Apprehension × Grudge

Nara Dan saw this and had no intention of offering comfort; there was simply no point in trying to persuade someone whose heart was already dead.

For adults, Nara Dan never bothered to correct differences in perspective.

After all, he was not the reincarnation of Ashura, and he lacked the legendary Talk-no-Jutsu.

Defeating others was easy, but making them accept your philosophy was far too difficult.

Nara Dan still preferred the former.

Just as Nara Dan was preparing to send the person away, a clear, beautiful voice suddenly rang out.

"Dan!"

A red-clad figure with black hair appeared in his field of vision.

It was Kurenai Yuhi.

Kurenai Yuhi was dressed in her tight-fitting ninja outfit as she walked toward them.

Wrapped in the standard tight Konoha ninja uniform, her tall and slender figure was on full display.

Her red pupils revealed a sense of joy, and the slight sheen of sweat on her neck suggested that Kurenai Yuhi had just returned from a mission and had rushed over to see Nara Dan.

"Lady Tsunade?!"

Kurenai Yuhi looked at Tsunade, who was standing beside Nara Dan, in surprise. Naturally, she could not fail to recognize the idol of all female ninjas in Konoha.

But the question was, why would Tsunade be here?

Clearly, Kurenai Yuhi harbored the same doubts and wariness that any woman would have.

If it were nothing, that would be fine, but if it were something...

Kurenai Yuhi swept her gaze down from Tsunade's golden hair.

That size.

A deep sense of wariness appeared in the depths of her red pupils.

Of course, these emotional shifts could not escape Nara Dan, who had achieved the unity of essence, energy, and spirit, reaching the realm of God-Seeing Indestructibility. However, Nara Dan did not expect that these emotional shifts would also not escape the notice of Tsunade, who was a woman herself.

"Kurenai, she—"

Before Nara Dan could finish, Tsunade interrupted him.

"Dan!"

"Thank you so much for last night!"

Tsunade's tone at this moment was as green as the color of her clothes.

Not only that, but Tsunade deliberately hooked her arm through Nara Dan's and leaned her body against him.

Instantly, a visible wave of pressure bore down on Nara Dan.

It was enough to make even a powerhouse who had achieved God-Seeing Indestructibility lose his composure for a split second.

"If it weren't for you, I probably would have been homeless last night!"

Nara Dan looked at Tsunade in extreme embarrassment, trying to pull his arm away.

But Tsunade had no intention of letting him go.

She used her Strength of a Hundred, and it was impossible for Nara Dan to break free without hurting her.

He could only look on awkwardly as Tsunade finished her act.

He failed to notice that Kurenai Yuhi's expression had turned completely dark.

"Anyway, thank you again."

After saying this, Tsunade used the Body Flicker Technique to leave the scene with lightning speed.

All she left behind for Nara Dan was a dark-faced Kurenai Yuhi and a lingering sensation.

By the time Nara Dan reacted and looked at Kurenai Yuhi, who was wearing an accusatory expression, he could only offer a silent, bitter smile.

Indeed, women were truly not to be trifled with.

The more beautiful the woman, the more dangerous she was.

Mother Zhang did not deceive me!

"So, that's how it is."

Nara Dan exhausted his eloquence, finally explaining the conflict he had with Tsunade and the fact that she had gotten drunk at the tavern yesterday.

"I see..."

Kurenai Yuhi's eyes widened, her red pupils flashing with surprise.

"Lady Tsunade actually wanted to take you as her apprentice?!"

"But I haven't heard anything about this."

Women are naturally gossips; if there were truly any relevant news, the first to receive the intelligence would likely be women.

"That's correct."

Nara Dan nodded and continued, "Because, after all, it isn't exactly a glorious matter,"

"And it also caused Tsunade to lose face as one of the Sannin,"

"So this affair was basically only whispered among the upper echelons of Konoha."

"It wouldn't be publicly announced."

Kurenai Yuhi nodded in understanding.

Indeed, although her Yuhi Clan is considered a ninja clan, compared to great clans like the Nara or the Senju, they are not much different from civilian ninjas.

At most, they are just commoners with a bit of heritage.

It is perfectly normal for her not to know the secrets between the great families.

Seeing that the explanation was sufficient, Nara Dan immediately changed the subject to prevent Kurenai Yuhi from dwelling on the matter of Tsunade again.

"Didn't you go out on a mission?"

"How come you're back so soon?"

Generally speaking, a mission of B-rank or higher takes at least half a month to complete.

The higher the rank, the longer the duration usually is.

For an S-rank mission, it is not rare for it to take a year or more.

Yet, only a little over a week had passed.

"The mission was relatively easy,"

Kurenai Yuhi shrugged, "It was just patrolling around the outskirts of Konoha,"

"But I don't know what's going on lately; the number of spies from other villages around Konoha has increased significantly."

Nara Dan nodded upon hearing this.

Indeed, the dark clouds of war were already hanging over Konoha without any attempt at concealment.

"Speaking of which, I heard that guy Asuma applied to become one of the Guardian Ninja for the Daimyo."

Kurenai Yuhi suddenly brought this up.

"I always thought he was narrow-minded, just smoking and acting mature all day."

"I didn't expect him to actually desert his post before the battle."

"And he's supposed to be the Hokage's son, too."

Nara Dan smiled upon hearing this and did not respond.

He could roughly guess the reason why Asuma voluntarily applied to be a Guardian Ninja.

Because Asuma and Kurenai Yuhi shared the same attitude; they were both deeply disdainful of deserting the village and failing to serve it.

After all, they were both children raised on the Will of Fire.

But sometimes, love is just that cruel.

One man's meat is another man's poison.

"The Hokage has it tough, so we don't need to discuss his family affairs too much."

Nara Dan said this fairly and lightly. If it were him, he wouldn't let his own child go to the battlefield easily either.

After all, no matter how well you protect someone on the battlefield, accidents always happen, and it's not up to the Hokage to decide.

What's more, the Hokage's son is not just an ordinary ninja.

If targeted correctly during the war, it wouldn't be difficult for him to play a strategic role.

However, with war approaching, many plans should be put on the agenda.

Thinking this, Nara Dan called the servant over and said, "Bring over the things I exchanged from the Third last night."

Kurenai Yuhi blinked her large eyes and asked curiously, "What things?"

Nara Dan smiled mysteriously, "A gift for you."

"You're about to be promoted to an Elite Chunin, aren't you?"

"I imagine that after this mission, your merits should be just about enough."

"Consider this an early celebration for you."

"Once the war begins, there won't be time for such things."

Hearing this, Kurenai Yuhi was filled with excitement; to her, being promoted to Elite Chunin was another step closer to becoming a Jonin.

Her father, Shinku Yuhi, had always been the goal she aspired to reach.

She didn't doubt that Nara Dan was lying.

Although she wasn't clear on Nara Dan's actual strength or status, she had heard her teammates discussing him during missions.

She knew that Nara Dan's current position in Konoha was extraordinary, perhaps even higher than the vast majority of Jonin.

"Really!?"

"I'm going to be promoted to Elite Chunin?!"

Nara Dan nodded.

"The Third said so himself."

Thanks to "I'm Above the Male God" for the massive tip!

The boss is generous!