A sunny afternoon, under a clear sky.
Evaporating moisture diffused into the air, giving Konoha's streets a faint scent of earth.
Having taken half a day off from the hospital specifically, Sakura changed out of her white coat, draped her light pink jacket over her shoulders, and headed for Konoha's main gate.
In the square before the gate, a youth wearing the Konoha's Military Police Force uniform, with red fan symbols on his armguards, stood with arms crossed, leaning against a utility pole.
"You're here early. Looking forward to that guy's return so much?"
Concealing her presence, Sakura quietly circled behind Sasuke and suddenly spoke up.
"!!!"
The cool-guy face he had maintained all morning instantly cracked. A look of shock spread across the Uchiha youth's face as his Sharingan spun into view. He drew the blade from his waist, holding it before him in a defensive stance, stepping back warily.
"I... I'm just on patrol here!"
When his crimson eyes reflected the girl's delicate features, Sasuke awkwardly turned his head away.
Over the past two years, he had grown somewhat accustomed to Sakura evading his Observation Haki.
The reason was simple… it was all about that damn foundation!
The foundation of Observation Haki, starting from one's own senses, was actually a form of Genjutsu. On the extended line of Genjutsu lay Observation Haki.
For an expert like Sakura, who could skillfully control her own will, fabricating 'Genjutsu' made it easy to toy with him.
This was a gap in their levels, so he wasn't anxious now. Sooner or later, he would elevate his Observation Haki to that degree, and then he would...
"But your inner voice isn't telling me that."
The girl narrowed her eyes, a teasing light flowing in her emerald pupils.
"Don't read my mind!"
Sasuke's face flushed slightly as he stomped the ground, using Soru to charge forward.
"Hahaha, catch me and I won't read it~"
Closing her eyes, Sakura used Kami-e to follow his trajectory, leaving afterimages in the air as she sparred with Sasuke.
Passing Ninja were momentarily captivated by the two's Taijutsu, unable to help but stop and watch.
"Is that... Tsunade-sama's disciple and the next head of the Uchiha Clan?"
Among the crowd, someone recognized them.
"Oh, starting training so early in the morning, so youthful!"
Two green-clad rare beasts hugged each other, tears streaming, immediately deciding to double today's training quota.
"Speaking of which, is this the Taijutsu - Rokushiki that the village released last year?" A Ninja asked, stroking his chin, his eyes constantly tracking the two. "Why does theirs look different from ours?"
"Foolish talk. This Taijutsu was developed by Sakura-sama."
A cold snort came from behind the Ninja who had just asked. "Being allowed to learn the basic version for free is already good enough. Greedy for her derivative techniques too? Ever think about how many heads you have to be so greedy?"
"What did you say?!"
The challenged Ninja gritted his teeth, about to turn around and argue with the speaker.
Then he saw a whole group behind him wearing Military Police Force's uniforms, many with crimson Sharingan eyes open and staring directly.
The Ninja immediately fell silent, slinking back into the crowd and quickly disappearing.
Snap!
A wisp of breeze quietly stirred between the two afterimages, Wind Attribute Chakra propelling a figure forward rapidly, grabbing both their arms.
The blond youth smiled at Sakura and Sasuke under the sunlight. "Yo!"
"Naruto, you!"
Sasuke looked up in surprise, a faint, almost imperceptible smile briefly appearing.
He twisted his wrist, breaking Naruto's grip, and jumped back several times to create distance.
"You've grown, Naruto."
Tapping her palm lightly, Sakura tore through space, teleporting herself away.
"Sakura, Sasuke, I missed you guys so much!"
The boy in a yellow tracksuit excitedly raised his fist, shouting at the two.
Only, the scene fell silent.
Sasuke waved a hand at the Uchiha Military Police Force's members behind him, leading them to disperse the watching Ninja and maintain order.
Meanwhile, Sakura had already appeared before Jiraiya, tilting her head and cupping her hands together. "Jiraiya-sensei, a gift~"
"You really don't stand on ceremony with me, do you?"
Jiraiya laughed helplessly. "Here, a wind chime from the Land of Rice Fields!"
Opening the pack on his back, he pulled out an exquisite wind chime made of strung-together shells and placed it in Sakura's hands.
'The coastal area of the Land of Rice Fields was in the opposite direction from the Land of Fire's border. In other words, Jiraiya-sensei and Naruto had traversed the entire Land of Rice Fields during their two-and-a-half-year training.'
'Seemed like taking Naruto out of the village for training was a pretext… they were likely carrying out some mission targeting Orochimaru in secret.'
"Hehe, thank you, Jiraiya-sensei!"
A flicker of dark light passed through her pupils. Sakura blinked, thanking him in a sweet voice.
"Hey, why are you both ignoring me?!"
Naruto, now a young man of about 170 cm, shouted loudly. "I brought a gift for Sakura too!"
Opening his backpack in front of Sakura, he thrust a large hand inside and rummaged vigorously, pulling out a bouquet that had been crushed and deformed.
As a gentle breeze blew, the few remaining resilient petals were carried away.
Seeing this, Jiraiya and Sasuke simultaneously raised their hands, slapping their foreheads with a smack.
'—This guy, if no one pursues him later, he'll probably be single for life.'
"Hahahaha, truly fitting of you, the number one most unpredictable Ninja!"
Sakura laughed heartily, taking the remaining flower stems. "Anyway, thank you for the gift."
Hearing the girl's response, Naruto looked at her with teary eyes, only to receive a critical hit from Sasuke behind him.
"Preparing a gift like this, seems all the nutrients from the past two and a half years went into your muscles."
"What did you say?!"
Clenching his fist, Naruto turned around, baring shark-like teeth as he roared at Sasuke.
Admittedly, due to the liberation of Yang Release Chakra and Haki Training, Naruto had indeed become a bit more rugged.
His muscles and facial contours had become much more solid. But for a teenage boy who admired being cool and handsome, this was somewhat a nightmare.
Thus, having his sore spot poked, Naruto waved a hand grandly, forming the Dog hand seal in front of him.
"Bastard Sasuke, I'll test my new - Harem Technique on you today!"
Poof!
The Chakra exploded, creating a huge cloud of smoke.
From within the haze, a blonde girl in a sheer gown walked gracefully forth.
Abandoning the abruptness of the previous, completely naked version, beneath the pure white nightgown were slender legs clad in black footed tights. Exposed delicate toes and ankles lightly touched the ground. Fingers clad in silk gloves slowly traced up her leg, while the other hand brushed over soft lips.
"Mhmm~"
The jade-skinned girl winked at Sasuke, her finger curving at her lips before blowing a kiss.
Yes, this was Naruto's new Harem Technique. Building on the original, it added a bit of clothing, making the originally beautiful curves even more perfect under the outline of the sheer gown, while adding a sense of longing for the unattainable.
"Naruto, you idiot!"
Receiving the critical hit of the [Fist of Love], Sasuke embarrassingly clamped his legs together, one hand guarding his vital area, the other covering his nose.
"Transformation Technique relies on imagination to complete. Jiraiya-sensei, how many 'research trips' did you take him on over these two years?" Having feasted her eyes, Sakura withdrew her gaze and shook her head, asking the teacher beside her.
However, Jiraiya didn't answer. His gaze was already firmly hooked by this technique, his eyes turning into heart shapes, nosebleed and drool flowing simultaneously.
'Well then, incurable. Wait for death.'
Sakura quietly put some distance between herself and Jiraiya, because her Observation Haki had already detected an angry mind rapidly approaching.
"You bunch of… idiots!"
A roar stirred up an air wave as a busty... a heavily laden figure slammed into the ground.
Then, at extreme speed, it swept past everyone, delivering a punch that sent each person crashing into the ground.
"Wh... why me too?"
Sasuke in a crater trembled as he raised a hand.
"Because you fell for it too!"
Making an unreasonable argument, Tsunade swept a cold gaze over him, instantly silencing Sasuke.
Then she dug the three out of their holes, piled them up like a stack on her shoulder, and pointed a free finger at Sakura.
"Come with me!"