Noticing the three mud-covered figures behind him, she blinked in surprise and asked curiously, "Are these your students?"
"Teammates," Xin corrected her, emphasizing the word.
Kushina giggled, eyeing the three muddy figures. "They look like little mud dolls!"
What's so funny about this? Ryoji gritted his teeth, glaring at her.
But when Kushina smiled and met his gaze, a chill ran down his spine. Suddenly, he felt like he had just been cornered by a dangerous beast.
This red-haired woman was terrifying.
"Alright, stop scaring them. They just graduated; they don't know anything yet," Xin said as he patted Kushina's arm. Then he called out, "Hey! Can you set us up with a mixed hotpot?"
"Got it," came the reply from Mikoto Uchiha, who was helping in the kitchen.
"I was just teasing them! Who knew they'd be so timid?" Kushina giggled, bouncing into the kitchen to lend a hand.
As they headed into a private room, Xin explained to his team, "This restaurant is a joint venture between Kushina and me. If you want hotpot in the future, come here. I'll give you a discount. Oh, and..."
He gave them a brief introduction to the restaurant.
Once seated, Aida Sui leaned forward, eager. "Captain, is that woman the 'Red-Hot Chili' everyone talks about in school?"
"Pfft!"
Xin spat out his water, completely caught off guard. Even after all these years, Kushina's infamous nickname still circulated.
Crash!
The room's door was suddenly ripped off its hinges.
Xin sighed in exasperation as Aida turned around to see Kushina standing there, holding the door with one hand and glaring at him with an icy smile.
Uh-oh...
Aida knew he was done for.
Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it was about to land him in deep trouble.
Kushina's hair started floating, her eyes turned red-it was clear she was furious.
"You, Aida Sui. Come here for a minute. We need to have a little chat," She growled through clenched teeth, eyes practically blazing with anger.
Aida was so terrified he almost dove under the table. Desperate, he looked to Xin for help, but his captain ignored him completely.
That's what you get for running your mouth. You can handle this on your own.
"Forgive me, please go easy!" Aida pleaded as Kushina dragged him outside.
Ryoji's face twitched as he listened to Aida's cries of pain from outside, silently thanking his lucky stars that he hadn't said anything to upset Kushina earlier.
A short while later, Aida returned with a black eye. It was obvious Kushina had given him a beating.
Captain, you're so heartless. You didn't even try to save me.
Xin completely ignored Aida's accusing looks. You caused your own problems-you can deal with the consequences.