Anko

"Provocation?" Uchiha Chiaki crossed his arms and said disdainfully, "You're not worthy!"

Damn it! This bastard is so arrogant! I really want to beat him to death!

The Uchiha Clan's provocative trash talk really was no joke!

No wonder that when the clan was wiped out in the future, Konoha's other ninja clans showed no reaction at all, as if nothing had happened.

By Bai Yue's standards, when internal conflict led to an entire clan's annihilation, the other ninja clans should at least have felt some indignation, if not a sense of shared peril.

Yet nothing happened at all!

"You..." Forget Hyuga Goruryu and Hyuga Bun—even Kurenai Yuhi could not help wanting to punch this arrogant guy.

"My sincerest apologies. I wasn't aware of this earlier. If I caused any trouble, please say so directly." Damn it! You bastard! On the Night of the Uchiha Clan Downfall, I won't touch anyone else—I'll just gouge out your eyes!

"Tch! Boring!" Seeing Bai Yue act this way, and seeing that he was just a child, Uchiha Chiaki—who had originally wanted to have some fun to pass the time—curled his lip. "Watch yourself next time!"

"Mm, okay!" Naturally evil Uchiha!

Just wait! I'm definitely gouging out your eyes!

Bai Yue had always been generous toward the doomed. Though it would take a while—seven or eight years, in fact—it didn't matter. After all, Bai Yue was still very young!

"Young Master, this..." Your Majesty, we wish to fight to the death. Why have you surrendered first for no reason?

"There's no need to make a big deal out of something so minor. Besides, I was the one at fault for breaking an unspoken rule." Bai Yue smiled faintly and spoke calmly.

To be honest, if the people who had come were not Uchiha from the Konoha Military Police Force, but someone more mild-mannered, Bai Yue would definitely have accepted the criticism humbly.

After all, he really had been at fault first.

"You really are a good child!" Kurenai Yuhi said approvingly from beside him.

"I guess so." Bai Yue scratched his head. Anyway, I've already written it down in my little notebook!

"Let's go. We should find Sister Anko."

"Mm..." Kurenai Yuhi suddenly felt embarrassed, because she was the source of all this. If she had not insisted that Bai Yue deal with Anko's matter, then Bai Yue, who usually stayed home all year, would never have run into this.

"Sorry, Bai Yue..." Kurenai Yuhi said awkwardly.

"Why are you apologizing out of nowhere?"

"If it weren't for me, this wouldn't have happened today..." Kurenai Yuhi's pretty face flushed red with embarrassment.

"Ah, how could this possibly be your fault?" Without turning around, Bai Yue waved his hand indifferently. "Besides, we're friends, aren't we?"

"Mm!" Kurenai Yuhi nodded, looking at Bai Yue's back.

He might have been a little bean, but Bai Yue was really dependable!

For Kurenai Yuhi, it was a novel experience. That small figure somehow gave her such a strong sense of security.

Before long—

Bai Yue and Kurenai Yuhi found the dejected Mitaraishi Anko atop Hokage Rock.

"Anko!" Seeing her best friend so utterly broken, Kurenai Yuhi immediately stepped forward and wrapped Anko in her arms.

Anko's lifeless eyes swept over Kurenai Yuhi and Bai Yue before she lowered her head again to look at prosperous Konoha.

Tsk, tsk. What kind of unbeatable sightseeing spot is Hokage Rock? Everyone likes coming here to clear their heads?

And yet they never ran into anyone else!

Was there some unspoken rule? Only one person could be on Hokage Rock at a time? If someone came here to relax and found somebody else already here, they had to leave?

Well, to be fair, the scenery really was nice. The feeling of looking down upon the whole of Konoha and taking in all its prosperity at a glance was indeed wonderful.

No wonder Hashirama had strengthened his resolve to protect it after seeing such a sight, then gone and beaten down his best friend Madara.

"Anko..." Seeing her best friend looking half-dead, Kurenai Yuhi was at a loss for how to comfort her.

Helplessly, Kurenai Yuhi once again turned a pleading look toward Bai Yue.

Why are you looking at me? It's not like I know how to talk people into things!

Bai Yue waved his hand, not because no words were needed, but because he genuinely did not know how to talk people into things.

That pleading gaze began to shine so brightly that Bai Yue could barely keep his eyes open.

Fine, I'll give it a try.

Shaking his head helplessly, Bai Yue walked over and sat down beside Anko.

"This is my first time looking at the village from Hokage Rock. I have to say, the First Hokage was truly great," Bai Yue said leisurely.

But compared with that so-called greatness, Bai Yue thought Hashirama had simply been too stupid. All that nonsense about mutual understanding between people—Susanoo-clad Buddha, the two of them crushing four nations—that was much more to Bai Yue's taste.

What a pity! The Ninja World should have been peaceful. It was Hashirama's strange ideas that dragged out the wars for decades.

The wars even became more intense. During the Warring States Period, it had only been clan against clan. After Hashirama and Madara died, it became village against village, nation against nation.

Even more people died and were wounded!

"The village is wonderful, isn't it?" Seeing that neither girl spoke, Bai Yue continued on his own. "But I heard that during the Warring States Period, ninja had to go to war at six years old. An ordinary person who lived to thirty was considered long-lived."

"Was it really that cruel?!" Kurenai Yuhi said in astonishment. "Kakashi also went to war at six!"

"That was Kakashi's own choice. Sister Hong, didn't you all go to war when you were twelve?"

How should he put it? Going from six to twelve was an enormous breakthrough.

Don't laugh—this really was a tremendous breakthrough. It was the same in every world of war and chaos.

Bai Yue's world in his previous life had already been peaceful, but it had been the same during times of war!

"Yes..." Kurenai Yuhi said slowly, somewhat unable to understand why Bai Yue had brought this up.

"How fortunate. Sister Hong, you were lucky. I can't imagine how you would have survived if you had gone to war at six." Bai Yue sighed. "But in such a wonderful Konoha, some children die before they even reach one year old."

Bai Yue tore open a bloody wound without any hesitation.

"Some children never even open their eyes to see the world before they are tragically reduced to experimental materials! Some are not even born before they, along with their mothers, become experimental materials."

"What are you trying to say?!" Anko asked through gritted teeth.

"Do you want revenge?"

"Yes! I want nothing more than to tear that man apart!" Compared to Blood Cow Tao, Anko, who had been betrayed by the person she trusted most, was obviously much more normal.

"But you're very weak."

"!!!" Even Kurenai Yuhi was dumbfounded! What kind of way was that to comfort someone? He had started by talking about the cruel fate of infants being made into experimental materials, and now he was bluntly saying Anko was too weak.

If Anko had not stopped looking half-dead, Kurenai Yuhi would have thought Bai Yue was provoking her. What a strange method.

But Anko's hatred-filled expression now did not seem very good either!

Maybe... we should wait a little longer?!

"Don't deny it. You really are weak." Bai Yue emphasized again, "With your current strength, forget taking revenge on Orochimaru—you can't even keep up with your friends' progress."