Calling a Girl a Boy? The "Beautiful Girl" in the Forest

Morning in the Land of Waves was so foggy that it looked as though someone had boiled a pot of thick rice porridge in the great forest.

Naruto and Sasuke were still sprawled on their straw mats like dead dogs, snoring after yesterday's meager progress in tree climbing.

Due to his long-term chakra overdraft, Kakashi had yet to crawl out of his "weakened" state. Every day, he did nothing but read or stare at the ceiling and contemplate life.

Of course, Ye Tian would not miss such a perfect opportunity to slack off.

"I'm going to gather some herbs for lung disease and stretch my legs while I'm at it."

Ye Tian casually made up an excuse, slung a bamboo basket bearing a Sumeru Talisman over his back, and plunged into the forest.

Naturally, treating illness was a pretense. Gathering resources was the real goal.

"System, activate the Qi-Observation Art."

A faint, imperceptible glimmer flashed through Ye Tian's eyes, and the formerly drab bushes instantly became colorful in his vision.

"Ooh, thirty-year-old wild ginseng? Good enough, I'll take it. That's... Ghostface Flower? It contains dark-attribute spiritual power, just right for mixing talisman ink."

Like a rat that had fallen into a granary, he looted everything in sight until he reached a stream valley deep in the heart of the forest.

"Found it. Water Spirit Grass."

A cluster of small grass grew by the stream, its entire body azure blue and its leaves crystalline. A ring of thick water mist had even formed around it. In the world of cultivation, it was the main ingredient for refining Water-Congealing Pills. In this native world full of chakra, it was undoubtedly a rare spiritual plant.

Ye Tian had just reached out when his divine sense suddenly twitched in warning.

"Someone?"

On the other side of the stream valley, a figure in a pink floral kimono was squatting on the ground. His glossy, silky black hair hung straight down to his waist. From the back, his waist was slender, with curves in all the right places.

Hearing the sound, the person turned around.

It was an exquisitely delicate face, with skin so pale it was nearly translucent and features as refined as porcelain sculpted by a master craftsman.

Ye Tian narrowed his eyes, his gaze lingering on that breathtaking face for half a second. Then his divine sense swept through the depths of his pupils, seeing straight through the skin to the bone structure beneath.

"Tsk, calling a girl a boy, huh?"

Ye Tian silently mocked him. That skeleton, that pelvis, and that Adam's apple—subtle, but definitely there... Haku, your cross-dressing deserved full marks, but cultivators did not judge by faces.

What made his heart race even more, however, was the bone-chilling energy inside Haku's body.

"An Innate Ice Spirit Root!" Ye Tian nearly cried out. If such talent were placed in a cultivation sect, elders would be fighting to take him as a direct disciple.

"Few people usually come here."

Haku stood up with a gentle smile. His voice was clear as spring water. "These flowers may be pretty, but their sap is poisonous. Ordinary people's skin will rot if they touch them, so be careful."

"Thanks for the warning."

Ye Tian did not stand on ceremony. Instead, he walked over and flicked his fingertips, accurately plucking the red flower Haku had mentioned.

"However, if this Red Fire Orchid is prepared with dew at this hour, it becomes an excellent medicine for dispersing blood stasis." Ye Tian casually handled the herbs with the air of a seasoned traditional physician. "As for you, the roots of this Blue Star Grass give off an extremely heavy chill. Your fingertips are turning blue. Aren't you afraid that picking it barehanded for so long will let the cold seep into your body and damage a certain boy's... ah, no, damage your foundation?"

Haku's pupils suddenly contracted, and he instinctively hid his jade-white hands in his sleeves.

"You... understand medicinal theory?" Haku's eyes held an extra measure of wariness, along with curiosity.

"You become a doctor after being sick for long enough." Ye Tian pointed at his own deathly pale face and sat carelessly on a rock by the stream. "With this body of mine, if I hadn't studied a few unorthodox methods myself, I would've gone cold that winter."

For the next half hour, the scene was incredibly incongruous.

A frail, obscure sickly boy from Konoha and a top assassin disguised as part of a hunter-nin squad crouched in the grass, discussing medicinal properties as if they were talking about supermarket discounts.

They went from "balancing yin and yang" to "energy conversion," leaving Haku utterly dumbfounded.

"Extreme cold gives rise to heat, and things reverse upon reaching their limit?" Haku murmured. He discovered that this sickly boy's theories had actually revealed a hint of a breakthrough in the Ice Release training that had stumped him for so long.

"About time. I need to get back and cook. Those two idiots have probably woken up hungry."

Ye Tian patted his backside and stood up, swaying as though he had exhausted all his strength.

Haku watched him, and there was unexpectedly a trace of reluctance in his eyes. In this mission-filled life of nothing but killing, he had felt such pure resonance for the first time.

"Take these herbs." Haku handed over a basket of spiritual herbs he had gathered. "You need them more than I do."

"Then I won't stand on ceremony, little... sister."

Ye Tian deliberately stressed the last two words. In the instant Haku froze, he pulled out a Foundation-Nourishing Pill that gave off a faint fragrance—though it had been kneaded from leftover scraps of alchemy, it was absolutely a great tonic for a ninja.

"It would be rude not to return the favor. Keep this pill and hold it in your mouth before bed. It can dispel the cold, baleful energy in your body. Cross-dressing may be beautiful, but boys should still take care to stay warm."

Ye Tian flashed a punchable yet profound smile and turned to leave.

"Oh, and your posture when gathering herbs is very professional, but remember to wear gloves next time. If you don't take proper care of your skin, people like me might see through you at a glance."

Ye Tian's figure quickly vanished into the mist, leaving behind only a lazy wave.

Haku stood frozen in place, clutching the pill still warm from Ye Tian's body. An uncontrollable flush rose to his cheeks.

"He... saw through me?"

"Who exactly is that guy?"

Looking at the empty forest, Haku pressed his lips together. For the first time, his obsession with being a "tool" showed the faintest crack.