Rorin and his group of three moved swiftly through the forest. Rock Lee led at the front, Rorin followed behind, and Gaara brought up the rear.
Rorin spoke up, "Sorry, I haven't introduced myself yet. My name is Kaguya Rorin. And you are?"
Rock Lee turned his head back toward Rorin, flashing his bright, gleaming white teeth and giving a thumbs-up with his right hand.
"Oh! My name is Rock Lee, the Green Wild Beast of the Hidden Leaf Village!"
Rorin then turned his head to the right and looked at Gaara.
"Gaara." His introduction was brief and cold. Rorin nodded, then began chatting with Rock Lee. He was quite curious about the Hidden Leaf Village.
After chatting for a while, Rock Lee suddenly asked,
"Rorin-kun, why are you going to the Hidden Leaf Village?"
Rorin gave a bitter smile and softly replied, "To seek medical treatment."
Rock Lee and Gaara both reacted with surprise. At a glance, Rorin didn't seem ill at all.
The atmosphere suddenly turned awkward. None of the three spoke for a moment. Then Gaara suddenly looked at Rorin—more precisely, at the clothes he was wearing—and asked a question.
"Are those clothes yours?"
Rorin sighed inwardly. Finally, they asked. Otherwise, he wouldn't know how to explain it. If he had brought it up himself, it would've definitely raised suspicion. He had been waiting this whole time to see which of them would ask first. Still, he couldn't appear too eager, so he feigned confusion and asked,
"Is there something wrong with these clothes?"
After weighing it carefully, Gaara told a lie.
"No. I just think they look pretty good and wanted to know where you bought them."
"Sorry, I can't tell you where to buy them. I got these clothes as spoils of war during a fight on my journey. My original clothes were torn apart by me."
So he took them from someone? Rock Lee and Gaara listened to Rorin's explanation and looked at his sincere expression. They didn't doubt him at all and completely lowered their guard.
Gaara then said apologetically,
"Sorry, I lied to you earlier. Your outfit looks very similar to the enemy we're dealing with in this mission, so we thought you were with them."
"Enemy? You mean the Sound ninja?"
Rock Lee and Gaara exchanged a glance, then Rock Lee nodded.
"Yes, them. This time, we're trying to bring back a companion from our village. He was deceived by them and left the village."
If Kimimaro's soul were still here, he would've cursed loudly and said something like,
"Being chosen as Orochimaru-sama's vessel is his honor."
But unfortunately, Kimimaro was gone—one less brainless fan of Orochimaru.
Rorin fell into thought and asked, "Does your companion really want to return to the village? If he doesn't, forcing him won't help. After all, you can't make something sweet by force. Maybe his heart is no longer with you."
Rock Lee was taken aback. He didn't feel particularly upset—after all, his bond with Sasuke wasn't as deep as Naruto's. He didn't really know how to respond to Rorin's perspective.
The group fell into silence again. After traveling for quite a while, they finally arrived at the entrance of the Hidden Leaf Village. Gaara bid them farewell—he preferred being alone.
The two gate guards of the Hidden Leaf saw Rock Lee returning with a stranger and asked,
"Rock Lee, who is this?"
Rock Lee explained, "Oh, this is Kaguya Rorin. He came to the Hidden Leaf Village to seek medical treatment."
The two guards looked at Rorin. He nodded expressionlessly.
They exchanged a glance, then asked, "Who are you looking for?"
"The Fifth Hokage, Tsunade-sama," Rorin stated his purpose.
"Understood. We'll report this to the Hokage. As for whether she'll see you, that depends on her decision."
Rorin nodded, then turned to Rock Lee and asked,
"Rock Lee, do you know where the Hyūga clan compound is?"
Rock Lee looked at him in surprise but nodded. "Yeah, I know."
"Then could I trouble you to take me there?"
Rock Lee agreed and led Rorin toward the Hyūga clan compound.
...
At that moment, Tsunade was in the Hidden Leaf Hospital treating Chōza. Suddenly, an ANBU appeared in the hospital and bowed.
"Tsunade-sama, an outsider just arrived in the village. His name is Kaguya Rorin. He claims he came to seek your medical help."
Tsunade frowned slightly. Kaguya Rorin… from the Kaguya clan?
"Where is he now?" she asked.
"He went to the Hyūga clan compound. He should be arriving about now."
Tsunade fell silent for a moment, then said, "Understood. After he leaves the Hyūga clan, have him wait for me in the Hokage's office."
Right now, the most important thing was treating Chōza and Neji. Everything else could wait.
...
Hyūga Clan Compound.
When Rorin and Rock Lee arrived at the entrance, they were stopped by two members of the Hyūga clan. With expressionless faces, they asked,
"Who are you? What business do you have with the Hyūga clan?"
Rorin replied, "My name is Kaguya Rorin. I wish to meet the head of the Hyūga clan."
"The clan head is not here. He has gone to the Hidden Leaf Hospital."
The hospital?
Rorin thought for a moment, then thanked them. It seemed Neji was being treated, and Hyūga Hiashi had gone to see him.
He then turned to Rock Lee again, looking a bit embarrassed.
"Sorry to trouble you again, but could you take me to the Hidden Leaf Hospital?"
The enthusiastic Rock Lee naturally didn't refuse. Just as he was about to lead the way, Rorin suddenly remembered something and stopped him.
Time to deal with the clothes issue. Otherwise, he'd have to keep explaining, and if he ran into someone harder to fool, things could get troublesome.
Rock Lee looked at him in confusion.
Rorin scratched his nose awkwardly.
"Uh, Rock Lee, I think we should stop by a clothing shop first. I'll change out of this outfit to avoid any more misunderstandings."
Rock Lee suddenly understood and suggested,
"How about going to my place? I have some spare clothes you can wear."
Rorin quickly waved his hands in refusal. He had no interest in wearing such tight-fitting clothes. Not only did they look bad, but they would also hinder his combat performance.
"No thanks. I'll pick something suitable from a shop. I have specific requirements for clothing."
Rock Lee didn't insist and led him to a clothing store instead.
After picking out several loose, easy-to-wear outfits, Rorin went into the fitting room and changed into a black-and-white kimono.
When it came time to pay, Rorin suddenly felt a bit awkward. He seemed to be completely broke. But looking at Rock Lee's sincere face, he felt too embarrassed to trouble him again, so he called out to the system.
"Hey, system, show yourself."
[I'm here, Host.]
"Give me some money."
[Understood. One million ryo has been credited.]
Suddenly, a bulging wallet appeared in Rorin's clothes. Seriously—nothing properly ninja-related, but plenty of miscellaneous support items.
Now that he had money, Rorin bought a few extra sets of clothes for future use. After all, fighting tended to wear out his outfits.
Seeing Rorin carrying ten sets of clothes in both hands, Rock Lee was speechless. This felt more like a shopping trip than a quick outfit change.
After finishing his shopping spree, Rorin urged Rock Lee to head to the hospital, and the two set off once more.