Only Anyao could afford such a large-scale outing. Ever since he received support from Sasori and founded the Zero Organization, money had become nothing more than a number to him. Spending it alone would never deplete his resources.
The reason he bribed the proctor and organized this event was twofold: first, to find out why Kurenai Yuhi was upset; second, to take this opportunity to talk with Kakashi. After all, he was their late teacher's son.
So, as the crowd rushed toward the ramen stall, Anyao quickly approached Kakashi at the back of the group and said, "Come with me."
Kakashi hesitated briefly before following.
The ramen stall was packed. With surprising persistence, Obito fought his way to the front, shouting loudly, "Stop pushing! I was here first! Boss, I want the largest deluxe bowl!"
After grabbing his bowl of ramen, Obito quickly pushed his way out of the crowd and just in time saw Asuma offering his bowl to Kurenai Yuhi. However, Kurenai was distracted, scanning the area and completely missed Asuma's gesture, leaving him somewhat embarrassed.
Obito couldn't help but mutter inwardly, *Hmph, Asuma, what a pathetic flatterer. Still, my girl Rin is much better.*
"Rin! Look, I got you a bowl of ramen!" Obito enthusiastically rushed over.
But when he handed it to her, Rin Nohara was still scanning the crowd. Hearing Obito's voice, she immediately asked, "Obito, have you seen Kakashi? Where did he go?"
"Kakashi, huh?" Obito scoffed slightly. "He's always been unsociable and cold. Probably…"
Rin interjected seriously, "Obito, you shouldn't speak about Kakashi like that. We are teammates. You should understand his past by now. Truthfully, Kakashi has a warm heart. I'm going to go look for him. You eat first."
Obito held his bowl of ramen, suddenly finding its usual deliciousness bland, but soon rallied himself, "Rin, wait up! I'll go with you!"
Asuma, eating noodles alone, couldn't help but smirk as he watched Obito's failed attempt. "Hehe, another desperate admirer!"
Anyao led Kakashi to sit by the riverside. Kakashi sat in stony silence.
Anyao spoke first, "Do you have enough money?"
"Enough."
Seeing Kakashi in this state, Anyao sighed involuntarily, "After sensei passed away, I should've taken responsibility for taking care of you. Now that I've left…"
Kakashi cut him off directly, "I'm doing fine on my own. If there's nothing else, I'll leave first."
"Wait," Anyao stopped him and asked, "Sensei's greatest strength was sword art. I'd like to teach it to you."
Unyielding, Kakashi replied without turning to face him, "No need. I'll walk my own path — I have no desire to become someone else's shadow."
"This little brat... Why do I feel like punching him so much? Not wanting to take the same path as his teacher, huh? Well, that part isn't wrong actually. But don't get too extreme either, seriously..."
At that moment, a voice rang out beside Anya's ear: "What are you doing here alone?"
Anya raised his head and smiled: "Oh, it's Kurenai..."
Seeing Kurenai's eyes suddenly darken dangerously, Anya recalled what she had said yesterday and forcibly stopped himself from using the nickname he had originally intended to say. He asked curiously instead: "Can you tell me what exactly happened?"
Kurenai, having calmed herself down after a day of emotional adjustment, was much more composed than the previous day when she had gotten angry. She spoke this time with a certain unique youthful melancholy: "You first tell me who Haku is. Why does she live in your house too?"
Upon hearing that question, Anya immediately realized why she was upset—jealousy? That little girl has started this already? It's really a bit too early.
Anya quickly replied: "Didn't Konan tell you? I rescued her on a mission outside the village. Her family is completely gone, and she has nowhere else to go, so she'll be following me from now on. You could call her my subordinate."
"Subordinate?" Kurenai didn't seem entirely convinced as she continued questioning: "Then what about Tsunade-sama?"
"Tsunade? What about her?" Anya looked genuinely confused.
"Don't play dumb," Kurenai really seemed angry this time. "Everyone knows she built a large house in Konoha, and many villagers have been spreading rumors that Tsunade built that place just to secretly keep pretty boys there, hiding from everyone all day long. But I know you've been living in that big house lately."
Rumors really can ruin someone.
Anya forced a bitter smile: "That's not exactly a big house though—it's a prison. Tsunade was assigned by the Third Hokage to guard me, so she naturally has to live there too."
Kurenai frowned slightly: "But I secretly went to check it out. It doesn't look anything like a prison at all; rather it's more like..."
Kurenai hesitated for a moment, struggling to find the appropriate words.
Just then, Anya happened to spot Rin Nohara, who was searching for Kakashi, and thought his savior had finally arrived. Unable to help himself, he shouted loudly: "Big Brother, over here!"
Hearing his voice, Rin Nohara ran over, followed closely behind by Obito.
"What's going on, Big Brother?"
At hearing Rin's address, everyone present turned their gaze toward Anya.
Quickly pointing at Kurenai, Anya explained to Rin: "I told you about this before, right? Now she suspects something is going on between me and Tsunade-sama. Help me explain the situation."
Explain what exactly? Rin felt a bit confused but, observing the awkward atmosphere between Kurenai and Anya, instantly grasped the situation. She immediately responded: "Kurenai, there's definitely nothing going on between Big Brother and Tsunade-sama. He even said he'd have to go blind before he'd ever choose Tsunade."
After hearing this, much of the suspicion vanished from Kurenai's face, but soon she seemed to recall something and fixed Rin with a sharp gaze as she questioned: "How exactly do you two know each other? And why would he talk about this stuff with you? Also, why did you call him Big Brother?"
Obito felt a sudden surge of intense unease, as if someone were about to snatch away his most precious treasure. Without hesitation, he stepped right in between the group, blocking their view. The atmosphere instantly grew even more awkward.
Seeing what was happening, Rin Nohara suddenly realized that Tsunade-sama's earlier take on this "big brother" had been spot on. She forced a smile and said, "I'm actually here to see Kakashi. Since he's not around, I'll just head out first."
With that, Rin turned and sprinted away without looking back. Obito blurted out, "Rin, wait for me!"
After they left, Kurenai Yuhi spoke in a soft but slightly sarcastic tone, asking Anya, "How many other little sisters do you have?"
Anya hesitated for a moment. Hmm, not really any more. I think that's it.
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