[Due to an author error, Chapter 288 does not exist. Therefore, we will continue directly with the next chapter, maintaining the usual order and numbering.]
"Master! Then between us… please confirm, please confirm, please confirm." Aoi's cheeks flushed as if someone had painted them red.
"Are we… boyfriend and girlfriend?" she asked, looking up at Kaede with hopeful eyes.
Kaede sighed inwardly. The easier something comes, the less people treasure it. And in his fate, a girl from the sunset red line still waited for him to pull her out—he could only feel a little sorry for Aoi. Besides, he wasn't even six yet. What could he give?
"Couples aren't about asking for things," he said. "They're about what you give each other. Judge a person by what they do, not what they say. Honestly, I've treated you as 'her' for a long time."
"Was I good to you before?" Aoi nodded. "Am I good to you now?" Another nod. "Then I'll keep treating you that way in the future. Will you accept that?" She nodded again.
"But I'm not strong enough yet to shield you from those rainbow-colored princesses. So we can't announce anything. If my parents find out, they'll throw everything at you. Could you handle that alone?" Aoi shook her head.
Her heart turned sweet and light. So moving—Master had been her boyfriend from the start and always thought of her. Kaede smiled inwardly. Ha, simple.
"Master, could you sing 'Sea of Flowers' for me again?"
"How about I teach you to sing it?"
"Yes!"
At that very moment, flanked by their bodyguards, the Second Princess and the young prince hurried in with worried faces. The news had rattled the Second Princess—what major thing had happened? The Sarutobi household had resigned their duties overnight; even Ennosuke had to leave. The matter with Mito was classified—what could it be? You don't take chairs and cloaks and go sightseeing on a secret order.
Toppling a nation was one thing, but if they meant to destroy the Fire Capital, her father would never approve letting Ennosuke just "go home." More likely someone from the Sarutobi direct line had died—the eldest grandson returning for the funeral made sense.
The Third Princess noticed her sister wasn't listening to the music. "Nee-san, what's wrong? Why aren't you listening?"
To keep the Fourth Princess from fretting, the Second Princess shared her guess. The Fourth Princess paled. "No—ask Ennosuke!" She set down her instrument and ran.
"You're not going to see Kaede?" the Second Princess asked.
"If there's no bond, there's no bond. I'll just… listen to the song," the Third Princess murmured, hands hanging limply.
At eight in the morning, a northbound-to-southbound train thundered along the rails.
Watching Aoi pour tea and water for Kaede, Ennosuke's jaw tightened. The worst was when she fed him bites. The Fourth Princess had never treated him like that. Hmph.
He sat opposite, glowering at the two scoundrels.
"Aoi, I brought something good for Kaede today," Ennosuke said. "Who gave him those things he keeps flaunting? Tell me and I'll avenge you."
Kaede didn't even lift an eyelid. "Still going on? Aoi already told me that one. How long are you staying with us again?"
The train pulled into a small town and stopped to take on new passengers.
A tall, soft-voiced girl with long black hair stepped aboard, ticket and medical kit in hand, peering about—and stopped at Kaede's row.
"Big bro, what's your seat number?"
Ennosuke looked up at a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old girl with clear, crystalline eyes. A Leaf protector hung at her neck, and on her brow the big, cruel sigil of the caged bird—branch house. She wasn't even close, but a faint fragrance drifted with her that slipped right into Kaede's nose. Sweet.
"Heh-heh! My sign is Sagittarius," Ennosuke quipped.
She covered a laugh. "I mean… are you in the wrong seat?"
"Ah! Sit across from us," Kaede said quickly. "Sit here—sit with big bro!"
"Th-that's not proper. I'll sit with this onee-san," she said, taking the spot Aoi indicated.
Kaede slid back to his seat. "You're a Leaf shinobi too?" he asked.
"Yes. Medical corps," the girl said. "I'm Long-Rabbit. And you are?"
"I'm Saru—Kaede. This is Ennosuke. And this is Aoi."
At the names, her eyes widened; these three were well-known in the Leaf, and Aoi was the girl Biwako had saved.
"So it really is Lord Ennosuke and Lord Kaede," she breathed.
Ennosuke grimaced. "I'm just a regular Leaf shinobi. Don't make me sound like some big man. Call us by name—nice to meet you."
They chatted a while. Long-Rabbit had spent her summer break as a barefoot doctor for a small town—supplementing her family income, gathering field experience. Many stubborn civilian ailments, she said, were no match for a trained medical-nin.
Their favor for the pretty medic doubled on the spot. Kaede, irrepressible when faced with a beauty, let his tongue run wild; jokes flew fast, and laughter faster. Long-Rabbit was talkative herself, tossing back story after story from her rounds.
Aoi listened, astonished, when Long-Rabbit described saving a hunter whose leg had been mauled by a tiger…
(End of Chapter)
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