Gathering

The next morning.

Hikari was ruthlessly awakened from his dreams by his older brother, Kotetsu Hagane. After washing up, the two of them obediently headed to the main gate.

As the gatekeepers of the Hidden Leaf Village, this was the place the Hagane brothers knew best.

There was no second place.

"Morning, Izumo!" By the time the Hagane brothers arrived, Izumo Kamizuki was already there.

Kotetsu Hagane nodded with a smile. His face was filled with excitement; anyone who did not know better might have thought he was about to go on a blind date.

Compared to him, Hikari beside him looked utterly lifeless, as though he could fall asleep at any moment.

"Hikari, this won't do. Today, we're carrying out a mission with Lady Tsunade. As members of the Hidden Leaf Village, we should take protecting the Hokage as our duty. You're so lazy and listless—it's downright embarrassing!"

"Izumo, why don't you keep him in line?" Izumo Kamizuki spoke earnestly. Anyone unaware of the situation might have thought he was Hikari's older brother, while Kotetsu Hagane was merely watching the show.

"Sigh, I want to!" Kotetsu Hagane had a terrible headache whenever he looked at his salted-fish-like little brother.

"Hikari, no girl will like you if you're this lazy!"

Kotetsu Hagane knew perfectly well what his little brother liked.

After all, no one who was not a pervert could write "yellow" books.

"You make it sound like either of you single dogs has anyone who wants you!" Hikari looked disdainfully at his older brother and Izumo Kamizuki. "I'm not getting married because I don't want to bury my beautiful youth so early! Unlike you two—nobody wants you."

"So please, don't use your way of thinking to measure my level!"

Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki: That felt weirdly offensive!

"Hikari, you're still as amusing as ever!" A gentle female voice rang out. Just from hearing it, one could tell she belonged to a mature, soft-spoken beauty.

Hikari looked up, and two long, slender legs entered his view. Their owner was none other than the Hidden Leaf Village's famous beauty, Kurenai Yuhi.

"So it's beautiful Kurenai. Long time no see."

"You say it's been a long time, but I saw you in the Hokage's office yesterday!" Kurenai Yuhi clearly did not fall for Hikari's polite nonsense. "I heard that certain someone, aside from guarding the gate, spends all his other time flirting with girls at the hospital. Especially the younger ones—the younger they are, the more enthusiastically he flirts. I wonder who that person could be!"

"Me," Hikari admitted coolly.

That left Kurenai Yuhi at a loss for words.

This brat was not playing by the rules.

Hikari smiled at Kurenai Yuhi. With his sharp eye, he could clearly tell that Asuma, that sleazy uncle, had not succeeded with her yet.

Come to think of it, they were about the same age, so why did Asuma look so prematurely aged?

Looking at Hikari, people would believe him if he said he was twenty. But if Asuma claimed he was forty, few would doubt him.

What a gap.

A naked, undeniable gap.

"Beautiful Kurenai, are you so concerned about me because I haven't flirted with you? If that's the case, then I can only apologize. After all, I can't beat you. What if you really fall in love with me and force yourself on me? I wouldn't be able to resist!"

Kurenai Yuhi froze, then smiled sweetly. They were adults; a little joking was nothing.

Kotetsu Hagane: My god, I've learned something. I've learned something!

Izumo Kamizuki: Holy crap, that's amazing! I need to learn a trick or two from Hikari. There's hope of escaping singlehood at last!

Hikari looked at his older brother and Izumo Kamizuki, then shook his head helplessly.

For a man, aside from strength, looks were the standard that mattered.

If Hikari were ruthless enough to turn his hair white, he could strut sideways through the Hidden Leaf Village. Even that old fellow Danzo would not dare show his face before him.

The face of the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama—tell him, was he scared or not?

With that face, Hikari was deeply adored by the young women at the hospital. If he had not always kept himself pure, countless women might have come knocking at his door with children by now.

"Hikari, you're still so punchable. When I have time, I'll teach you a proper lesson!" Kurenai Yuhi's face had turned crimson under the gazes of Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki, and she felt somewhat embarrassed and annoyed.

Girls were thin-skinned. That was normal.

Hikari chuckled. If he truly wanted to pursue a beauty like Kurenai, forget Asuma—even if the Third Hokage gave an order, Hikari was confident he could get her pregnant.

Rest assured, willingly.

Hikari was not the kind of person who relied on his strength to force himself on others.

For someone as rich and handsome as him, getting women was simply too easy.

"Guy's here too. Huh, and little beauty Tenten as well!" Hikari looked into the distance and saw a green-clad man running toward the Hidden Leaf Village's gate with a long-haired boy and a girl with twin buns.

"Hikari, although the Hidden Leaf Village isn't strict about relationships between men and women, you still need to behave yourself. Tenten is still so young—you can't lead a child astray. Otherwise, Guy won't let you off." Kurenai Yuhi gave him a warning.

Hikari shrugged. "Don't worry, I'm not interested in children like that. When it comes to women, I prefer mature beauties like you, Kurenai. Hmm, Ayame from Ichiraku Ramen isn't bad either. As for Anko, she's too manly."

The corner of Kurenai Yuhi's mouth twitched. She felt she had asked an unnecessary question.

Soon, Guy arrived at the gate with the two youngsters.

"Yo, Hikari, you're here pretty early today!"

Flash!

Might Guy's signature move, White Fang Flash, made Hikari involuntarily take a step back.

"What a terrifying skill. Guy, if you use that move directly against an enemy, you could blind their dog eyes!"

"Really? Really?" Might Guy was somewhat excited. This was one of his moves aside from taijutsu. If it worked, he needed to practice it properly.

"Of course it's fake!" Kurenai Yuhi worried about Guy's intelligence.

"No way, Hikari. I thought I'd invented another move!" Might Guy looked rather dejected.

Hikari immediately passed the blame along. "It's all beautiful Kurenai's fault. I fully support that move of yours. After all, Guy, you're the renowned Leaf's Blue Beast!"

Everyone else simply thought Guy had casually made up that title.

Only Hikari knew that when Guy used the Seventh Gate of the Eight Inner Gates against enemies, blue steam erupted from his body, making him look like a beast. That was why he had named himself so.

And once he called himself the Red Beast, it meant he had opened the final gate of the Eight Inner Gates—the Gate of Death.

If possible, Hikari hoped Guy would never use that forbidden technique for the rest of his life.

Kurenai rolled her eyes at Hikari helplessly, then looked at Tenten, who was walking toward him.

"Senior Hikari, have you eaten breakfast? This is the loving breakfast I made for you! Of course, if you've already eaten, you can take it and eat it on the road. There's also water here, along with some meat products to replenish your nutrition during the journey!" Little rich girl Tenten directly took out two sealing scrolls, leaving Kurenai Yuhi beside her dumbfounded.

Were young people these days really this rich?

The story has been recommended, so please keep reading! Thank you!