Ye Liang Returns

"If only Ye Liang were still here."

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed. Although Ye Liang was not from Konoha, after working together on several missions, Hiruzen Sarutobi had come to trust him completely.

To be honest, Hiruzen Sarutobi had even hoped that Ye Liang would join Konoha for good!

"What a pity. Such a powerful expert still left Konoha in the end. Did he return to Otogakure?"

Just as he hesitated, the scout he had sent out returned.

"Third Hokage, that Masked Man has come again. This time, he's riding on the Nine-Tails. The Fourth Hokage has already gone to stop him!"

"Understood. Go gather information first. I'll be there shortly!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi dismissed the scout, then quietly removed the robe he wore.

Dark skin and a sturdy eight-pack—Hiruzen Sarutobi still had some strength in those days, despite his advanced age.

He was going into battle!

He rose to his feet.

Just as the Third Hokage was about to leave, Mitarashi Anko appeared at the entrance.

"Lord Hokage, is there still no news of Ye Liang?" Seeing the situation, Anko hesitated before asking.

At this time every month, she would come to the Hokage's hall to ask Hiruzen Sarutobi, even though he had clearly told her that Ye Liang had truly left Konoha.

"Anko, you should stop thinking about it. Ye Liang really won't be coming back. The fighting at the battlefield is at a critical point right now. I don't have time to worry about these things." After offering a few words of explanation, Hiruzen Sarutobi left.

Mitarashi Anko stood there blankly, looking up at the sky.

She did not know why she was so worried about Ye Liang. When he had first disappeared, she had been extremely angry, yet as time passed, she found herself becoming increasingly concerned about his whereabouts.

Could it be that I like him?

Anko was already fifteen at this point. After three years of growth, she had become increasingly womanly. She had always possessed a full, voluptuous figure, and now her curves were even more pronounced. Not only was her body supple, but her skin was also exceptionally fair and delicate, as though it could break with a puff of air.

She gazed into the distance when she suddenly felt a pair of large hands wrap around her slender waist!

"Who is it?!"

Anko was instantly shocked!

This was the Hokage's hall, the most heavily guarded place in all of Konoha, yet someone had launched a sneak attack on her here. It was simply unbelievable.

But just as she formed hand seals and prepared to attack the figure behind her, a familiar voice sounded beside her ear.

"Little Anko, long time no see!"

It was Ye Liang's voice!

Anko was overjoyed.

Though his voice had changed quite a bit, she recognized it immediately!

She turned her head in surprise, and a familiar face appeared before her.

It was Ye Liang!

Compared to how she remembered him, he had lost some of his youthful immaturity and gained a touch more maturity. Overall, he seemed far more manly.

"Ye Liang! You bastard, where the hell have you been? I thought I'd never see you again!" Anko immediately threw herself into Ye Liang's arms. Her eyes were moist, as if she were about to cry.

Ye Liang scratched his head, feeling a little awkward.

In his view, Anko, whom he had always harassed, should have found him especially irritating. Why was she reacting like this?

Could it be that I've gotten even more handsome?

Ye Liang gave it some thought.

"That's right! Other than becoming more handsome, there's no other explanation!" Ye Liang wholeheartedly believed it.

"Hey, if you keep hugging me like this, you're going to suffocate me. Ha." Ye Liang teased.

There was no need to spoil a woman he had conquered!

Women could not be indulged!

"Suffocate you?" Anko looked at Ye Liang strangely, but then suddenly realized that her hands were tightly wrapped around his neck, while her body was pressed firmly against his. Even her upper body had nearly been deformed by the pressure of Ye Liang's chest.

"Ah! Pervert!"

She instantly came to her senses and swung her hand at him!

Ye Liang jumped in fright and quickly dodged.

"You were the one who pressed yourself against me, and you're calling me a pervert? You even want to hit me?" He felt utterly depressed.

Women truly were unreasonable!

At that moment, Ye Liang, who had been observing Anko's figure, suddenly froze!

"Her neck is too fair—no, wait! What's with this birthmark?"

There was a black floral marking on Anko's neck, like a small flower growing there.

"Damn! Isn't that the Earth Cursed Seal?" He recognized it at once. "That's not right. Wasn't Orochimaru dealt with?"

The Anko of the original story had possessed this cursed seal as well, but when Ye Liang had first arrived, he had clearly interrupted Orochimaru's sealing ritual. Moreover, Orochimaru had been captured. With his current strength, there was no way he could escape from the Anbu prison!

"Anko, what exactly happened? This thing..." Ye Liang asked seriously.

He had no mood to joke around now. While the Earth Cursed Seal could grant power, once it activated, it could easily damage the mind. In severe cases, it could even lead to schizophrenia.

"Orochimaru escaped." Anko's expression immediately darkened.

"After you disappeared, someone called Tobi attacked the village. He was very powerful. Even the Fourth Hokage was no match for him. Later, the Third Hokage led a team and called in many jonin, but they could only barely drive him back."

"Orochimaru escaped during that time too."

"Tobi?" Ye Liang revealed a trace of confusion.

With memories from his previous life, he naturally knew that Akatsuki's Tobi was actually Obito Uchiha in disguise. Uchiha Madara had wanted to make a comeback, but his body had grown old, so he plotted against Obito, who was also an Uchiha, and made him his spokesperson.

But Obito should have been saved by him. That was precisely why Obito had devoted himself to training, so he could stand against Uchiha Madara!

"What about Obito? Is he alright?" Ye Liang asked.

"Obito? Oh, you mean Team 7. They're genin, so they're all staying behind in the village. Because of the cursed seal, I was left behind too."

"Obito is still here? Then something's wrong!"

If Obito was still here, then who was pretending to be Tobi now?

Ye Liang could not make sense of it.

After talking with Anko for a while, he roughly understood the current situation.

After Minato returned, he became the Fourth Hokage because of his outstanding achievements in the Third Great Ninja War. As for Ye Liang's original Team 7, because of Ye Liang's disappearance, they had returned to Minato's command.

Later, Tobi caused trouble and destroyed many buildings in the village. Orochimaru escaped at that time. Although Tobi was driven back afterward, not long later, he returned with the Nine-Tails and began attacking the village again.

"The Nine-Tails has appeared too?"

Ye Liang gradually realized that things had begun to veer off course, yet an imperceptible flicker of delight flashed through his eyes!

Because!

"Shippuden has finally arrived!"