Kano immediately activated the Shadow Imitation Technique.
"Ninja Art – Shadow Imitation Technique!"
Chakra was consumed, but nothing happened.
"Huh?"
As expected, it's trash.
Forget it, I never counted on that reward being useful anyway. Doing missions is just to boost my idiot system's stats and rake in some popularity points on the side.
"Waaah, host, you're so kind~ (இωஇ ) The strongest Ninja senpai just got back from his business trip; I'll go beg him for something good (｡＞∀＜｡)"
"Mm, be careful and stay safe."
Kano casually opened the second trash bag. Inside was a roll of tattered bandages, stained and blood-spattered; only the inner side still showed a hint of its original white.
"What's this?"
She stared at the used bandage that looked like garbage, trying to remember when it had been wrapped. Seeing the unfinished tally mark, she realized this must be the final strip.
It had been changed at Ino's house that day; from then on she'd switched to skirts and never worn pants again.
Quite the keepsake. Though she'd thrown it away as trash back then, fishing it out of the bag now gave it a strange sentimental weight.
Still, it was ultimately useless junk.
Whatever—time to back up Naruto and Rock Lee.
Rock Lee hadn't been crippled by Gaara and was actually stronger than in the original, but without sake he couldn't use Drunken Fist.
Kano likewise paused to watch. She knew where the Valley of the End was; once she reached it she'd find Naruto and Sasuke.
So for now she'd look after Lee.
Deprived of Drunken Fist, Lee opened the Eight Gates straight to the fourth gate and punted Kimimaro like a ball, snapping even Kimimaro's hardest bone.
The fight more than made up for missing Lee's duel with Gaara; their clash was a spectacle of youthful taijutsu—every blow shattering bone.
Kano found herself liking Lee even more.
"System, record this—I'm rewatching it later."
"You got it (◕ˇ∀ˇ◕)"
But Lee was in rough shape. Kimimaro hard-counters close-range fighters, and Lee only knew taijutsu. Unable to pull off Morning Peacock or Daytime Tiger like Might Guy, he was badly injured.
"Why isn't Gaara here yet? Hidden Sand Village really is unreliable."
Kimimaro spun a massive drill of bone for a Heaven-Piercing strike on Lee, who gathered his last strength for his ultimate Reverse Lotus.
"Agh! Lee, not again—you're going to cripple yourself!"
If they collided, it'd be mutual death or two breaths from the grave.
Kano couldn't bear to watch Lee go that far and dove between them.
A hunting flute appeared out of thin air!
Its indestructible property blocked the two devastating forces, shielding both Lee and Kimimaro.
"That's enough!"
Kimimaro staggered back; Lee flipped away, the Eight Gates fading as his stamina bottomed out.
"Who's there?"
Kimimaro's life was almost spent; he wanted to kill as many enemies as possible for Lord Orochimaru before he died.
"Who are you?"
Lee bled all over, panting, unable to sustain the Eight Gates yet refusing to fall, buying even a second more for Naruto.
"My name is Kashi. I'm here to save you. Lee, come here and let me treat you."
His wounds were grave but not fatal, so instead of the rough Mystical Palm Technique, Kano healed him slowly.
The simple-minded Lee never doubted her, accepting the treatment without reservation.
"It'll sting a bit—bear with me."
The slow healing kept the pain tolerable, and Lee, blushing, thanked her.
"Thank you, Miss Kashi."
He hadn't expected another girl besides Kano to make his heart race.
Seeing an enemy, Kimimaro spun another Heaven-Piercing drill and charged—one kill or two, it made no difference.
Kano didn't humor him; she was ruthless to anyone outside Konoha.
Shadow Deer Tube, Shadow Hiruzen, and Shadow Orochimaru all surged forth, pummeling Kimimaro with physical and magical damage until he collapsed without resistance.
What, did they think I'd trade actual blows with Kimimaro? It costs almost no Chakra—why not just nuke him?
Dragging out all these Shadow Ninja used less energy than a single Shadow Clone.
If her friends didn't need the experience, she'd have cleared the path for them long ago.
"Sand Tsunami!"
Right after she finished Kimimaro off, a wave of sand slammed into her.
"Gaara, are you insane? The enemy's dead and you show up now! I'm on your side, idiot!"
Kano refused to fight teammates; the current Gaara was different—probably. "Sandstorm Gaara?! What are you doing here?"
"I came to back you up. Who is she?"
"That's Miss Kashi. She healed me and took out the enemy."
Realizing his mistake, Gaara withdrew his sand and apologized solemnly.
"My apologies, young lady. I did not mean to attack you."
"It's fine, it's fine—I dodged anyway."
Gaara really had changed; Naruto's Talk no Jutsu worked wonders, unlike Kano's mix of threats and bribes.
"Still, I attacked you. Allow me to make amends."
Gaara rummaged through his pockets, intending to offer money, but his funds were with Temari. He did find something valuable he'd paid dearly for.
"Please accept this as compensation."
"Haha, no need to be so polite."
Even as she spoke, Kano accepted the gift.
It was just a ticket.
"...?"
Why did it look so familiar?
Noting her confusion, he explained.
"It's a ticket to the konoha songstress concert. I went to great lengths to get it; apparently it's worth quite a lot now."
Kano nearly lost it—who gives an Idol a ticket to her own show?
And Gaara, you thick-browed guy, you're going to my concert too? This month's just ended; the next one isn't for ages.
She quietly slipped on her cool Idol glasses and checked above Gaara's head.
Faint as it was, there was a fan's heart symbol!
Why on earth are you my fan?
That wasn't even the most absurd part; the Make complaints points were so numerous she didn't know where to start.
Simple-hearted Lee leaned in and said honestly,
"That's the ticket to Kano's last concert—it's expired. The new ones look like this."
He pulled out the tickets Kano had set aside for her friends and showed Gaara.
The scene became very, very awkward.
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