KONOHA
"You didn't need to walk me home." Ino said while the two walked side by side through the village, already quieter at that hour of the night.
"I know." Riser answered without taking his eyes off the street ahead. "But I want to."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"Consider it payment for the barbecue."
Ino let out a small smile through her nose after hearing that, but she didn't immediately argue back. The truth was simple: she also wasn't disliking continuing to walk with him.
The streets of Konoha remained illuminated by the lights scattered between the poles and the still-open establishments. The movement had decreased considerably compared to the beginning of the night, but a few civilians still occasionally crossed the path of the two of them.
And inevitably stared.
Riser attracted attention far too easily inside the village. The Uchiha appearance, the handsome face, the calm posture, and especially the fact that nobody recognized exactly who he was created immediate curiosity.
Beside him, Ino also did not go unnoticed.
The two naturally drew attention.
"You talked quite a bit with Sakura." Ino commented after a few seconds, trying to keep a casual tone while throwing a quick glance in his direction.
"I met her." Riser answered calmly. "But we didn't talk much."
Ino slowly nodded, though she was clearly still thinking about the subject.
Riser noticed immediately.
"Jealous?" He asked without hiding the slight amusement.
Ino immediately turned her face away.
"I have absolutely no reason to be jealous."
The tone came out far too quickly.
Riser almost laughed at the reaction.
"Alright." He slightly raised his hands in fake surrender. "I was just joking."
"You joke too much."
"Maybe."
The two continued walking through the quieter streets of Konoha while the movement in the village gradually decreased at that part of the night.
Some stores were already closing, lights were beginning to turn off, and the agitated atmosphere from earlier gave way to a more comfortable calmness.
Ino walked beside him without hurry now.
In the end, she also didn't want that moment to end too quickly.
The Yamanaka flower shop appeared a few minutes later at the end of the street, illuminated only by the indoor lights still turned on.
The soft scent of flowers subtly escaped through the entrance while Ino naturally slowed her pace after realizing they had arrived.
"So this is it." Riser commented while observing the shop.
"Yeah." Ino answered while lightly crossing her arms. "My family lives upstairs."
Silence lasted a few seconds before Riser looked back at her.
"Thanks for the invitation."
Ino ended up smiling lightly after hearing that.
"I should be the one thanking you for accepting."
Riser observed her for a moment without responding immediately. Kenbunshoku Haki had already sensed her entire emotional state throughout that walk a long time ago. Insecurity, curiosity, attraction, and expectation all mixed together at the same time.
She was prepared for several answers. Including none at all. Riser already had too many women around him to pretend he didn't understand when someone was interested.
So he decided to act.
Without exaggerated warning, he approached just enough to slightly tilt his face and kiss Ino in a simple and direct way. Nothing aggressive, nothing long. Just a quick kiss.
Her eyes widened immediately.
"H-Hey!" Ino stepped half a pace back right afterward, clearly caught off guard while trying to reorganize her thoughts. "Who gave you the right to kiss me like that?!"
Inside, Riser almost laughed.
Nothing escaped Kenbunshoku.
Especially not the fact that she had liked it.
But even so, he could still play that game.
"It's because you're very beautiful." Riser answered without any difficulty.
Ino froze for a second before quickly looking away, feeling her face heat up again.
'That's right… I am beautiful…'
The problem was something else.
'But that doesn't mean he can do whatever he wants… or can he?'
The worst part was realizing that part of her really hadn't hated that at all.
Ino remained silent for a few seconds, clearly trying to decide whether to argue, complain, or pretend nothing had happened. In the end, none of the options came out completely.
"I…" She took a deep breath before finally answering. "I have a lot to think about now."
Riser simply nodded lightly without pushing any further.
"Good night, Ino."
She hesitated for an instant too short to completely hide.
"Good night… Riser."
As soon as Ino entered the flower shop and the door closed behind her, Riser expanded Kenbunshoku Haki through the village once again.
The perception crossed streets, buildings, and presences scattered across Konoha until it finally located Tsunade again.
She had returned to the Hokage Tower.
'So she finished with Ibiki for now.'
Riser stood still for a second looking at the empty street before making a decision.
'I'll visit her for a bit.'
The next instant, his body disappeared.
"Soru."
___
HOKAGE TOWER
Tsunade was seated behind the Hokage desk when a slight air distortion appeared near the open office window.
Before she could fully react, Riser appeared leaning against the outer ledge as if he had simply decided to ignore every basic concept of normal entrance.
Her gaze immediately rose.
"I thought you gave me the option to block anyone." Tsunade crossed her arms while leaning back in her chair. "Or did that only work when it was convenient for you?"
Riser entered the office without haste, clearly far too calm for someone invading the Hokage's office in the middle of the night.
"You can block anyone." He answered simply. "But the ability is still mine."
His gaze met hers right afterward.
"So obviously I can still pass through."
Tsunade slightly narrowed her eyes.
"That doesn't sound like a problem in your head?"
"Not even a little." Riser answered without difficulty. "Because if I wanted to enter here without you noticing… I already would have."
That drew a small irritated sigh out of her.
The worst part was that he was right.
Tsunade rested her face on one hand for a few seconds before finally asking:
"And now? What did you come here for?"
Riser quickly observed the office. Stacks of documents, reports scattered around, clear signs of accumulated hours of work, and a Hokage visibly exhausted after a completely absurd day.
"You look irritated."
"Because I am." Tsunade immediately answered. "The village almost entered an internal war, Danzō was arrested, Root became a massive political problem, and half the bureaucracy landed in my lap."
She narrowed her gaze right afterward.
"And all of this started after you appeared."
Riser ended up smiling slightly.
"Then I improved your life."
Tsunade almost laughed in disbelief.
"You destroyed part of my tower."
"And removed Danzō from power."
"..."
She hated admitting it.
But that part was true.
Tsunade let out another tired sigh before resting her arms on the desk.
"Ibiki officially started the interrogation." She commented after a few seconds. "Danzō still hasn't said much."
"Does that matter?" Riser asked without much interest.
Tsunade lightly frowned.
"You said you wanted answers about the Sharingan."
"I say a lot of things." Riser answered calmly. "So let it go."
His casual attitude irritated her immediately. Tsunade was already mentally exhausted enough to deal with someone treating a problem of that size like it was irrelevant.
The worst part was that another problem was now growing rapidly.
Root.
Even with Danzō arrested, much of the organization still existed scattered throughout the village. Trained agents, hideouts, contacts, independent cells, and probably shinobi who would remain loyal to him even after the arrest.
And she had no time.
Jiraiya's funeral would happen the next day, Konoha's political situation was chaos, and half of the ANBU already seemed overloaded trying to reorganize the village itself.
Tsunade rested her face in one hand for a few seconds before finally making a decision.
"I need your help."
Riser slightly raised his gaze.
"Root?" He immediately asked.
"Yes." Tsunade answered bluntly. "There are still many people connected to Danzō inside the village, and I don't want to risk internal war while I'm trying to reorganize Konoha."
Silence fell for a few seconds.
Then Riser's gaze slightly changed.
'She wants me to eliminate all of them?'
The idea came too quickly.
And honestly?
It would be simple.
But Tsunade continued before he reached the wrong conclusion.
"I need to dismantle the organization before someone tries to react."
Riser remained silent for a few more seconds before answering.
"I can take care of that for you."
"Good." Tsunade slowly exhaled, clearly relieved that he accepted. "I'll notify Kakashi and separate some ANBU to accompany you."
"No."
She immediately stopped.
Riser kept his eyes fixed on her while continuing.
"I'm going alone."
Tsunade frowned immediately.
"Riser, this isn't a simple mission. There are still many Root agents spread throughout the village."
"And?" He answered without changing his tone.
"You're only one person."
That almost made Riser laugh.
But he held it back.
"That's exactly why I'm going alone." He answered calmly. "Any shinobi you send with me will only slow me down."
Tsunade remained silent for a few seconds, clearly divided between logic and concern. She knew perfectly well that Riser was absurdly strong, but even so the idea of a single man entering alone against the entire remaining Root still sounded too absurd even for her.
The problem was something else.
She also knew he would probably succeed.
"Problems…" Tsunade passed a hand over her tired face. "More problems just keep appearing."
Riser observed the stack of accumulated documents on the desk before speaking again.
"You should use Shadow Clones."
Tsunade raised one eyebrow.
"For what?"
"Bureaucratic work." Riser answered as if it were obvious. "You're Hokage. Destroying your head alone with paperwork is stupidity."
She froze for a second.
Then realized.
'...He's right.'
The idea was so simple it immediately irritated her for never having thought about it before.
Tsunade let out another tired sigh before resting an elbow on the desk.
"I hate when you make sense."
"Normal."
Riser answered without any shame.
The Sharingan slowly started spinning in his eye immediately afterward.
"I'm leaving." He said while the space around him began to distort. "See you later."
Before Tsunade could answer, his body completely disappeared from the room through Kamui, leaving only the spatial distortion slowly fading in the air.
Silence returned to the office.
Tsunade stared at the spot where he had vanished for a few seconds before finally leaning back into her chair.
'That man is a walking disaster…'
The worst part was admitting something else immediately afterward.
Konoha probably needed exactly that right now.
Support here: patreon.com/22Mirko22
Thank you so much for reading - see you in the next chapter!