[Morning]
After eating breakfast, Aoba once again met with Tsunade.
The two of them arrived at the Hokage's office on the upper floor of the tower.
The preliminary matches would begin in the afternoon.
The morning was time for everyone to adjust their condition.
At this moment, the genin were all in their resting rooms preparing for battle.
Inside the office, only Tsunade and Aoba were present.
"Sensei, is there something going on?", Aoba asked Tsunade naturally.
"It's about Orochimaru."
Tsunade's face likewise didn't carry any unusual expression.
Having not seen each other for several days, the two of them tacitly chose to forget the "Rebellious Disciple Special CG" that had been triggered in this office a few days ago.
"Orochimaru?"
"Use your Kagura Mind's Eye to search the ninja inside the tower, see if you can find any trace of Orochimaru."
Orochimaru had used the Vanishing Facial Copy Technique, and normal perception methods couldn't detect him at all.
Konoha had been carefully searching all this time and still found nothing.
"Is there a reward if I find him?", Aoba curiously asked back.
Crack!
Tsunade snapped the steel pen in her hand, gritting her silver teeth, "Are you going to do it or not?"
"Doing!"
Aoba said, then began pretending to perceive seriously.
.
.
.
A while passed.
"Hmm... I didn't sense any chakra related to Orochimaru within the Forest of Death."
"Not even a trace?"
While that should've been good news, Tsunade's expression instead became even more grave.
In her impression, Orochimaru was definitely not someone who would give up easily.
That man was like a venomous snake, enjoying hiding in the dark, waiting for you to let your guard down before delivering a fatal strike.
"Sensei, you don't need to worry either. If he dares show himself, I'll take action," This was Aoba's confident declaration.
"This matter can't rely on just you," Tsunade took a deep breath, "Go back and prepare for this afternoon's exam, and be careful."
"Okay," Aoba left the office. And headed downstairs toward the dining hall.
———
Only, upon entering the dining hall, he suddenly saw a big sister with blue-violet hair in a black sleeveless long dress standing in front of a ramen shop window.
From Aoba's angle, he could just see her fair and delicate shoulders.
'That's Konan?'
In an instant, a flash of curiosity passed through his mind.
A girl with blue-violet hair, only Konan matched.
'Only... would Konan wear clothes like that?'
Aoba walked curiously toward her.
At that moment, that big sister seemed to also notice his gaze and turned around.
"Aoba?"
"Konan-neesan?"
.
.
.
The two sat together at a table in front of the ramen shop window.
"Why isn't Konan-neesan with the other ninja from Amegakure?"
Konan couldn't help but give him a glance. Combined with the outfit she had on, she was full of mature charm.
"All members from Amegakure have already been eliminated from this exam."
"I see."
'Makes sense. In this level of Chunin Exam, in the end, it is typically a power struggle among the great ninja villages.'
Smaller villages like Amegakure found it difficult to train ninja on the same level as those from the Five Great Nations.
Aoba's expression looked serious, but his eyes still couldn't help wandering to Konan's body from time to time.
This thirty-year-old mature woman had removed her lip piercing, taken off her heavy black cloak, and fully revealed her tall and curvaceous figure.
Especially the tight-fitting black dress, which made Konan exude just the right sense of maturity from head to toe.
This was the first time Aoba had seen what Konan looked like underneath the black robe.
It made him slightly excited.
"Is today the first time Konan-neesan has come here to eat?"
So many days had passed, and this was the first time Aoba saw her in the cafeteria.
"Mm," Konan lightly nodded, then showed a faint smile, "Is there something wrong with how I look?"
Today she had deliberately changed into a new outfit, even put on makeup, to come to the cafeteria and eat, partly hoping for a chance encounter.
The ninja from Amegakure had all been eliminated, so she had to leave the Forest of Death today.
Though she still had to stay in Konoha for a while, who knew when they'd meet again?
On a sudden impulse, she decided to change clothes and show him.
Watching Aoba secretly glance at her from time to time made her inexplicably happier.
"Is something wrong?", Seeing Aoba not answering, Konan leaned in closer.
"Uh... nothing," Aoba shifted his gaze away.
A sly glint flashed in Konan's eyes. She tilted her head slightly, "Then Aoba, why have you been sneaking peeks at me?"
"Uh... that's because...", Aoba hesitated for a moment, then decided to tell the truth, "Konan-neesan, this dress of yours is really pretty. It suits you."
"Really…", Getting the answer she wanted made Konan's heart incomparably happy.
A blush spread across her face.
She extended her fair and slender fingers and gently pinched Aoba's chin.
Turning his face toward her.
"If it looks good, then why not look a little more?"
"?", Aoba widened his eyes. Clearly, he hadn't expected Konan to have such a bold side.
"Hey~ Aoba, compared to those pretty sisters of yours, who looks better?"
"...", This was a deadly question. Aoba really had to think.
And when Konan saw him fall silent, her face immediately showed displeasure.
The strength of her fingers even increased a bit.
"This answer is that difficult for you?", In the past, she had always been the one getting teased. Now she wanted to tease this boy in front of her for a change.
Aoba fell into a short silence, then reached out and grabbed the hand that was pinching his chin.
"Konan-neesan, I can't say whether you or Yugao-nee looks better, because to me, you are both special, my most favorite ones."
Konan gradually widened her eyes, then suddenly realized her hand was still being held and hurriedly pulled it back in panic.
"I... I was asking who looked better, not who you like."
"Oh, I see. I thought Konan-neesan was asking that because you liked me," Aoba lowered his head sadly, "Looks like I was being too presumptuous."
"I...", Konan, seeing this, wanted to explain, but didn't know how.
It was hard to explain.
Was she supposed to say that she did like him?
But… did she really like him?
From the past few days of being together, at most she had started to feel a little fondness toward him.
Until that night, when Aoba told her she could rely on him, only then did her heart truly start to feel a little moved.
That was when she understood what "peace of mind" was.
Just like now, willing to change for him.
So… does she like him?
Just as she was exploring her feelings, a crisp and dissatisfied girl's voice rang out:
"Aoba, why didn't you wait for me? You came to eat by yourself?"
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