"Sooner or later, the day you desire will come."
Kawaki stepped forward. He reached out his right hand to lift Tsunade's chin.
The two locked eyes. Tsunade stared at the handsome face inches away, with a hint of mischievous smile on it.
She blushed and turned her head away, speaking in a soft voice.
"Kawaki-kun, I'm hungry."
Nawaki was stunned, his mouth agape. Is this really my sister?
Is she possessed by some evil thing?
"Haha, come on, Nawaki. Let's go have a meal."
Kawaki laughed out loud and put his arm around his future brother-in-law's shoulder, and walked straight towards the dining room without caring whether Nawaki was willing or not.
Tsunade followed behind with her head down, lost in thought.
Meanwhile, in a hidden underground chamber in Konoha Village.
The chamber was quite large, with only a single chair in the center.
A middle-aged man sat upright on the chair, with an X-shaped scar on his chin and a hint of malice in his eyes.
Below him, a ninja wearing a strange mask knelt on one knee.
"My lord, the Third Hokage has approved the land request of the Hatake family."
"As I expected, Hiruzen won't let me have an easy time."
"But he underestimates me."
"For me, this might not be a bad thing. Carry out the plan as scheduled."
The middle-aged man above waved his hand, and the ninja below disappeared from his spot with a single leap.
"Hiruzen, I'm determined to take the Hokage's seat."
As he spoke, the man stood up, clenched his fists tightly, and his face contorted with a ferocious expression.
Kawaki, who was having a meal at the Hatake family's, had no idea that trouble was already on its way before the hospital even started construction.
The five people at the table were enjoying their meal to the fullest. Kawaki had at least raised the Hatake family's dining standards by several notches.
"These are potstickers."
"These are chive dumplings."
"This is brown sugar cake."
...
Tsunade and Nawaki were like Country Cousin Liu (a character from 'Dream of the Red Chamber') entering the Grand View Garden (a famous garden in 'Dream of the Red Chamber'). The siblings exchanged a look and made up their minds.
They wouldn't miss any of the Hatake family's breakfasts in the future when they had time.
"Nawaki, slow down. You'll choke."
Kawaki watched Nawaki stuffing the brown sugar cake and rolling his eyes. He quickly poured him a glass of pure milk. This kind of living standard was unbeatable.
Tsunade looked at her useless brother and was too embarrassed to claim him as her sibling. She silently ate the chive dumplings. Damn, these are so delicious!
After breakfast, Tsunade got up to say goodbye and left. There were still many things to worry about when opening the hospital, and it seemed that Kawaki could only help with money.
In the martial arts training hall, Nawaki started his routine of horse-stance and basic swordsmanship once again.
Kawaki began to move back and forth between the stone table and the big tree, as if yesterday's scene was being re-enacted.
Suddenly, Sakumo and Kawaki both looked up at a corner of the martial arts training hall.
"Who's that?"
Kawaki moved more quickly. He threw his eight-sided Han sword and reached the corner in a flash.
In the corner, a ninja wearing a strange mask had the eight-sided Han sword pressed against his neck.
He felt the real killing intent from the man in front of him and the bone-chilling cold on the sword blade. He didn't dare to move a muscle.
Sweat instantly covered the face under the mask.
Sakumo arrived at the corner a few seconds later than Kawaki.
Natsuki and the Ghost Mastiff stood beside Nawaki. Many warriors with swords emerged from every corner of the Hatake family, looking extremely vigilant.
"Who sent you?"
Kawaki pressed down on his sword, pressing a bloody cut on the visitor's neck. The blood flowed down his neck and into his clothes.
"Lord Tanzō asked me to give this to you."
Forcing himself to suppress the fear in his heart, this Root ninja took out a letter from his bosom and handed it to Kawaki.
Sakumo took it at the signal of his younger brother's eyes.
"Root members?"
Kawaki questioned sharply, showing no sign of concealing his killing intent. He never expected that Tanzō couldn't wait to show up so soon.
"Yes, the letter has been delivered. Kill or do whatever you want."
"Tanzō really has some good tricks."
"Since that's the case, don't blame me if you go to hell."
Kawaki swiped his sword horizontally and walked away without looking back.
"Clean up this mess. What are you guys for?"
"Even just anyone can enter my Hatake family as if it were their backyard?"
Kawaki still wasn't satisfied after killing the man. Were these family warriors he had raised at great cost just this useless?
"Those on the secret and open sentry duty will go to the ancestral shrine for punishment. If there's a next time, there'll be severe punishment."
Sakumo frowned as he looked at the body lying in a pool of blood. He handed the envelope to his younger brother and left in a hurry.
"Yes, Second Young Master."
These warriors were all in their teens when looked closely. The oldest one was probably just in his early twenties. They were all poor children adopted by Kawaki.
Their strength varied. It was okay for them to guard the house, but they were still unable to defend against a special organization like Root.
"Don't worry. Keep practicing."
Kawaki came to Nawaki, stroked his head, and comforted his future brother - in - law.
He didn't witness the bloody scene just now, but he clearly saw the body being carried away from the edge of the martial arts training hall.
Now, there was still an imperceptible and intimidating killing intent emanating from Kawaki. This was also the first time Nawaki saw another side of this Aniki.
He was far from being as sunny and gentle as he seemed. Not everyone can earn his smile.
Looking at Kawaki's nice smile, Nawaki also smiled. Fortunately, he might be his future brother - in - law.
After calming his mind, he started practicing the sword again. One day, he wouldn't be a kid who always stood behind women.
"Kawaki, is it okay now?"
Natsuki spoke to Kawaki, and the Ghost Mastiff moved a bit further away. Its sensing ability was even better than Nawaki's.
"Yeah, it's okay. The following things aren't something these small fries can handle."
Hearing Kawaki's answer, Natsuki left with the Ghost Mastiff.
Holding the envelope in his hand, Kawaki flashed to a stone table and sat down. Servants had already started bringing tea.
He opened the envelope and took a sip of tea.
The more he read, the stronger the mocking look on his face became.
Tanzō invited Kawaki to meet at a tavern, saying that he had something important to discuss.
Only Tanzō could be so reckless with his subordinates' lives just to deliver a message.
Sakumo didn't know where he came back from and sat across from Kawaki.
"How did Aniki punish them?"
"Twelve people in total. They'll receive twenty lashes and have their pay cut for three months."
"After they recover, they'll have additional training for half a year."
Sakumo was sipping tea as well. He had just gone to deal with those samurai, all of them were trained by the Hatake family. If they didn't have enough strength, they still needed to practice.
Otherwise, being lenient today would lead to decline tomorrow.
"Not bad. Tanzō invited me to meet him."
Kawaki had no objection to Aniki's punishment. They ate and drank at the Hatake family home and still received high monthly allowances. It was much more comfortable than being a ninja, okay.
"If he wants to meet, make him wait. Does he think our Hatake family is a stray kitten or puppy on the roadside?"
Sakumo was already extremely dissatisfied with Tanzō's actions. How could he send his subordinates to sneak in and deliver a message?
"As Aniki said, it doesn't hurt to keep him waiting for a while."
Kawaki had his own plan. He also had three guesses about what Tanzō wanted, but he didn't know how deep Tanzō's scheme was.
He smiled, crumpling the envelope and the letter in his hand. When he opened his hand, there was only a pile of ashes left.