Chapter 20: "When I Drank It, You Didn’t See"

The silver-white dawn gradually turned a reddish-brown, with the morning glow reflecting off countless windows.

The alarm clock was ringing again, its sharp sound irritating.

After about a minute, the annoying noise finally stopped on its own.

The blanket covering Ren's head was pulled down, revealing his face.

Stretching his legs, he opened the window.

The calendar on the wall hadn't been updated in days, and he had no idea what date or day it was today.

But Ren was on break today.

"Ren, you're a person with great potential. Don't let me down."

After reporting his failed mission to Danzo, Ren received no punishment, only that one sentence.

It wasn't hard to understand; the mission had always been a cover.

Danzo's attitude had already shifted somewhat.

Knock, knock, knock!

Suddenly, someone was knocking on the window. Tenten poked her head in from outside.

"Wake up, Ren!" she called.

Seeing Ren's loosely draped sleepwear, revealing toned skin and a finely shaped collarbone, Tenten's face flushed red.

"I'm off to school!" she quickly said before vanishing from view.

Ren's consciousness was still a bit foggy. He rubbed his forehead and sat up in bed.

What should I do today?

Without any social or entertainment plans, Ren found these off days dull and preferred the structured, busy life of missions.

Focusing all his energy on a task kept him from overthinking.

He got dressed, washed up, and opened the fridge. It was practically empty, except for a nearly finished carton of milk.

Guess I'll eat out, he thought. He also needed to stock up on groceries.

Dressed in dark casual clothes, Ren stepped out into the quiet morning streets. The distant sound of people could be faintly heard.

"Good morning, Ren!"

"Is this your day off?"

"Even on your day off, you're up so early. So diligent!"

"Haha."

The neighbors were teasing again, as they always did. Unaware of Ren's history, they only had kind words for him.

Reaching a shop he frequented, the owner greeted him warmly.

"Here for breakfast, Ren? What a rare sight."

"One toasted bread. Do you still have soup?" Ren asked plainly.

"You're in luck, it's the last one," the owner said, handing Ren a wrapped piece of bread and a steaming cup of miso soup.

After paying, Ren bit into the bread, which was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, full of creamy flavor.

"Is today your day off?" the owner inquired, trying to strike up a conversation.

"Yeah," Ren replied briefly, sipping the soup with a slight frown.

It's a bit too salty...

"Ren's a chūnin now, isn't that something! My cousin's daughter is about your age, and she really admires ninjas. Would you be interested in meeting her?"

"No."

"Come on, don't say that! Who knows, you two might hit it off," the owner chuckled.

"We won't."

The shopkeeper, undeterred by Ren's cold response, continued to laugh cheerfully to himself.

"Boss, one toasted bread and one miso soup," came a cheerful voice from beside Ren.

Ren glanced over and recognized the man as vaguely familiar.

"Ah, Asuma! Sorry, but the last bowl of miso soup just sold out," the owner said.

"I usually come at this time, and it's never sold out this fast," Asuma said, surprised.

"It's the weekend. I just sold the last one to this young man here," the owner gestured towards Ren with a smile.

Asuma turned to look at the youth standing beside him, scrutinizing the boy he didn't recognize.

He noticed the steaming cup of miso soup in Ren's hand and couldn't help but feel disappointed.

This place has the best miso soup...

Ren noticed Asuma's gaze and looked at the cup in his hand before casually holding it out to Asuma.

"Huh?" Asuma blinked, confused.

"I've already had some. If you don't mind," Ren said while still eating his bread.

"Uh... thanks," Asuma responded, smiling as he reached for the cup.

"That'll be 20 ryō."

"..."

Asuma's hand froze mid-air. He glanced at the shop's price board, which clearly stated "Miso Soup: 10 ryō."

Ren remained calm, holding the cup as the steam continued to rise from the soup.

"It says the soup is 10 ryō," Asuma pointed out.

"I know," Ren replied flatly.

"You've already drunk from it?"

"Yeah."

Asuma couldn't help but laugh in disbelief. "So, that first sip is worth 10 ryō? And you're charging me 20?"

"Exactly," Ren said, raising an eyebrow.

"You should've arrived earlier."

"Besides…"

"When I drank it, you didn't see."

Asuma paused, feeling like something was off about that last statement.

Ren noticed Asuma had fallen silent, so he shrugged and said, "Forget it, then."

With that, he raised the cup of miso soup to his lips and finished it in one gulp.

"Thanks for the treat."

He placed the empty cup back on the counter, turned around, and left. His final words sounded as if he were thanking the shop owner.

"Hey."

"Hey?"

"Hey! Asuma!"

Asuma snapped out of his thoughts, realizing that the shop owner had been calling him.

"Huh?"

"Do you still want anything else?" the shop owner asked with a laugh.

"Uh... whatever."

Asuma glanced at the empty cup on the counter and then looked at Ren's retreating figure, muttering to himself, "Who is that kid?"

"You mean him?" the shop owner said as he handed Asuma a carton of warm milk along with the toasted bread.

"His name is Ren, and he's a ninja."

So that's Ren?

Asuma was even more surprised.

So, this kid is the one who easily defeated Genma and the others by himself?

He seems pretty harmless, aside from being a little hard to get along with...

After breakfast, Ren returned home, bored, and took a nap.

He slept until the afternoon, washed his face, and then went out to do some shopping.

Though he called it "shopping," he was mostly just buying food to stock up.

With time to kill, Ren wandered around town, visiting various shops and buying a bag full of miscellaneous household items, unsure if he'd even use them.

At the last convenience store, Ren was in the drinks section, browsing for something to restock his fridge, which he and Tenten had emptied.

Maybe I should buy some alcohol... I haven't really drunk since coming to this world...

But Tenten would probably yell at me if she found out...

Why should I care what she thinks?

The thought crossed Ren's mind, and he found himself tempted as he looked at the bottles of liquor on the shelf.

The real question was whether the shopkeeper would even sell it to him. Despite the "Three Prohibitions" for ninjas, alcohol was still restricted to those 18 and older. Normal stores wouldn't sell it to minors.

Ren didn't exactly look old enough to lie about his age.

Worst case, I'll just use a genjutsu or transformation jutsu.

Ren was about to grab a bottle of alcohol when, at the same moment, a slender, pale arm reached for the same bottle.

Surprised, Ren looked up and immediately felt a little awkward.

What's going on today?

The woman seemed to notice Ren for the first time, startled as if about to gasp.

Kurenai quickly withdrew her hand and covered her mouth. Ren's casual outfit had thrown her off, and she hadn't recognized him right away.

She wore a dark red, casual dress, carrying a bag in one hand, which already had several bottles of alcohol inside.

This woman sure loves her liquor and the color red...

Ren thought to himself.

Kurenai, realizing it was Ren, instinctively wanted to flee but quickly regained her composure.

Why would I run? It's not like I've done anything wrong.

But the person in front of me… that jerk...

The flash of resentment in Kurenai's eyes didn't escape Ren's notice. He ignored it, calmly putting the bottle into his bag and turning to leave, as if he hadn't even seen her.

Ren's calm demeanor made Kurenai breathe a little easier. She thought it best to leave things as they were.

"Stop!"

Ren had only taken a few steps when Kurenai called out.

"That's my bottle!"

He turned around to see Kurenai staring at him intently.

"Why don't you just grab another?" Ren asked.

"It was the last one," Kurenai replied, then added something she didn't quite believe herself, "I saw it first."

Even though she hadn't initially recognized Ren, she knew he had been standing there for a while.

"Then you just won't drink," Ren said flatly.

"And why not?" Kurenai retorted, glaring at him.

As the words left her mouth, Kurenai realized she was being unreasonable. But facing this jerk, she didn't want to back down at all.

"You're still underage. The store won't sell alcohol to you," she added, trying to justify herself.

"And what does that have to do with you?" Ren said coolly.

"You!" Kurenai fumed.

Ren looked directly at her and suddenly took a step closer.

"What are you going to do about it?" he asked.

Kurenai instinctively stepped back half a step. The memory of that night, the terror, still lingered in her mind, hard to erase.

She didn't respond. Ren closed the gap between them, his cold, emotionless eyes locked onto hers.

"Are you going to try and take it from me?" he asked.

Kurenai's heart pounded violently. She wasn't sure if it was out of fear or something else.

If it came to a fight, I probably wouldn't be able to win...

But we're out in public in broad daylight. What could he possibly do to me?

Just as the thought crossed her mind, Ren suddenly grabbed her arm, yanking her close and pinning her against the shelf.

It was that same familiar posture, just like that night...

Kurenai felt like she was suffocating. She instinctively wanted to scream, but in the next aisle, someone walked by without even glancing in their direction.

A genjutsu...

Kurenai swallowed nervously, fear flashing in her eyes as she tried to muster up something threatening to say.

"Y-You better not do anything crazy..."

Ren sneered at her fearful expression.

"What crazy thing would I do?" he asked mockingly.

"Bastard! Do you even know what you're doing? You're committing a crime! The police force is right outside! You'll end up in jail!" Kurenai warned, trying to intimidate him.

"I feel like I've heard that somewhere before," Ren replied calmly.

Kurenai bit her lip, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

Her mind was in turmoil, unsure of what to do.

"Apologize to me."

Ren's cold voice sounded in her ear.

"In your dreams!" Kurenai spat angrily.

Ren gave a cold laugh, leaning his face closer to hers.

"No!" Kurenai screamed instinctively, turning her head away.

"Apologize," Ren repeated, his voice icy.

"I..."

Kurenai felt the pressure on her wrist intensify, nearly causing her to cry out in pain.

The overwhelming sense of humiliation hung heavy in her heart as she fought back tears.

"I'm sorry..."

The pressure on her wrist suddenly released, and Kurenai collapsed to the ground, her head hanging low in silence.

As Ren's footsteps faded into the distance, she slowly raised her head. He was gone, but he had left the bottle of alcohol beside her.

That bastard!

She grabbed the bottle and hurled it against the wall with all her strength.

Crash!

The bottle shattered on impact, shards and liquid flying everywhere.

The shop owner rushed over, frowning at the mess.

"What happened? Did you do this? What's going on here? You'll have to pay for that," the shopkeeper said.

"I'll pay! I'll pay!" Kurenai shouted angrily.

The shopkeeper was startled by Kurenai's outburst, muttering under his breath, "Why so worked up? You could just apologize."

Crash!

Another bottle flew against the wall.