The streets of Konoha were long.
But Daiki Nojiri felt they were very short.
In the blink of an eye, he had already finished strolling down a street with Haku.
If possible, he wished he could just keep walking with Haku like this forever.
"Haku, let's go to the back mountain, shall we? The flowers there are blooming."
"There are also purple butterflies."
"Really? Then let's go!" Haku agreed without thinking much of it.
Shady green trees, the sound of flowing water.
The fragrant scent of flowers and grass, along with the person before him, intoxicated Daiki Nojiri.
"Haku."
"Tell me about your past."
"My past?" Haku, who was chasing a butterfly, stopped.
"What's there to tell about the past?"
"Of course there is," Daiki said. "Funny stories from your childhood, the twists and turns of growing up, and those unforgettable moments."
"Childhood..." Haku thought for a moment and said, "There's nothing much to tell about my childhood."
"My real life only began after I met Mr. Zabuza."
Daiki froze. "Mr. Zabuza?"
"Yes," Haku said. "Only after Mr. Zabuza appeared did I have a reason to live."
The more Daiki listened, the more wrong it sounded. A man's instinct gave him a bad premonition.
He asked cautiously, "This Mr. Zabuza... is he someone special to you, Haku?"
"Mr. Zabuza isn't 'someone special' to me."
Daiki breathed a sigh of relief.
'Good, good. I misunderstood.'
Haku continued, "I am Mr. Zabuza's tool."
Daiki Nojiri: (?｀?Д?′)!!
It was like a thunderclap exploding in his brain.
Daiki's head was buzzing.
If it weren't for the fact that only the two of them were here, Daiki would have almost thought he heard wrong.
A few seconds later, his brain told him: You didn't hear wrong!
Tool!
In this instant, the artworks he had created flashed through his mind.
The Kunoichi's Operation Manual, The Weak Woman Drifting, Hell's Flower...
All content that could be associated with "tools" flooded into his mind.
Those plots that once made him uncontrollably excited at night, those scenes that made countless readers ruthless while alone at home—at this moment, they made his heart race wildly.
Suppressing the thoughts in his head, he asked with a trembling voice, "Haku, by 'tool,' do you mean..."
"A tool is a tool," Haku said as if it were a matter of course. "Completing Mr. Zabuza's missions, fulfilling Mr. Zabuza's goals—that is the meaning of my existence."
BOOM!!
"Missions... goals..." Daiki muttered.
He felt as if his heart was being squeezed hard by an invisible hand, painful almost to the point of suffocation.
Looking at the beautiful Haku in front of him, tens of thousands of words of plot instantly flashed through his mind.
He seemed to understand why Musashi brought someone home after going out on a mission.
Could this be a poor soul rescued from the hands of that evil "Zabuza"?
In an instant.
Heartache, pity, sadness... complex emotions welled up in his heart.
It took a good while before he could barely suppress his emotions.
Suddenly, he felt a sense of mission.
Such a Haku! I must change his fate!
Forget about the past life. In Konoha, with me, Daiki, here, I will definitely bring you a different life.
He gazed at the person in front of him and said earnestly.
"Haku."
"No matter what you've experienced in the past."
"It doesn't matter."
"Starting today, you will have a brand new life."
"You will encounter fresh things and meet people who treat you well."
"I will take you to forget the past and embrace a brand new tomorrow."
Haku tilted his head. "Daiki, what you're saying sounds very similar to what Senior Musashi said."
"He also told me to see a different world and try a different life."
'Just as I thought,' Daiki thought to himself.
He lowered his head, the white hair on his forehead swaying gently in the wind. A look of determination flashed in his revealed eyes as he looked at Haku and said, "I will take you to see this world."
"To see all the mountains and rivers, the grass and trees, autumn and winter."
Haku was stunned.
Looking at Daiki Nojiri, whose eyes were firm as if he were taking an oath, Haku felt that the other person's emotions seemed a bit off somewhere.
And in Daiki Nojiri's eyes.
The Haku in front of him was obviously moved by his demeanor and sincere emotions.
Looking at the clear and beautiful face close at hand.
Eyes like water, lips moist.
His brain heated up.
He suddenly reached out with both hands and held the other's shoulders.
Then he pulled hard.
Leaned in.
Smooch... smooch... smack... smooch smooch...
Haku's eyes widened abruptly.
'This... is also what Senior Musashi said... trying... fresh things...'
---
Broad daylight, a bright and clear world.
A young girl with pink hair ran panic-stricken through the streets of Konoha.
Screams of terror issued from her mouth.
"Ah!!~~"
"Don't come over here!~"
"Don't chase me!~"
Drawing sideways glances from everyone.
"Sakura! Don't run!~"
Behind Sakura Haruno, a green figure chased closely.
A shiny bowl cut, eyebrows so thick they were baffling, and two large round eyes that led the other features to form a unique face.
It was none other than Rock Lee.
The girl's escape and the crowd's gazes did not make him feel the slightest nervousness or shame.
At this moment, hearts were floating in his eyes as he stared fixedly at his beloved in front of him.
"Sakura! Stop quickly!"
"Accept my youthful love!"
"From the first moment I saw you at Senior Musashi's wedding, I have fallen deeply in love with you!"
"Today, fate has let us meet again!"
"This is a destined fate; we cannot stop it!"
"My dear Sakura! Accept me... Konoha's Handsome Blue Beast—Rock Lee!!!~"
However, the boy's sincere confession made the girl even more terrified.
Sakura's eyes widened in horror, her features distorted by fright, and every strand of her long pink hair stood on end.
She let out a trembling scream of extreme terror.
"I'll say it again! Don't come over here!!!~"
"I will absolutely! Absolutely! Absolutely never agree to you!!!"
"Why??" Rock Lee looked puzzled, but it didn't affect the wind-like movement of his feet.
"Sakura! Aren't the youthful me and the beautiful you a match made in heaven?"
"Don't resist fate anymore!"
"Please throw yourself freely into my solid embrace!~"
Sakura stopped talking this time.
Talking would affect her running speed.
She swore she had never wished so desperately for a few extra legs as she did today! Wished she could be just a little faster!
She didn't know what that rare beast behind her grew up eating, but she had already used all her strength, yet still couldn't shake him off!
'Save me!'
'Someone save me!'
Her pleading gaze couldn't help but sweep over the crowd on the street.
Unfortunately, the crowd was so indifferent.
Seeing a perverted man in green tights chasing an innocent beautiful girl, they actually remained indifferent, and some even faintly backed away.
Just when she was feeling a bit desperate, two figures suddenly came into her view.
The cool, handsome, exquisitely elegant, outstandingly temperamental, beloved Sasuke—and Naruto beside him.
"Save me!!" Sakura shouted out.
Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki, who were walking, also noticed Sakura being chased.
Sasuke frowned slightly upon reacting, while Naruto had already jumped out.
"What's going on!!?"
"Sakura! Come here quick!!"
Sakura looked as if she had finally seen her savior.
With gratitude and relief, she quickly ran to Naruto's—side, behind Sasuke.
Her body, trembling from severe fright, hid behind Sasuke Uchiha.
"Sasuke, thank goodness you're here."
Naruto: "...?"