Teacher, your zipper is open

"Sasuke Uchiha has already received my gift."

Orochimaru spoke indistinctly, his gaze icy. "As for you... Son Goten, I'll remember you."

"Sooner or later, I'll figure out how your body is built."

With that, his body abruptly sank into the ground, disappearing straight into the soil like a drop of water merging into the sea.

Son Goten casually tossed away the stone in his hand.

"Tch. You sure ran fast."

He dusted off his hands, looking disdainful. "Half a second slower, and I'd have knocked out your back teeth too. Left you with a complete toothless set."

That long-tongued freak was disgusting, but his survival tricks were first-rate. Chasing him through underground tunnels would take too much effort, and it would be easy to get his clothes dirty.

More importantly, his teammates were still down.

Sasuke was curled up on the ground, clutching his neck and groaning in pain.

"Tsk, tsk. So ugly."

Son Goten crouched down and poked the Cursed Seal. "I told you to lead that pervert away, but you wouldn't listen. Now look at you. Got stamped, didn't you?"

Sasuke was sweating profusely from the pain, without even the strength to roll his eyes.

A sudden rush of air came from the bushes nearby.

Several Kunai shot toward them in a triangular formation, embedding themselves in the tree trunk beside Son Goten.

A figure in a tan trench coat dropped from the canopy.

Mitaraishi Anko landed on one knee, scanning her surroundings with a grave expression.

She had sensed a burst of Orochimaru's nauseating chakra earlier and sprinted all the way over.

But the sight before her left her stunned.

More than half the trees within a hundred meters had snapped, and the ground looked as though several hundred wild boars had plowed through it.

The enormous summoned snake lay limp in a crater, its tongue hanging out.

Naruto hung unconscious from a branch, while Sasuke lay convulsing on the ground.

Meanwhile, the brat named Son Goten was sitting nonchalantly on the giant snake's head, picking his teeth with a twig.

"What..."

Anko was just about to ask when a sudden, vicious stab of pain shot through the back of her neck.

"Ugh!"

She let out a muffled groan, her legs buckled, and she pitched forward uncontrollably.

It was the Cursed Seal Orochimaru had left behind.

Whenever Orochimaru used his power nearby, that damned Cursed Seal would torment her like a red-hot branding iron.

The pain of hitting the muddy ground that she expected never came.

A warm arm caught her firmly around the waist.

Anko felt herself become weightless as she fell into an embrace that was not broad, but was exceptionally solid.

The hand pressed quite brazenly against the fishnet fabric at her waist, its fingertips even giving her a squeeze.

"Well, well, Teacher Anko."

Son Goten's voice sounded by her ear, practically begging for a punch. "How long has it been? And you're throwing yourself into my arms the moment we meet? Sure, I'm handsome, but we've got injured people here. How embarrassing."

Cold sweat poured off Anko from the pain, and she cursed through gritted teeth. "Shut up... you little brat... let go of me..."

She tried to struggle, only to discover that she could not muster any strength at all.

"Stop moving."

Son Goten dropped his playful expression, and the palm pressed against Anko's back suddenly glowed with a faint white light.

That was "ki."

Unlike chakra, an energy that blended mind and body, "ki" was life force in its most fundamental form.

Overpowering, masculine, and brimming with vitality.

Son Goten could sense a cold, evil power rampaging through Anko's body, trying to eat away at her nerves.

"Bear with it. This might get a little hot."

With a thought, Son Goten sent pure ki flowing from his palm into Anko's body.

Anko's eyes widened.

She felt a searing current of warmth rush into her body like a surging fire dragon, brutally colliding with the cold chakra of the Cursed Seal.

The evil power that had terrified Anko for over a decade melted and retreated rapidly before that warm current, like snow under a blazing sun.

The stabbing pain at the back of her neck faded at an astonishing speed.

Anko's tightly knitted brows relaxed, and her rapid breathing steadied.

She looked up in a daze, meeting Son Goten's large, bright black eyes.

This brat...

What did he just do?

That power wasn't Medical Ninjutsu.

"Feeling any better?"

Son Goten asked with a beaming smile, but the hand on Anko's waist showed no intention of moving away. It even slid another two inches higher.

This feels really nice.

Firm, springy, and this fishnet outfit was practically designed to feel good to the touch.

Only then did Anko realize just how suggestive their position was.

She was practically slumped in Son Goten's arms, her face against his chest, while the brat's hand roamed brazenly over her back.

"You..."

A blush bloomed on Anko's cheeks, though whether it was from the earlier heat or embarrassment was unclear.

She was just about to lose her temper when she noticed Son Goten staring fixedly at her chest.

"Teacher."

Son Goten pointed at her neckline and said with a perfectly straight face, "I don't mind looking, but I should still let you know."

"Your zipper is open."

"Quite a view, too. You've got plenty there."

Anko looked down.

Between her vigorous movements earlier and her struggles when the Cursed Seal flared up, the neckline of the fishnet layer beneath her trench coat had indeed been pulled open a little, exposing a broad expanse of snowy skin and deep cleavage.

"Ah-!"

Anko gave a short shriek and frantically pulled her coat collar tight.

Flustered and furious, she glared at Son Goten. "You little brat! Where are you looking?!"

"At the scenery."

Son Goten sounded entirely justified, and even a little reluctant to stop. "I treated you, didn't I? Collecting a little interest isn't too much to ask, right?"

"Besides, you put it right in front of my eyes yourself. Why wouldn't I look?"

Anko was left speechless.

She tried pushing Son Goten away, but her body was still weak, and the push instead seemed more like she was coyly rubbing against his chest.

"All right, all right, stop rubbing."

Son Goten helped Anko sit beside a large tree, acting innocent after taking advantage of her. "Keep rubbing and you'll start a fire. I'm a hot-blooded man, you know."

Anko leaned against the trunk, breathing heavily, and shot the lawless brat a fierce glare.

Yet, for some reason, much of the fear she felt when facing Orochimaru had dissipated.

In its place rose a strange sense of security.

"Hey, brat."

Anko zipped herself up and tidied her disheveled hair, trying to look as authoritative as a teacher should. "Earlier... thanks."

Though the brat had a sharp tongue and a lecherous streak, that warm current really had saved her life.

"Forget verbal thanks."

Son Goten plopped down beside Anko and patted his thigh. "Give me something tangible."

"I'm tired now, and I could use a lap pillow."

He pointed at Anko's full thighs wrapped in fishnet stockings, his gaze burning. "Teacher Anko, that's not too much to ask, is it?"