Chapter 72: I'm a Good Person
What was going through Tatsumaki's head was something Ryū couldn't possibly know. And even if he could, he'd probably be caught between laughing and crying—he was a bona fide, certified human being, in both this life and the last.
As for Tatsumaki's offer to "buy things," he hadn't asked for anything extravagant.
All he wanted was games, anime, and shows to kill time with.
Because Konohagakure offered tragically little in the way of entertainment.
At least during this era.
Even the televisions here were those old black-and-white tube models.
By the time Konohagakure got color TV… that was probably a decade away.
"If Tatsumaki actually comes through with the laptop, then besides training and eating, I'll finally have something else to pass the time with. Watching One-Punch Man anime while living in the Naruto world… that's a pretty wild flex."
The one thing Ryū did regret was that he couldn't get his hands on anime from his previous life.
Otherwise, posting them in the Dimensional Chat Group would produce some absolutely priceless reactions.
Especially from Kaguya Shinomiya, star of a romcom anime… her reaction might be the most spectacular of all.
She'd nearly self-destructed when he'd just described things in text. If he actually showed her the anime… instant shutdown. The probability was extremely high.
But this was the Naruto world. So Ryū could only sigh with regret.
This little mischievous fantasy of his would have to remain unfulfilled.
* * *
After the private chat with Tatsumaki ended, Ryū hung around the group chat for a while before withdrawing. He still needed to eat, after all.
It'd be nice if a xianxia-world member joined the group someday.
A single Fasting Pill could solve the daily headache of cooking.
Or maybe he could recruit some girls who could cook from another world.
Like from Food Wars, or Cooking Master Boy.
But for a Dimensional Chat Group that was still in its early stages—
That was all a bit too far off.
Better to stay grounded.
One step at a time.
Come to think of it, didn't the Naruto world have Military Ration Pills? But those things had serious side effects—they accelerated aging. Eat too many and you could just drop dead one day. One minute you're eating, the next minute you're gone.
With a small sigh, Ryū decided he'd just spend the time cooking for himself.
His appetite was a bit outrageous these days, but at least his pot was big enough.
His current appetite was manageable.
Whatever happened in the future was the future's problem.
He'd let Future Ryū worry about it.
* * *
Time drifted by. The sun set, the moon climbed the treetops, the night deepened into silence… until the following morning, around 6:00 AM.
Ryū had not woken naturally. Nor had an alarm woken him.
The reason he—someone who always slept until he woke on his own—was awake this early, was because some idiot was outside his door, screaming at the top of his lungs.
It jolted him straight out of a sound sleep.
He rubbed his stiff face, dragged himself out of bed, yawned, and poked his head out the window to look down.
And there it was. A familiar, beaming grin.
The bowl-cut teenager flashing that megawatt smile gave him a thumbs-up and shouted excitedly: "Ryū-san! Youth must not be wasted on sleep! Youth demands passion! Let's go train together!"
"…"
Ryū was mildly grateful that he didn't have a temper in the mornings. Otherwise, he would have dearly loved to drop a fist straight down and pop that watermelon head like a balloon.
It was that exact feeling—like being in a school dormitory, nowhere near time to get up, and your bonehead roommate physically dragging you out of bed.
Why had he been cursed with this neighbor?!
He suddenly felt the urge to move.
* * *
Ryū's mouth twitched. He asked, resigned: "You're banging on my door at the crack of dawn just because you want me to train with you?!"
Guy grinned. "Yes! Exactly! This is what burning Youth is all about! I used to think Ryū-san was an ordinary person, so I never bothered you. But you defeated Kakashi! That means you're strong!"
One hand on his hip, the other giving a big thumbs-up: "For the sake of this precious, burning Youth—isn't getting up early the least we can do?"
Ryū: "…Can I kill you? The head-exploding kind."
Guy: "Eh??"
Looking down at Guy's face—still flashing those white teeth, still utterly oblivious to any danger—Ryū could guess with his feet what this idiot was after.
He'd obviously seen Ryū beat Kakashi yesterday.
And now his fists were itching. He wanted to spar.
A thousand calculations, and he'd forgotten to account for Might Guy. A critical miscalculation.
* * *
Hiruzen was wary of Ryū's mysterious strength and hadn't even sent ANBU to surveil him. Because Hiruzen could see more than most—and he wasn't confident he could beat Ryū himself.
If ANBU made one careless misstep and provoked this "reclusive master"—
That would be an unacceptable loss for Konohagakure.
Hiruzen did not want a mysterious powerhouse holding a grudge against the village.
Of course, an investigation would still proceed.
He couldn't just do nothing.
But Might Guy was a different matter entirely. With his personality, it didn't matter how strong Ryū was—
The moment anything touched his precious "Youth," he'd come charging over without a second thought.
* * *
"If I turn him down today, he'll just be back knocking on my door tomorrow, won't he? But if I say yes, won't that just embolden him even more?!"
Ryū's eyelid twitched. Once or twice, he could tolerate.
But if this became a 6:00 AM wake-up call every single day—
He estimated it wouldn't take a week.
Even someone without a morning temper would be driven into having one.
And then Guy would meet an early, tragic end…
A very gruesome one.
Quite possibly an open-casket-not-recommended situation.
Having defeated Kakashi, Ryū now had a rough, intuitive sense of his own strength. As long as he wasn't facing the Guy from a decade-plus in the future—even if this Guy could open the Seventh Gate—Ryū could still beat him down.
Of course, the Guy from a decade later was another story. But by then…
Ryū had no idea what level he himself would have reached.
* * *
He drew a deep breath of crisp morning air.
Looking down at Guy—still flashing those pearly whites, still completely unaware that anything was amiss—Ryū said with a perfectly blank expression: "Give me a few minutes… train together? Absolutely no problem."
His reasons for agreeing were twofold. First: Guy had treated him to ramen yesterday.
Second: he'd just thought of a solution.
Guy said "train together," but what he actually meant was "spar." If Ryū sent Guy to join Kakashi at the hospital, he'd probably get at least a week of peace and quiet.
"I didn't realize I was this warm-hearted. I really am a good person…"
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