Crying Little Girls Are the Most Troublesome!
Because once a little girl starts crying, she instantly gains sympathy. You can't hit her, and you can't scold her, or she'll cry even harder. Haruto Saito had a headache—he hadn't expected the fierce and hot-tempered Kushina Uzumaki to have such a fragile heart. She was actually scared to the point of tears!
Haruto had overlooked one important fact—Kushina was only eight years old this year!
"Lord Haruto, you shouldn't have scared her like that," Minato Namikaze tilted his head and looked at Haruto. "Even if you hit her a couple of times, she wouldn't have cried. But scaring her like that… she's genuinely frightened."
"Shut up." Haruto shot Minato a glare and tucked the Blade of Heavy Mountains back under his black robe.
By now, a large crowd of students had gathered around, forming a sea of heads. Several teachers from the ninja academy had also rushed to Kushina's side. One of the female teachers knelt down to comfort her, but Kushina continued to cry hysterically, her wails heartbreaking.
The teacher tried to help Kushina up and hold her in her arms, but Kushina forcefully shrugged off her hand and, wiping her teary eyes, ran away.
She didn't run toward the classroom but dashed straight out of the school grounds.
"Kushina!"
"Come back, Kushina!"
Two teachers immediately gave chase, calling out to her, worried that she might run into danger outside the school.
Whoosh!
A figure suddenly appeared in front of Kushina as if out of thin air—clad in a black robe and wearing a mask, he was a ninja from the Anbu! While the others only recognized him as an Anbu operative, Haruto knew exactly who he was—it was Kamisuke!
"Waaahhh…!" Seeing Kamisuke, Kushina immediately threw herself into his arms, sobbing even harder.
"Sigh…" Kamisuke let out a sigh and gently patted Kushina's back.
In truth, he had been nearby the entire time and had witnessed everything Haruto had done to Kushina. He hadn't revealed himself earlier because he knew Haruto wouldn't actually harm her—he was just trying to scare her a little.
Kushina crying wasn't a big deal. If someone could calm her down and get her back to class, then there would be no problem. But since she was now trying to run away, Kamisuke had no choice but to step in.
Seeing the Anbu ninja appear, the two teachers who had been chasing after Kushina stopped in their tracks.
Everyone knew that Kushina had an Anbu guardian, but they didn't understand the real reason behind it. They assumed it was because of Tsunade's influence.
Kamisuke crouched down and spoke softly to comfort Kushina.
She kept crying and shaking her head.
Despite his efforts, she wouldn't stop crying. Kamisuke eventually stood up and threw a glare at Haruto—one full of annoyance.
Haruto looked completely innocent.
"Sigh…" Kamisuke sighed again, then took Kushina's hand and led her away from the school.
In her current state, there was no way she could attend her last class.
"Alright, alright! Everyone, back to your classrooms! Class is about to start!"
"Stop staring, get back inside!"
A few teachers waved their hands to disperse the crowd. Too many students had gathered, creating a chaotic scene.
The students reluctantly left, whispering among themselves as they walked away. Some even glanced back, pointing at Haruto while muttering things like, "That shameless bully picked on a little girl!"
They had all conveniently forgotten that it was Kushina who had provoked him first—and that this wasn't even the first time.
Just as Haruto had anticipated, crying did indeed evoke great sympathy. Kushina had gone from being the aggressor to the victim, while Haruto had been labeled the villain.
The ninja teachers, however, said nothing. They were adults—they wouldn't make childish comments. Besides, they were wary of Haruto's status.
The crowd quickly dispersed.
"Kushina is definitely going to tell Lady Tsunade," Minato said, turning to Haruto. "Lord Haruto, you're in trouble!"
"It's fine." Haruto smiled, unconcerned.
Minato, however, knew that Haruto had an unusual relationship with Tsunade. Now that they were both personal disciples of Hiruzen Sarutobi, they were even closer. But Minato didn't believe that this bond would be enough to spare Haruto. After all, if relationships mattered that much, Jiraiya—who was even closer to Tsunade—wouldn't be getting beaten up by her all the time.
What Minato didn't understand was that Haruto already had so many problems with Tsunade that this was just a drop in the ocean.
He was already avoiding her. Compared to the other trouble he was in, making Kushina cry was nothing. No matter what happened, things couldn't possibly get any worse.
Ding ling ling—
The class bell rang.
"I'm heading to class," Minato quickly said, getting up and walking toward the classroom.
"I'll catch you after school. We need to talk." Haruto called out.
Before long, the playground emptied. Apart from Haruto, no one else remained.
He sat back on the bench, put on his sunglasses, and pulled up his hood, looking all mysterious. Folding his arms, he leaned back and closed his eyes.
Waiting…
Not long after, Haruto opened his eyes again. He had nothing to do. Hiruzen's assessment wouldn't take place until dusk, and he had already prepared the scroll from the Meiji Clan. He couldn't go back to Tsunade's place either. Sitting around doing nothing was just too boring.
"Tsunade wouldn't come looking for me, would she?" Haruto suddenly thought, then quickly stood up, formed a seal, and disappeared.
Before Dusk, Jiangchuan Flavored Tavern in the Market District
In a corner by the window on the first floor, a table was covered with empty dishes. Haruto, now full and satisfied, was chewing on a toothpick while gazing out the window.
It was almost time for the ninja academy to finish for the day. Haruto planned to meet Minato first and then head straight to the Hokage's office—better to check in than have White Fang chase him all over the village.
"Haruto-san, what a coincidence!" A cheerful voice greeted him.
Haruto looked up to see a young ninja approaching with a bright smile.
Uchiha Fugaku!
"Yeah, what a coincidence," Haruto replied casually. He didn't believe it for a second—Fugaku must have heard he was here and came looking for him.
"Last night was really dangerous. How's your injury, Haruto-san?" Fugaku asked as he sat down across from Haruto.
Just then—
Whoosh!
A ghostly figure suddenly appeared beside the table. In the blink of an eye, multiple puffs of white smoke erupted, and a total of nine figures materialized—all clad in black robes and masks, exuding an icy aura.
Anbu!
Leading them was Kamisuke!
"Haruto, you're under arrest. Come with us!" Kamisuke said coldly, his tone purely official.
Haruto blinked.
Nine Anbu members at once?
That was quite the lineup!
"What did I do?" Haruto asked, confused.
"You tell me. Do you really not know what you've done?" Kamisuke shot back.
Haruto looked dumbfounded for a second before his eyes widened.
Oh, hell no!
Was this… because he scared Kushina?
The Anbu was arresting him over that?!
The entire tavern fell into stunned silence.
What was going on?
Haruto had just been accepted as Hiruzen Sarutobi's disciple yesterday. Last night, he was even attacked by assassins.
And today… he was getting arrested by the Anbu?
What the hell had he done?!