You Brought This on Yourself!

"Torifu, thank goodness you're all right!"

Tears glimmered in Chirori's eyes. If anything had happened to Torifu, she wouldn't have been able to forgive herself—not to mention the punishment the village would have imposed.

Torifu climbed all the way out of the mirror and landed steadily on the ground. The Crystal Mirror hanging in midair shattered into countless fragments and disappeared.

He walked over to reassure Chirori. "Don't cry. Look, I'm perfectly fine."

Chirori quickly wiped her eyes with one hand, her cheeks flushing. "Who's crying? The smoke got in my eyes."

Torifu smiled calmly and didn't tease her further. He hadn't seemed particularly surprised by the ambush.

In fact, he'd sensed from the start that something about this place felt strange. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew something was wrong, so he'd stayed on guard.

He hadn't expected anyone to actually dare attack them inside the village.

By then, Chirori had also composed herself and grown calm. The enemy might still be lurking nearby, preparing another attack. This wasn't the time to chat.

Chirori scanned the forest with her Sharingan, checking every last blind spot, but found nothing.

Torifu patted her shoulder. "Don't worry, Chirori. They've already left."

Torifu was sure the person who had ambushed them from the shadows was gone. That uncomfortable feeling had disappeared.

Chirori glanced back at him. Seeing that he didn't look like he was lying, she relaxed.

Come to think of it, why would anyone joke around with their own life at stake?

"This is all my fault. If I hadn't insisted on sparring, none of this would've happened."

Chirori felt terribly guilty. If Torifu's ninjutsu hadn't been so powerful, he might already have been dead.

"This isn't your fault. Someone wants me dead. Even if you hadn't invited me to spar, they would've tried to ambush me somewhere else."

Torifu's words made Chirori feel a little better, but she was still furious. The attacker hadn't just ambushed Torifu—they'd ruined their spar, too.

Although Chirori now understood the difference in skill between her and Torifu, she was still angry.

"Torifu, do you know who tried to ambush you?"

Chirori had someone in mind, but she wanted to make sure Torifu had come to the same conclusion.

Torifu spread his hands helplessly. "Uchiha Setsuna. Who else could it be?"

"His younger brother is dying, so naturally he wants to take it out on me."

Chirori had reached the same conclusion. She'd already told Torifu to watch out for Uchiha Setsuna, and now he'd come after them so soon—and only dared attack from the shadows!

Chirori gritted her teeth in anger. "That damned Setsuna. He tried to kill you with a sneak attack, and we don't even have any proof!"

"Don't worry. He won't stop at one attempt. When he sees I'm unharmed tomorrow, he'll definitely attack again."

Chirori nodded. After all, she knew better than anyone what people from the Uchiha Clan were like.

And someone as extreme as Setsuna was ruthless and unforgiving, never letting anything go!

"I'll tell my brother about this tonight and warn him to watch out for Uchiha Setsuna, too."

Torifu thought it over. Uchiha Kagami was strong enough that he shouldn't have to fear Uchiha Setsuna. Setsuna was certainly powerful and talented, but he still fell short of Kagami.

Still, Chirori was only trying to warn her brother because she was worried he might be ambushed. There was no need for Torifu to act like he knew better and offer his own advice. It was between the siblings, after all.

The lights in Konoha were growing dimmer. Torifu reminded her, "We should head back soon. It'll be troublesome once it gets completely dark."

Chirori agreed. The dark wouldn't affect her Sharingan, but it might make things difficult for Torifu. She didn't mind walking him home, either.

Torn between her thoughts, she suddenly drifted off.

Seeing Chirori lost in thought, Torifu waved a hand in front of her face, but she didn't notice.

In the end, he had to pat her shoulder to bring her back to her senses.

"What are you thinking about so hard?" Torifu teased.

Chirori's face turned bright red. She stammered, "Nothing. Let's hurry down the mountain."

Then she ran off in a fluster, leaving Torifu completely bewildered.

On the way down, Chirori tried hard to calm herself. She'd completely lost her composure tonight!

She quickened her pace, and Torifu had to hurry to keep up. Together, they made their way back to the village.

"Torifu, I'll head home now. Be careful on your way."

"Okay, see you. Don't worry, we're in the village. It's perfectly safe."

After saying goodbye, they parted ways and headed home.

Once Chirori had left, Torifu's expression gradually darkened. Being ambushed today had left him thoroughly annoyed!

He'd only wanted to live a peaceful life in Konoha and enjoy his time in the Other World.

But some nobody had still rushed up to him to show off! Then, after getting beaten, they'd gone and found someone else!

"Ah, sometimes you leave people alone, but they just won't leave you alone!"

Torifu shook his head helplessly and continued toward home. The village lights were already faint; only a few houses still had their lamps on.

When he got home, Torifu took off his clothes. They'd gotten covered in dust during the fight.

Under the lamplight, even his white hair looked a little gray.

"Time for a bath."

Torifu drew a bath and sank into the water. The fight had been easy enough for him, but he still felt a little tired.

A nice, relaxing soak made him feel much better. But when he remembered that he had to train in Taijutsu with his master tomorrow, a bitter feeling rose in his heart.

There was no other reason. His master's training was simply too extreme.

But it wasn't really Hashirama's fault for being so strict. There was very little he could teach Torifu about ninjutsu.

To help Torifu develop his ninjutsu and Taijutsu in balance, Hashirama had to use this method to quickly improve his Taijutsu.

Torifu submerged his mouth in the water and blew bubbles, trying to improve his mood. In his previous life, he'd done the same thing whenever he felt down.

[Beep—Chaos Event triggered. Because Kyō Uchiha accidentally came close to death while sparring with the host, Uchiha Setsuna has resolved to avenge his younger brother.]

"Are you kidding me?!"

Torifu, who'd still been blowing bubbles, shouted. But all he managed was to blow an even bigger bubble underwater—and then choke on the water.

"Cough, cough! Cough, cough!"

Torifu had only one thought: today had been an absolute disaster!

First he'd been ambushed, and now he'd choked on water. It had nearly gone down his lungs and killed him.

Still, at least there was some good news.

Look at that! He'd been worrying about not having enough Calmness Points, and now someone had come to deliver them.

He didn't know why someone wanting revenge on him counted as a Chaos Event. Was it because he was the Hokage's disciple?

Either way, Uchiha Setsuna wouldn't be easy to deal with. He was one of the Uchiha Clan's best—not at all like that incompetent Kumogakure ninja from before.

"Heh. Since you're a little brother-obsessed fool who came right to my door, I'll gladly take you on!"