The three women—Akane, Saki, and Hana—lay sprawled across the mahogany desk in a state of absolute, cream-covered collapse. The executive office was a mess of discarded clothing, overturned ink pots, and the heavy, musky scent of a high-volume Uzumaki release.
I stood in the center of the room, casually buttoning my fresh silk shirt while my body shifted back from its muscular adult form to its unassuming twelve-year-old facade.
"I expect the third volume on the shelves by Friday," I said, looking down at Akane, whose eyes were still rolled back in bliss. "Don't make me come back here and 'edit' your schedule again."
I picked up the completed manuscript for The Kunoichi's Forbidden Heat: Volume 3 from my inventory and tossed it onto the desk next to her. Without another word, I stepped out of the office and shut the heavy oak doors, leaving the Golden Quill staff to recover at their own pace.
****
I didn't head back to my new villa. Instead, I made a detour toward the edge of the civilian district.
Soon I reached the safehouse where Karin was staying.
didn't bother knocking. There was no point. With her [Mind's Eye of the Kagura], Karin likely knew the exact moment my sandals touched the pavement three blocks away, let alone when I reached her doorstep.
I pushed the door open. The air inside the safehouse was thick with the scent of iron-rich ink and expensive parchment. Discarded practice scrolls littered the floor, each one covered in the jagged, intricate geometry of Uzumaki sealing arrays.
Karin was hunched over a low table, her vibrant crimson hair pulled back into a messy, hurried bun. She wore a loose, oversized shirt that draped off one shoulder, exposing the faded bite marks on her collarbone—ghosts of a past I had promised to bury under a future of absolute power.
She didn't look up immediately. Her hand remained rock-steady as she painted a final, complex seal onto a piece of Uzumaki-grade paper. Only after the ink dried did she exhale and lift her gaze.
"Kenji-kun... you're back."
"I told you I wouldn't be gone long," I said, leaning against the doorframe. I let my [Observation Haki] wash over her. Her chakra was stable, but buzzing with a restless, lonely energy. "So, how's life in the hidden leaves treating you?"
"It's... it's okay," she said, standing up and smoothing her shirt, though her eyes never left mine. "I like it here. It's quiet. I've even made a friend... an ANBU sister who's been stationed to watch over me."
I raised an eyebrow. "An ANBU friend? That's a rare breed. What's her name?"
"She goes by Xiyan," Karin said, a small, confused frown tugging at her lips. "She's nice, though she's a bit strange. Every time I mention your name, her face contorts into this weird mixture of anger and... I don't know, something else. Did you do something to that big sister, Kenji-kun?"
I coughed into my hand, feeling the ghost of a shameless smirk tugging at my lips. Xiyan—otherwise known as Yugao Uzuki. I could still remember the look on her face after our "private interrogation" sessions.
"How could that be?" I said, my voice dripping with feigned innocence. "It's likely just a misunderstanding. Ninja life is stressful; she's probably just overworked."
I walked further into the room, kicking aside a failed scroll. "Have you made any other friends? Gone out to see the village?"
Karin's shoulders slumped. "N-No. I don't know anyone else. I don't really like going out... it's too loud, too many people. Everything I need is delivered here, so I just stay inside and study."
"That's bad for the health, Karin," I chided, my tone softening into that proprietary, protective warmth. "Humans are social animals. If you spend all your time in this box, you'll wither away. You need to meet people. You need to see the world you're going to help me run."
Karin hesitated, her fingers twisting the hem of her shirt. Seeing her uncertainty, I offered her a hand.
"How about this? Come with me. I'll show you the parts of the village that aren't full of prying eyes. Consider it a change of scenery."
Her face transformed instantly. The gloom evaporated, replaced by a radiant, hopeful beam. "A date? Is it a date, Kenji-kun?"
"You can consider it one," I chuckled. "Think of it as a reward for your progress. Speaking of—show me what you've learned."
Karin began to list her achievements with feverish pride—barrier stability, chakra suppression, the basics of the Adamantine Sealing Chains. But halfway through her explanation, her face suddenly went stone-cold. Her glasses glinted as she turned her head toward the door, her sensory abilities flaring.
"Karin? What is it?"
"He's back," she whispered, her voice trembling.
"Who?"
"A very bad person. His chakra... it's like a cold, bottomless pit. He has terrible intentions," she said, clutching my arm. "He came here once before, asking me to follow him. He said someone named 'Danzo-sama' had a special place for me in his 'Root'."
My eyes narrowed. The [Gamer's Mind] kicked in, chilling my emotions into a sharp, tactical edge.
"He told me I belonged with them," Karin continued, her grip tightening. "Xiyan-sister blocked him last time. She told him I was under the Hokage's direct protection. But he's been insistent... and today, I don't sense sister Xiyan."
Of course, I thought. With Tsunade taking office, the ANBU are in a state of transition. The old mummy saw an opening and decided to snatch the Uzumaki prize while the village was distracted.
If Karin fell into Danzo's hands, she wouldn't be an apprentice; she'd be a lab rat. Once he discovered her unique healing physique, her life would be a repetitive cycle of being bitten and experimented on until there was nothing left.
"Karin, change of plans," I said, my voice low and authoritative. "We're leaving, but we aren't going for a walk. I'm moving you to a place where that bastard can't touch you. And along the way... I think it's time you met a long-distance relative."
"A relative? I have family here?"
"The best kind," I said, leading her toward the door. "Now, stay behind me."
We stepped out onto the street, and the atmosphere shifted instantly. Three men were standing in the center of the road, blocking our path. They wore standard grey flak jackets and masks, but they lacked the animal themes of the regular ANBU. These masks were featureless, cold, and robotic.
Root.
The man in the lead, his posture stiff and formal, eyed me with a clinical lack of emotion. "Oh. You are here as well, Kenji Sato. That saves us the trouble of a second trip."
He didn't move to attack, but the tension was palpable. "Kenji Sato. Danzo-sama has observed your performance during the invasion. He has high hopes for your potential and sees the 'true' Will of Fire within you. He has formally invited you to join Root, where your talents will not be wasted on petty missions."
I looked at the masked drone, then back at the shadows where I knew more of them were hiding. A slow, mocking grin spread across my face.
"Join Root?" I let out a sharp, insulting laugh. "Tell that bandaged old vulture that if he wants to play with children, he should try the academy. I have zero interest in becoming a mindless tool for a man who spends his life hiding in a sewer because he's too afraid of the sunlight."
The Root agent's chakra spiked for a microsecond. "You should choose your words carefully, boy. Danzo-sama is the darkness that sustains the Leaf."
"Then the Leaf is going to have to learn to live in the light," I said, my hand drifting toward my kunai pouch. "Because I'm taking the girl, and if any of you takes another step toward us, I'm going to start 'reorganizing' your department. Permanently."
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