Kurenai Yūhi's home.
Kitazawa took out the key, opened the door, and stepped inside.
As soon as he entered the living room, he saw Kurenai standing at the coffee table. She was slightly bent at the waist, both hands pressed to a blank scroll, her pretty face all focus and seriousness.
Kitazawa couldn't help lifting a brow.
From his angle, the scene was very enticing.
Kurenai had her back to him. The table was low, so she had to tilt her hips up a little. And since she hadn't gone out today, she was wearing a silk nightdress. The curve of her hips showed faintly, looking round and smooth.
The hem of the nightdress stopped at her thighs, revealing a pair of firm, long calves and glossy bare feet.
Kitazawa walked over and glanced at the scroll; black sealing marks already covered much of it.
He reached out his right hand and set it directly on her soft, pale thigh.
Kurenai's body went rigid; she turned and shot him a glare.
But she didn't stop him—she was busy maintaining her chakra output.
Kitazawa knew that, which was why he acted so brazenly.
Savoring the feel of her thigh, his right hand slowly moved upward.
In a moment, that smooth skin had been caressed all over.
"Pervert!"
Kurenai finished the sealing array and, almost on reflex, stepped half a pace back. Tugging down her hem, she glared at him, a blush she hadn't noticed already spreading across her cheeks.
"This is a special training method. Even with my interference, you still executed the sealing marks beautifully," Kitazawa said, now dead serious. "You pass."
"You think I'm going to believe that nonsense?"
"I'm not lying." Enjoying the sight of her graceful figure, he added, "You're ready for the next stage of the Fire Sealing Method."
"…"
Kurenai bit back what she wanted to say.
How could he say something so straight-faced in a situation like this?
Shameless.
"Then teach me," Kurenai said after a steadying breath.
She chose to skip the topic of having her legs touched—she was used to it by now.
"Mm."
Kitazawa started toward her.
"What are you doing?"
Her heart skipped; the question slipped out.
"What do you think?"
He smiled.
"Aren't you teaching me sealing?"
Her voice wobbled a little as she backed up to the sofa.
"If you know that, why ask?"
He sat down, stretching lazily.
"…"
Kurenai froze.
So all he wanted was the couch?
The thought made her cringe a little inside.
"I've been on my feet half the day at school. Let's sit and talk." Kitazawa gave her a knowing look. "What were you just thinking?"
"I wasn't thinking anything!"
Her breath caught and she blurted it out.
"Your face is as red as an apple, and you say you weren't thinking anything?"
"I—I wasn't!"
She touched her cheek on instinct; it really was hot.
"The way you say that while looking so flustered is pretty cute."
He couldn't help laughing.
"Don't laugh!"
Annoyed, Kurenai stepped up and clapped a hand over his mouth.
He slid an arm around her waist.
She tilted and plopped down on his thigh.
"Not a bad way to lecture. I feel more motivated," he said, smiling at the woman in his arms.
"Then talk."
She rolled her eyes at him. "If your lesson's bad, I'll kick you. Twice."
"Questioning my teaching?"
He squeezed her cheek with his right hand, left arm still around her. "I'm the academy's best teacher."
"You don't have my seal of approval."
"Then I'll have to bring my A-game today."
He cleared his throat and began explaining the Fire Sealing Method.
Listening and watching him, Kurenai found herself a little entranced. She shifted around without thinking, found a more comfortable spot, and leaned into his chest.
In that quiet, gentle mood, an hour slipped by.
"Anything you didn't get?" he asked.
"No." She shook her head. "You explained it really well."
"Do I have your approval now?"
She didn't answer. Planting her feet, she rose from his arms.
Looking at him, she slowly bent down.
Kitazawa's eyes went wide.
As she moved, the nightdress seemed on the verge of slipping.
The next second, his lips were sealed.
For a moment, he didn't know where to look.
"Bad guy," Kurenai said after two minutes of "verbal discipline."
"You haven't seen how bad I really am."
He licked his lips, almost able to feel that softness again.
"I'm going to train!"
Face flushing, Kurenai turned and headed upstairs.
"If anything's unclear, ask me!"
He called after her.
No reply.
Kitazawa wasn't bothered.
Given their relationship, all this was just playful flirting.
He had a feeling it wouldn't be long before they took another step forward.
Friday ended, and the weekend arrived.
Just two days, but days without work are always happier.
And Kitazawa had three beauties of different temperaments to keep him company.
By day, he practiced Water Style and taught Kurenai sealing.
At night, he discussed an emotion substitution jutsu with Tsunade and Shizune.
…
Sunday morning.
Just after breakfast, a knock came at the door.
"Kitazawa, get that," Tsunade said, stretching as she shifted from a lounge to a sit.
In front of Kitazawa and Kurenai and the others, she didn't care about appearances. But with a guest, she had to at least look like one of the Legendary Sannin.
"Got it."
Kitazawa stood and went to the door.
He opened it to a very familiar face—Aburame Shibi.
Coming this early—was it about Aburame Torune?
Kitazawa hadn't expected him to move so fast. It had only been two days, and he couldn't wait to come to Tsunade.
But thinking it through, it made sense. Every extra day Torune spent in Root meant extra danger.
Everyone knew Danzō Shimura didn't treat Root shinobi like people.
"You?"
Shibi looked surprised.
"Why not me?"
Kitazawa smiled back.
Shibi hesitated. He'd been about to say this was Tsunade's house, but then he remembered Kitazawa was studying medical ninjutsu under her.
"Is Tsunade-sama home?"
"She is." Kitazawa nodded. "Please come in, Clan Head Shibi."
"Thank you."
Shibi stepped into the living room.
His eyes flicked to the dining table—six place settings.
"Shibi?"
Tsunade sounded mildly surprised. "You don't often come to me. What's the matter?"
Hesitation crossed Shibi's face.
Since this involved Danzō, the fewer people who knew, the better.
And besides Kitazawa, Shizune, Kurenai, Uzumaki Rina, and Karin were here.
Kitazawa and Shizune were clearly Tsunade's people. Kurenai, Rina, and Karin—he wasn't sure.
"Tsunade-sama, Kurenai and I will step out," Kitazawa said, guessing his thoughts at a glance.
No need to overexplain—Shibi coming to Tsunade was his idea to begin with.
"I'm going to practice sealing," Kurenai said once they got home, heading straight upstairs.
She knew her place. As the Aburame clan head, Shibi's talk with Tsunade would be village-level confidential. As a chūnin, it wasn't her business. The priority was getting stronger.
Kitazawa sat on the sofa, thought for a moment, and decided to try Wind-Style: Rasengan.
There weren't rivers or lakes near Kurenai's house, so Water Style practice wasn't convenient.
He held out his hand. Chakra surged and spun into a sphere.
A standard Rasengan.
Watching it, Kitazawa began feeding in wind-nature chakra.
Its color shifted at once.
A sharp edge bled through.
It felt like the sphere had become a mass of spinning blades.
Smash that into flesh, and the damage would be brutal.
The door opened.
Tsunade came in, not looking pleased.
She paused when she saw the Rasengan in his hand.
"A Rasengan with Wind Style added?"
A flicker of surprise crossed her face.
"What do you think of Wind-Style: Rasengan?" Kitazawa asked, curious.
"More lethal than the original, but it also demands extremely high mastery of wind-nature transformation," Tsunade said. "Only shinobi good at Wind Style could learn it."
She didn't add that anyone skilled enough with wind to reach this level would likely be jōnin already. By comparison, the original Rasengan, though an A-rank, could be learned by genin or chūnin.
"Anyway, that's not the point." She remembered why Shibi had come. "He asked me to get Aburame Torune out of Root."
"Why didn't he go straight to the Hokage?" Kitazawa asked, feigning ignorance.
"He did. It didn't help." Tsunade snorted. "The old man's getting senile—letting Danzō Shimura snatch prodigies from the clans!"
From her perspective, nothing chilled the clans more than that.
Kitazawa didn't comment.
Calling Hiruzen "senile" wasn't quite fair.
He was probably using Danzō to cow the clans.
After all, Danzō's success at "recruiting" prodigies came with Hiruzen's tacit approval.
It was a dumb play—but with Hiruzen and Danzō, it was plausible.
"Did you say yes?"
"Danzō's hands are in too many places," Tsunade said curtly. "He even had people approach Rina and Karin."
"He did?" Kitazawa looked genuinely surprised.
He really hadn't known—but it fit Danzō's style. Fortunately, with Hiruzen and Tsunade backing Rina and Karin, Root hadn't dared take them by force.
"If he can snatch people, I can snatch them back," Tsunade said with a cold huff.
That reassured Kitazawa.
"Come on, let's see the old man."
She flicked a hand.
Then she realized the issue—technically, this had nothing to do with Kitazawa. Yet somehow she'd called him along without thinking.
"Okay," he said at once.
He was counting on Aburame Torune to trigger a new mission, after all. And missing out on a chance to storm Root? What a waste that would be.
Bang.
Tsunade kicked open the Hokage's office door.
"You—"
Hiruzen got one word out before he registered her expression.
Who'd set her off this time?
Danzō?
A lot ran through his mind in an instant.
"Old man, I have a question," Tsunade said evenly. "What's Root's recruitment procedure?"
Kitazawa glanced at her, impressed. That was a Fifth Hokage move.
If you say you're going to Root to drag someone out, Hiruzen will block you. Coming at it through Root's rules? Much smarter.
He hadn't expected Tsunade to be this calm—and this sharp.
"Why are you asking all of a sudden?" Hiruzen frowned, but inside he'd already pegged Danzō as the culprit.
So who did Root snatch this time?
"I'm just curious," Tsunade said, face unreadable.
"By village protocol, Root reports to the Anbu first. If Anbu approves, Root can recruit," Hiruzen said slowly.
"And if Root has their eye on a specific shinobi?" she pressed.
"They should notify the shinobi to come for a Root assessment," Hiruzen said, then added, "If the shinobi is unwilling, they can refuse."
He wasn't lying. Tsunade could verify the process—no point trying to hide it.
"Then I'm filing a complaint that Root's recruitment isn't following protocol."
Knew it, Hiruzen thought, not surprised at all.
The moment she asked about Root's process, he'd guessed where this was headed.
And Danzō really had broken the rules this time.
Rules exist to be followed.
Once you put them on the scales, even the Hokage isn't exempt.
"Go on," he said, face turning grave.
"Root approached Rina and Karin last week, but they already turned them down," Tsunade said with a snort.
"I'll warn him not to bother them again," Hiruzen said, now understanding her anger. No wonder—this involved Uzumaki Rina and Karin.
"But strictly speaking, Root didn't break the rules there," he added after a moment.
"Not for that incident," Tsunade said, changing tack. "But with Aburame Torune, Root broke the rules."
"Aburame Torune?" Hiruzen blinked.
"You didn't know?"
"I did know Torune joined Root," he admitted. Root was under Anbu, and Anbu answered directly to him. Claiming ignorance would be ridiculous. He just hadn't expected Tsunade to go to bat for Torune. A request from the Aburame? Torune had been in Root almost a year—only now were they coming to Tsunade? Betting on the next Hokage?
Hiruzen understood quickly. It made sense. Who would choose Danzō over Tsunade? But what was Tsunade thinking? If she wanted the hat, why not say so?
"That one's on me," Hiruzen said at last. "I didn't look closely enough."
"So what are you going to do?" Tsunade heard what he was implying: he knew Torune had joined Root; he hadn't known Danzō had coerced him. She didn't call him out. No need to tear the veil.
"I'll notify Danzō right now to return Aburame Torune to the Aburame clan," Hiruzen said without hesitation.
Compared to his relationship with Tsunade, one Torune didn't weigh much. As for Danzō, he'd crossed him plenty of times—one more wouldn't matter. Worst case, they could put on another "you repent, I rage—boom" scene in the Hokage's office.
"With Danzō's temperament, he won't hand Torune over that easily," Tsunade said, shaking her head. "I'll go ask in person."
"Ask, yes. But no fighting," Hiruzen said at once. "Root is still Konoha."
"Then you should manage Root properly!" Tsunade shot back. "You know Torune isn't an isolated case."
"…"
Hiruzen wanted to argue, but couldn't. She wasn't wrong.
Kitazawa stood there, eyes down, the picture of a bystander.
In the original story, Hiruzen's stance on Danzō was always ambiguous. But when Danzō crossed a line, Hiruzen didn't hesitate. After the clan massacre night, he'd ordered Root dissolved.
"Take my writ and go to Root," Hiruzen said after a pause. "You can also take an Anbu squad."
He himself had taken Anbu when he went to demand Yamato from Danzō. He knew Danzō too well. If he couldn't have something, he'd destroy it—or at least pull a stunt.
"Alright," Tsunade said, easing a little. Whatever else, her teacher could still see the bigger picture.
"Before you go, have Anbu find out where Torune is," Hiruzen reminded her. Root wasn't Anbu; under Danzō it was a rabbit with three burrows. There were secret bases Hiruzen himself barely knew about.
"I know." Tsunade nodded. "Let's go, Kitazawa."
Only then did Hiruzen register Kitazawa's presence. Why was he here? So he really had become Tsunade's confidant.
"Right."
Kitazawa gave Hiruzen a quick nod and hurried after Tsunade.
Just then, three lines of text floated before his eyes:
[Current Mission: Take Aburame Torune back from Root.]
[Mission Reward: Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa paused. Now that was a subtle reward.
Was this trying to make him the "Second Blame-Kage"?
~~~
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