Heart-to-Heart

The two hurried toward the Hidden Leaf Village with Asuma. Time was tight and the mission urgent; they did not want to delay any longer.

Josuke had not expected Ino to remain here. Wasn't he a rogue ninja?

"You shouldn't be here."

Josuke put on a cold front, hoping to make Ino leave.

But if something like that could restrain Ino, then she would not be Ino.

After learning that Josuke had defected, Ino had cried, grown exhausted, and been hurt. Yet she still did not believe that Josuke had willingly defected.

There had to be some hidden reason. Unless she found him and asked him herself, she would not accept it. Josuke definitely had his reasons.

Even if Josuke had no reason, even if he had simply defected, Ino was prepared to defect with him.

Even if everything Josuke told her now was a lie, Ino was willing to believe it.

Girls in love were just like that, trusting and loving the one they adored—their white moonlight—without reservation.

"You have your reasons, don't you?"

Ino pressed her lips together and spoke softly.

The sky was somewhat dim, and the battle just now had left Ino looking a little disheveled, yet it did nothing to conceal the girl's beauty. A light breeze gently brushed through her hair.

A faint fragrance lingered in the air.

Josuke said nothing. He did not know how to face Ino. In her eyes, he was probably already the worst sort of person.

I'm sorry, Ino. I'm truly sorry.

"Josuke-kun..."

Ino moved closer and closer to Josuke.

She was just about to touch him.

Don't be like this, Ino... Josuke closed his eyes. He did not want Ino dragged into these conflicts. Fewer complications were better.

He did not want Ino to come any closer. He was afraid that he would not be able to hold back the next second.

But how could Ino possibly do as he wished? Having grown up alongside him all these years, did she not know what kind of person Josuke was?

Everyone among the Twelve Rookie ninjas had seen the relationship between them. All that remained was a thin layer of paper waiting to be pierced...

"Don't do this... Ino."

Josuke spoke in a low voice, his tone full of helplessness.

That brave girl still took that step. She opened her arms and embraced Josuke.

At that moment, silence spoke louder than words.

In the end, he had still lost, hadn't he?

Josuke sighed helplessly. Since things had come to this, then so be it.

He opened his arms and wrapped them around Ino's slender waist. Her figure was slim, already beginning to develop, and now she was all his.

As he gently held Ino in his arms, Josuke felt as though time and space around them had frozen, as though they would remain in this moment forever.

Only after a long while did Josuke gently let go.

"I'm sorry, Ino."

Brushing aside Ino's hair, Josuke seemed to have found the resolve to act.

Ino shook her head. She knew Josuke must have some unspoken difficulty. Otherwise, why would he become a rogue ninja?

"Mm, I don't blame you. During the days you were gone... I missed you so much..."

Nestled in Josuke's arms, Ino poured out all the grievances she had endured over those many days to the person before her—the person who made her feel safe, the person she longed for day and night.

"Me too..."

The girl's grievances tugged at Josuke's heart as well. If he had been strong enough, why would he have needed to resort to this? As he was now, he probably did not even have the strength to trade his life for Danzō's.

How could he talk about protecting the person he loved?

"Wait for me, all right? There are things that mean I can't stay in the Hidden Leaf Village anymore... but I will never do anything to harm the Hidden Leaf Village or hurt you. Will you believe me?"

Josuke's words were like a calming pill, finally easing Ino's anxious heart.

Ino did not know whether what Josuke said was true or false, but she chose to believe him unconditionally. Even if it was a lie, she would still believe him without hesitation.

"Mm, I believe you."

Nothing more needed to be said. That was the best answer.

The heavy atmosphere eased somewhat. This was not a place where they could linger, so under Josuke's escort, Ino returned to the area near Konoha Village's gates.

Konoha Village faintly appeared in the distance.

Konoha Village, huh?

He wondered whether the Uchiha Compound had been seized by those hateful capitalist higher-ups of the Hidden Leaf Village.

Looking at the village they were about to reach, Ino could not feel happy at all. This meant she would have to part with Josuke.

Josuke naturally understood Ino's thoughts and comforted her softly.

"Come on~ It's not like I'll never come back. If I get the chance, I'll come back to see you, all right?"

Though she was still unhappy, since Josuke had said so, Ino naturally believed him.

"Then! I'm leaving!"

With that, before Josuke could react, she launched a sneak attack on his cheek and kissed him. Then, as though she had done something wrong, she ran off without looking back.

Josuke froze.

He touched the spot she had kissed and broke into a doting smile.

The severely injured Asuma was brought to Tsunade. Asuma's injuries made Tsunade break out in a cold sweat. His heart had been destroyed, yet he still clung to life.

Moreover, the area around his heart was slowly repairing itself.

It was highly abnormal, but this was not the time to think about it. Saving him was what mattered.

As the operation proceeded, Tsunade asked Shikamaru how Asuma had been injured.

Shikamaru then told her about Josuke, making her frown. Why would a rogue ninja suddenly show such kindness? Or did Josuke have some unspeakable difficulty of his own?

For some reason, Tsunade immediately thought of that bastard Danzō.

She stopped thinking about it. Treating the patient was the priority. Tsunade continued treating Asuma, but the moment she did, she was startled.

The chakra inside Asuma's body was dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye. All of that dissipating chakra was gathering around his heart to repair it.

Tsunade could not stop this conversion, but one thing was certain: Asuma's life should no longer be in danger.

However, he would probably lose all his chakra in the future and become an ordinary person. It was unknown whether that was something Asuma wanted.

Asuma's severe injuries miraculously turned into minor ones. Tsunade had not even performed surgery, yet Asuma's injuries had already recovered seventy or eighty percent. His external wounds were not much of a problem either.

He only needed to rest and recuperate.

This mission also sounded an alarm for everyone. The Immortal Duo had become targets that everyone in the Hidden Leaf Village wanted to eliminate.

Not long after, Tsunade came out with a trace of exhaustion on her face and told everyone about Asuma's condition. His life was no longer in danger.

Only after learning that Asuma's life was not in danger did everyone finally breathe a sigh of relief.

As long as he was all right, that was what mattered. Nothing was more important than being alive. Kurenai was the same; with her belly swollen from pregnancy, her uneasy heart finally calmed down.