Did They Have a Fight?

The two bonuses to his attributes had also made Yang Xing realize that his physical condition had probably reached the level of a quasi-Chunin. If he kept working hard, he would only grow stronger.

More importantly, with his upgraded Sharingan, the peak of his current strength was now impossible to gauge.

"Still, the Evolution Fruit is pretty great."

Staring at the image of the fruit on his phone, Yang Xing wondered whether he should use it to evolve his Sharingan into a two-tomoe Sharingan. But evolving it now seemed like a waste. It probably wouldn't take long for his one-tomoe Sharingan to evolve on its own.

The Evolution Fruit could raise any achievement, aura, or skill by one level, regardless of any other requirements.

Using it just to evolve his one-tomoe Sharingan into a two-tomoe Sharingan felt like a waste.

Yang Xing was torn. Just then, he heard footsteps nearby. Realizing someone was approaching from behind, he immediately put his phone away.

When he turned around, he was surprised to see Obito.

Obito looked a little strange as he slowly approached.

Yang Xing frowned and asked, "What is it?"

"Um, about what I said to you earlier today..."

"Huh?"

"Anyway, I'm sorry. I really didn't mean to say those things." Obito bowed, his face flushing with guilt.

"Oh, you mean that." Yang Xing had honestly forgotten about it until Obito brought it up.

He hadn't taken it seriously from the start. Hearing Obito mention it, he pursed his lips and smiled faintly. "You were just telling the truth. There's nothing to apologize for. I can't control what everyone thinks."

Yang Xing's smile was a little cold. Obito understood perfectly well that behind it was a haughty chill that kept people at arm's length.

The powerful guy standing before him had every right to be that cold.

Even so, Obito had something he needed to say.

"Thank you for saving me." Obito bowed. He clearly had no intention of staying to chat, and left after adding, "I really did want to apologize."

Watching his somewhat lonely figure walk away, Yang Xing frowned slightly.

But the frown vanished almost immediately. "What's the brat playing at? Well, a brat's a brat. Better not get too involved with him."

In any case, Yang Xing had known from the start that Obito was much harder to deal with than Kakashi, and much harder to get along with.

Besides, he hadn't come here to make friends. He didn't want to play house with these people.

Everything he did was for himself—for his goals and for his harem.

Of course, aside from himself, there now seemed to be one more person he needed to look after.

That girl really thought she could hide from him now that he had the Sharingan.

"Ahem..." Yang Xing sighed, then suddenly pointed at a big tree in the distance. "Whoa, there's a huge spider over there, and a bunch of little ones!"

"Ah! Where? Where?" A girl cried out. Her ponytail was easy to spot as Anko jumped out, clearly startled, and hurried toward Yang Xing. "Don't scare me! Where is it?"

Yang Xing: "..."

Yang Xing didn't laugh. He just quietly looked at Anko, who was barely fourteen: lively, youthful, and just a little cute.

Under his gaze, Anko's cheeks turned red, like ripe apples.

"I was just going to relieve myself when I saw him following you. At first, I thought he was trying to start trouble." As she spoke, her expression changed. She planted her hands on her hips, looking triumphant. "I came to help you! Hey, shouldn't you thank me properly?"

"All right, I'm very grateful." Yang Xing sighed and spread his arms, putting on an earnest expression. "I'm deeply grateful for your kindness. To show my appreciation, let me give you a heartfelt hug."

"Mhm, you'd better be... Ah! Don't really hug me! You little pervert! W-where are you touching? You little rascal!"

Anko hadn't expected Yang Xing to actually hug her. Worse, the little devil had put his hands on the backside she was so proud of. Feeling him touch her, Anko sprang away in fright and stared at Yang Xing, who wore a mischievous smile.

She stamped her foot in anger, her cheeks red, then turned and left. More than walking, she hurried off at a jog.

Judging by how flustered she looked, she was genuinely embarrassed.

Yang Xing kept smiling as he watched her disappear into the distance. He looked down at his hands, his grin turning rather wicked.

Tonight's going to be a long one!

Early the next morning, everyone finished packing and got ready to set out.

The sun had just peeked over the horizon, and dew still clung to the leaves.

"Hey, um..." Yang Xing had finished packing and slung on his backpack. As he started walking, he spotted Anko ahead and couldn't help wanting to greet her.

Anko turned around, frowned, and pouted. "Don't talk to me, you little pervert!"

Looks like the girl was still angry.

Yang Xing had no intention of apologizing, so he kept walking. After a few steps, he turned around—whether deliberately or not—and stuck his tongue out at her.

Yang Xing couldn't help laughing. Anko really could be kind of cute.

But was this really the same mature woman he remembered?

"Um, Yang Xing, did something happen between you and Big Sister Anko?" Someone had noticed the strange behavior between Yang Xing and Anko. Rin Nohara walked over without a second thought.

"Nothing."

"But she seems upset. She even glared at you just now." Rin Nohara blinked and asked eagerly, "Did you have a fight?"

"Something like that." Yang Xing clasped his hands behind his head, acting as if it didn't matter.

Hearing that, Rin Nohara clenched her little fist and couldn't help murmuring, "That's great!"

"What did you just say?"

"Mm-hmm!" Rin Nohara shook her head and smiled sweetly. "Nothing. By the way, would you like some tea? I just made it this morning. It's a family recipe that's great for staying alert."

She took a bottle of the prepared tea from her little backpack and handed it to him with a smile. It looked as though she had prepared two bottles in advance.

"Thanks." Yang Xing accepted the bottle without saying anything else.

He put it to his mouth and took a small sip.

The refreshing tea perked him right up. It tasted pretty good, too, and Yang Xing's brow relaxed.

Watching Yang Xing suddenly brighten up, Rin Nohara smiled as well. The corner of her eye flicked toward Anko, who was watching them coldly from a short distance away, and her smile grew even more pronounced.

Anko gritted her teeth in frustration.

Once he'd relaxed, Yang Xing remembered something he'd forgotten the previous night.

"I almost forgot to check the mission. I never looked at the mission we accepted yesterday. That girl distracted me so much I nearly forgot."

"An A-rank mission: kill a Jonin to prove your strength. I'm sure you can do it. The mission must be completed within a day."

"A kill mission? And the target's a Jonin? Could a Jonin be lying in ambush for us?" Looking at the mission, Yang Xing grew wary and moved a little closer to Rin Nohara.

If he had to protect someone, he should protect Rin first. She was the weakest one here.