Yubi took Sasori to eat seafood ramen.
Originally, the owner insisted on not taking payment... Firstly, Yubi was a regular customer who had just returned to the Village, made contributions, and had been promoted to Chunin, so it was a celebration for him.
Secondly, it was also Sasori's first time visiting the shop.
The owner clearly knew Sasori too... He wanted to treat them and waive the bill for both of them.
But the cunning Yubi managed to trick him with just a few words, and in the end, the owner still accepted the payment.
However... he gave them a discount.
After eating, he parted ways with Sasori... Sasori also planned to stay in the Village for a while this time.
But it wasn't for rest; it was to properly study his puppets, especially the 'puppet core.'
'Negative Experience Points: 3268.'
Walking on the way home, Yubi summoned the System, looked at the interface, and a smile appeared on his lips.
During these six months in the Land of Grass, he had indeed killed quite a few people.
The total number far exceeded that of the month he spent on the border of the Land of Rain.
But the efficiency of gaining experience was a bit lacking.
This was mainly because the nature of the two missions and the environments they were in were somewhat different. In the Land of Grass, they wasted most of their time moving and concealing their tracks, as well as gathering and processing intelligence... Even when ambushing or eliminating targets, they had to prepare and investigate beforehand to ensure foolproof success.
Therefore... the actual time spent killing enemies was not much.
It was more difficult than the period spent on the border.
Furthermore, Yubi discovered that... as his strength increased, the difficulty of the targets he killed also affected the experience points gained individually.
When he was still a Genin, killing an Amegakure Ninja would give him a good amount of negative experience.
But now, even though he was still a Genin in the Land of Grass, his strength had increased after all, and killing some Konoha Ninja yielded less impressive experience.
Overall, the level of Konoha Ninja... was definitely stronger than Amegakure Ninja.
"The stronger the target, the more experience you get... that makes sense." Yubi rubbed his chin.
Even a mosquito's leg is meat; if it's small, I'll just stack up the quantity... Anyway, it's a profit no matter what.
No loss.
"Yubi."
Just as he was about to turn a corner, a familiar sound suddenly came from afar.
He turned his head and saw Pakura.
"I heard you passed the Chunin Exam."
Pakura jogged over.
She had originally gone to Yubi's house to find him, but since he wasn't there, she waited at the intersection.
"That's right... Isn't that amazing?!"
Yubi grinned, somewhat proudly tugging at the Forehead Protector hanging around his neck.
"Hmph... Don't get arrogant. I'll definitely catch up to you."
Pakura pouted, her eyes showing a hint of admiration for Yubi, but she replied stubbornly.
Then, she pulled out a clearly well-wrapped gift box from behind her back.
"Hmm?"
Yubi chuckled, "What is this?"
"It's for you... Congratulations on becoming a Chunin."
Pakura coughed, her cheeks slightly flushed, "Don't misunderstand, I'm just celebrating for you as your friend... I I... I just happened to pass by... a store yesterday and bought it... incidentally..."
She intentionally explained herself.
But before she could finish, Yubi reached out and took it.
"Got it... Thank you. When you graduate from the Ninja Academy and become a Genin, I will definitely prepare a big gift for you too!"
Yubi patted her hair and said.
"Who cares..."
Pakura said, contradicting her true feelings.
"What's inside?" Yubi shook the box, about to open it.
"Who opens a gift right in front of the girl who gave it?!"
Seeing this, Pakura immediately stopped him, sounding a little angry.
"Uh... sorry, this is the first gift I've ever received from someone." Yubi scratched his head, showing an apologetic look.
"I didn't know what you liked either, anyway..."
Pakura mumbled.
"It's fine. As long as you bought it, I'm sure I'll like it."
Yubi smiled.
Hearing this, Pakura's eyes suddenly widened.
"..."
Yubi realized that what he had said... seemed a bit off.
"I mean... when a younger sister buys something for her older brother, the older brother..." Before Yubi could finish, Pakura turned her back on him and ran away in a flash.
"..."
Yubi's mouth twitched slightly.
He shook his head helplessly and turned to go home.
When he arrived at his doorstep, he paused again.
Because... a woman with shoulder-length sandy-blonde hair, a gentle demeanor, and a faint smile on her face was standing at his door.
She seemed to be waiting for him.
"You must be Yubi, right?"
Seeing the boy appear, the woman walked over, bent slightly at the waist, resting her hands on her knees, and asked cordially.
"And you are?"
Yubi replied politely.
"My name is Karura... Grandmother Chiyo asked me to come and clean your house for you. She was worried that you wouldn't be able to take care of yourself in daily life alone... Boys aren't as meticulous as girls, after all." Karura smiled faintly.
It was her.
Gaara's mother.
Yubi was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected to meet this plot character in such a way.
Although he had intentionally been looking for some plot characters in the Village since transmigrating, he couldn't be too obvious about it... Furthermore, characters like Sasori, Chiyo, and Rasa were easy to confirm because, firstly, they were famous, and secondly, their characteristics were distinct.
Therefore, for someone like Karura, although he remembered her appearance from the original work, recognizing her in reality based on hair color, clothing, and so on was still somewhat difficult.
"Is this convenient?"
Karura tilted her head with a smile, seeking Yubi's opinion.
"If you're worried about being disturbed, it's okay... I..."
Karura knew Yubi was an orphan, and children like that tend to be somewhat sensitive internally.
Therefore... "It's fine..."
Yubi snapped out of his thoughts and immediately waved his hand.
Then, he stepped forward, opened the door, and invited Karura inside to sit.
After just a few simple exchanges, the woman felt exactly as she was portrayed in the original work.
Exuding kindness and warmth.
"Uh..."
Entering the room and seeing that it was a bit messy, Yubi felt slightly embarrassed.
"Yubi, you're ten years old this year, right?"
Karura proactively started the conversation.
"Mhm."
"I have a younger brother named Yashamaru, who is two years older than you... If you don't mind, just call me older sister."
Karura laughed.
"Okay... Yashamaru, huh... I heard Teacher Ming Ye mention him when I was at the Academy."
Yubi also laughed readily.
"If you get the chance, you two should meet."
Karura said this while efficiently tidying up Yubi's room.
At first, Yubi still felt a little awkward, but soon... as the conversation with Karura continued, everything became natural.
At this moment, Yubi also unwrapped the gift Pakura had given him.
Upon opening it, he saw that it contained a high-quality Kunai.
It had also been tied with a beautiful ribbon as decoration.
Yubi certainly wouldn't use this item... he could only keep it as a souvenir to carry with him.
In no time at all, Yubi's room was completely refreshed, with all the messy items neatly categorized and orderly arranged.
The floor, tables, and chairs were also spotless and shiny.
It made Yubi feel like the air in the room had become fresher.
"My house isn't far from here... I heard from Grandmother Chiyo that you often eat your daily meals outside. If it's not too much trouble, you can come to my house and try my cooking. Also, starting today, we are acquainted. I am eight years older than you... and I'm your older sister, so if you ever need help with anything daily, you can come find me... It would also be a good chance to meet Yashamaru; he really looks up to you..."
After finishing the tidying, Karura prepared to leave.
Since they had just met, Karura didn't want to be overly enthusiastic; the woman was very smart and considerate of Yubi's feelings.
Chiyo had a reason for asking her to look after him.
However, before leaving, she still spoke a few words to Yubi and extended an invitation.
"Okay."
Yubi nodded.
"Then it's a promise."
Karura smiled and held out her pinky finger.
Yubi linked pinkies with her.
Then, he repeatedly expressed his thanks, waving as he watched her leave.