"Sign-in! Tenten and Rock Lee!"
[Ding! Sign-in successful! You've obtained Shuriken Technique! Tenten affection +5!]
[Ding! Sign-in successful! You've obtained Green Full-Body Tracksuit! Rock Lee affection +6!]
Mawari Yasu frowned.
Tenten had at least received the useful Shuriken Technique, but Rock Lee… got another disgusting green tracksuit.
And worse—it was the second one! Now he had both the Might Guy version and the Rock Lee version.
Yasu silently swore to find a chance to ditch that cursed outfit.
"Hey, kid! Daydreaming again?" Might Guy frowned.
To him, youth should be spent meaningfully. Yasu zoning out? Big strike against his rating.
[Ding! Might Guy affection -1! Current: 64 points!]
Snapping back to attention, Yasu knew Might Guy's favor was crucial for boosting his skills.
He quickly copied Might Guy's signature gesture—right hand thumb raised, broad grin flashing teeth—radiating energy.
"Let's burn our youth together!"
[Ding! Might Guy affection +3! Current: 67 points!]
Yasu quietly rejoiced. Just the right approach could skyrocket affection.
"You really are the genius Kakashi recommended!" Might Guy said, pulling out yet another bright green tracksuit.
"Quick! Wear this and let's burn our youth together!"
Yasu twitched. That was the third one now. Was the universe hinting at something…?
"Do I have to wear it? I feel burning youth is about what you do, not what you wear or shout."
[Ding! Might Guy affection +5! Current: 72! Can sign-in!]
Might Guy trembled with emotion.
"Right! Burning youth isn't about slogans or clothes—it's about actions!" he said, stroking his chin.
Yasu inwardly celebrated. After such a short interaction, affection reached 72, unlocking a third sign-in.
Might Guy was a key power boost for Yasu—there was no way he would pass this up.
"Sign-in!"
[Ding! Might Guy sign-in successful! You've obtained Konoha Great Whirlwind! Might Guy affection +3!]
Yasu finally breathed a sigh of relief—something genuinely useful.
After signing in, Yasu turned his attention to Tenten.
Tenten's Weapon Storage Technique acted like a seemingly endless pouch of ninja tools. Yasu approached her, holding the bag he had just retrieved from enemy ninjas.
Tenten instinctively stepped back, then, seeing Yasu's ninja pouch, looked puzzled, and finally, her face lit up with joy.
"You! Where did you get this?"
"Like it? It's all yours."
"Really? Then I won't hold back!"
[Ding! Tenten affection +5! Current affection: 62! Can sign-in!]
"Sign-in Tenten!"
[Ding! Tenten sign-in successful! You've obtained Weapon Barrage! Tenten affection +3!]
[Ding! Neji Hyuga affection -3! Current affection: 45! Alert!]
Yasu frowned. Boosting Tenten's affection somehow caused Neji's to drop.
It seemed Neji had… feelings for Tenten.
Tenten was now fully immersed in her happiness, fiddling with her new tools inside the bag while explaining them.
"These aren't ordinary tools—they're supplied to ANBU. The ninja tools are sharper but less durable, and only an organization like ANBU can afford them. But what does the root character on the kunai mean… the user's name?"
Hearing this, Yasu and Might Guy both shuddered.
Konoha ANBU served the village under the Hokage's orders.
ROOT, though technically part of ANBU, operated independently—shrouded in mystery, often committing acts that ordinary people couldn't accept. The innocent who died at ROOT's hands couldn't even be counted.
"Kid! Where did you get these ninja tools?!" Might Guy asked seriously.
Yasu's face was full of confusion.
Konoha's ROOT was trying to kill Kakashi Hatake.
Danzo Shimura, the 5.5th Hokage, was apparently plotting against the Sixth Hokage!
"Kid, stop daydreaming and explain now!" Guy urged anxiously.
If it were a normal ANBU, a simple explanation would suffice.
But ROOT… no matter how well he explained, it wouldn't matter.
Since Kakashi brought Yasu, he couldn't afford any mishaps.
"If I said I killed two ninjas and got these, would you believe me?"
Might Guy stared at him for a few seconds, then burst into laughter.
"Don't joke! A kid like you? You probably haven't killed a chicken, let alone a ninja. Someone probably just dropped them, and you picked them up."
Guy turned to Tenten and held out his hand.
"Give them to me. These are best kept with ANBU."
Tenten hugged the ninja bag tightly.
"No! Yasu gave these to me—these are mine, no one else's!"
As Guy and Tenten argued, Neji approached Yasu with a confident, haughty smile.
"You killed two Roots? Perfect. I've been itching to improve my taijutsu recently—how about some advice?"
Yasu frowned.
He had no intention of actually helping him practice—but still, this was their first meeting, and he hadn't provoked Neji. Why so much hostility?
Might Guy was now stressed—first the ninja tools issue, and now Neji's challenge.
If Yasu got injured, explaining it to Kakashi wouldn't be easy.
"Neji, I can give you some hands-on combat experience if you really want to."
"Guy-sensei, please don't interfere! Proving you've defeated ROOT isn't done by talking—it's done by showing you have the skills," Neji said, glancing at Tenten's ninja tools with obvious displeasure.
"Strength speaks for itself! Otherwise, even if you bragged about it, we wouldn't acknowledge you!" Neji's eyes locked on Yasu, full of unspoken hostility.
"I don't care whether you acknowledge me, what I'm telling is the truth," Yasu replied coldly, smirking as he met Neji's gaze.
"But if you're asking for a beating… then, I won't hold back."