a slight emptiness in her heart.
If she had agreed to Ryun's feelings back then, would he have stopped with just her? — Impossible, wasn't there still Anko?
"Ryun!"
Tenten was the first to shout, her eyes red as she grabbed Ryun's neck, looking as if she would strangle him to death right there.
She knew Ryun might actually like other girls, and had even prepared herself to be abandoned.
After all, compared to the others, she felt she really didn't have much of an advantage.
But she had never, ever imagined that Ryun would try to conquer them all, and all at once!
Did he see them as such easy conquests in his eyes?
"Tenten-senpai, Ryun-kun's eyes are rolling back!"
Hinata tried to step forward and stop her, but Ino and Sakura held Hinata back, saying, "Don't pity him! This guy is so bold and fickle, how did we never know this before?"
"Right, right! And here we were, caring so much about him in our hearts, and he goes and does something like this!"
Ino and Sakura were not to be outdone; at this moment, it even seemed like they might join forces to elbow Ryun, this cheating scumbag.
But only they themselves knew the secret delight in their hearts.
Because Ryun liked them, not just Tenten; the situation hadn't reached the worst possible outcome.
As for Ryun being fickle... well, it wasn't like Ryun had done anything beyond liking them and confessing, it wasn't like he had actually cheated. In reality, they didn't really have the right to blame Ryun right now.
As for Tenten, seeing that Ryun truly wasn't fighting back, she instinctively loosened her grip.
She didn't actually want to hurt Ryun, especially since he was still in the hospital.
Ryun pretended his eyes had rolled back, but was actually sensing the girls' states.
Tenten was genuinely angry. As Ryun's first female friend, she must have had many fantasies about Ryun, and Ryun had reciprocated her feelings.
So, facing Tenten, Ryun needed to comfort her sincerely.
As for Ino and Sakura, they both knew Ryun's feelings for Tenten ran deep, and were now secretly delighted. So, for Ryun, just rapidly deepening his bond with Tenten would be enough.
As for Hinata—Hinata's situation was quite special; there was a layer of political alliance between them now.
Therefore, Ryun least needed to worry about Hinata turning against him, and Hinata's personality also meant she was the easiest to soothe.
Having decided on the plan to pick them off one by one, Ryun made his move.
He suddenly hugged Tenten tightly, pulling her into his arms, his lips approaching her ear as he whispered, "There, there, Tenten. I really do like you. I like you the most."
"No matter what, I will marry you. You don't need to worry about that, unless someday I meet an untimely end."
Tenten froze, tears streaming down her cheeks.
So he really did like her the most after all—thinking this, Tenten suddenly didn't feel so angry anymore.
It wasn't like Ryun had secretly dated other girls behind her back, right?
Feeling Ryun's familiar warmth and scent, especially when his hand gently stroked her hair, Tenten's body slowly relaxed, leaning against him.
Of course, she wouldn't forgive Ryun just like that, but hearing him say he liked her, at this moment, Tenten was already intoxicated.
[Ding, intimate relationship established with the ninja Tenten, simulation count +5.]
Upgraded!
Ryun's eyes lit up slightly; it seemed Tenten ultimately couldn't refuse his feelings.
As for Tenten herself, though she didn't say it out loud, she acknowledged it in her heart.
As the one who had known Ryun the longest, interacted with him the most, and even received his bloodline feedback once, Tenten truly couldn't easily forget Ryun now.
Unless Ryun did something truly heinous, but obviously, Ryun wouldn't destroy his own character.
Meanwhile, Ino and Sakura stared blankly at this scene. Weren't the four sisters supposed to unite and elbow the scumban?
First, Hinata stopping the fight was one thing, but Tenten, how could you just surrender like that?
Ino and Sakura exchanged a glance. Their long experience of vying for boys told them that their situation was now dangerous.
If Ryun gave up on liking several people from now on, Tenten would be the biggest winner.
How could that be allowed!
The two girls understood each other tacitly, pulling Tenten away, saying, "Tenten, you can't indulge him like this!"
"Right, right! We have to correct this dangerous idea of his, stop him from becoming a playboy!"
"So, Tenten, you have to reject him! Say it out loud!"
Surrounded by Ino and Sakura, Tenten, who had just been enjoying Ryun's embrace, looked a bit dazed.
Seeing Tenten hesitate to speak, Ino and Sakura's tacit understanding surged again; they joined forces and pushed Tenten out.
"Tenten, you're too soft-hearted. Leave it to us to teach him a lesson!"
"Right, right! We'll make him submit completely, and then he'll only like you."
"Huh? Is... is that so? I—"
Tenten was pushed out of the room in a daze, only to see Kurenai looking at her with an amused expression. Her face instantly turned bright red.
Her heart was in turmoil, and she didn't know what to do. She simply sat down, facing Kurenai respectfully, as if waiting for Kurenai's scolding.
Kurenai also felt a headache coming on. She had only stayed to prevent the girls from fighting, not to counsel them! Her own feelings were a tangled mess she didn't know how to sort out.
Don't look at me like that—Kurenai knew she couldn't avoid it, so she simply said, "Actually, you don't need to be so angry, Tenten."
"Love, well—you're still young. A few years of squabbling is nothing."
"Unlike us older women, we have more to consider. Having children, housing, education—"
The confusion in Tenten's eyes instantly cleared. The harsh fist of reality made her immediately wave her hands, smiling, "Um, Kurenai Tokubetsu Jōnin, we're not at that stage yet, hahaha... Sorry for making you laugh."
"It's fine. As long as you young people are happy."
Having seen Tenten off, Ino and Sakura decided to make their move.
They weren't about to give up just like that; otherwise, how had they managed to compete for years in the Ninja Academy?
The most important thing now was to make sure Ryun didn't get the idea of only liking Tenten from now on.
As for what to do afterward, they'd figure that out later.
"Ryun, do you realize you were wrong?"
"That's right, Ryun. You've disappointed us."
Ryun looked left, then right, and finally nodded dejectedly, saying, "I understand. I shouldn't have presumed that I could like you all simultaneously."
"Indeed, I should just follow the standard path of life with Tenten step by step... Sorry, let's just consider today's events a daydream of mine."
"Wait, that's not what we meant!"
"Yes, what we meant was—"
Ino and Sakura looked at each other, both hoping the other would come up with a suitable explanation.
But what could they think of in such a hurry? Finally, Sakura gritted her teeth and said, "It's not like I don't like you at all... Actually, I like you too."
Ino stared at Sakura in shock. How could Sakura just rush in like that?
Sakura's face had turned the color of a peach, but she still winked at Ino, trying to tell her this was a stalling tactic.
Ah, a stalling tactic... well, that might be okay.
"Yeah, I actually have good feelings for you too. If we're talking about liking, I suppose that works too—"
Ino twirled a strand of hair around her finger, her fingertips trembling slightly as she spoke.
But she had to pretend to criticize Ryun nonchalantly, so she continued, "However, that doesn't mean you can confess to several of us at the same time. What kind of behavior is that? We won't accept it!"
"That's right, we won't accept it!"
Ino and Sakura thought they had found their rhythm again, but the gap between them and Ryun's level was still far too great.
"You like me?"
"I don't believe it."
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
📖 Like the story? Read 120 chapters ahead!
🔗 patreon.com/atomelectron
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━