Kushina Uzumaki—a fan-favorite character in the original story.
The mother of Naruto Uzumaki, the wife of Minato Namikaze, the second Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, and a woman who only existed in the history and memories of others.
Yet, standing before Haruto Saito right now—was an eight or nine-year-old Kushina Uzumaki.
She was just a little girl.
The morning breeze carried a slight chill.
Haruto shivered as he stood in the water. He wasn't too far from the shore—the lake only reached his knees—and in his right hand, he still held the katana he had just retrieved from the bottom of the lake.
Behind Kushina, Shinsuke, the ANBU ninja assigned to guard her, had already drawn his sword halfway from its sheath—but he didn't immediately strike.
Though his duty was to protect Kushina, the boy who had just emerged from the lake didn't seem like a threat.
His aura was weak.
His eyes were filled with confusion.
It was clear that this was just a misunderstanding.
Kushina had screamed about a "perverted killer" because Haruto was holding a sword, but Shinsuke knew better.
Yes, an assassin could hide in a lake, waiting for an ambush—but an assassin wouldn't be naked.
With a slight movement of his foot, Shinsuke vanished from behind Kushina and instantly reappeared in front of her, blocking her view of Haruto.
Haruto finally snapped out of his daze.
Without hesitation, he backpedaled five or six meters, lowering himself deeper into the water.
At the same time, his left eye activated—and he saw Shinsuke's identity information.
——
Name: Shinsuke (Sarutobi Shin'nosuke)
Affiliation: Assistant Commander of Konoha's ANBU Black Ops
Reputation: 23,195
Relationship: Cautious
——
"Assistant Commander of the ANBU? The second-in-command, right under White Fang… this guy is important."
Haruto let out a silent sigh of relief.
They weren't enemies.
This was just a misunderstanding.
Which meant—it could be explained.
"Who are you?" Shinsuke narrowed his eyes and asked.
"Me? Oh! Haruto Saito!" Haruto spoke incredibly fast.
"Until yesterday, I was a shinobi from Amegakure. I was sent on a mission to Konoha but got captured. Then I got beaten up, lost my memory, and—bam!—White Fang-sama told me I could join Konoha, and I agreed! So now, I'm officially a Konoha ninja! We're not enemies. We're on the same side, the same team—right? Heh!"
Shinsuke's eyebrows twitched.
He had never seen someone so shameless before.
Haruto had just casually admitted to betraying his previous village—without a shred of hesitation.
Not even a hint of guilt.
"Oh, I've heard about you," Shinsuke said, nodding slightly. "The Captain mentioned you last night. What are you doing here?"
"I just joined Konoha. We were leaving the forest and passed by this lake—so I stopped to take a bath…"
"You're alone?"
"No, Shenhe-sama is with me. But I didn't have clothes, so he left to get some…"
"Hm."
Shinsuke's half-drawn sword slid back into its sheath.
At the same moment, Haruto saw his status change—Shinsuke's relationship had shifted from Cautious to Neutral.
From behind Shinsuke, a round, slightly chubby face with fiery red hair peeked out.
Kushina snuck a quick glance at Haruto—then hid behind Shinsuke again.
A moment later, she peeked out once more, quickly scanned him again, and retreated.
She was making sure he was completely submerged.
Thanks to the reflection on the water, she couldn't see anything inappropriate.
And then—
"PERVERT! YOU SICKO! YOU FILTHY CREEP! WHY ARE YOU NAKED?!"
Kushina jumped out from behind Shinsuke, pointing at Haruto and screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Uhh… I think this is a misunderstanding."
"DISGUSTING! YOU'RE A MONSTER!"
"I was just trying to take a bath—"
"WHY DIDN'T YOU JUST WASH AT HOME, YOU FREAK?!"
"I—I don't even know where I live! I was just passing by, and—"
"EXHIBITIONIST! PERVERT! WHO TAKES A BATH IN A RANDOM LAKE?!"
Kushina was furious, her tiny fists clenched as if she were about to beat Haruto to death.
Clearly—whatever she had accidentally seen had deeply traumatized her.
It was burned into her young, innocent mind.
Haruto, however, was completely innocent.
"You disgusting freak! Y-You didn't even wear… wear… THAT?!"
"Wait, WHAT?! What are you even TALKING about?!"
"You—YOU'RE A DISGUSTING PERVERT!"
"Hey, hey, HEY! You crazy brat! Who did I bother by taking a bath here?!"
Haruto was getting mad.
He was just trying to clean himself, and now he was being cursed out?!
"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A CRAZY BRAT, YOU BASTARD?!"
Kushina, rage boiling over, rolled up her sleeves and marched toward the lake—as if she was going to beat the hell out of Haruto.
"You! You crazy brat!" Haruto stood up straight, towering over the water.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!! PERVERT!! DEGENERATE!!"
Kushina let out another ear-piercing shriek—her hands slapping over her eyes.
Shinsuke's eye twitched again.
As someone who knew Kushina well, he had one clear thought:
This poor boy is doomed.
"Let's go," Shinsuke grabbed Kushina and began dragging her away from the lake.
"LET ME GO! I'M NOT DONE YET! THAT PERVERT—THAT SICKO—I SWEAR, I'M GONNA—!!"
Kushina was still fuming, struggling to break free, completely unwilling to let this go.
Suddenly—
Whoosh!
A gust of wind howled through the trees.
A blurred shadow shot toward them.
Shenhe had returned.
Shinsuke glanced at him before stopping in his tracks.
From a distance, Shenhe had already spotted Kushina and Shinsuke—and he immediately dropped to one knee in respect.
"Shinsuke-sama."
"Mm."
"YOU FREAKING JERK! YOU CALLED ME A CRAZY BRAT! YOU'RE DEAD! YOU'RE SO DEAD!"
Kushina was still screaming.
"Then come and fight me!" Haruto yelled back from the water.
Shenhe's eyes darted between Haruto, Kushina, and Shinsuke.
"...What happened?" he muttered.
"Just a little misunderstanding," Shinsuke replied calmly.
After exchanging a few words, Shinsuke dragged Kushina away—though she was still shouting curses at Haruto.
Meanwhile, Shenhe handed Haruto a fresh set of Konoha ninja clothes.
"Where'd you get that sword?" Shenhe asked.
"Found it at the bottom of the lake."
"Keep it."
Haruto took the clothes and quickly dressed.
At the same time, Shenhe kept giving him a strange look—one filled with pity.
"What?" Haruto asked.
"You shouldn't have pissed her off."
"Who?"
"The girl. Kushina Uzumaki."
"Why?"
"Because… she has a very scary aunt. And if she complains about you—your life will become a nightmare. Even worse than Amegakure assassins."
"...Who's her aunt?" Haruto frowned.
Shenhe hesitated, then finally spoke.
"Her aunt is Tsunade."
Haruto: "...Oh, f*."**