Sand Ninja's Three Geniuses

Bang, bang, bang...

Mirai had only just fallen asleep when a rapid series of knocks sounded at the door!

Pretending not to hear, Mirai grabbed the blanket, pulled it over his head, and continued sleeping.

After knocking for so long without anyone answering, the person outside eventually stopped and left.

It was afternoon by the time Mirai woke up.

Bang, bang, bang...

Another series of knocks rang out, and Mirai went to open the door.

He wanted to see who kept interrupting his sleep so early in the morning.

"Kakashi? Why aren't you sleeping this early in the morning? What do you want?"

Yawning, Mirai returned to his room and began washing his face and brushing his teeth in the bathroom.

Kakashi's expression stiffened, clearly stunned by Mirai's words.

As he walked into Mirai's house, he grumbled inwardly.

Sleeping early in the morning?

What kind of logic was that?!

What had you even been doing last night that you only needed to sleep in the morning?

Suddenly, Kakashi seemed to realize something. With a dark expression, he asked, "You were home this morning?"

While brushing his teeth, Mirai answered indistinctly, "Yeah!"

"Then why didn't you open the door when I knocked?"

Several dark lines visibly appeared across Kakashi's forehead.

"I was sleeping..."

Mirai rinsed his mouth and walked out of the bathroom.

Hearing that, Kakashi let out a soft breath, suppressing the urge to beat him up.

"Is something wrong?"

Mirai ate the instant noodles unique to Naruto while looking at Kakashi.

"This is for you!"

Kakashi pulled an ID badge from his ninja pouch and tossed it to Mirai. "This is your work ID!"

"A work ID?"

Mirai was dumbfounded. What was this supposed to mean?

A job falling from the sky?

Seeing Mirai's confused look, Kakashi said, "The Chunin Exams will begin in a few days. During that time, ninjas from other villages will also come to take part in the exams."

"Your job is to receive the ninjas from those villages, help them familiarize themselves with Konoha, and prevent any conflicts with Konoha!"

"I'm not doing it!"

Before Kakashi had even finished speaking, Mirai flatly refused.

"What?"

Kakashi stared wide-eyed at Mirai and asked again, "What did you say?"

Mirai twitched his brows, slurped up some noodles, and said, "I said I'm not doing it!"

Kakashi's face darkened. "This is the Hokage's appointment. If you want to refuse, go find Lord Hokage!"

"I'm only responsible for delivering the message!"

The moment Kakashi finished speaking, he vanished.

Clearly, he did not want to say another word to Mirai.

Mirai ignored him and continued eating his noodles.

As he ate, he stared at the work ID with a smile in his eyes.

Clearly, he wanted the job ID. He had only been deliberately provoking Kakashi just now.

"Temari of the Sand Hidden Village! Karin of the Grass Hidden Village!"

Mirai muttered to himself before breaking into a snicker.

After eating, Mirai headed out.

His destination was naturally the entrance to Konoha.

The moment Mirai arrived at the village entrance, he saw ninjas from the Sound Ninja Village entering through Konoha's gates.

It was a three-person team: Kin, Dosu, and Zaku.

Mirai paid them no mind and simply left on his own.

No reception? Not happening.

I only received people I was willing to receive. As for those people, they could do as they pleased.

Besides, Mirai didn't believe that if he refused to receive them, no one else would.

Bored out of his mind, Mirai went to Ayame's flower shop.

"Ayame!"

Seeing Ayame arranging flowers, Mirai quietly stepped forward and kissed her on the cheek as a greeting.

"Ah..."

Ayame let out a startled scream at Mirai's sudden attack. Once she saw it was Mirai, her little face immediately turned red.

Her heart began to race wildly.

"Q-Mirai!"

With slightly trembling hands, Ayame poured Mirai a cup of tea.

Mirai chuckled and picked up the tea to drink.

"Hello, is anyone here?"

At that moment, a female voice sounded from the entrance of Ayame's flower shop.

"Yes!"

Ayame got up and walked to the entrance.

Mirai turned to look toward the door and froze.

Red hair, red eyes, black glasses—wasn't that Karin, the one he had been thinking about just this morning?

Mirai's eyes lit up. He hurriedly stood and went to the entrance.

"Come in and have a seat!"

Like the master of the house, Mirai invited Karin inside.

"That's right, come in and sit down so we can chat!"

Ayame didn't object either, smiling as she welcomed Karin inside.

"Okay!"

Although Karin was no longer the same as when she was little, she had not changed all that much.

Once the three of them were seated, Mirai poured Karin a cup of tea.

"Thank you!"

Karin thanked him.

"I was wondering if your shop has any tulips."

After taking a sip of tea, Karin directly asked Ayame.

"Tulips..."

Ayame frowned and thought for a moment before asking, "Do you need them urgently?"

"We don't have tulips in the shop right now. If you're not in a hurry, I can get some from elsewhere. If you need them urgently, I'll hurry and think of a solution for you!"

Ayame considered everything carefully and came up with two options.

Karin's brows furrowed slightly at those words, disappointment faintly showing in her eyes.

"I need them urgently. When can you get them at the soonest?"

Karin looked at Ayame, her eyes full of hope.

"When do you need them?"

At that moment, Mirai suddenly cut in and asked Karin.

"Tonight!"

"So soon?"

Ayame was stunned. She hadn't expected Karin to be in such a hurry.

She had originally thought that no matter how urgent it was, it wouldn't be this urgent.

Yet she hadn't expected this.

Just as Ayame was about to apologize, Mirai asked again, "Can I ask what you need those tulips for?"

Karin looked at Mirai and Ayame. Remembering that they had treated her well just now, she didn't hide it.

"Today is my mother's death anniversary. Tonight is the anniversary of her passing, and I want to buy tulips to pay my respects to her!"

Ayame froze at once.

She had wanted to refuse and apologize, but the words simply wouldn't come out. She could only look at Mirai beside her.

Under the table, Mirai gently took Ayame's hand, silently telling her that he had this handled and that she could rest assured.

Ayame's cheeks flushed faintly red. She did not resist, and the unease in her heart eased considerably.

"I know where to find tulips, but I'll need some time. Pick a place, and I'll bring them to you tonight!"

Mirai looked at Karin confidently, filling her with hope.

"Really?"

"Really!"

Seeing how certain Mirai was, Karin smiled.

The two then agreed to meet that night in a dense forest within Konoha.

Karin had arrived feeling gloomy, but she left happily.

Before long, night fell. Mirai arrived at their meeting place covered in dust, his clothes filthy and disheveled.

Seeing Mirai in such a mess, Karin asked in confusion, "What happened to you?"

Mirai chuckled and pulled a huge bouquet of tulips from his ninja pouch, handing it to Karin.

Looking at the tulips still covered in dirt, Karin seemed to understand something.

Holding the tulips in her arms, she stared blankly at Mirai before her.