Ninja Game

Chiri had no idea what Mimi was thinking. Mimi was only wondering how she had fallen under Genjutsu in the first place.

There had been absolutely no warning—or rather, Mimi had never even seen a Sharingan before.

It was utterly baffling.

The usual method for Genjutsu was to use Chakra to disrupt the target's Chakra.

It required infiltration.

It was cast through necessary conditions such as movements, surroundings, sounds, eye contact, smells, or catalysts.

Mimi was certain she had noticed no such abnormalities.

If anything, the surroundings had been far too quiet all along.

But that was normal for a remote place.

How had she done it?

It was simply too unbelievable.

That technique wasn't normal!

No wonder she was someone capable of developing Izanami, the ultimate Genjutsu. Mimi had no idea how it worked at all.

That meant Mimi currently had no way to defend against her Genjutsu.

And she dispelled it too quickly, never giving Mimi a chance to experiment with breaking Genjutsu.

"Why aren't you home yet?" Chiri was the first to break the silence.

"I just finished training," Mimi responded.

"Working so hard... Do geniuses have it this tough too?"

"What about you? Why aren't you going home at this hour?" Mimi asked in return.

Chiri fell silent for a moment, then smiled. "And this child is?"

Her gaze turned to Insect Sister.

"She's my younger sister."

"Aren't you going to introduce her?"

"She's an idiot," Mimi said. "Bark."

"Woof!" Following Mimi's order, Insect Sister happily barked.

"Ah..." Chiri covered her little mouth, somewhat startled. Then she said with a hint of indignation, "Don't bully her like that!"

"I never saw you show such a sense of justice at school." Mimi snickered.

"Whether it was Mimi or Princess Tsunade, neither of you stepped in. Why should I meddle in other people's business?" Chiri was a little angry, her chubby cheeks puffing up slightly.

"So you're meddling in mine?" Mimi said. "That's not very Uchiha of you."

"Aren't we friends? Your younger sister is my younger sister," Chiri said.

"Are you serious?"

"Mhm!" Chiri nodded emphatically.

"..." Mimi fell silent.

Honestly, she was a little afraid.

Mostly, she was afraid that one day this girl would sacrifice her to awaken her Mangekyo.

It wasn't impossible.

After all, this girl was bound to awaken it.

In short, being Chiri's friend was very risky.

"Why are you silent?" Chiri asked.

"I was wondering what it was about me that drew you in, like a moth to a flame," Mimi said.

Mimi knew exactly how terrifying she seemed in the eyes of children.

Especially girls.

Chiri froze for a moment.

"It's the strength to face loneliness."

She said it out of nowhere.

"You always seem to be alone. Why aren't you afraid?"

"I'm a little envious."

She was still just a child, yet she kept thinking about useless things.

Mimi gave Chiri a deep look and said, "Looks like you have too much free time."

With that, Mimi turned and left.

Her mother, Yumi, was probably getting anxious waiting for her.

Chiri watched Mimi dejectedly.

She had been rejected cleanly and decisively.

It was the first time she had wanted to make a friend, yet she had failed.

She seemed to have underestimated Mimi's coldness.

Standing beneath the moonlight, Chiri lowered her head in disappointment.

"But..."

Mimi's cool voice drifted over.

Chiri abruptly looked up.

"When I have time, I can play with you once in a while. Ninja Game and things like that."

In the distance, Mimi's figure, hand in hand with Insect Sister, gradually disappeared.

A brilliant smile slowly spread across Chiri's face.

"Just as I thought, she's very gentle."

She murmured so quietly that no one could hear.

The next day was another ordinary school day.

Mimi was a little groggy on the way there.

That was normal after staying up late. There would be plenty of time to catch up on sleep during class.

As long as she sat up straight, Ogawa wouldn't be able to tell what Mimi was doing beneath her mask.

Besides, Mimi didn't grind her teeth or talk in her sleep.

But the next instant, Mimi was wide awake.

At the street corner, beneath the bright morning sunlight, Chiri stood waiting prettily by the roadside.

Mimi raised a hand and rubbed her forehead.

Her head felt like it was buzzing, even more than when Insect Sister suddenly crawled into her bed in the middle of the night.

This was going to turn into that kind of relationship, wasn't it? Holding hands and going to the bathroom together.

Absolutely not!

Just how starved for affection was this girl?!

I'm not some old mother taking care of a little brat!

Clearly, Mimi had no way to deal with Chiri.

She ignored Chiri and walked right past her, but Chiri naturally fell into step beside her.

"Want me to treat you to a meal? I have money," Chiri said with a smile.

"Don't use money to buy friends," Mimi said. "Are you rich?"

"Mhm, very rich. I get three payments every month," Chiri responded with a smile. "If it's Mimi, I can give it all to you."

This girl...

Those were regular bereavement payments and the village's living allowance for orphans.

Mimi found the thought hard to swallow.

"I won't eat," Mimi flatly refused.

"Ah..." Chiri was a little disappointed. "Then is there anything Mimi likes?"

"Thanks, but no. Small animals," Mimi answered succinctly.

Chiri understood what she meant. "Huh? You like small animals? I thought you only liked insects."

"Doesn't it seem that way?"

"Mhm, it doesn't," Chiri said.

That was true.

I like eating small animals.

Chickens, rabbits, ducklings, piglets, fish, and the like.

Mimi didn't say it.

She didn't want to shatter Chiri's illusion.

They chatted and laughed along the way. When they reached the classroom, the lone student who always arrived exactly on time had become a pair because of Mimi.

Ogawa was furious when he saw them.

As for Tsunade, after keeping her head down for a while, she inexplicably shot Mimi another provocative look.

"Just wait, bug girl."

After saying that, she ignored Mimi and turned her head away.

Mm, she was very confident.

So where did that confidence come from?

Mimi couldn't help but think it over.

By normal reasoning, Tsunade must have been learning some powerful new Ninjutsu.

How nice, being from a great clan.

But what could she learn? Sealing Technique had basically no offensive power, and Tsunade lacked the conditions to learn the offensive kind.

Medical Ninjutsu had little offensive power too. That Chakra Scalpel looked intimidating, but Tsunade already had Monster Strength. One punch that shattered every bone in her opponent's body was obviously much better.

Then the answer was the Summoning Technique. After all, she was one of the Three Ninja.

So for now, she wasn't much of a threat.

During class, Mimi found it strange that Hinata Hitomi hadn't come.

Skipping class didn't seem like something she would do.

Ogawa gave no explanation either.

A student was missing, yet he didn't seem worried in the slightest.

Since no one mentioned it, everyone naturally ignored the matter.

Mimi, however, was somewhat concerned about that girl who was burning herself away.

The flames in her eyes blazed fiercely. Would she turn to ash, or become a light?

That was why Mimi wondered what kind of person she would become in the future.

People with ambition would always amount to something.

In that regard, Chiri was too low-key and uncompetitive.

That was very unlike an Uchiha, yet very Uchiha at the same time.

It sounded contradictory, but that was simply how it was.

During the break, Chiri naturally sidled up beside Mimi.

Mimi had no idea where she found so much to talk about.

Most of it was boring little things.

The sort of little-girl topic like, "My brother dared to eat shit."

Mimi responded perfunctorily.

Tsunade, who sat beside Mimi, had deliberately kept away from her since the break just to disgust Mimi.

That gave Chiri the chance to squeeze in beside her.

She wasn't afraid of Tsunade.

Tsunade's gaze kept drifting over, intentionally or not.

"Chiri! That sneaky Uchiha!"

Tsunade was a little angry, though she didn't know what she was angry about.

Was it Chiri talking to Mimi?

Or Mimi talking to Chiri?

The difference seemed small, yet it was also enormous.

In short, it was complicated.

I want to make the top ten on the new book rankings.

So, are there any big shots willing to send recommendation votes, monthly tickets, or tips?

I want them all.

Though I'm not holding out much hope.

If one big shot sends a tip, that should basically secure a top-ten spot, right?

It's already in the top twenty of the newcomer new-book rankings.