Anya finally got a taste of Hiruzen's joy, leisurely observing everything below through her soul force.
The traitor Mizuki, mentioned by Minato, was speaking with Iruka while Naruto watched nearby, hugging the Scroll of Seals.
From Mizuki's words, Naruto learned why he had always been hated by the villagers and even discovered the truth behind Iruka's parents' deaths.
Minato looked at Naruto with deep concern in his eyes.
Luckily, Naruto—who was hiding in the shadows—overheard Iruka's heartfelt words. Holding the Scroll of Seals tightly, he proudly stepped forward, hands forming seals as he declared, "[Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu]!"
In an instant, countless clones swarmed around Mizuki. After a brutal beating, the traitor was finally taken down.
Having witnessed everything, Anya remarked, "After reading the Scroll of Seals just once, he was able to perform the Shadow Clone Jutsu at this level. He's giving us a real run for our money, just like we did back in the day."
Minato, who had remained silent until now, smiled gently and said, "Naruto… he's taken his first step as a ninja."
"So you can rest easy now. As long as he stays in the village, with Hiruzen around, nothing serious will happen." Anya added before saying, "I'm leaving Konoha now."
"Where to?"
Anya didn't answer directly, "That's a secret. Your foundation for the Spirit Transformation Technique is nearly complete now. When I return, I'll get you a larger puppet body so you can reunite with your son."
A flicker of surprise and joy flashed across Minato's eyes, "Really?"
"Of course." Anya confidently replied, "Once my body is fully recovered, I'll bring your soul back and make you truly alive again."
"Alright." For the first time ever, Minato felt such eagerness for rebirth—he wanted to be there to see Naruto grow.
After their souls separated, Anya's main body turned to Yearly Boss beside her and said, "I want to go to Sunagakure Village."
"Oh," Yearly Boss asked, "When are you leaving?"
"Right now."
Yearly Boss gave her that *don't let the door hit you on the way out* kind of look and said, "Please, take care on your way."
Anya chuckled, "Hmm, you seem to have misunderstood. Let me be direct—I want a ride there. I'm not walking the whole way."
"Hmm?" Yearly Boss gave her a strange look. With a ninja's speed, why would she need a carriage?
"Going to Sunagakure? I can take you." A cheerful voice suddenly interrupted.
Yearly Boss's face darkened as he angrily snapped, "Tenten! How dare you eavesdrop on my conversation with a customer!"
A girl dressed in a pink traditional Chinese qipao with a bun stepped out—Tenten, Yearly Boss's daughter.
Facing her furious father, Tenten huffed, "What? I just happened to walk by and caught that—"
"No way."
Though his opinion of Sasori had improved, Sunagakure was still hostile territory. There was no telling what dangers might arise.
"Oh? You're already a ninja?" Anya casually cut in, "Even better—got an escort job open. Just assign it to me."
Father and daughter both changed expressions—Tenten was delighted, while Nian Nian looked anxious.
The sudden reappearance of someone who had been gone for so long made Nian Nian deeply uneasy. He feared this person might unleash a major threat. Instinctively, he felt this man was extremely dangerous—perhaps even more so than Sasori.
Of course, Tenten didn't understand her father's inner turmoil. She replied cheerfully, "Sure! Then I'll take this mission."
Anya stood up and placed his hand on Nian Nian's shoulder, saying, "Don't worry. With me, Tenten will be safe."
Of course, you're the biggest danger, thought Nian Nian with a sigh as he made one last attempt: "Tenten, when going out on missions, you must listen to the adults' advice. You're still just a genin. Let your team handle this mission together."
"Come on, it's only a C-rank escort mission. I've long been capable of handling missions alone. I'm not a rookie fresh out of the academy anymore. I've already completed several missions." Tenten sounded very confident.
Anya smiled casually, "Then let's go."
"All right."
Under Nian Nian's worried gaze, the two left Konoha together in a carriage.
After traveling some distance in the carriage, Tenten curiously stared at Anya's straw hat and asked, "Why do you keep wearing this? Isn't it tiring?"
"It's to avoid unnecessary attention. Since it's just you now, there's really no need for it." Anya removed the straw hat. Beneath it emerged a face like snow-white jade—thick eyebrows that created soft ripples, a tall straight nose, lips pink as rose petals, and long flowing hair that dazzled Tenten beside him. Simply sitting there emanated a profound and enchanting aura. The only flaw was that both eyes were covered by black cloth; otherwise, it would have been absolutely perfect.
So someone this handsome really exists in this world! Up until now, Tenten always believed Sasori possessed the most perfect visage, but now another had appeared.
"Now I understand why you wear that straw hat," said Tenten understandingly. With such a face walking through town, there'd definitely be an uproar.
Sighing, Anya said, "Actually, I don't want to be like this either." Unfortunately, after reincarnation, his body and soul fused perfectly, everything becoming ideal—even his originally handsome face became more perfect. All battle scars from past wars had disappeared, making his entire body brand new.
Hearing Anya's complaint, Tenten was momentarily speechless. After quite a while, she found a new topic to ask, "I still don't know what your name is."
"Kurotsuchi. Just call me Kurotsuchi."
Tenten cheerfully said, "Got it, Brother Kurotsuchi."
"Big Brother?" Anya couldn't help but mutter. "You should call me Uncle."
Tenten shook her head. "I don't think you look that much older than me."
"Fine, whatever makes you happy." It was just a respectful title; Anya didn't mind it either way.
Though it was supposed to be an escort mission, in reality, the two spent the entire journey playing around. Several days into the journey, the carriage was already packed with stuff—some bought by Tenten, others given by Anya.
Playing with some new trinkets inside the carriage, Tenten remarked, "Brother Kurotsuchi, I never expected you to also be a writer. No wonder you're so rich."
"Writing books were merely the byproduct of Anya's idle time. After all, even if he revealed himself now, he'd still be incapable of doing much—whether it was a side effect of the Mangekyo Sharingan or due to his new body being too frail remained unknown.
Hashirama basically called him a 'premature baby,' didn't he?
Brought to Konoha by Sage Slug, Anya was completely flat broke—not a single coin to his name. Fortunately, he finally earned some money by writing novels. He replied offhandedly, 'Not bad, but still nowhere near your father's fortune.'
Tenten proudly declared, 'Of course! Our family's Ninja Tool Shop is well-known in many countries.'
'Yeah... After all, the Land of the Blacksmiths no longer exists...'"
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