Still fuming from earlier, Kei Yamanaka gritted his teeth and checked on the remaining nine crows and the newly arrived eagle-falcon named Bidiao.
Seeing that the little crows were still living comfortably without any problems, and Bidiao had already found two companions from the Summoning Island inside the coop, happily showing affection toward each other,
Kei finally thanked the staff at the coop before turning to leave.
He had arrived full of rage but was now leaving with nothing but emotional turmoil.
Kei never imagined in his wildest dreams that boomerangs could hit this hard!
What was this?
Karma? Divine retribution?
Hmph!
Danzo had committed countless despicable, vile acts—no one could even count them all.
If there really was such a thing as karma, he should've dropped dead ages ago!
Feeling deeply irritated, Kei walked down Konoha's streets toward Amaguri Gamaguri, the long-standing dessert shop where Kurenai Yuhi, Maito Gai, and Genma Shiranami were already waiting.
As one of Konoha's oldest dessert shops, Amaguri Gamaguri had already established itself during Tobirama Senju's time.
The shop specialized in warabi mochi—a jelly-like treat made by steaming and boiling mashed beans or chestnuts, then mixing them with other ingredients. It was especially popular among younger crowds.
After joining Kei Yamanaka's squad, Kurenai, Gai, and Genma had taken on two D-rank missions recently.
In addition to significantly easing their financial burdens, the continued use of the Four Limbs Sealing Array had noticeably boosted all three of their strengths.
Their teamwork had also grown much tighter after working together nonstop for a whole week.
Originally, they had planned to train together at Training Ground No.4 today, but due to the weather, they had no choice but to change plans.
"Hey, have you guys heard?" Genma said casually, a senbon hanging from his lips as he gazed out at the rain. "It looks like those summoned beasts auctioned off recently might've all been knocked out at once using genjutsu."
"Mm, over a hundred summoned beasts of different sizes—even if packed tightly together—would cover a space bigger than our academy training grounds. Our sensei is truly impressive," Kurenai added, resting her elbows on the table, cupping her cheeks in both hands, her slightly baby-faced look filled with admiration.
She really wanted to become a genjutsu master too—one who could effortlessly trap enemies in endless nightmares.
"That's definitely a feat that gets your blood pumping!"
Gai enthusiastically threw a few quick punches nearby—as usual, he was always bursting with energy no matter the situation.
"I heard someone praising me just now."
A familiar male voice came from behind the Three Little Troublemakers.
They turned around with bright smiles.
There stood Kei Yamanaka, holding a black umbrella and smiling warmly as always.
"Eh?! Sensei! Good afternoon!"
Genma reacted quickly, immediately standing up to greet him.
Gai followed his example in an instant—the seriousness on his face at that moment looked like he was about to charge into battle.
Seeing the black umbrella in Kei's hand, Kurenai's heart skipped a beat. She quickly circled around him for a quick inspection.
Seeing no bloodied bandages and smelling no medicinal scents, she finally let out a sigh of relief.
In the ninja world, aside from the rare ninja who wield umbrellas as ninja tools, most don't usually carry one—during high-speed movement, an umbrella could pose a major hindrance and restrict mobility.
Seeing her teacher holding an umbrella for the first time, Kurenai even thought he was injured and couldn't get his wounds wet.
"Thank you for your concern, but I'm fine. I'm just carrying this because... well, someone reminded me to bring it today."
Kei Yamanaka easily picked up on Kurenai's unspoken care and reached out to gently ruffle her hair.
Truth be told, this kind of attention from his apprentices was truly delightful.
Of course, while he enjoyed it thoroughly, the fate of the three young apprentices had already been sealed.
But if they worked hard enough...
Hmm, maybe he'd give them a small reward.
"Kushina-senpai is so sweet~"
Kurenai instantly figured out who had given that reminder to their teacher, her eyes sparkling with admiration.
Kushina-senpai gave a suggestion, and their teacher followed it so seriously—he looked so happy doing it!
Beside her, Maito Gai and Genma Shiranami silently nodded upon hearing Kurenai's words.
During their teacher's mission, it was always Kushina-senpai who stayed by their side, taking care of their daily lives, answering their questions, and guiding their training.
Although sometimes her personality was just like the teacher's, occasionally revealing a tiny bit of twisted humor.
For example, right after they had finally adapted to the [Four Limbs Sealing Array] left behind by their teacher, she had used the exact same "gift-giving" ruse to suddenly ramp up the seal's binding power to an entirely new level.
Still, Kushina-senpai really was an outstanding and gentle senior.
"Would you like to come over to my place today? I plan to cook something special, and tomorrow I'll need people to taste-test everything."
Seeing all three clearly agreeing on Kushina's merits, Kei Yamanaka felt even better and swiftly began setting his trap.
"Teacher Kei's house? Hehe~ Then we can help out too! I've learned cooking pretty well at home!"
Kurenai didn't hesitate for a second before leaping headfirst into the trap, completely unaware of how massive this project would be.
"Me and Guy can probably assist as well."
Genma scratched his head, dragging the nearby Maito Gai into the helper group without hesitation.
At their age, though not particularly fond of learning culinary skills, none of them could resist the temptation of delicious food.
After all, Kushina-senpai had mentioned more than once that their teacher, even back during his time at the Ninja Academy, already possessed incredible cooking skills.
Who wouldn't love tasty food?
They arrived at Kei Yamanaka's house while the rain was still light.
The sprawling three-story mansion, over 200 square meters per floor, drew continuous gasps from the three young apprentices.
But when they saw the mountain of ingredients and cooking supplies scattered throughout the living room, all three fell silent at once.
Oh no!
We got tricked again!
So many ingredients—this could feed a whole restaurant!
Click.
"Ahhh~ I'm heading to the hospital. Save me some lunch later."
Tsunade yawned lazily as she stepped out of her bedroom, disheveled and giving Kei Yamanaka a casual greeting as she passed, casually reminding him about her lunch.
"Tsunade-sama! Good morning!"
Kurenai Yuhi looked at Tsunade, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
Tsunade-sama—one of the Legendary Sannin—was an idol to every kunoichi.
Maito Gai and Genma Shiranami quickly snapped out of it, quickly bowing respectfully to Tsunade, their expressions awkward.
Even though they knew Kushina-sempai and Tsunade-sempai were somehow related, was it really okay to live with your boyfriend *and* bring your sisters along?
"Eleven o'clock at the hospital?"
Kei Yamanaka raised his eyebrow. He'd thought earlier that morning that Tsunade and Kushina had gone out together, but had they really just slept the whole time until now?
"As long as we arrive in time for the mourning, it'll do."
Tsunade frowned in annoyance before heading into the bathroom to freshen up.
She was only going through the motions because of the old man's request. Some people just disgusted her; how on earth could she ever treat them?
"...You wouldn't happen to be treating Danzo, would you?"
Seeing Tsunade's expression, Kei immediately figured it out. There weren't even five people in Konoha who could make Tsunade this irritated. Of those few, only Danzo had been in poor health lately.
"You're pretty well-informed. Looking forward to seeing the joke, huh?"
A slight smirk tugged at Tsunade's lips as she recalled how much Kei and Kushina disliked Danzo too.
"Cough, cough~ Actually, I'm more worried it might be inconvenient for you, Tsunade-nee."
"...Hmph! That little brat tells you everything, doesn't she?"
Tsunade muttered in frustration before turning back toward the restroom again.
As for Kei Yamanaka, his smile right now was wider than a machine gunner mid-fire!
Danzo! Didn't see this coming, did you?
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