A night of wild, relentless storms. From the bed to the bathroom, and from the bathroom back to the bed... they had battled more times than they could count.
Saiki had severely underestimated the pent-up desires of a mature, married woman—especially one who was a Taijutsu specialist. He was still a bit too green. In the end, if he hadn't utilized the stamina-preserving techniques of his Dual Cultivation, he truly would have been drained completely dry.
The next morning, Saiki smacked his lips, tasting something sweet. Realizing he was still sucking on something, he opened his eyes.
Sunlight filtered through the screen of the small window. The light wasn't particularly bright, but it was enough to see. His vision was filled with an expanse of snowy white skin, and he instantly realized exactly what he was holding in his mouth.
He looked up and saw a pair of complex, conflicted eyes staring down at him. Feeling a sudden spike of awkwardness, Saiki spat out the "cherry" and offered a bright smile. "Good morning, Sensei!"
There are only exhausted oxen, never plowed-out fields. Although Tsume had been the first to pass out last night, she had been awake for a while. Having been thoroughly "nourished" all night, her complexion was a vibrant, healthy pink, and her spirit was incredibly vibrant.
She had woken up before Saiki for two reasons: first, she recovered faster; second, Saiki had been sucking on her "cherry" all night, to the point where it was visibly inflamed and red.
"You're awake. Let's get up. We've been gone for days without contacting anyone; they must be worried sick. We need to make it back to camp before sunset today!" Having fully accepted Saiki, and currently lying completely naked in his arms, Tsume spoke with a natural, unashamed directness.
"Oh! Right!" Saying that, Saiki shifted his arm slightly, intending to sit up. However, his hand "accidentally" landed directly on one of her massive peaches, causing Tsume to blush in annoyance. She reached up and gave his head a light smack.
"You little rascal. You used to be so proper. I never expected you to be this wicked," she sighed, her voice a mix of helplessness and bashful affection.
Saiki nodded quickly, offering a fake apology. "Whoops! My hand slipped!"
He said it slipped, but his hand remained firmly planted. Saiki gave the peach a deep, testing squeeze before finally pulling his hand back, making sure to add a compliment: "Sensei... you're incredibly perky!"
Hearing this, Tsume felt a flash of genuine anger. First, she was terrified that Saiki becoming addicted to this would ruin him; a ninja's spirit and vitality directly impacted their chakra and combat strength. Second, for him to act so brazenly in broad daylight made her feel slightly disrespected, challenging her dignity as an adult.
"Get out of bed. Now. Or I'll really get angry," Tsume said, her tone dead serious.
"Uh..." Seeing she was actually annoyed, Saiki, afraid of truly pissing her off, immediately let go. But he couldn't help but add, "I couldn't help it! I couldn't help it! You're just too beautiful, Sensei."
Women love to hear compliments. Hearing Saiki say that, despite her irritation at his flippancy, she felt a surge of happiness. Still, she scolded him lightly, "Smooth talker!"
Going too far is as bad as falling short. Saiki knew exactly when to push and when to back off.
He threw off the quilt and began searching for his clothes. As he dressed, Tsume shot a glance at his lower half, causing her heart to skip a beat.
Aside from Saiki sucking on her cherry, she had actually woken up because she felt a very hard, very insistent pressure poking against her lower abdomen.
Even though she had seen it several times now, and had "measured" and experienced it intimately with both her hands and her body, she was still astounded that a boy his age possessed such terrifying "capital." When he grew a few years older, what woman would possibly be able to handle him?
Thinking about that thing, her face flushed an even deeper shade of red.
After getting out of bed and getting dressed, Saiki looked at Tsume, who was still in bed. However, she immediately shooed him out of the room. Saiki wanted to complain internally, "It's not like I haven't seen it all before! We've done everything there is to do in every pose imaginable!" But despite his internal grumbling, Saiki obediently stepped outside.
After breakfast, Saiki slapped his palm against the ground, using Earth Style to dismantle the cabin back into flat dirt.
"Saiki, what are you doing? Let go." Seeing Saiki finish burying the evidence and walk over to grab her hand in broad daylight, Tsume felt a spike of embarrassment.
"Let's go, Sensei!" Saiki ignored her protest, keeping a tight grip on her hand as they began to run.
Although Saiki's frame was smaller than hers, his physical strength was completely unmatched. Tsume had no choice but to let him drag her along at high speed.
Running hand-in-hand, Saiki led the way, their speed a blur as the snowy landscape rushed past them. The wind whipped the boy's messy black hair around. Looking at his handsome, youthful profile, a wave of profound melancholy washed over Tsume's face.
Spending these past few days with Saiki made her feel as though she had reverted to a young maiden in the throes of first love. Her internal moral compass had made her resist his "bullying," but the truth was... she was incredibly happy.
But returning to the front lines meant returning to Konoha. She had a family. She had responsibilities. She knew with absolute clarity that this couldn't continue. If it did, it would ruin Saiki, and it would ruin her.
But human nature is a tragic thing. Often, we know something is wrong, but once we fall in, escaping is nearly impossible. Sometimes, the more you struggle, the deeper you sink into the abyss.
Border of the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Fire. Within a dense forest, a Leaf patrol squad was ambushed by a Cloud unit.
After the catastrophic losses of their last night raid, the Leaf had assumed the Cloud would stay quiet for a few days. They never expected another ambush so soon.
Pant... pant! Shinku Yuhi's breathing was heavy and ragged. He hadn't expected the Cloud unit to infiltrate this deep, catching them completely off guard.
Staring at the hulking Cloud ninja engaging him, Shinku's expression was grim. Both sides were elite squads—a captain leading three subordinates. The enemy consisted of one Jonin, two Chunin, and one Genin. Shinku's side had one Special Jonin (himself) and three field-promoted Chunin. The Leaf was at a severe disadvantage.
The Yuhi clan was one of the Leaf's premier Genjutsu families, second only to the Uchiha and the Kurama. As a master of various high-level illusions, Shinku—despite only being a Special Jonin—was more than capable of holding his own against the Cloud Jonin. Given enough time, Shinku was confident he could kill him.
But the situation for Kurenai and Genhai was looking dire. Their Chunin ranks were field promotions out of necessity. Not everyone is a monstrous genius with Chunin or Jonin-level power at age ten. Prodigies like that are incredibly rare!
Fortunately, the young man assigned to replace Saiki and Tsume was competent, possessing solid, reliable Chunin-level skills. He was currently stalling one of the enemy Chunin. That left Genhai and Kurenai to face the remaining Chunin and Genin.
Their assignment had merely been a "training patrol." Under normal circumstances, Shinku would have prioritized eliminating the enemies to protect the camp. But his daughter was in the crossfire. If this dragged on, he was terrified Kurenai would be killed.
Truthfully, Shinku didn't need to worry so much. The two kids had already experienced the baptism of war, and after Saiki's disappearance, they had been forced to toughen up rapidly.
If Saiki were here, he would have been amazed to see the usually goofy, hot-blooded Genhai fighting with cold calculation, his face set in a mask of deadly seriousness.
And Kurenai was no longer the starstruck, daydreaming girl Saiki remembered; she was coordinating flawlessly with Genhai to hold the line.
The only tragic flaw was that neither of them possessed high-damage, lethal Ninjutsu. Genhai specialized in defensive Water and Earth Style, while Kurenai's Genjutsu wasn't powerful enough to instantly incapacitate two hardened enemies at once.
Furthermore, the Cloud heavily favored Lightning Style. Both of their opponents were Lightning users. The constant stimulation of lightning chakra, or the use of an electromagnetic barrier, granted them incredibly high resistance to standard Genjutsu.
Clang! Another kunai exchange sparked in the dim light. Seeing that he was down to his last two kunai—his others having been shattered by the enemy's Lightning chakra—Shinku made a desperate decision.
Leaping backward, Shinku hurled his chipped kunai at the enemy Jonin, forcing the man to step back. Shinku then immediately blurred past him, placing himself directly in front of Kurenai and Genhai.
"Prepare to fall back!" Shinku ordered.
The Cloud Jonin recovered instantly, stepping in front of his own squad to block their path. He sneered, "What's this? Running away already? Are all Leaf ninja this cowardly?"