chsdbacks Chapter 26: They're not even friends anymore.
Chapter 26: They're not even friends anymore.
"Brother Ningxia~"
Hongdou licked her cheeks and leaned closer to Ningxia, which made Hong, her friend, very embarrassed. She covered her face and didn't know what to do.
"Alright, just say what you have to say, I'm listening."
Ningxia glared at Hongdou, knowing that something must be on her mind.
"Hahaha... I haven't been back to Konoha for a while, and there was some trouble at home. It definitely won't be fixed anytime soon, so... can I stay here?"
Hongdou said somewhat shyly, and Hong, who was next to her, hesitated to speak.
She had intended to suggest that Hongdou could continue living at her house, since she had two or three empty rooms.
But remembering Hongdou's instructions, she silently shut her mouth, unable to understand why Hongdou had to go to such lengths.
"ha?"
"Please! You don't want your adorable little Red Bean sleeping on the streets, do you!?"
Hongdou continued to plead, but Ningxia did not answer. Instead, she looked up at Hong beside her.
"..."
Sensing Ningxia's questioning gaze, Hong smiled helplessly, indicating that she couldn't help him.
"Hong's house isn't very big either, and I can't keep squeezing in with her forever, so that's why I came to stay with you."
Hongdou silently gave her best friend a thumbs up. She could tolerate being watched by the teacher and Tsunade before, but this time the teacher sent her here, how could she possibly let such a good opportunity pass by?
"Alright, but I don't have many rooms left. You'll have to tidy up yourself later."
Ningxia looked helpless, but he really couldn't abandon Hongdou, even though Hongdou certainly had the money to stay in a hotel.
"Yay! Red, please help me out."
Red Bean happily dragged her best friend along to tidy up the room, only to run into Kakashi.
"Kakashi-senpai...?"
If we're talking about seniority, Kurenai is just a junior in front of Kakashi right now, and she's shocked that the silver-haired Shura from the Anbu would suddenly appear here.
"Brother Ningxia...who is she?"
Red Bean's mentality is even more explosive than Red's. She came to Konoha to find Ningxia with the intention of getting married. If Huang... oh, White Hair beat her to it before then...
"She is my patient."
"Even if someone is sick, they shouldn't be staying in your home!"
"Her condition is serious."
"How serious is it?! He looks perfectly normal."
"depression."
Even if... huh?
Hongdou couldn't say anything more, after all, depression was the biggest concern!
What is depression?
Kakashi finally agreed to talk to Ningxia, expressing some curiosity about his illness.
"Like... how you are right now."
Ningxia gave a perfunctory reply and then turned to deal with other matters.
"..."
Kakashi stared intently at the man in front of him, starting with the ninjutsu that allowed him to enter dreams.
Ningxia has been hiding something, but she also knows that she can't ask her directly about such things.
"What would you like to eat?"
Ningxia casually tied her hair into a ponytail. Tsunade had once said that she looked better with long hair, and Orochimaru had also expressed the same opinion.
Therefore, Ningxia has kept her hair long ever since that day. Apart from the fact that it is more troublesome to manage, there is nothing wrong with it.
"I...whatever."
Kakashi, who was secretly observing, suddenly looked outside. She noticed someone peeking into the clinic, and that familiar chakra... was it the Uchiha?
Kakashi quietly approached Ningxia to warn her, and Ningxia, upon learning that the Uchiha were spying, immediately dismissed Shisui.
If this guy had time to come over, he would happily walk through the main entrance instead of spying in the shadows like this.
Then there's only one possibility: Itachi.
Ningxia shook her head, indicating that Kakashi didn't need to worry about her.
"Um……"
Outside, Itachi was secretly watching Ningxia from a tree. She... was almost at her breaking point. Shisui treated her very well, completely grooming her to be the future clan leader and Hokage.
He even talked about it more than once, saying that after he stepped down, he would live with Ningxia, and that they would have seven or eight little Uchiha children, who would then come to recognize Itachi as their godmother.
If Shisui had liked someone else, Itachi would have sincerely wished her well, but Shisui's love was for her, Ningxia.
The thought of what he had done to Ningxia, coupled with Shisui's trust, caused Itachi extreme pain, whether it was the defilement of Ningxia or the betrayal of Shisui.
He even considered suicide, thinking that if he died, no one except Ningxia would know about it, and nothing would happen.
But whenever she thought this way, Zuo Yue beside her made her give up the urge to commit suicide. She... couldn't abandon her sister and leave her behind.
Seeing Ningxia and Kakashi-senpai lean closer and talk to each other, Itachi felt as if he had lost something.
In the past, she could stand openly beside Ningxia, showing her relationship with Ningxia, or at the very least, they could be friends.
However, now, let alone friends, she doesn't even dare to look Ningxia in the eye. A woman like her... is utterly rotten.
Meanwhile, Xiyan, who had taken leave, felt empty and longed to visit her friends before returning home.
After buying flowers from the florist, Xi Yan couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. These days, little girls are far too precocious.
When I was buying flowers, that girl named Jingye actually asked me whether Ningxia preferred big or small flowers.
Even though she's not even in puberty yet, this little girl is already starting to plan ahead.
This made Xi Yan feel inexplicably threatened... No, no, what threat could a guard like her have?
Kakashi's utterly dejected face flashed through her mind. Well, compared to Kakashi, she, an Anbu member, was completely crushed.
But... surely Kakashi-senpai won't be coming to be a bodyguard too? After all, she's the head of the Anbu, how could she possibly leave the Anbu?
Yes, that must be it...
With mixed feelings, Yugao entered Konoha Hospital and found the ward where her friend was.
"Gale, are you alright?"
Xi Yan knocked on the door and entered the room. She treated Ji Feng as a friend, but recently her life had been completely focused on Ning Xia, and she no longer had time to see Ji Feng.
Although she herself enjoyed it...
"Evening Glory...cough cough cough...you've arrived..."
Moonlight Gale's face was deathly pale, and he coughed frequently, looking as if he might die on the spot at any moment.
"Yes, you're in the hospital again..."
Xiyan casually put down the flowers she had brought, already used to Yueguang Jifeng's behavior, even though she was there to visit him.
But Xi Yan's heart had already been occupied by another man, though the coughing mixed in with the wind made her somewhat uneasy.
This is the first day I haven't been protecting Ningxia since she entered Konoha. I wonder if Ningxia will feel uncomfortable.
Or am I just a tool that can be easily replaced?
"Xiyan? Have I troubled you?"
Jifeng had just said a lot of things, both openly and subtly, expressing his feelings, but when he looked up, he found Xiyan staring absentmindedly out the window, and he almost broke down.