"Honestly, how do you feel?"
"Hmm…"
"Even so…"
"Even though I turned Asuma down, it's going to be a pain later—probably worse than just getting the cold shoulder."
"I'll probably be sent on missions that are insanely dangerous yet officially low-rank."
And then die out there under mysterious circumstances."
"After all, the Jōnin Instructor post for Team Eight is pretty special."
"I've ripped that fig leaf away… they might replace me."
She said this, yet Kurenai's pretty face showed little fear.
Anko Mitarashi nodded, mouth full of dango.
"True."
"That silly girl Yūgao thinks she's hidden it so well."
"We already figured out what she's planning."
Anko snorted, curling her lip. "Still, the fool's got guts."
"If this gets out, she'll be worse off than you."
Kurenai laughed. "Whatever. It's done."
"Right now I just feel… free."
"My mind's crystal-clear."
"And don't forget—he's Team Seven's."
"If he passes the test… with that confidence, I bet Kakashi's part of his plan too."
"Really?" Anko sounded skeptical.
"No choice."
Seen this way, a kid who just graduated to Genin is a bit too terrifying.
How did he notice all this, plan it, dodge Anbu surveillance, train to this level—and about Team Eight… no, if Team Eight is this scary, what about the others, the ones always hanging with Naruto…
"My god—!"
Anko's mouth fell open.
The more the two best friends talked and thought, the more horrified they became.
A freshly graduated Genin—how could he have so many secrets?
"Relax, this is only our guess."
Kurenai drew a slow breath, a faint smile curling her lips.
It sounded unbelievable, yet when she recalled Naruto's background it almost felt… reasonable.
But Anko grew even more flustered.
"If this is only what we guessed, what haven't we?!"
"Think—what's Naruto's real identity?"
Seeing her best friend lose composure, Kurenai played along.
"The son of the Fourth Hokage and Sister Kushina…"
"No—are you forgetting the most important thing?" Anko set down her beloved dango.
"The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?!"
"Exactly!"
The two women stared at each other, aghast.
This secret—no, it wasn't even a secret…
Gulp—
Both swallowed hard.
Unnoticed, cold sweat had soaked them.
"Do you think… that girl Yūgao knows?" Anko asked nervously.
"Unlikely," Kurenai answered, confident.
"Yūgao… she went this far against us."
"Probably just… smitten."
Anko: "…"
Yūgao Uzuki: "…"
Was it that obvious?
Fine.
She really hadn't thought it through.
"Yūgao, you actually—haha~"
"He's only a few years old; even if you like him, you'll have to wait!"
"At least a couple more years!"
Anko teased her best friend without mercy.
Kurenai could barely hold back her laughter.
Yūgao simply gave up trying to save face.
Anyway, that was the "her" inside the black frame world.
She was only voicing that Yūgao's thoughts.
"Isn't he almost ripe, though?"
"If you two dare steal him—duel time!"
Anko: "…"
Kurenai: "…"
Impossible! Absolutely impossible!
Of course, what if he wouldn't let them go?
The black-framed large screen continued:
"Anko, have you thought this through—" Kurenai suddenly turned serious.
"Pfft—"
"Besties for life!"
"Let's do it!"
"United front!"
"I'm fed up anyway!"
Anko looked ready to set the world on fire.
Kurenai found it amusing.
Yet she was deeply moved.
"Of course, before that… heh-heh, Yūgao~" Anko's eyes narrowed, a wicked grin forming.
"Right." Kurenai blinked, catching on.
"Let's go, go, go."
"The last time we ate that kid's cooking, right?"
"I've been craving it~!"
With that, Anko ordered a dozen sticks of dango to go, then dragged Kurenai toward the Tavern.
"Listen… no fighting unprepared. Against the rules? Sure—but we're already forced to pick sides, so screw the rules. First we'll… then we'll…"
Kurenai's eyes widened; instinct screamed to refuse, but she glanced at the Sake in her best friend's arms.
In the end she couldn't resist the lure of alcohol—bottoms up~!
By the time they reached Yūgao Uzuki's door,
laughter from the rookie 9 upstairs already drifted down.
Creak—
Yūgao's door slowly opened.
The instant Kurenai saw Yūgao,
she realized what she was doing.
Deserting the Village?!
She shot a look at Anko.
The woman was still grinning wickedly, carefree as ever.
Without a word she pulled Yūgao inside and began spouting wild declarations.
The puzzlement and hesitation on Yūgao's pretty face vanished.
Her expression turned frighteningly dark.
Kurenai gave a bitter smile.
"We're done—no turning back now."
How had she agreed to this mess?
No—if not for Anko's leap of logic pointing out what she'd missed, Kurenai might never have noticed.
As for being forced to choose sides…
Well, Kurenai felt helpless too.
Self-preservation!
The Team Eight instructor post was too critical—she was mentor to the heirs of three great Ninja Clans!
Even if she resigned now, it would blow up.
Knowing nothing would be fine, but in the current climate it would be "better to kill the wrong than let one go."
What surprised both Kurenai and Anko was that Yūgao seemed to have sensed it all along—she'd just never dug so deep.
Listening to Anko spell it out, she fell silent, then bared her teeth.
"You two aren't thinking of competing with me, are you?!"