[The Girl Next Door Has Grown Up!]

Despite Tsunade's fierce resistance, Hyuga Bin ultimately did not continue playing with Tsunade for another month.

After bidding Tsunade farewell, Hyuga Bin set off for the Land of Rain to deliver the books Jiraiya had published earlier to Yahiko and the other two. While he was at it, he intended to give them a warning. There were less than two years left until Yahiko's death in the original story.

After leaving the Land of Fire, Hyuga Bin changed his appearance, transforming into an ordinary farmer. He planned to operate in the Land of Rain in the safest way possible.

With his experience dealing with over twenty elite Sand Ninja last time, Hyuga Bin was now confident in his own strength.

He estimated that he possessed Kage Level strength now, and that among Kage Level fighters, he ranked fairly high when it came to bullying the weak.

However, Kage Level strength was clearly nothing special in the world of Naruto.

Take the current Land of Rain, for example. On the surface, there was Hanzo, a Kage Level powerhouse. In the shadows, there was also Madara Uchiha, hidden somewhere underground in the Land of Rain with oxygen tubes stuck into him, eating bugs every day, as well as Nagato Uzumaki when he was in an extremely enraged state.

Madara Uchiha in particular, hidden in the darkness—even after giving the Rinnegan to Nagato Uzumaki, even with his body already frail from old age—could still possibly unleash Beyond Kage-level strength in battle.

To be safe, he naturally needed to avoid the possibility of accidents as much as possible.

After all, if he ran into Madara Uchiha and could not beat him, wouldn't he be finished?

Mr. Zhou Shuren had once said:

"Freedom is precious, love is dearer still. But for the sake of life, both can be cast aside!"

The Land of Rain was known as the country that cried because it basically never stopped raining.

The moment Hyuga Bin entered the Land of Rain, his body was soaked by the drizzling rain.

Fortunately, Hyuga Bin had come empty-handed and carried no burden. Almost everything he owned was stored in Sealing Scrolls.

Although Sealing Scrolls were expensive and could not hold much at all, Hyuga Bin, a Konoha Special Jonin, could still afford several to store supplies for everyday use.

Otherwise, carrying everything on his body whenever he went out would hinder his movements too much.

He had several sets of spare clothes alone. Add ninja tools, food, and other necessities, and even a backpack would not be enough.

Relying on the memories in his mind, Hyuga Bin headed toward the place he had agreed to meet Yahiko several years ago.

After four years of development, that agreed-upon location had become a small gathering place.

From far away, Hyuga Bin spotted Nagato Uzumaki "moving bricks."

After undoing his transformation and putting on goggles to conceal his Byakugan and Caged Bird, Hyuga Bin finally headed toward the gathering place.

At this time, the Akatsuki Organization had, aside from Yahiko and the other two, recruited more than twenty ninja, reaching a total of thirty.

However, those twenty-plus ninja were all merely Genin. Since they had not received sufficient ninjutsu education, they were far weaker than the Genin of the major ninja villages.

In the original story, this first generation of Akatsuki Organization members would all ultimately die beneath Hanzo's butcher's blade.

After entering the gathering place, Hyuga Bin smiled at Nagato Uzumaki and said, "Nagato-kun."

"Bin-kun, you're here." Nagato Uzumaki also stopped what he was doing and revealed a shy smile, welcoming Hyuga Bin's arrival.

Nagato Uzumaki was still introverted and lacking in confidence, but those issues did not exist when he was facing a friend.

"Yeah. I've been on leave recently, so I thought I'd come see you all."

"I'll take you to Yahiko and Konan."

"Sure." Hyuga Bin nodded.

"Looks like your organization has developed pretty well." As they walked, Hyuga Bin looked at the team that had already begun to take shape and said with a smile.

"The organization has only just started. There's still plenty of room for improvement." Nagato Uzumaki's answer was very modest.

"To achieve this much without anyone's help is already impressive." Hyuga Bin did not hold back his praise.

Because Yahiko was around, Nagato Uzumaki was completely different from the domineering God Pain of the original story.

Before they had taken more than a few steps, Yahiko emerged from a room and waved at Hyuga Bin with a smile. "Bin-kun."

After four years of growth, Yahiko had already developed the air of a leader.

"Yahiko-kun." Hyuga Bin returned his smile.

Once the three met up, Yahiko led Hyuga Bin into the reception room, where they sat down and Yahiko poured him a cup of water.

Seeing that one flower was missing, Hyuga Bin asked curiously, "By the way, where's Konan-kun? Why don't I see her?"

Yahiko explained, "When she saw you arrive just now, she went to the kitchen. She said she wanted to make you a meal."

"Yahiko-kun, hearing you say that makes me feel a little flattered." Hyuga Bin laughed. "I should find some time to go see what she's cooking."

"Sure."

"I brought you the books Lord Jiraiya wrote. He also gave me letters to pass on to you." Hyuga Bin took three books from his scroll and handed them to Yahiko and Nagato Uzumaki. Each cover stated who it was for, and inside were letters Jiraiya had written separately to the three of them.

"Mm, Bin-kun, thank you." Yahiko accepted the books from Hyuga Bin and thanked him earnestly.

He had not expected Hyuga Bin to still remember what he had said years ago, much less keep his promise.

After all, given their identities, the next time they met, they might very well be "enemies."

Just as Yahiko finished speaking, a Genin appeared outside the door and said anxiously, "Lord Yahiko, Tono has something that needs you to handle it..."

"Alright, tell him to wait a moment. I'll be right there." After replying to the Genin, Yahiko showed Hyuga Bin an apologetic expression. "The organization has just taken in several newcomers, so things are a little busy."

"It's fine, Yahiko-kun. Go handle your work first. Nagato-kun, you haven't finished what you were doing either, so hurry and get back to it. I'll go see Konan-kun cooking." Hyuga Bin waved with a smile.

He had never understood how even a "village chief" in Konoha could have endless work every day. Now that he saw a "team captain" like Yahiko was just as busy, he suddenly understood.

"Alright, Bin-kun. We'll have a good chat when it's time to eat." Yahiko and Nagato Uzumaki gave Hyuga Bin slight nods before heading out to continue their work.

Hyuga Bin took a sip of water, stood up, left the reception room, and followed the source of the cooking smoke until he found Konan, who was seriously chopping vegetables in the kitchen.

Compared to four years ago, eighteen-year-old Konan had blossomed into a graceful beauty, ready to be picked at any time.

(Some readers previously debated whether "-kun" could be used when addressing women. Crayon had looked it up on Baidu long ago, and it can be used. Many films and anime also address girls as xx-kun, such as Wife*Cheating, Shinigami, Naruto, Water**Park... These are all excellent anime.)