When everyone was ready to sleep, they entered Naruto and Karin's room.
Kushina had mentioned it was spacious, but standing inside, they realized just how huge it actually was.
Despite acting confident in front of everyone earlier, the reality of sleeping in the same room as Naruto was now very real, and it was clear from their slightly awkward expressions that they were all processing it in their own way.
Before Naruto could say anything, Karin grabbed him by the shoulders and started pushing him toward the door.
"Nii-san, go outside and don't peek!" she ordered.
"Ah?" Naruto blinked, suddenly finding himself in the hallway. "Why am I the one getting kicked out of my own room?!"
Inside, Karin turned to face the girls with a knowing smirk.
"Okay, let's be real. I know all of you love Nii-san," she stated bluntly, making them all freeze.
Sakura, Hinata, and Ino immediately tried to deny it—only to end up looking at each other suspiciously when they all spoke at the same time.
Karin chuckled. "Yeah, yeah, sure. Anyway, before you go to sleep, wear these. She handed them each a set of nightclothes.
Since Karin's sleepwear was already loose on her, it ended up being a perfect fit for Hinata, while Ino and Sakura had no trouble adjusting either.
Now changed and somewhat calmer, they sat together, realizing that the night was going to be very interesting.
"I've got a plan. Wanna hear it?" Ino whispered with a mischievous smirk.
The moment she said plan, the other three exchanged wary glances. Anything involving Ino and a plan usually meant trouble.
But this time, the situation was serious—they needed a strategy to confess their feelings to Naruto.
"Alright, let's hear it," Sakura said, crossing her arms.
Ino's smirk widened. "Simple. We all confess at the same time—a group confession."
There was a brief silence.
"A what?" Karin deadpanned.
Hinata turned bright red. "T-Together…?"
Sakura blinked. "This feels like something out of one of Jiraiya's books..."
Even so, after thinking it over, they realized it was the best option. If they hesitated, someone else might confess first, throwing everything into chaos. At least this way, they were on equal ground.
"Fine," Sakura sighed.
"I-If this is the best way, then… okay," Hinata mumbled.
Karin rolled her eyes. "You guys are crazy. But sure, why not?"
With their plan decided, they opened the door, and Karin peeked out.
"Alright, Nii-san, you can come in now."
Naruto stepped in, only to freeze in place.
Four girls, each with their own unique beauty, were waiting for him. The atmosphere felt almost surreal, like something out of a dream.
Karin crossed her arms. "Nii-san, before we go to sleep, we need to talk."
Naruto blinked, glancing at the others. They all nodded, their expressions unreadable.
"Uh… okay? Let's go outside. Under the moonlight—it'll be nice," he suggested, scratching his cheek.
Ino smirked slightly. "Yeah, that sounds perfect." There was a certain weight in her voice, something that hinted tonight was going to be… different.
Quietly, they slipped out of the house, making their way onto the rooftop.
Above them, the full moon bathed everything in silver light, casting long, soft shadows. It was breathtaking, a moment of calm amidst the chaos of their lives.
Naruto took a deep breath, gazing up at the sky. "The moon is beautiful, isn't it?" he murmured.
Ino, Sakura, Karin, and Hinata all stared at Naruto, their faces slowly turning red.
"Did he just…?!"
"Wait, does he know?"
"No way, right?"
The phrase "The moon is beautiful, isn't it?" was an indirect way of saying "I love you" in an old, poetic way. If Naruto was saying this now, under the moonlight, with all of them standing before him…
This confession was supposed to be theirs!
Ino coughed, trying to regain her composure. "Damn it, Naruto, you're making this harder than it should be!"
Sakura took a deep breath. "Okay, focus. We had a plan."
Karin, however, was side-eyeing Naruto suspiciously. "Did he say that on purpose? Or was that just Nii-san being Nii-san…"
Hinata, meanwhile, looked like she was about to pass out.
Naruto, completely unaware of the chaos happening inside their minds, grinned. "So, what did you guys wanna tell me?"
The four girls exchanged glances.
"Alright," Ino said, stepping forward. "We'll say it together."
They all took a deep breath.
"Naruto… we love you!"
Silence.
Naruto blinked. "Huh?"
It took him a full three seconds to process their words.
Then his brain short-circuited.
"…EH!?"
Naruto rubbed his ears, blinking rapidly. "Guys… I think I just heard something insane. Can you repeat that?"
"Nope. Golden words aren't repeated," Karin smirked, crossing her arms.
The other three nodded firmly in agreement.
Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Oh, really? Fine. If you say it again, I'll do anything you ask."
That got their attention.
They exchanged glances before taking a deep breath.
"Naruto… we love you!"
This time, the words hit him like a Rasenshuriken to the brain.
Naruto stood frozen, staring at them. Then, in true Naruto fashion, he clutched his head dramatically.
"Oi, oi, oi! Four girls confessing to me at the same time? Am I dreaming? Did someone hit me with a Genjutsu? I need to get a full-body checkup—there's gotta be something wrong with me!"
Karin rolled her eyes. "Baka Nii-san. This is real."
Hinata stepped forward, her voice soft but firm. "Naruto… you didn't hear wrong. We all love you."
Naruto stared at them, trying to process everything. Finally, he took a deep breath.
"Alright… if you're all serious, then let me ask—are you really okay with sharing me?"
The four of them, without hesitation, nodded.
Naruto let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Then, with a bright grin, he said, "Well, I guess I don't have a choice then. I love you all too… I just never knew how to say it. But since you guys confessed first, there's no way I'm backing down now."
At that moment, under the moonlight, four girls smiled—knowing they had made the right choice.
"Then, take care of me," Naruto said with a grin.
"Same here," all four girls replied in unison, their faces glowing under the moonlight.
Naruto scratched the back of his head. "But since we're talking about this seriously… even though we're together now, when it comes to marriage, there's something you all should know."
The girls tilted their heads in curiosity.
"The first person I really want to marry is Tsunade… and then Shizune after that," he admitted without hesitation.
The four girls, who had just confessed their love and been accepted, suddenly froze.
"What?" Ino blinked, convinced she had misheard.
Sakura's eye twitched. "Excuse me?"
Hinata, who was blushing just a second ago, looked utterly confused.
Karin just sighed, rubbing her temples. "Of course, you'd say something like that."
Naruto, completely oblivious to the storm brewing, grinned. "Yeah! I mean, we're all lovers now, but when it comes to marriage, I really want to marry Tsunade first, then Shizune. What do you guys think? You okay with that?"
A long, tense silence followed.
The four girls exchanged glances, coming to an unspoken agreement.
Then—
SMACK!
Naruto found himself flying off the rooftop, crashing face-first into the ground below.
"BAKA!" The four yelled in perfect unison.
Groaning from the impact, Naruto lifted his head weakly. "Wha—what did I say wrong?"
Sakura cracked her knuckles. "Oh, I don't know… maybe the part where you just told your four girlfriends that you plan to marry other women first?!"
Ino huffed. "Honestly, I should've expected this from you."
Hinata, usually the shy one, even had her hands on her hips. "Naruto-kun… that was not very considerate."
Karin just shook her head. "I should've let you sleep outside tonight."
Naruto groaned, rubbing his head. "Okay, okay! My bad! But seriously, what's wrong with that?"
Sakura grabbed him by the collar, shaking him. "WHAT'S WRONG?! YOU REALLY DON'T KNOW?!"
Naruto blinked. "Uh… no?"
Another round of facepalms from the girls.
Karin sighed. "Look, Nii-san. If you want to marry them first, fine—but maybe don't say that right after we confessed to you?"
Naruto's eyes widened in realization. "Ohhh… so the timing was bad?"
Sakura nearly punched him again. "NO, THE WHOLE THING WAS BAD!"
He gulped. "Okay! Noted! Won't bring it up again! Please don't kill me!"
The girls exchanged another look before sighing.
Ino folded her arms. "Hmph. We'll forgive you this time, but you better make it up to us."
Naruto scratched his cheek sheepishly. "So… does that mean you're all still my girlfriends?"
The four hesitated for a moment before sighing again.
"Yeah, yeah," Karin muttered.
"Just… don't be an idiot again," Ino added.
Naruto grinned, standing up. "Heh, no promises."
That earned him another smack.
Naruto rubbed his head with a sheepish grin. "Alright, now that we're officially together, there's one last ritual to complete."
The four girls looked at him suspiciously. "Ritual?" they asked in unison.
"Yeah," Naruto nodded seriously, crossing his arms. "To seal the confession, we have to kiss. That's the final step."
Silence.
The four girls stared at Naruto as if he had grown a second head.
"Kiss?! Right now?!" Sakura exclaimed, her face turning crimson.
"Yeah! Otherwise, it doesn't count! That's how it works," Naruto said confidently, nodding as if this was some universal rule.
Ino narrowed her eyes. "And who made up this 'ritual' exactly?"
"Uh… me?" Naruto admitted with zero shame.
The girls groaned.
Karin smirked. "You just wanna kiss, don't you, Nii-san?"
Naruto put on his best innocent boy expression. "Nooo… I'm just following proper confession protocol."
Sakura facepalmed. "Why am I in love with this idiot?"
Hinata, blushing furiously, fidgeted. "I-I don't mind… if that's what Naruto-kun wants…"
The moment she said that, the atmosphere shifted.
Ino and Sakura immediately snapped their heads toward her. "EH?!"
Karin just laughed. "Welp, Hinata's in. So, who's going first?"
The tension in the air thickened as all four girls exchanged looks, none of them wanting to lose out.
Naruto, meanwhile, stood there expectantly, waiting.
After a moment, Ino smirked. "Fine. If we're doing this, I'll go first."
She stepped forward, grabbed Naruto's collar, and pulled him down—pressing a soft yet firm kiss on his lips.
When she pulled back, she winked. "There. Ritual complete."
Naruto was stunned for a second before grinning. "That was nice."
Sakura huffed. "Tch. Like I'd lose to Ino-pig."
Without another word, she cupped Naruto's face and kissed him, her lips lingering just a second longer than Ino's.
When she pulled away, she smirked. "That's how it's done."
Ino scowled. "Excuse me?!"
Karin laughed, shaking her head. "You two are hopeless." She then turned to Naruto. "Guess it's my turn, huh?"
She casually leaned in, giving Naruto a quick yet teasing kiss. "Hah. My first kiss goes to my Nii-san, huh? Not bad."
Naruto was now looking a little dazed. "Whoa..."
Finally, all eyes turned to Hinata.
The poor girl looked like she might faint.
"K-K-Kiss… N-Naruto-kun… i-in front of everyone…?"
Naruto, despite everything, gave her a reassuring smile. "Only if you're okay with it, Hinata."
Hinata took a deep breath, gathering her courage. Then, closing her eyes, she leaned forward—pressing a sweet, innocent kiss on Naruto's lips before quickly pulling back, her entire face burning.
The silence stretched for a moment.
Then, Naruto, still recovering from the four back-to-back kisses, grinned like an idiot. "Man, best night ever."
Sakura crossed her arms. "Okay, ritual's done. Happy now?"
Naruto nodded. "Yep! Now, let's get some sleep."
As they all headed back to the room, Karin chuckled. "You better take responsibility now, Nii-san."
Naruto scratched his head. "Eh? For what?"
Ino smirked. "For being the luckiest idiot in the world."