"Are you feeling unwell anywhere?" Mitaraishi Anko looked Qingchuan Tianming up and down but found nothing unusual.
"Sensei, my constitution is a little unusual. The Cursed Seal's power isn't much of a problem," Tianming explained.
"That's right." Mitaraishi Anko glanced at Kakashi Hatake, who confirmed his explanation.
"I've never encountered anything like this. Orochimaru's Cursed Seal has an extremely high fatality rate. Even I only fully assimilated its power after becoming a jonin." Remembering what had happened back then still sent shivers of fear through Mitaraishi Anko.
"In that case, you don't need to stay in the hospital. But if you feel unwell, report it immediately. Understood?" Mitaraishi Anko cautioned.
"Yes." Tianming nodded.
"Kakashi, Sasuke will be fine at Konoha Hospital. We should wrap things up here. I have other matters to attend to."
"Go ahead."
Once they finished speaking, Mitaraishi Anko left the hospital first.
"Kakashi-sensei, why is Anko-sensei so busy?" Naruto Uzumaki asked.
"Because Anko is that man's student." Kakashi Hatake smiled. "Stop guessing. You're dismissed. Go home and recover properly. After a month of rest, get ready for the third round of the exam. Don't worry about anything else."
After giving those instructions, Kakashi Hatake dismissed Team 7 on the spot.
Upon leaving Konoha Hospital, Tianming declined Naruto Uzumaki's invitation to eat ramen together and took Karin Uzumaki back to the Aokawa Clan residence.
When they arrived, Karin Uzumaki stared blankly at the rooms. She had never lived anywhere so nice.
"Is it really okay for me to stay here? Don't you need to ask your parents?" Karin Uzumaki seemed a little uneasy.
"I'm an orphan. My parents died in battle in year 48 of Konoha. This is the home Konoha assigned to me. There are plenty of rooms, and I live here alone," Tianming explained.
"So you're alone too. Then, now that we're living together, does that make us family?"
"Family? I suppose so!" Tianming hadn't given questions like that much thought.
"Let's go buy you some everyday essentials." After resting for a while, Tianming took Karin Uzumaki to Konoha's busiest shopping street.
The moment Tianming appeared, the vendors' cries on either side of the street noticeably faltered. Traces of disdain showed on their faces.
To them, war orphans were the hardest customers to deal with.
War orphans had little money, so there was no profit to be made from them. Yet Konoha High Command had forbidden merchants from refusing to sell goods to them.
As a result, these people generally treated war orphans with an attitude of: I won't chase you away, but the prices are clearly marked. Buy it if you can afford it; leave if you can't.
"Tianming, do they not want us here?" Karin Uzumaki quickly sensed the shopkeepers' rejection.
"That's normal. There's no money for them to squeeze out of war orphans," Tianming said mildly.
People had an ugly side, but among Konoha's villagers, probably ninety out of every hundred were rotten.
As a village in the Land of Fire, Konoha was widely recognized as the strongest in the shinobi world. Alongside its powerful shinobi forces, its civilians were arrogant too. After all, twelve years had passed since the war that devastated Konoha, and many had long forgotten that despair.
Truth be told, Tianming didn't like Konoha's civilians either. But it didn't matter. These people were nothing more than cannon fodder, not worth getting angry over.
He led Karin Uzumaki to a rather luxurious clothing shop, but before they could enter, the owner blocked their way.
"Brat, this isn't a shop you can come into. Get lost, and don't get my clothes dirty," the owner said impatiently.
"You opened a shop to do business. Since when does that mean turning customers away?" Tianming spoke calmly, but let a little chakra escape. It carried no offensive force, yet still blew the clothes displayed outside straight onto the ground.
In the past, the shopkeeper would have started cursing.
But now, he didn't dare! That burst of chakra had been unmistakable, silent proof.
And throughout the Five Great Nations, shinobi were the last people anyone should provoke!
"I must have been blind not to recognize someone of your stature. Please come inside, honored shinobi," the shopkeeper said fawningly, his expression completely transformed.
But Tianming didn't enter.
"No need. A brat like me wouldn't want to dirty your shop." With that, Tianming led Karin Uzumaki to the shop across the street. Having witnessed the other owner's mistake, this shopkeeper immediately greeted them with an ingratiating smile. "Honored shinobi, feel free to browse, touch anything, and try anything on."
"Take a look. What styles do you like?" Tianming asked.
"I... I've never bought clothes before." Karin Uzumaki lowered her head. She had never lived a peaceful life. Her food had been the worst available, just enough to fill her stomach, and her clothes had been the worst too, barely enough to cover her body.
Tianming sighed softly and could only say, "Sorry for the trouble, but please pack all your latest styles for spring, summer, autumn, and winter in this girl's size, then deliver them to the Aokawa Clan residence."
At those words, the owner of the neighboring shop could no longer smile.
How could this unknown kid be so extravagant?
Without waiting for anyone else to react, Tianming took out some money, placed it in the owner's palm, and walked away, his work done.
Tianming had always taken showing off seriously. Loud shouting or throwing punches were never the best methods.
The deadliest flex was the one you never saw.
Before you continue