So What If You've Got Cleavage?

Back in the cave, Genma noticed the strange atmosphere and smiled at Shizune and Yamashiro Aoba. "What's wrong?"

Shizune said softly, "I just feel like Igata Kaito is a pretty pitiful person. He used to be a good person, right?"

Yamashiro Aoba nodded, then said, "Getting rid of him was our mission, but after learning some of the truth, it's hard not to feel like... like we're doing the bad guys' work."

Shizune nodded repeatedly. She felt the same way.

Even though she knew perfectly well that Igata Kaito was a bad person.

Genma understood why Shizune and Yamashiro Aoba were conflicted.

They were all children.

And even adults would still feel conflicted.

After all, it was their first time "killing someone."

"Genma, what do you think?"

Hatake Sakumo asked.

The reason he had let Genma do it was that this student was far more mature than the others his age.

Hatake Sakumo hadn't immediately started trying to talk them through it. One reason was, of course, that his student was mature; the other was that he wanted to understand him better.

Besides, if Genma could make sense of it, he could guide Shizune and Yamashiro Aoba much better than if he tried to "lecture" them himself.

The firelight flickered, making Genma's expression hard to read, but his tone was firm. "Teacher, I think we shouldn't listen to what someone says. We should look at what they do."

"Good and evil aren't so absolute."

"Shizune, do you think I'm a good person?"

Shizune immediately nodded emphatically. "Of course."

Genma said, "But I just killed Igata Kaito. Do you think I'm a bad person now? You don't."

Shizune shook her head.

Genma smiled and continued, "But to Igata Kaito, we're all bad people."

"To the innocent villagers he killed, didn't Igata Kaito deserve to die?"

"Obviously."

"We accepted a commission from the Daimyo Estate of the Land of Fire. The Daimyo Estate governs the Land of Fire. We're acting on its behalf, and on behalf of those dead villagers, so killing him was justified."

Where you stand determines what you see.

Shizune and Yamashiro Aoba nodded in agreement, and their unease vanished.

Hatake Sakumo smiled.

With this student around, being a teacher was a lot easier.

He couldn't help thinking of Kakashi and chuckled to himself. Minato must still have a real headache on his hands!

With their doubts settled, the squad rested for half an hour before setting off to leave the Land of Rain.

This time, Hatake Sakumo picked up the pace, pushing Genma and the others harder. They made it back to Konoha by the following afternoon.

When they arrived, Shizune and Yamashiro Aoba both let out a long breath, their exhausted faces relaxing.

Genma was still neither red-faced nor out of breath.

That level of exertion was nothing special for him.

"You did a great job on this mission. We'll rest tomorrow, and meet at the Hokage Building the morning after."

"Dismissed!"

Once they entered the village gates, Hatake Sakumo announced that they were dismissed.

Genma still walked Shizune to Tsunade's place.

"Lady Tsunade, I'm back!"

The moment Shizune stepped inside, she called out loudly.

But no one answered.

She pushed open the study door, but didn't see anyone there either. "Huh? Where did Lady Tsunade go?"

Genma didn't give it much thought. "She probably went to an izakaya."

"Should we go find her?"

Shizune thought it over. "Never mind. I'll wash up first, then make some dinner and hangover soup for Lady Tsunade to have when she gets back."

She was so thoughtful!

Genma sighed inwardly, then ruffled Shizune's hair. "All right. I'll head home, then."

Shizune smiled and waved. "Bye!"

Genma waved back, took two steps away, then vanished with the Body Flicker Technique.

Genma got home to an empty house, but noticed that his parents had already finished work.

"Did they go for a walk after dinner?"

"Probably not, right?"

Genma saw no sign that anyone had cooked dinner, so he shook his head and stopped wondering. He headed straight for the bathroom.

He was desperate for a bath.

He filled the tub, lay back in the water, and let out a long, contented sigh.

Then his eyelids drooped as he checked the [Setting Collection].

Setting Value: 0.1

That was what he'd gained from this mission.

It could only be said that minor characters had very little influence on this world—or, rather, on the population as a whole.

So was the course of the world driven by a small handful of people?

Genma pursed his lips to himself, then cleared his mind and rested.

Half an hour later.

Wearing a short-sleeved shirt and knee-length shorts, Genma headed out with his hands in his pockets to find something to eat, since he didn't feel like cooking.

Konoha's shopping district was still bustling in the night, crowded with people.

"How about some barbecue?"

Genma stopped in front of a barbecue restaurant. After thinking it over, he went inside.

"Huh?"

Genma was about to find a seat when he stopped and blinked, almost thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him.

Sitting not far away were none other than his respected Lord Ran'ya and his beloved Mrs. Kazekaze.

They were chatting and laughing over drinks.

They looked... like a couple in the throes of young love.

They didn't even act like that when they ate at home!

Was I just an accident?

Genma turned around and walked back out.

As a single guy, he didn't like having a couple's happiness shoved in his face.

After strolling around for a while, Genma stopped in front of an izakaya.

He remembered that Tsunade liked to drink here.

"Should I take a look?"

Genma thought it over, then pushed the door open and went inside.

Behind the counter stood a tall young woman with a gentle smile.

When she saw Genma come in, she hurried over to stop him. "Little boy, this isn't the kind of place you should be in~"

Genma immediately said, "I'm here to see Lady Tsunade!"

The young woman paused, then asked, "Are you a ninja?"

"Lady Tsunade is over there. Would you like me to take you to her?"

"No, I can go by myself."

Genma waved her off and walked away.

He sat across from Tsunade, who was drinking by herself. Without greeting her, he called over a server and ordered food.

After he finished ordering, Tsunade spoke with alcohol on her breath. "Hey, this isn't the kind of place you should be."

Genma didn't care. "It doesn't matter when you're here to eat."

"Lady Tsunade, aren't you going to ask how our mission went?"

Tsunade scoffed. "Hmph. With Senior Sakumo there, even if something unexpected happened, it wouldn't be a problem."

"But since you're back, let's play a round."

As she spoke, she pulled a deck of cards from her robe.

Genma's face twitched.

So what if you've got cleavage!

Don't you know there's a kid here?

Genma looked down on Tsunade.

He had the day off tomorrow, so he wasn't afraid of anything now. "Lady Tsunade, there's no way you can beat me!"

Tsunade's gaze was slightly unfocused. She pulled out the two jokers and set them aside, then gave a soft snort. "Don't get too cocky, kid."

"We'll play for points this time. Two cards each. Do you know the rules?"

Genma nodded. "I do."

"If Lady Tsunade loses, you pay for this meal. If I lose, I'll pay for your drinks. How does that sound?"

Tsunade shuffled the deck quickly. "Good. It's a deal!"

Once she was done shuffling, Tsunade dealt Genma's cards first, then dealt one card to each of them in turn.

When the deal was done, Genma flipped over both cards at once. One was a ten, and the other a nine.

Nineteen points!

Tsunade's eyelid twitched. How does this guy get so lucky?

But she still had a good chance of winning.

She took a deep breath and turned over her first card. It was a face card.

"Ha! You're definitely going to lose this time!"

Tsunade beamed.

Then she carefully revealed her second card, lifting it a little at a time.

Suddenly, Tsunade's expression changed, and her smile slowly faded. Oh no, it's not a face card.

It had to be a ten!

Tsunade took a deep breath and kept turning the card over. Then her expression shifted again. It's not a ten either!

An ace!!

Watching Tsunade's expression change over and over, Genma knew this round was in the bag. Looks like he'd get a free meal tonight.

Smack!

Tsunade slapped the last card down, utterly deflated. It was the eight of diamonds.

"Looks like you got lucky today!"

Tsunade snorted.

Having won, Genma immediately gathered up the cards and smiled. "There's no way my skills can compare to Lady Tsunade's, so all I can do is rely on luck. And as it happens, I'm pretty lucky right now."

Tsunade's expression eased a little. She took the cards, put them away, and returned them to their place.

Just then, the server began bringing out the food.

Beef, lamb, vegetables, and shrimp—the spread was lavish.

"Let's eat!"

After saying that, Genma picked up his chopsticks and dug in.

Tsunade rested her cheek in one hand, occasionally taking a small sip of her drink.

But watching Genma eat with such gusto made her stomach betray her with a growl.

She was hungry!

She wanted to eat.

Tsunade pursed her lips, suddenly slapped the table, and called over the server. "Bring me a serving of whatever he's having. Quickly!"

Seeing Tsunade's expression, Genma smiled.