Playing mind games made you heartless

"Holy crap, was the Third really messing with me...?"

He wanted Mitaraishi Anko to protect him.

And the person she'd be protecting him from was Orochimaru...

Old man Third, weren't you worried Anko might get lured away by Orochimaru?

"Shiranui Genma, bring Mitaraishi Anko here."

But the Third Hokage paid no attention to Yun Xi's resentful expression. Instead, he returned to his desk.

Then he ordered Shiranui Genma to fetch Mitaraishi Anko.

As for Yun Xi...

He gazed at the pale blue sky in the distance, a conflicted, helpless look passing across his face.

Clearly,

Yun Xi couldn't make sense of the Third Hokage's bizarre move.

After all, he'd made his warning obvious enough. The old fox Third Hokage must have guessed that the "uncle" he'd mentioned was Orochimaru.

And when Yun Xi had described Orochimaru's appearance earlier, he'd noticed the Third Hokage's expression briefly change...

That small detail was enough to convince Yun Xi that the Third Hokage knew the culprit he'd been talking about was Orochimaru.

So...

The more Yun Xi thought about it, the less he understood why the Third Hokage would have Mitaraishi Anko take responsibility for his safety.

"What in the world is the Third Hokage thinking...?"

"Does he plan to bring Orochimaru around through the bond between master and student?"

"Or does he have some other bizarre scheme?"

Several different possibilities flashed through Yun Xi's mind.

But...

After thinking it over, Yun Xi decided he might be overthinking things...

"Hello, Lord Hokage. Did you have a mission for me?"

As Yun Xi was pondering this, Mitaraishi Anko entered the Hokage's office. After greeting the Third Hokage, she noticed Yun Xi standing nearby.

Curiosity appeared on her face. She quietly walked over to Yun Xi and asked, "Hey, Yun Xi, do you know why Lord Hokage called me here?"

"Maybe there's a mission..."

Yun Xi had no idea how to explain, so he could only look to the Third Hokage for help...

"How strange..."

Seeing Yun Xi's wry smile, Mitaraishi Anko didn't ask any more questions. She merely reminded him that he still owed her several servings of dango and should remember to pay her back, then went over to the Third Hokage.

She glanced at the Third Hokage's grave expression, thought for a moment, then asked curiously, "Lord Hokage, do you have a mission for me?"

"Yes, there is."

This time, the Third Hokage didn't hesitate. He nodded, then pointed toward Yun Xi, who was standing in the corner. "Your mission is to protect this kid, Yun Xi."

"Protect him?"

Mitaraishi Anko was taken aback. Then she asked curiously, "Doesn't he already have three Anbu protecting him?"

"They're dead," the Third Hokage replied.

"Dead?!"

Only then did Mitaraishi Anko realize that the situation might be far worse than she'd expected. The ease on her face gave way to a strange tension.

"Phew..."

After taking a deep breath, a flicker of shock appeared in Mitaraishi Anko's eyes.

She knew what kind of protection Yun Xi had before.

Three capable Anbu Chunin with plenty of mission experience.

One of them had even reached Jonin strength, but lacked the mission experience to be promoted to Jonin.

The other two Anbu Chunin were also considered exceptionally strong among Chunin.

In a straight-up fight, even an ordinary Jonin would struggle to overcome the defenses of those three.

And now the Third Hokage was telling her...

They were all dead...

How could Mitaraishi Anko not be shocked?

"What's wrong?"

When Mitaraishi Anko remained silent for a long time, the Third Hokage asked directly.

"Nothing!"

"I, Anko, promise to complete this mission!"

She pushed those jumbled thoughts aside for the moment. Her expression returned to its usual calm, and she accepted the mission...

As for Yun Xi...

He felt uncomfortable in a way he couldn't quite describe...

"Having Anko around..."

What Yun Xi was really thinking right now was...

Rather than saying Mitaraishi Anko was protecting him, it was more like...

He was protecting Mitaraishi Anko.

In terms of combat ability, her unique snake-based ninjutsu and incomplete Cursed Seal made her strong enough to match an ordinary Jonin.

That was also why Mitaraishi Anko had already become a Special Jōnin at the beginning of the original story.

But...

At this point, Mitaraishi Anko was no match for Yun Xi.

So...

Yun Xi felt a strange pressure.

"Could it be that old man Third..."

Suddenly,

A bold idea flashed through Yun Xi's mind.

One was a kid who had caught Orochimaru's interest.

The other was the student Orochimaru had once liked most...

The connection between them made it easy to guess what the Third Hokage was thinking...

Yun Xi looked toward the Third Hokage again. Aside from the grave expression on his face, he saw a look of careful consideration in his eyes...

After seeing that,

Yun Xi had basically figured out why the Third Hokage had assigned Mitaraishi Anko to this mission!

Bait...

"Could this guy, the Third Hokage, be planning to use Anko and me as bait to lure Orochimaru out...?"

At first, Yun Xi had only been guessing about the Third Hokage's intentions...

Until...

After Mitaraishi Anko accepted the mission, the Third Hokage sent them both out.

By then, Yun Xi was certain. That was exactly what was happening...

"Just as cunning as ever..."

After muttering to himself, Yun Xi didn't linger.

He simply left the Hokage's office with Mitaraishi Anko.

But not long after Yun Xi and Mitaraishi Anko left, Shiranui Genma, who had been standing silently beside the Third Hokage, finally spoke. "Lord Hokage, it seems Yun Xi has figured something out..."

"Let him figure it out. This is an opportunity. It's worth putting those two in some danger!"

"Lord Hokage..."

Hearing this, Shiranui Genma didn't know what to say.

Only after a long pause did he ask, "Is it really Orochimaru?"

"If it is, all the better. If not, it doesn't matter."

Gazing at Konoha in the distance, the Third Hokage gave his answer. Then he turned to Shiranui Genma and said, "Have every Konoha ninja of Chunin rank or higher lie in wait at Yun Xi's house and await my orders!"