After fleeing the Hyūga compound, Kyusei walked the streets of Konoha in a rather sorry state. He absentmindedly wiped the faint trace of red from his lips, then glanced back at the Hyūga estate with lingering fear.
This time… it was really bad.
Once again, he'd failed to resist temptation.
I really am a hopeless pervert…
If Kaoru found out, would she just straight-up kill him?
His thoughts were in total chaos as he wandered forward, already half-convinced he could see his own tragic end at Kaoru's hands.
"Oof—!"
Not paying attention, Kyusei bumped into someone small, sending them tumbling to the ground.
"Ah—sorry about that," he said quickly.
"Are you okay?"
He bent down and helped the child up. The little girl rubbed her head, clearly more startled than hurt.
"I'm fine, big brother," she said with a bright smile.
She looked about six years old, with short brown hair and two purple markings painted on her cheeks.
Wait…
Is this Nohara Rin?
The girl who lived only in memories—
the one whose death would one day ignite the Fourth Great Ninja War?
Kyusei brushed the dust off her clothes and patted her head apologetically.
"Sorry about that, little one."
The tiny Rin smiled up at him.
"It's really okay! But big brother looks like he's dealing with something troubling."
That comment made Kyusei pause.
Is my emotional turmoil really that obvious?
Rin tugged gently at his sleeve and pointed toward a nearby dango shop.
"If big brother treats me to dango, I can help you solve your worries~"
…Since when did kids get this smooth?
Kyusei didn't expect a six-year-old to solve his life problems, but treating her to dango wasn't exactly a big deal.
Besides, he had nothing better to do.
"Alright," he said. "Let's go."
They took a seat in the corner of the shop. Kyusei ordered a plate of red bean dango, a plate of three-color dango, and a plate of mochi dango.
"Huh?" Rin waved her hands frantically.
"That's way too much! I can't eat all of that!"
"I didn't order it for you, kid," Kyusei replied flatly.
"…Then why did you order so much?"
Kyusei ignored her and picked up a skewer of mochi dango, chewing thoughtfully. It was sweet, soft, filled with red bean paste, dusted lightly with sugar—pretty good.
Just as he was about to take a second bite, three familiar little figures walked into the shop.
When he saw the purple-haired girl, Kyusei's mouth twitched.
I really should've checked my fortune today.
Naori earlier.
Loli Rin now.
And approaching the battlefield—another extremely troublesome existence.
"Eh?!"
"Kyusei-nii, you're eating dango without telling me?!"
"That's so unfair!!!"
The purple-haired girl darted over like an arrow and shamelessly grabbed a skewer, stuffing it straight into her mouth.
Mitarashi Anko.
The daughter of Mitarashi Shishō—better known as the ANBU codenamed Seiran—and a hardcore sweets addict.
"Kyusei-nii!"
A black-haired, red-eyed girl beside Anko greeted him politely.
Yūhi Kurenai.
The future beauty of Konoha—and, tragically, its most beautiful widow.
"Long time no see, Kurenai," Kyusei said, smiling as he gently patted her dark hair.
Kurenai was nothing like Anko. She was polite, well-mannered—clearly raised well by her father, Yūhi Shinku.
Unlike Anko, who was basically free-range.
"Yo, long time no see, Kyusei."
The black-haired boy behind them spoke with forced maturity.
Kyusei narrowed his eyes.
"What did you just call me?"
"Uh—Kyusei-boss! Long time no see!"
Sarutobi Asuma immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
"Good," Kyusei said with satisfaction, ruffling Asuma's hair.
"That's how a good little brother of Shin should behave."
The Shin he referred to was, of course, Asuma's older brother—Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
"Boss!" Kyusei waved at the owner.
"Let's share a table. And bring another round of what I ordered earlier."
"Yes!!"
"Kyusei-nii is the best!!!"
Anko jumped up in excitement.
Because her father basically let her run wild, Anko's personality was… let's say very outgoing.
In some ways, she was disturbingly similar to Kyusei as a kid.
According to Shishō, she was exactly like Kyusei back then.
Kyusei firmly refused to acknowledge that comparison.
Me? Like her?
Go beat up an Uchiha first and then we'll talk.
"Thank you for the treat," Kurenai said politely.
Asuma hurriedly followed up with a half-hearted, "Thanks."
Kyusei didn't really care. At this point, anywhere was fine—as long as it wasn't home, and as long as it wasn't the Hyūga compound.
Home meant Kaoru.
The Hyūga compound meant Naori.
Between those two, he'd rather hang out with a group of kids.
"So," Kyusei asked, ruffling Anko's hair,
"what are you guys doing later?"
Anko's cheeks were stuffed full. She tried to answer but only managed a series of muffled mmph sounds.
"Kyo-yuki-nii," Kurenai said gently, handing Anko a bowl of red bean soup,
"We're planning to go feed the cats near the river by the Uchiha district."
After finally swallowing, Anko looked at Kyusei with sparkling eyes.
"Kyusei-nii, wanna come with us?!"
"Feed cats?" Kyusei paused.
"You mean the cats by the river near the Uchiha compound?"
"Huh?!" Anko stared at him.
"How do you know there are cats there?!"
Kyusei smiled faintly.
Because I was the one who put the catnip basket there in the first place.
To Read advanced Chapters, head over to P@treon
patreon.com/DarkVerse146