The midday sun blazed across a clear sky.
In the Land of Fire, inside the village of Konohagakure—
At a barbecue restaurant.
Several jōnin instructors sat together around a grill, chatting casually as they ate, discussing their students' recent performances.
Ayato sat with his legs crossed, chin propped lazily on his hand, looking bored as he stared out the window at the crowds passing by. With his free hand, he idly toyed with a piece of roasted meat using his chopsticks.
It had been two days since the incident with Mei Terumī. Team 7 had been performing D-rank missions around the village, and Sakura was focusing hard on her medical ninjutsu training.
To be honest…
Ayato originally thought Mei, after what happened, would back out of their agreement and refuse to pay the bounty for Haku. But unexpectedly, she actually sent someone to deliver the money directly to the Hokage's office.
"You're the one who suggested we get barbecue at noon, you know."
Kurenai sighed helplessly, snatching Ayato's chopsticks and placing them neatly on the table. She shot him a mild glare and muttered softly, "Behave yourself in public. If you keep playing with your food, I'm going to get upset."
She was the one who suggested they gather to talk about the upcoming Chūnin Exams. She was the one who proposed barbecue. And yet now Ayato was complaining he had no appetite?
He really was too spoiled.
Ayato replied in a nonchalant tone,
"Speaking like that… you sound like an old lady. Careful, you'll get wrinkles from nagging."
He was bored out of his mind.
There was still no sign of Tsunade anywhere. He'd have to wait until she showed up in that gamblers' haven—Tanzaku Town.
And Sakura still hadn't learned medical ninjutsu yet, so even if he dragged her to Tsunade now, she wouldn't be able to learn the Yin Seal anyway.
The Byakugō Seal… now that was a headache.
The Master–Disciple System had given him such a ridiculous mission. Why couldn't it just let Sakura learn a summoning contract? Why insist on something as troublesome as the Byakugō?
As for that snake charmer—he seemed to be making moves lately. The old Third probably hadn't noticed yet.
"Wr… wrinkles? You're the one who'll wrinkle!"
Kurenai's smile stiffened. Her pale fingers pinched Ayato's waist sharply.
Ayato caught her hand and threatened with a wicked grin,
"If you keep pinching me… I might pinch you back."
Her face flushed.
"P… Pervert!"
She immediately pulled her hand away and scooted a bit farther from him.
Pinching… that?
What kind of outrageous words were those!?
Asuma, raising a piece of meat with his chopsticks, glanced at the two quietly whispering, teasing each other like playful lovers. His mood instantly soured.
His beloved woman… flirting with someone else?
Even premium beef felt tasteless now.
Kakashi, reading his book with his usual dead-fish eyes, patted Asuma's shoulder.
"Give up."
Everyone in the village knew Asuma had been pursuing Kurenai since childhood… and that Kurenai had always been cold toward him.
Meanwhile, she acted annoyed with Ayato on the surface… yet always ended up interacting with him anyway.
Women were too complicated.
Not even reading Icha Icha could help him understand them.
Asuma took a deep drag from his cigarette and forced a smile as he changed the subject.
"Shikamaru and the others are doing great. I think it's about time for them to participate in the Chūnin Exams."
He looked at Kurenai.
"Kurenai, your Team 10 is excellent too. What are your plans?"
Kurenai pinched her chin thoughtfully.
"I'm still hesitating. Team 10 only became genin recently. It feels… too early."
Especially Hinata.
Though Hinata had the strength to attend, her gentle and overly kind nature was a huge problem. The current Chūnin Exams were much harsher—both mentally and physically dangerous.
Hinata might freeze… or worse, get herself seriously injured.
Kurenai wanted to train them more before letting them participate.
She worried her students would be devastated if they failed… and even more worried about them getting hurt.
Because a teacher's heart was like a mother's.
She turned toward Ayato.
"Ayato, what about your Team 7? Are you signing them up?"
Ayato sucked lazily on a straw, answering casually,
"Doesn't matter. Is becoming a chūnin that important? Genin are the strongest."
Chūnin? Jōnin?
Nonsense.
Genin were peak creatures!
…Wait.
Back in the Land of Waves, he had promised Team 7 that he'd register the first one to finish their training.
But to register for the exams, all three teammates had to participate as a group.
He recalled how they'd all trained desperately, thinking only one of them could be chosen.
He chuckled.
"Actually, I'll register them. And my students will definitely win."
He wasn't bragging.
Even though they were technically genin, their strength already surpassed that of ordinary chūnin:
Naruto had the Rasengan.
Sasuke had Chidori.
Sakura had monstrous strength.
With that lineup, they were more than qualified.
Even if Naruto simply spammed Shadow Clones + Rasengan, he could wear down an elite chūnin through brute-force chakra output alone.
This year's genin were strong, though—like Neji, Rock Lee, Gaara…
And Hinata too, thanks to Ayato's constant tutoring.
Watching Hinata grow was like raising a cute little loli.
Wonderful, truly.
"Your Team 7 is joining too? Excellent!"
Might Guy flashed his sparkling smile.
"Watching students sweat and strive toward the future—that is YOUTH!"
Ayato responded flatly,
"Sure. Youth."
Guy wiped his forehead dramatically.
"Ohh! It reminds me of when we ran beneath the sunset, burning with passion!"
"You were just burning your brain."
Ayato deadpanned.
He turned to Kurenai and said deliberately loudly,
"Kurenai, feed me a piece of meat. The biggest one."
He did it on purpose.
To provoke Asuma.
"Okay."
Kurenai answered instinctively—
And the entire table froze.
That soft, obedient "okay"—
Was that really Kurenai?
She blushed as soon as she realized what she'd done, hurriedly picking the largest piece and placing it on Ayato's plate.
So embarrassing…
All his fault!
She then noticed Ayato wasn't eating but instead watching Asuma pensively. She understood immediately.
He'd done it just to irritate Asuma.
"Childish."
She rolled her eyes and added another piece of meat to Ayato's plate anyway.
She was in a good mood. She could indulge him once in a while.
Guy clenched his fist and declared,
"My student will win for sure! Hard work will triumph!"
Ayato glanced at him lazily.
"Is that so? I look forward to it."
Hard work surpassing genius?
Possible.
But hard work could never surpass cheats.
Opening the Tenseigan at age eight was something countless ninja could never reach, no matter how they trained.
Just like how the Sharingan evolved into the Mangekyō through sheer plot armor.
Ayato liked cheating.
Actually… loved cheating.
He frowned slightly.
Why did everyone still think Team 7 had only just finished tree-walking?
Ah.
Right—only ten days had passed.
Meaning no one yet knew they'd mastered Chidori, Rasengan, and monstrous strength.
They'd stun everyone at the Chūnin Exams.
Everyone would praise him:
"Ayato-sensei is amazing!"
"What an incredible teacher!"
"He taught three genin such high-level techniques!"
Even teaching Naruto, the dead-last, the Rasengan…
He smirked.
"Good. My little tools… help your master show off in style."
Kakashi glanced up from his book.
"I heard that not only Sunagakure, but Kirigakure will be sending genin too. The Mizukage herself might visit Konoha."
The jōnin around the table reacted in surprise.
"Kirigakure? Even though we signed a peace treaty, they're still basically enemies, especially with the Hyūga clan," Asuma said, glancing at Ayato.
Kirigakure had once tried to abduct a Hyūga to steal their dōjutsu. The hatred ran deep.
Kakashi added,
"The Hokage approved it. Maybe he wants to thaw relations a bit."
Ayato's eyebrow twitched.
"That crazy woman…"
Mei Terumī was actually coming!?
Kurenai turned to him curiously.
"Ayato, do you know the Mizukage? I heard she's very beautiful."
Ayato raised a finger casually.
"We're… acquainted."
Technically true.
If "acquainted" meant "recently got extremely intimate," anyway.
To put it politely…
She was enthusiastic.
Very enthusiastic.
Full score.
But if she was personally coming to Konoha, it definitely wasn't just for the exam.
Troublesome.
"Acquainted…?"
Kurenai frowned slightly. Something about that sounded… off.
Asuma tapped his cigarette.
"I heard something interesting on the way back from a mission."
Everyone looked at him.
"I heard the Mizukage has a boyfriend."
"Who?" Kurenai asked.
"No idea."
Kurenai sighed in admiration.
"Mei Terumī is a hero of Kirigakure—the only kunoichi with two kekkei genkai. I'm curious what kind of man could win the heart of such a woman."
Who indeed?
Ayato sneezed suddenly.
"…Tch."
Boyfriend?
Kirigakure really knew how to fabricate rumors.
"Careful not to catch a cold."
Kurenai draped a blanket over his shoulders gently.
Asuma watched this scene…
And smoked heavily.
He wasn't smoking tobacco.
He was smoking loneliness.
Kurenai looked at Ayato again, eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Ayato, do you know anything? I'm really curious what kind of man could be the Mizukage's boyfriend."
Romance…
It sounded nice.
She'd never experienced it.
Surely Ayato hadn't either. With his twisted, shameless personality, who could possibly date him?
Ayato froze.
Why was she looking at him like that!?
He suddenly felt like someone being questioned after committing a crime.
Even seeing Madara resurrect wouldn't faze him.
But Kurenai's innocent expression and that question…
Too dangerous.
He stood abruptly.
"No idea. Anyway, I've got things to do. Leaving."
He shoved his hands into his pockets and walked away quickly.
Kurenai blinked, grabbed her wallet, and hurried after him.
"Here's our meal money."
They always split the bill.
…Although Ayato had never paid once.
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