"What's wrong, Anko? You look pretty out of it."
Inside a cozy izakaya, a group of peers were gathered, drinking and chatting leisurely.
"Who ticked you off this time?" Genma Shiranui, bandana on his head and a senbon in his mouth, asked casually.
All eyes turned toward Anko. The usually lively and outspoken woman was now slumped over the table, her usual spark noticeably dimmed.
Kurenai, sitting beside her, glanced at the scene and spoke gently, "She's just having a rough time."
"Red!" Anko suddenly raised her voice, shooting Kurenai a warning glare.
Kurenai just shrugged and didn't press further, sipping quietly from her glass. Though a woman, she was fond of drinking, especially in the evenings, but she always knew her limits. Just tipsy, never drunk.
"Someone actually made you angry?" Aoba Yamashiro, still wearing his signature sunglasses indoors, looked genuinely surprised.
"What happened, Anko?" asked a graceful woman with long purple hair.
That was Yūgao Uzuki, the youngest of the three women present, and a year below the others.
"Ahem, who is it?" muttered Hayate Gekkō. Despite his delicate features and youthful face, his perpetually sickly appearance made him look like he was terminally ill.
"Come on, spill it. If someone messed with you, we can totally back you up," said Might Guy, flexing his arm with exaggerated confidence.
"You think I need you lot to fight my battles?" Anko scoffed, rolling her eyes.
"You're kind of hilarious like this. It's rare to see you eat dirt," Genma grinned. "Right, Raidō?"
Raidō didn't dare comment.
"You wanna die?" Anko sat up just to glare at him.
Genma only shrugged again.
"Red, what happened?" Yūgao leaned over to ask Kurenai in a whisper.
"Fine, I'll say it then." Kurenai glanced at Anko, cleared her throat, and spoke up.
Anko remained slumped, neither stopping nor encouraging her.
"It's about someone," Kurenai said.
Yūgao: "Someone?"
Hayate: "Who?"
Guy: "An enemy?"
Aoba: "An old flame?"
Genma raised an eyebrow. "A lover?"
Splash!
A cup of sake flew straight into Genma's face. Anko placed the cup down hard on the table, face emotionless. Genma wiped his face awkwardly, chuckling.
"Just some brat," Kurenai said, amused.
"A brat? Wait… could it be, " Ebisu, quiet until now, finally spoke up.
"That's the one," Kurenai nodded.
"Who? Who is it?" Guy blinked in confusion.
"Yeah, who are we talking about?" Yūgao joined in. Everyone looked curious now.
Ebisu hesitated, glancing at Anko's clearly unhappy face.
"His name's Oboro," Kurenai answered.
"Oboro… That name sounds familiar…"
"Wasn't he the guy who…"
"He's not that guy who…"
With her chin resting on the table, Anko stared blankly at the sake bottle in front of her, as if trying to divine something from the porcelain. The noisy chatter around her was making her even more annoyed.
"Would you all shut up already?! He's just some brat!"
The private room finally fell silent.
"They're just worried about you," Yūgao said gently.
Anko didn't respond. She sat up, poured herself another drink, and downed it in one go.
Everyone watched her silently.
"After the war, I barely heard that name again," Might Guy said.
"So the brat really pissed you off?" Genma asked, removing the senbon from his mouth and stabbing it deep into the wooden table.
"Maybe we should rough him up a little," Hayate coughed, while Yūgao tugged lightly on his sleeve, but he didn't stop.
Raidō and Aoba both nodded in agreement.
Anko glanced at them all, knowing they were only trying to look out for her, but the gesture didn't make her feel any better.
They were all her friends, her support system. In every group, she was always the center of attention.
And yet that damned brat, he treated her kindness like trash!
Maybe a little lesson wouldn't hurt.
"Do what you want," Anko said flatly, downing another cup and tossing some bills onto the table.
"I'm heading out."
"Anko…" Yūgao looked worried as she got up.
"Let her go," Kurenai said casually, sipping her drink.
"She'll be fine."
"You guys are really going to mess with Oboro?" Yūgao asked Hayate and Genma.
Genma pulled the senbon out of the table and popped it back into his mouth.
"We already said we would. Might as well follow through," he said.
"No guilt here," Aoba added. Raidō nodded again.
"I'm out," Guy announced.
"You were the first to say you'd back her up," Hayate said, coughing.
Guy shrugged. "Didn't think you guys would actually do it. Not exactly a proud thing to do."
"Then it's the five of us," Genma concluded. "Even that's giving him more attention than he deserves."
Ebisu looked like he had something to say but hesitated.
"What is it?" Guy noticed.
"Well… Actually… Oboro might not be who you think he is," Ebisu said carefully.
"What do you mean?" Genma narrowed his eyes.
So Ebisu told them everything about the mission, how Oboro had rescued both him and Anko under life-threatening conditions.
Everyone fell silent.
"That doesn't prove anything," Genma finally said. "He was just doing what any shinobi of Konoha should do. If he'd run away again, he'd already be in prison."
"But since you say so, we don't have to throw fists right away. We'll see what kind of attitude he has."
"You don't need to come," he added to Ebisu.
Ebisu just offered a sheepish smile.
"You're really going all out, huh," Kurenai teased from the side.
Genma just shrugged. "It's for a friend."
Kurenai didn't comment further.
"Is this really necessary…" Yūgao still looked uneasy.
"Let the men handle it," Kurenai said dismissively.
Just then, a familiar voice drifted from outside the private room.
Why's he here…?
"Is that Asuma?" Guy recognized it too. He pulled open the curtain and looked toward the entrance, where Asuma had just walked in, with someone else.
"I'm out," Kurenai muttered. She stood, dropped some bills on the table, and, rather than taking the front door, pushed open the side window and leapt out.
In the dim night, her silhouette vanished into the lantern-lit street.
"What's up with Kurenai?" Raidō asked.
At that moment, Asuma walked in and greeted them.
"Yo, everyone!"
"She was dodging him," Aoba said, jerking his chin at Asuma.
"Huh?" Asuma blinked, confused. He looked around and saw two empty seats, their drinks untouched.
"Was someone else here?"
"Red and Anko," Guy replied.
Asuma's eyes lit up. "Kurenai? Where is she?"
"She jumped out the window when she heard you were coming," Genma said, struggling not to laugh.
"…What?" Asuma stood there, dumbfounded.
Why's she been avoiding me lately…? he thought, troubled.
After a long day of missions, Oboro had just finished tidying up and was preparing to rest,
When he noticed a change in his system interface.
[Name: Mitarashi Anko]
[Gender: Female]
[Age: 21]
[Affection: 67]
[Relationship: Nemesis]
[Capture Difficulty: B]
[First Kiss Reward: Orochi Style]
[Home Run Reward: Sage Power]
"…What the hell is wrong with this woman?"
How did her affection go back up on its own?!
And what's with this 'Nemesis' relationship status?!
I didn't even do anything!
<><>---------------------------------------
200 P.S = 1 Extra Chapters
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• TL/N •
Hello guys Fanfic recommendation!
Check out my other work:
> Naruto: Mind Control
If you like smart and strong MC, this fanfic is for you.
It's Peak.
Give it a chance and you won't be disappointed