Early morning. Strands of sunlight spilled across the scene, sparkling here and there.
Anko's eyes fluttered open sleepily. Her cheeks were faintly flushed, and for the first time, she felt completely at ease.
The fresh scent of grass and trees, and the soft, comfortable bed, made her forget her troubles without even realizing it. She relived the sound sleep she'd enjoyed during those Ninja Academy theory classes she couldn't understand.
Wait, she felt like she'd forgotten something. This wasn't her home...
In an instant, Anko jolted awake and looked around, then turned toward the familiar presence beside her. Her lips twitched as she asked in a trembling voice, "W-what are you looking at?"
"Hmm... A view that's almost ripe, but still tender and green. It might become one of the most beautiful sights in the world. Heh heh heh."
Anko tugged the blanket over herself. Suspicious and feeling a headache coming on, she burrowed beneath it, took a look around, and asked without showing her head, "What... happened between us?"
"What happened? In the short span of last night, we made so many unforgettable memories. I also got to savor the splendor of youthful tenderness and the beauty of what wasn't yet ripe..."
Before Hua Yue could say another word, Anko stiffened beneath the covers. Mortified, she cried, "You jerk! Who told you to describe it in such detail? You'll pay for this—Multiple Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!"
Four brown-black snakes shot out. But before they could bind Hua Yue, his next words made the little snakes droop limply.
"Huh? Didn't you say you'd rather take responsibility than hand me over to someone else? I never imagined that Anko, who's always loved sweets, wouldn't be able to resist Liqueur Chocolate. Heh heh heh."
At his words, Anko, whose head still ached, finally remembered that she'd eaten something rather potent last night—and then lost her memory completely.
In a haze, her face burning, she'd grabbed Uchiha Hanazuki by the collar and said something shameful. And then... they'd ended up rolling around together.
"Wait! Liqueur Chocolate? Why the hell do you have that in your house?"
Anko popped her head out and glared at him, baring her teeth as though she wanted to bite Hua Yue to death.
"You mean the Liqueur Chocolate? It was a gift from Kurenai, to celebrate my promotion to jonin. Didn't you bring me Three-Color Dango that day, too?"
Hua Yue's words jogged Anko's memory. This guy had become one of only two people in their cohort of ninja students to make jonin.
The other was Hatake Kakashi, two years their senior—the hero of Konoha, and the son of the White Fang.
"I see. Then I have even more reason not to let you off. Damn Kurenai, giving you Liqueur Chocolate for no reason—what a bizarre kind of dessert. It made me..." Anko trailed off, grinding her teeth as she stared at his handsome, languid face and faintly amused expression.
Sunlight spilled across his face, illuminating his flushed cheeks. Anko's chest rose and fell. At last, she made up her mind.
"Hmph. I guess you've got me. Fine, then. I, Lady Anko, will take responsibility with my head held high. Starting today, you're mine."
"If you dare flirt with anyone else, I'll... I'll cry in front of you!"
Realizing she probably couldn't beat him—and had no way to stop him—Anko bared her teeth and delivered a threat that didn't sound threatening at all.
"Is that so? Then you'll have to cry for the rest of your life. Want to borrow my arms?"
"You! Pervert, creep, womanizer..."
Leaning against his not-so-broad chest, Anko breathed in the comforting scent and wanted to sleep a little longer, her expression languid and irresistibly alluring.
Hua Yue couldn't help thinking that a woman's most potent weapon was the seductive look she let slip without meaning to. What a shame he could only look and not touch. Hua Yue didn't want to become known throughout the Ninja World as the Dragon King...
Days went by. After Sarutobi Hiruzen warned him, Orochimaru appeared to back off, but nobody knew what he was plotting in secret—not even Danzo.
With the Land of Earth's supplies cut off near Kannabi Bridge, Mist Village suffering repeated defeats, and Orochimaru publicly keeping a low profile, the Third Shinobi World War gradually drew to a close.
Still, small-scale clashes continued. It wasn't just Konoha fighting other villages; the villages were also sabotaging one another, keeping the Five Great Nations in a state of relative stability.
Anbu: Root.
One report after another, gathered by Root's Anbu, landed on Danzo's desk. As he read through them, his years of experience as a ninja led him to notice an insignificant development in the Land of Rain.
"Akatsuki? An organization founded by a few young people? They want to bring peace to Amegakure?"
His eyes flickered. To the Five Great Nations, a mercenary group of this caliber was nothing more than a bunch of children playing at war. But as Konoha's Root, he had to investigate anything that could threaten the interests of a great nation.
After a moment's thought, Danzo marked the report as worth monitoring. Then he looked around, his eyes lowered and his expression unreadable.
Root had plenty of capable operatives, but training a ninja took a great deal of time. Root's secrecy and the special nature of its missions meant it couldn't be made "semi-transparent" like Sarutobi Hiruzen's Anbu.
"We're short on talent. If that old fossil, Sarutobi Hiruzen, would transfer Uchiha Hanazuki into Root, this childish Third Shinobi World War wouldn't have dragged on until now."
Dry leaves drifted above Root's headquarters as a trace of autumn wind dispelled the summer heat.
Inside the Mission Assignment Hall at the Hokage Office Building.
Nohara Rin, who had recently left the battlefield and was helping out at Konoha Hospital, was summoned to the hall and given a mission.
A medical mission at the front... I have to go back to the front lines. Will I see anyone I know this time? Maybe it's better if I don't. After all...
As a Konoha ninja and one of their few female Chunin with medical training, Rin didn't resent being sent to the battlefield. She had learned to live on while carrying her friends' blessings, but she still didn't want to endure the same pain again.
Without realizing it, Rin wandered along the path.
The sky gradually darkened. A steady drizzle fell on the grass, whose blades stood unbowed. Large raindrops gathered, slid down the stems, and soaked into the earth.
Near a rarely visited training ground on Konoha's outskirts, Rin came to a stop without realizing it. She looked at the familiar figure, her hesitant face brightening into a radiant smile.
"Hua Yue? Is that you? What are you doing here? Training?"
The figure seated on Zhouzhu turned around. Beneath the familiar Three-Eyed Demon Fox Mask, a bright smile appeared.
"If flowers could represent people, what kind would you be?"
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