Chapter 28

— "Great! Now that we have an agreement, go ahead and play with the others," — I patted her on the head, finishing up the treatment.

Energetically jumping to her feet, the little one brushed off her dress and ran towards the crowd of kids that my clone was entertaining, demonstrating impressive chakra control and tending to the minor injuries of the children.

— "Thank you, nii-san!" — Anko shouted, pausing for a moment to wave her hand.

Waving back, I sighed and was about to leave when a voice from the side made me flinch.

— "You will be a wonderful father, despite your young age, Ryo-sama," — the wrinkled face of an elderly woman, who had unexpectedly appeared right next to me even though I could have sworn she was just by the orphanage entrance a moment ago, broke into a knowing smile.

Damn, cursed veterans and their ability to sneak up despite any sensory abilities! And don't hint at my two lovers! The damned rumor network of Konoha spreads fresh gossip almost faster than the speed of light!

— "Well, I try," — I muttered in response, not knowing what else to say.

— "Akiko is a good girl who has been very unfortunate, and she needs all the support she can get right now," — the caretaker sighed, — "including from her daughter."

I raised an eyebrow questioningly.

— "The death notice for Anko's father, Shiori Ro, arrived yesterday," — the elderly kunoichi explained sadly, — "We didn't show it to avoid upsetting her too much."

Shiori Ro? Wait a minute, I've heard of him — he was a pretty strong shinobi and a contemporary of Hatake Sakumo. They say he was quite a fighter against Sunagakure and later against Iwagakure, earning himself a hefty bounty of ten million ryo and an A-rank. He was among the top hundred jounins in the village after the war and was even considered for a position in the jounin council.

At least now it's clear where Anko got her shinobi talent from. If her mother dies too, then Mitarashi will be permanently settled in the orphanage and the story will follow the usual path. It's better not to let that happen.

— "Thank you for the information," — I nodded, — "I'll make good use of it."

And now it's time to go — I'm already late for work and that one-eyed bastard will definitely give me a reprimand if he finds out about the delay!

— "Shunshin!"

***

The knock on the door pulled me away from filling out forms for the previous visitor, but the familiar chakra of the person standing outside my office allowed me to return to the documents. After all, everything was ready for this patient.

— "Come in," — I called out without looking up from my work.

The door opened and closed, admitting the former kunoichi, now the manager of a small orphanage.

— "Ryo-san?"

— "Yes, yes, I'll finish up in a moment and be at your full disposal," — I replied, glancing up briefly from the papers.

That moment was enough to give me a quick look at the visitor before my eyes dropped back to the documents, but once I processed what I had seen, I involuntarily glanced at Suzuka again.

And there was indeed something to see — unlike her usual attire, which consisted of a rather loose jacket and pants that covered most of her body and concealed the contours of her figure, this time Suzuka wore a simple light blue dress with long sleeves and white sandals on bare feet.

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