Naruto, are you all so good at self-seduction

"The abilities displayed by Uchiha Itachi have already surpassed those of a qualified Chūnin, and his mentality and ninja qualities are far beyond those of his peers."

"Hmm." Danzo simply responded with a faint acknowledgment and then fell silent.

"Reporting, I take my leave." Kanzuki Oboro, having finished his report, prepared to leave.

"Oboro." Danzo called him back.

"Yes?"

"How long have you been with Root?" Danzo suddenly asked an unrelated question.

Oboro's gaze shifted slightly. "A bit over half a month."

"Has it been that long already?" Danzo said slowly. "What do you think?"

"It's quite good."

"Oboro, what do you think Root is?" Danzo asked again.

Without much thought, Oboro replied directly, "A sharp blade immersed in deeper darkness."

"Obscure and brutal, a secret that cannot be told, something ordinary people would avoid, difficult to display openly."

Danzo was suddenly taken aback. "Difficult to display openly."

"My subordinate's limited perspective," Oboro said.

"No, you're quite right." Danzo regained his calm.

"Oboro, you are well-suited for Root."

Oboro lowered his gaze. "I'm just doing my best to fulfill my duties."

Danzo slowly walked up to Oboro and stood in front of him.

"Come work for me." Danzo said.

"I await your orders."

Danzo did not respond but instead sidestepped past Oboro and walked away, the large door behind him swung open and then closed.

Two Root Shinobi appeared in front of Oboro in an instant, one of them holding a scroll.

"To become the master's trusted confidant, you must offer your unwavering loyalty," the Root Shinobi with the scroll said coldly to Oboro.

Oboro remained indifferent, seemingly having anticipated this scene.

"What must I do?"

The Root Shinobi opened the scroll in his hand; intricate patterns were inscribed, with a gigantic character for "curse" emblazoned in the center.

"The Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal; once the curse is applied, you can no longer disclose even the slightest information about the master to outsiders."

Oboro watched the patterns and characters on the scroll calmly.

"The master is indeed cautious; he does not trust anyone beneath him," he remarked.

"A trusted confidant is just a puppet, isn't it?"

The Root Shinobi paused for a moment before responding, "Do not speak ill of the master. Remove your mask; I will perform the curse."

Oboro reached out and slowly removed the mask from his face, revealing a cold countenance and a pair of crimson eyes.

The Root Shinobi holding the scroll froze upon seeing Oboro's eyes.

"Otsu?" The other Root Shinobi, noticing his companion's sudden stillness, couldn't help but call out.

"He is in the process of casting the curse," Oboro said, turning to look at him.

The second Root Shinobi also lost his focus the moment his gaze met Oboro's crimson pupils.

Oboro put his mask back on, no longer paying attention to the two, and turned to leave.

The visual genjutsu activated by the Sharingan, combined with a sensory manipulation advanced technique, gave the two Root Shinobi the illusion that Oboro had cast the curse.

The character for "curse" on the scroll in the Root Shinobi's hand was gradually fading away.

Leaving the Root base, it was already deep into the night outside.

Oboro stood atop an empty building, overlooking the village in the darkness.

By this point, he had become Danzo's trusted confidant, a bit sooner than he had anticipated.

The night was thick, with the evening wind howling.

Dark clouds hung overhead, making it feel somewhat oppressive tonight.

It was going to rain...

Returning home, he found the streets nearly empty.

However, Oboro saw a note taped to his door.

"Mom has gone out shopping again today. A–Oboro, why aren't you back yet? I'm so bored!"

It was signed Tenten.

That girl has so much free time; why doesn't she go train? People in peaceful times really have no worries.

Oboro silently complained and pushed the door open to enter.

In the middle of the night, a torrential rain poured down.

Oboro was awakened by the thunder, the sound of rain hitting the window like pearls falling onto a silver plate, creating a continuous noise.

Getting up, he shut the window tightly, and the sound immediately dulled.

The outside world seemed as if demons were devouring the heavens and earth, yet the room was extraordinarily quiet; he could even hear the ticking of the clock.

Rolling thunder was intertwined with the sound of wind and rain, along with a hurried knocking on the door.

Oboro got up and walked to the door, opening it.

Tenten stood outside in her pajamas, already soaked from the rain.

"Tenten?" Oboro quickly pulled her into the room and then closed the door.

"Have you lost your mind? Why are you out in such heavy rain instead of sleeping at home?" Oboro furrowed his brow and reprimanded her.

Tenten leaned against the door, her once high ponytails now clinging to her neck from the rain, with droplets sliding off her body and clothes onto the floor.

Drip, drop...

"I can't sleep," Tenten said softly while lowering her head.

"The thunder is too loud."

"..."

Oboro sighed and asked again, "Has your mom not come back yet?"

"She'll be back tomorrow."

"What do you want to do?"

Tenten raised her head, looking at Oboro with a pitiful expression.

Seeing her drenched appearance evoked an indescribable feeling in Oboro.

"First go wash up with hot water; you might catch a cold otherwise."

Tenten was pushed into the bathroom, and after testing the hot water, she found two pieces of clothing.

"The clothes are clean; if you don't want to use a towel, then wipe yourself with your own clothes," he said.

Smack!

The bathroom was extremely quiet as Tenten glanced at her reflection in the mirror, her hair a mess, sticking to her skin, looking as disheveled as it could be.

She reached out and touched her cheek; her skin, normally cold, felt somewhat hot at that moment.

Oboro's clothes were quietly set aside, a dark-colored short-sleeve shirt and black long pants.

"A–Oboro." She suddenly called out.

"Hmm?"

"I... I'm hungry."

"Quickly take a shower," a slightly impatient voice came from outside.

Then silence returned.

Tenten turned on the shower, and the bathroom immediately filled with the sound of running water.

She picked up the clothes left there and pressed them to her face, inhaling deeply.

The scent of laundry soap… and Oboro's scent...

...

The sound of water in the bathroom ceased, and Tenten emerged wearing Oboro's oversized clothing, her hair still damp and loosely cascading.

She saw a freshly made sandwich sitting on the table, with the nearby kitchenware recently used.

"Thank you, Oboro." She said brightly, sitting down and starting to eat the sandwich.

"Didn't you have dinner?" Oboro asked, lounging on the bed.

"I was waiting for you to come back to take me out for something good to eat," Tenten mumbled with her mouth full.

Oboro frowned. "I had a mission. How could I have so much time to accompany you?"

"I didn't know you'd be back so late." Tenten grumbled.

"After you finish, I'll take you back," Oboro added.

Tenten immediately shook her head vigorously.

"No, I'm scared."

"You're a Genin candidate," Oboro glanced at her.

"I'm still scared."

"..."

"..."

Oboro sighed. "You can sleep here tonight."

Tenten said nothing more, lowering her head to eat her sandwich.

The heavy rain continued, incessantly washing the world.

Oboro sat quietly on the bed, watching the curtain of rain outside, like mist or smoke, lifting and falling again.

"I'm done eating."

Tenten's voice interrupted his thoughts.

Oboro turned to look at her and saw she was standing there a bit shyly.

He leaned back slightly, leaving a large space on the bed.

Tenten lowered her head, silently walked to the edge of the bed, and cautiously lay down.

"Aren't you afraid of falling off?" Oboro's voice came from behind.

Tenten shifted her body more towards the center.

Silence.

The person beside her sat there, gazing out at the rain in a daze.

"Oboro..."

"Hmm?"

"Aren't you going to sleep?"

"I'm not tired."

"...Did I disturb you tonight?" Tenten bit her lip.

"It's not that; I was awake before you came."

"Oh..."

Another silence fell.

Tenten nestled closer, her back pressed against Oboro.

"Can you hold me…"

"..."

"When this happens, my mom would hold me to sleep."

Silence ensued. Tenten's heart sank slightly, only to hear a rustling sound as two arms reached out to envelop her in an embrace.

Pressed against Oboro's chest, Tenten felt a sense of security wash over her.

"A–Oboro."

"Hmm?" came the calm voice from beside her.

"You're really nice."

"If you don't sleep, I'll throw you out."

"Oh."

After a while of holding her, Tenten suddenly turned over, burying her face into Oboro's chest.

"Goodnight."

"..."