Tears involuntarily welled up in Terumi Mei's eyes.
Alright, her face was already getting wet.
Anya gently wiped away her tears and softly asked, "Does it hurt badly?"
"Yes, it hurts every time I move."
From childhood until now, this was the first time she had been injured so severely—so close to death that only a thin line separated her from it.
"Wait a moment."
Anya took out the Big Red Flower that Sasori had once found from his puppet. After mixing it with other medicinal ingredients and refining them together, a fragrant aroma drifted into the air.
"Open your mouth," Anya said, holding the finished Red Pills to Terumi Mei's lips.
"Ahh," Terumi Mei obediently opened her pretty lips, even playfully sticking out her tongue before swallowing the pill whole.
As soon as it went down her throat, an overwhelming sweetness filled her heart, then transformed into a stream of fresh spring water flowing through her body. The natural fragrance of the pill quickly penetrated every part of her, instantly eliminating all aches and pains. At the same time, a light, blissful feeling spread throughout her entire being.
"This is such a magical medicine—I want more!" Terumi Mei begged cutely.
"No way," Anya refused immediately. "It can be addictive."
"Okay…" Terumi Mei bit her lip slightly, still savoring the lingering taste from just now.
Anya couldn't help but scold, "Girl, how could you be so reckless? Everyone in the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist is being hunted—they're obviously using you as cannon fodder. Why did you still charge forward like that today? If I hadn't happened to be nearby, you'd have died without leaving a single trace of your body behind!"
Terumi Mei looked wronged and explained, "I knew something felt off, but everyone else went ahead. If I didn't join in, wouldn't I be exposed right away?"
"Hmm?" Anya caught the implication in her words and became both surprised and amused. "So what you're saying is—you never actually joined Mist Anbu at all? You sneaked out while pretending to be part of Mist Anbu?"
Terumi Mei blinked her adorable eyes innocently, smiling sheepishly without speaking, neither confirming nor denying.
"Does Master Gen know about this?"
After asking, Anya answered himself, "He definitely doesn't know. Right now, he must be cursing both of us furiously back in Kiri."
"I missed you… It's been so long, haven't you ever thought about coming to visit me in Kiri?" Terumi Mei said emotionally.
Missed him? Uh… To be honest, Anya hadn't really thought about her all that much. After all, they hadn't spent much time together. To say there was deep love between them might be stretching it—it was more that they'd completed all the rituals of marriage, and he felt guilty toward her, which is why he'd reserved a special place in his heart for her.
Back during those intense battles years ago, Anya never discovered who had used the Hiding in Mist Technique to help him escape. But after careful analysis later, besides this silly girl, no one else made sense. That meant he owed her far too much.
Terumi Mei felt like breaking down when Anya suddenly went quiet after her heartfelt words. Tears began pouring out nonstop again.
"Oh come on, why are you crying again? You're like water — are women really made of nothing but tears?" With a helpless sigh, Anya bent over and tried wiping her tears, but they showed no sign of stopping.
With no other options, he finally resorted to his last move.
Anya gently looped his fingers around her neck, leaned down, and kissed her pale lips. Terumi Mei's eyes widened in shock, and her tears stopped instantly.
He kissed her softly at first, brushing his lips against hers, then deepened the kiss, exploring gently.
After a long while, their lips parted. A faint blush spread across Terumi Mei's cheeks, which had been pale from her injuries. With a stammer of embarrassment, she asked, "Did you bandage my wounds?"
"Of course," Anya recalled his former self and chuckled slightly. "My skills are much better than yours were back then."
"Hmph, still holding a grudge?" Terumi Mei huffed in dissatisfaction. "Who told you to lie to me? Tell me, did you peek at everything just now?"
"Not like it's the first time I've seen you." Among all the women he'd seen, what captivated him most about this girl was her pair of gracefully long and shapely legs. With black stockings on, she could probably turn any man's head. At the time of bandaging, though, he truly hadn't let such thoughts enter his mind.
Thinking about it again, Terumi Mei felt at ease. "Well then, we're even."
"Don't talk so much. Close your eyes and rest for a bit first. This place isn't far from where you fought—it isn't safe. Once you fall asleep, I'll move you somewhere else."
Because the Big Red Flower (known for its toxic properties) can help relieve pain temporarily during emergencies, long-term use definitely isn't suitable. Therefore, she had to be asleep before they started moving, to avoid the jostling that would worsen her wounds.
"Mm." At this moment, Terumi Mei seemed uncharacteristically docile. She coquettishly said, "Then hold me as I sleep."
"All right." Gently lifting her feather-light body into his arms, Anya stroked her forehead like soothing a baby, signaling her to close her eyes and sleep.
With a charming smile, Terumi Mei obediently closed her eyes.
Seriously injured, Terumi Mei soon fell deeply asleep. Even in sleep, a soft smile lingered on her lips, as if immersed in some sweet dream.
After confirming she was in a deep sleep, Anya furrowed his brow deeply. After the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist caused trouble, Konoha would surely tighten its security—it would be extremely difficult to bring Terumi Mei into the village secretly.
But given how seriously wounded she was, except for Tsunade's laboratory, there wouldn't be enough medicinal herbs elsewhere for treatment.
Even Anya himself was severely injured—he had only barely been holding on until now. Fortunately, Might Duy's final strike had been the Evening Elephant. If it had been [Night Guy] instead, even *Susano'o* might not have saved them both.
After pondering for a moment, Anya came up with a plan. To enter the village, the best method was to create chaos. Mist didn't yet know that the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist were either dead or fleeing—their vanguard had already stirred things up, and reinforcements were certainly following behind. Since this was the case, he would lead the way and guide those reinforcements straight into Konoha.
Without hesitation, Anya immediately began using the Spirit Transformation Technique to search for Mist forces while his main body carried Terumi Mei and flew away atop a war hawk, vanishing from the cave.
With the Division Technique in play, Anya's scattered spiritual power quickly located more Mist ninjas. Surprisingly, these ninja had already found a hidden trail that led straight toward Konoha, moving forward at an incredible speed—already very close to the village. It turned out that the Seven Swords mainly operated ahead, drawing Konoha's attention, while this group was, in fact, the true striking force.
The two teams moved in—one head-on, the other flanking unexpectedly—launching a coordinated attack that showed real tactical skill. The Mist commander was clearly skilled.
What he hadn't expected was just how powerful Konoha's Genin had become.
At the front of this unit stood Ao, the man with the [Byakugan]. He looked pretty relaxed right now. Their progress had been smoother than expected, which meant Konoha must really be in bad shape if they couldn't even spare extra hidden sentries. Even Ao, usually so composed, found himself getting worked up at the thought of leading the Mist's assault on Konoha.
I will be the first Mist ninja to ever invade Konoha…
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