Beside them, Ino, who saw this scene: (╯‵□′)╯︵┻━┻
"Take your hand off Shinju!"
Shion pouted. "Why should I? Shinju didn't say anything. Do you really think it's your place to speak up? Ծ ̮ Ծ"
Ino was about to explode from anger, but she honestly couldn't think of a good comeback.
...
Shinju could clearly feel it—two, soft, squishy mounds pressed tightly against his arm...
Hiss~~~
Before he transmigrated, he might have been just an elementary schooler, but he still understood the basic physiology of women.
So, without changing his expression, Shinju calmly pulled his hand back and said to Shion with a serious face:
"Miss Shion, please don't do that. I've already made my stance clear to you—men and women should not get so physically close. (｡•ˇ‸ˇ•｡)"
Shion: "..."
Now you say men and women should keep their distance?!
Back in the shrine, when you held my hand, what was that supposed to be?!
I even fell into your arms—why didn't you say it then?!
You rotten man!!!
ヽ('⌒´メ)ノ
Tsundere Shion, furious, turned away and stormed off alone...
On the side, Ino, seeing this, couldn't be more delighted: ୧⍢⃝୨
Ha!
All these years, I've tried every move I could think of on Shinju!
And you, you little fox, you're still far from my level!
( ´▽` )
When the standoff between the two girls ended, Kakashi-sensei finally walked up to Shinju and spoke.
"Shinju, do you want to come back to Konoha with us?"
Shinju shook his head.
Seeing this, Kakashi and Asuma both stiffened.
They had already heard a little about Shinju and Naruto leaving the village.
After they found out, they had even gone to Tsunade in the Hokage's office to ask about it.
Tsunade had given everyone the same official line—that Shinju was away on a secret mission.
But really, what kind of "secret mission" gets publicly announced as a secret mission...?
The truth was clear—Shinju and Naruto leaving the village was something no Konoha shinobi who cared about the future wanted to see.
After a while, Kakashi's visible eye curved into what seemed like a smile.
"Alright. If this is your own choice, then as your teacher, I'll respect it."
Asuma nodded. "Yeah."
Shinju nodded back.
"Naruto and I are going to the Land of Demons now to collect the bounty. We'll see you again sometime, Kakashi-sensei."
With that, Shinju led Naruto to catch up with Shion, who had gone on ahead.
Kakashi and the others stood there, their expressions complicated.
"I really hope they'll come back one day."
Asuma pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lit one, and put it to his lips.
"Who doesn't? But it's not like we can tie them up and drag them back." Kakashi nodded.
Asuma explained, "No, I meant—I hope they come back soon enough to make it to my wedding..."
Kakashi, Shikamaru, Choji: !!!∑(°Д°ノ)ノ
"You're getting married?" Ino asked.
Asuma said helplessly,
"What's with the shock? Kurenai and I have been dating for years. It's about time we tied the knot. ┐(´-｀)┌"
"Sure, she's been throwing herself into her genjutsu training these years and kind of neglecting me, but I can't just leave her without a proper answer... (❁´︶`❁)"
...
A few days later.
Hokage's Office.
With the demon spirit incident settled, Asuma was reporting to the Hokage.
When he finished, Asuma asked, "Hokage-sama, has there been any news about the Third Hokage?"
Behind the desk, Tsunade's face was grave as she shook her head.
"None. I'll let you know the moment we have something."
Asuma sighed. "Kurenai and I had planned our wedding for just over ten days from now. But with my father still missing, we can't hold it."
Just as Asuma finished, the office door burst open, and Shizune rushed in, panting, drenched in sweat, her face filled with panic.
Tsunade frowned. "What happened? Don't panic—say it slowly."
Shizune glanced at Asuma, hesitated.
Tsunade caught the look and gestured for Asuma to step out first.
Once he was gone...
Shizune, still out of breath, said:
"ANBU found the body of the Third Hokage on the border of the Land of Fire."
"What?!"
Tsunade's face was stricken with horror.
The Third Hokage was her teacher. She knew better than anyone how powerful he was. How could he just die like this, so suddenly, so mysteriously...
"The medical team is analyzing the cause of death right now. We should have results soon," Shizune said cautiously.
"But... it's most likely Orochimaru..."
Tsunade raised her fist, then lowered it again. In the end, she gritted her teeth and spat out,
"Orochimaru... if I find out this was you, if it really was you—!"
"Notify everyone in Konoha. Tomorrow we'll hold the funeral for the Third Hokage..."
...
Outside the Hokage's office, Asuma broke down in tears.
...
Land of Demons.
After returning Shion safely, Shinju received a massive reward from the Land of Demons—tens of millions!
Even more surprising, the Daimyo of the Land of Demons made a gesture of goodwill.
He declared that if Shinju was willing to serve as his bodyguard, he would pay him a staggering annual fee of one hundred million!
One hundred million ryo! Enough to fill an entire house if stacked in cash.
It was a huge temptation.
But Shinju refused.
First, he didn't want long-term dealings with nobles and bigwigs—he found them repulsive.
Second, being someone's bodyguard might sound easy, but it would shackle his freedom to travel...
Besides, Shinju had heard that every country had its own bounty office.
The targets on the lists ranged from tens of thousands, to hundreds of millions!
If he just took on assassination missions, he might earn more than a year's bodyguard pay in a single job!! (´◊ω◊｀)
Now, Shinju and Naruto were already stepping through the doors of a bounty office.
There was no "mission acceptance system" in bounty offices.
If you wanted to take on a job, you just had to check the names on the bounty board.
Then, bring back their heads to any bounty office to claim the reward...
At this moment, Shinju was scanning the bounty list...
"Land of Fire, Fifth Hokage Tsunade—bounty, 150 million..."
"Land of Lightning, Fourth Raikage A—bounty, 160 million..."
"Land of Earth, Third Tsuchikage Onoki—bounty, 160 million..."
"Land of Fire, Wood Release prodigy Shinju—bounty, 250 million!!!"
The moment he read his own name, Shinju froze.
ヽ( ຶ▮ ຶ)ﾉ!!!
"Hiss—!!!"
His bounty was higher than the Kage themselves!!
What had he done to deserve this?!
Thankfully, the artist's sketch of him on the wanted poster was hideously ugly, not capturing even a fraction of his real charm.
No way anyone would recognize him! (´∇ﾉ｀*)ノ
Just then, Naruto said in surprise:
"Shinju, look! Our names are up here too! (๑╹ヮ╹๑)ﾉ"
"But the picture of me is way too ugly! And the bounty's only just over ten million! (′д｀σ)σ"
"You're different though! I just glanced at the list—your bounty's in the top five of the whole board! A full 250 million!!"
The moment Naruto said that...
Every single person in the hall turned to stare at them.
Shinju: -_-||
This damn idiot...
----------------
Pls Drop some Power Stones
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