Are You Trying to Get the Konoha Military Police Force to Arrest Me?

"Ah, I see."

Shimizu's gaze burned with a faint intensity, making Nohara Rin uncomfortable.

Where had she seen that look before?

It was like the way some men in the village looked at beautiful women—not with admiration, but with something darker.

Nohara Rin sped up her treatment of the pork, hoping to finish today's lesson quickly and go home.

She had already learned most of the prerequisite material.

Unfortunately, Shimizu still had not taught her some crucial knowledge or the pathways of the body's meridian system.

Whenever Nohara Rin asked about them, Shimizu refused, saying her foundation was still too weak.

Only after mastering those things could someone be called a medical ninja.

Medical ninjas treated people, and the slightest mistake could cost a life. Anything involving medical knowledge had to be handled with the utmost care.

That was why Nohara Rin kept coming to Shimizu, hoping that one day he would decide her foundation was solid enough and teach her.

"Nohara Rin."

Shimizu spoke suddenly.

"Hm?"

Nohara Rin turned to him, confusion in her eyes.

"Do you know that Kakashi has a terrible reputation lately?"

At the mention of Kakashi, Nohara Rin immediately focused.

She had wanted to be on the same team as Kakashi, but he had graduated too early. She had nearly given up on that hope and continued studying here to learn medical ninjutsu.

"Kakashi... What happened to him?"

Nohara Rin had not yet graduated from the Ninja Academy, so she knew little about what went on among actual ninja.

"Kakashi often ignores his teammates to complete his missions, so the others in his squad resent him."

Nohara Rin's heart tightened. Was Kakashi really suffering that much?

Being rejected by his teammates must have made him feel awful.

Her thoughts drifted, and she wished she had learned about this sooner, so she could go comfort Kakashi.

"Nohara Rin, do you know what this means?"

Shimizu tapped his finger against the table, the sound steady and rhythmic.

"What... does it mean?"

Nohara Rin lifted her eyes to meet Shimizu's deep gaze, and a sense of unease suddenly came over her.

It felt as if she was about to lose something...

"It means you have a chance to join Kakashi's team. If you make a major breakthrough in medical ninjutsu now and apply for early graduation, your specialty makes it very likely you'll be assigned to his team."

"Kakashi's teammates don't want to work with him, while you do. Isn't that a perfect match?"

Shimizu spoke slowly, his voice full of persuasion, as if telling her that this was an opportunity she couldn't afford to miss.

Shimizu moved to Nohara Rin's side, standing less than a fist's width away.

Nohara Rin instinctively tried to step back, but Shimizu grabbed her.

"Shimizu... What are you doing?"

At the touch of his warm, gentle hand, anger flashed across Nohara Rin's face. Shimizu was stroking her hand, openly taking liberties with her.

The trust she had built up in Shimizu over the past two years crumbled in an instant.

He had approached her with an ulterior motive!

Nohara Rin suddenly understood the key to it all.

No wonder Shimizu had spent so much money to give her the best medical tools and devoted his time to teaching her medical ninjutsu. There had been an ulterior motive behind it all.

But no matter how hard she pulled, she couldn't free her hand from Shimizu's grasp.

Nohara Rin's heart sank. With Shimizu's strength, she would be powerless to resist if he decided to do something.

"Shimizu, could this be some kind of misunderstanding?"

Nohara Rin took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.

But Shimizu's gaze was completely different from usual. The burning intensity in his eyes made her feel as though she had a thorn in her back.

"There's no misunderstanding. This is who I really am. What, are you disappointed?"

Shimizu savored the feel of her smooth little hand in his, so soft it seemed boneless.

"Shimizu, I believe you're just acting on impulse. There are plenty of prisoners in Konoha's jail, and I don't think you want to end up in the hands of the Konoha Military Police Force."

Nohara Rin calmly assessed the situation.

She had the admirable quality of being able to face danger head-on. She had once been prepared to let Kakashi kill her without hesitation.

But none of that had any effect on Shimizu. His expression remained calm, his smile unchanged, as he said:

"My Uchiha Clan runs the Konoha Military Police Force. Are you trying to get the Konoha Military Police Force to arrest me?"

"You!"

Nohara Rin froze. Shimizu's words were so brazen that she couldn't tell whether they were true or not.

She knew the Uchiha ran the Konoha Military Police Force, but she didn't know whether they would abuse their authority when judging one of their own.

She had only said it to warn Shimizu not to go too far, but he seemed completely unconcerned.

Nohara Rin couldn't tell whether Shimizu was just bluffing or whether the Konoha Military Police Force had really become that corrupt.

"Let's be frank, Nohara Rin. If you leave me, you won't be able to make up for the knowledge you're missing, no matter where you go. No one will teach you. You know my teacher used to be Yakushi Nonō, and she has some connections at Konoha Hospital. A lot of people will also do me a favor out of respect for my teacher."

Shimizu released Nohara Rin's hand and leisurely sat down in his chair.

He didn't seem worried at all that Nohara Rin might run out and report his crime.

At his words, Nohara Rin's foot, poised to rush out, came to a sudden stop.

Born a civilian, she understood all too well how important connections were!

A civilian ninja could learn only a limited number of techniques.

To grow stronger, they had to learn advanced techniques.

Learning advanced techniques required completing difficult missions and building a record of service, or else convincing Konoha's leadership of one's potential so they would invest in them and grant access to those techniques.

But without learning advanced techniques, how could they complete difficult missions? How could they prove their potential?

It was a vicious cycle, a predicament civilians could never escape.

Some civilians simply lacked talent, and even if they had access to those techniques, they couldn't learn them. They made up the vast majority, and could at least take comfort in knowing there was no point in trying.

But there was a small group with enough talent who lacked only the right connections. Those civilian ninja were the most desperate.

Many of them would go to extremes, betray Konoha, and become rogue ninja.

"Shimizu, why does it have to be me?"

Nohara Rin asked bitterly.

Uchiha Shimizu was handsome, and plenty of girls at the Ninja Academy liked him.

But she already had feelings for Kakashi, so she had never been interested in Shimizu.

She wasn't extraordinarily beautiful, either. If Shimizu wanted a girl, he could have his pick. Why limit himself to her?

"Of course, because..."

You're the perfect tool for dealing with Obito.

That was what Shimizu thought, but what he said was:

"I was drawn to you the moment I first saw you, Nohara Rin. Love just doesn't make sense."

Nohara Rin stared intently at Shimizu. She didn't believe a word he said.