Sen yanked the rough wooden door bar hard to one side.
The heavy Large Bronze Wood Door let out a long, muffled creak.
Friction from the hinges sent dusty grit showering down.
The gap had barely widened enough for half a person.
A gust of warm air rushed straight in, carrying a woman's faint powdery fragrance mixed with sour sweat.
Kurenai Yuhi stood on the bluestone paving outside the threshold.
The wooden sandals on her feet were caked in yellow mud from her trek up the mountain.
She clutched a large floral-patterned bundle made of coarse cloth.
It looked heavy enough to make the veins bulge on the backs of her hands.
Kurenai's usually delicate face was flushed bright red from the heat, and tiny beads of sweat covered her forehead.
Her hair was a little disheveled, sticking to her fair neck.
"Well, look at you, hauling all that luggage. You look like a refugee fleeing a famine."
Sen leaned against the doorframe, looked her up and down, and flashed a wicked grin.
"Who would've thought a distinguished Konoha Elite Jonin like you would be too cheap to buy a Space Scroll?"
"You just had to huff and puff up this muddy mountain trail with that huge bundle. What a complete idiot."
Kurenai rolled her eyes irritably and squeezed through the doorway.
With a thud, she slammed the large cloth bundle onto the front courtyard's stone paving.
A ring of choking dust and grit puffed up.
She panted heavily and haphazardly wiped the hot sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand.
"What do you know? This is what real domestic life feels like."
"Clothes stored in a Space Scroll come out smelling like moldy corpses."
"Carrying them myself gives me peace of mind."
Kurenai shook out her