Kurenai's Blushing Face

[Obtained: Lesser Restoration Pill ×3]

[Obtained: Shaolin Sobering Stone ×1]

Guy was stunned.

Lesser Restoration Pill?

He tapped to open the description.

[Lesser Restoration Pill: A Shaolin medicinal pill for healing. Can rapidly restore stamina and treat moderate injuries. Suitable for use during combat.]

Good stuff.

He looked at the other item.

[Shaolin Sobering Stone: Held in the mouth, it keeps the mind clear and provides a certain degree of resistance against common illusions.]

[It can also be swallowed; swallowing it significantly increases the body's resistance to illusions.]

[Side effect of swallowing: Inability to get drunk.]

After reading the description, Guy's mouth twitched.

Inability to get drunk?

This is called a side effect?

To an ordinary person, what kind of side effect is this?

People who can't hold their liquor would kill for this.

But Guy suddenly thought of something.

Among the Shaolin ultimate arts, there seem to be...

Drunken Fist.

Drunken Staff.

Drunken Sword.

And even Drunken Eight Immortals.

These martial arts all rely on "drunkenness" to unleash their power.

If he ate this thing, how would he practice those martial arts in the future?

Forever stuck at the entry level?

Guy shook his head repeatedly.

"This thing, I absolutely cannot eat it!"

He tucked the Shaolin Sobering Stone away.

Holding it in his mouth to resist illusions is fine, but swallowing it is out of the question.

If he ever unlocked Drunken Fist later, he wouldn't even have time to cry.

Guy stood up and pulled the heavy broadsword out of the ground.

He gripped it and gave it a few swings.

It felt natural.

Although it was bigger than him, it didn't feel heavy to hold.

It just looked a bit jarring.

A child not yet eight years old, lugging around a broadsword longer than himself.

What did it look like?

Guy thought about it, but couldn't come up with a comparison.

Whatever it looked like.

As long as it worked, that was enough.

He took a deep breath and assumed his starting stance.

He had been practicing the Precept-Breaking Blade for several months and had already mastered it.

"Precept-Breaking Blade, First Form!"

Whoosh!

The blade flashed.

It felt much smoother than the training blade he usually used.

The blade sliced through the air, emitting a faint whistling sound.

"Second Form!"

"Third Form!"

After finishing the forty-nine-style set, Guy sheathed his blade and caught his breath.

Sweat trickled down his forehead.

Yet, his eyes were frighteningly bright.

This blade felt perfect!

He was just about to start a second round of practice.

"Guy!"

A voice drifted over from the edge of the woods.

Guy turned his head.

Kurenai Yuhi stood there, her black curly hair swaying in the breeze.

In her hand, she carried that familiar cloth bundle.

Guy was stunned.

"Kurenai? Why are you here?"

Kurenai walked over, her face slightly flushed.

"I... I guessed you would come here on your day off."

"My family gave me half a day off, so I came over to find you... all of you."

Guy didn't speak.

He just looked at her.

Kurenai felt uncomfortable under his gaze and turned her head away.

"What... what are you looking at?"

Guy grinned.

"Nothing."

He knew Kurenai was lying.

Day off, indeed.

She must have heard about them wiping out the bandits yesterday and came over specifically to see if he was hurt.

But girls, after all.

They have thin skin.

Better not to expose the truth.

"What did you bring?" Guy pointed at the cloth bundle.

Kurenai handed the bundle over.

"My mother made... she made too much."

Guy set his broadsword on the ground, took the bundle, and opened it.

Rice balls, pickled radishes, and a small box of dumplings.

He picked up a rice ball and took a large bite.

"Mmm, delicious."

Kurenai stood to the side, watching him eat, the corners of her mouth curling up.

After watching for a while, she suddenly remembered something.

"Oh, right!"

Guy chewed the rice ball and asked indistinctly, "Hm?"

Kurenai's eyes sparkled.

"I've practiced a very powerful genjutsu!"

Guy was taken aback.

"Genjutsu?"

"Yeah!" Kurenai nodded. "Taught by my family; I've been practicing for two months and finally mastered it."

She was a bit excited, yet a bit nervous.

"Do you... want to try it?"

Guy looked into her expectant eyes and grinned.

"Sure."

He stuffed the rest of the rice ball into his mouth and brushed the rice grains off his hands.

"Bring it on."

Kurenai took two steps back.

"Are you ready?"

Guy nodded.

Kurenai raised her head and formed hand seals.

"Illusion: Falling Cherry Blossom Sight Technique!"

Guy felt his vision blur.

Cherry blossoms appeared before his eyes.

His entire being grew dazed.

His body stiffened.

He stood motionless.

He remained standing right where he was, staring straight ahead.

Kurenai watched him, her eyes brightening.

"Guy?"

No response.

"Guy!"

Still no response.

Kurenai cautiously took a step forward.

She leaned in close to him and waved her hand.

Guy didn't even blink.

Kurenai pursed her lips.

Then, she looked left and right.

The forest was very quiet.

There was only the rustling of wind through the leaves.

No one was there.

She took a deep breath.

She whispered, "Guy, do you know who I am?"

Guy stood there, his gaze unfocused.

He spoke in a daze.

"Yuhi... Kurenai..."

Kurenai smiled.

She smiled with immense joy.

She bit her lip.

She looked left and right again.

Confirming that there was truly no one around.

Then, she leaned in closer.

Her voice dropped even lower.

"Guy, then do you..."

She paused.

Her face grew redder and redder.

But she asked it anyway.

"Do you... like me?"

Guy's body stiffened as he stood there.

His gaze remained unfocused.

But his mouth opened.

"Guy... likes Kurenai the most..."

Kurenai's stunned face turned completely crimson in an instant.

Then she smiled.

Her eyes curved into crescent moons.

She smiled with immense joy.

She looked at Guy's dazed face.

She suddenly stood on her tiptoes.

She planted a quick kiss on his cheek.

Then she stepped back twice.

Covering her face.

"I... I'm heading back now!"

She turned and ran.

Her black curly hair swayed in the sunlight.

She soon vanished into the woods.

Guy stood where he was.

Motionless.

Only when Kurenai's footsteps had completely faded away.

Did he blink, his expression indescribably strange.

Then he opened his mouth and spat out a small stone.

A Sobering Stone.

Just a moment ago, while Kurenai had her head lowered, he had snuck his hand into his pocket to retrieve the Sobering Stone.

He had tucked it under the base of his tongue.

Intending to test the effects of the Sobering Stone.

The thing was a bit cold.

And when Kurenai activated her genjutsu, it had released a bitter taste.

Guy had sobered up instantly.

He had intended to tease Kurenai, but he hadn't expected...

"What was that? A maiden's confession?"

A strange look crossed Guy's face.

"But if that really counts as a confession, shouldn't it have been me confessing just now?"

Guy shook his head.

Shaking off the distracting thoughts, he picked up the broadsword from the ground and continued practicing the Precept-Breaking Blade.

Even though he had just finished a set.

For some reason, Guy felt as though his body.

Had an endless supply of energy!