Scrunching his nose, Cloud scowls briefly at the laugh, though his annoyance turns into awkward embarrassment when he realizes how that sounded thanks to Rufus' comment. On the other hand...

Cloud straightens up, even if his cheeks are still a little pink, and shrugs slightly.

"Doesn't make me any less of of a grunt, sir." He's not even an officer, so, well... yes, definitely more than this, regardless of his current assignment.