"You're starting to get on my nerves..."

"Ufufufu~."

Though he had tried to get her to move numerous times during their 'conversation', Shizune was still firmly planted in Nobu's lap. She could increase her weight a lot faster than he could buck her away, and, despite the excuse he had given regarding his faith, she seemed intent on getting a rise out of him by wiggling her hips and leaning into him whenever he wasn't answering her questions.

"I'm serious...if you don't stop, I'm going to start swinging. I don't care if you're stronger than me. I'm not a fucking toy for you to get off on."

Leaning forward and turning her eyes up at him, Shizune adopting a reproving smile as she gently chided, "There's no need to be so antagonistic. It's not like we're having sex. We're just sitting here and getting to know each other. Unless your God is extremely petty, they won't punish you for a bit of skinship. Besides, didn't you say I was beautiful? Who knows, if you treat me well, I might actually save myself for you~."

Though some people might be happy that a younger girl was saving herself for them, Nobu wasn't the type to harbor fantasies of grooming young women into future brides. Yui's situation was already bad enough yet here he had a fifteen-year-old girl actively trying to seduce him. To make matters even worse, she had more than enough strength to take him by force, as, even after reaching Rank 4, he was weak enough that children between the ages of 4-8 might be able to defeat him.

Deciding to reveal his final card, Nobu's expression became serious as he said, "Surface beauty is meaningless if you have a terrible personality. Even if you were a thousand times more beautiful, I would never accept someone clingy and manipulative as a partner. Even if we did fuck, I wouldn't feel anything for you after the fact. You're just a woman desperate for a dicking. The only reason you want my dick, in particular, is because I refuse to let a shitty brat like you seduce me."

Puffing out her cheeks, Shizune tightened her hold on Nobu's neck, drawing his closer as she said, "You can be really hateful, you know that?" before planting a kiss on his lips. This was greeted with a clenched jaw by the latter, but, thanks to her hold on his head, Shizune was able to suckle his lips and lick the outside of his teeth at her leisure.

After several seconds of this, Shizune loosened her hold on Nobu's head before seductively licking her lips and saying, "I'm not going to, but I could always force you. Instead of saying hateful things and goading me into tormenting you, why not just enjoy yourself? Don't worry. I won't force you to have sex. I just want to have a bit of fun and get to know you better. Is that such a bad thing?"

Without any hesitation whatsoever, Nobu clearly answered, "Yes. It doesn't matter if it's a man or woman. Forcing people against their will is fucked up. If our positions were reversed, people would accuse me of being a monster and a rapist. Do you think you can just get away with this kind of shit because you're a little cute? You're out of your fucking mind."

Unamused by the fact that Nobu had basically lumped her in with the most despicable subset of society, a genuine pout appeared on Shizune's face. These were the ways she had been taught to seduce a difficult target. She refused to correlate her behavior with the actions of men who used their power to force women to comply with their demands. They would never give their target the option of not having sex so she couldn't help feeling a little resentful of Nobu's words. After all, if any action dedicated to seducing a member of the opposite sex was considered rapacious behavior, what wasn't?

"You really are hateful, Nanamori Nobu! Your words don't even make sense! Wuuuuu, you make me so angry...!"

Without using her aura, Shizune pounded Nobu's chest a few times with her fists before bouncing to her feet and saying, "Fine then! Just sit there like an idiot and do nothing! Don't even talk! And if you try to escape, I'm tying you up! You hear me!?"

Though he was taken aback by Shizune's reaction, Nobu ultimately nodded his head in response to her words, saying, "Whatever..." before manifesting his stone tablet and thumbing open the Clicker App. This caused Shizune to stamp her foot a few times, not because she could see the stone tablet, but because she correctly assumed he was intending to ignore her.

As she had seriously been considering performing a striptease or trying to pleasure herself in front of him, Shizune's frustrations immediately shot through the roof when she saw Nobu lean backward and begin fidgeting with his fingers.

("So you'd rather play with your thumbs than pay attention to me!? Is that it!?")

Following her internal complaint, Shizune stormed out of the rocky hollow she had been keeping Nobu in. It wasn't quite a cave, but, after Nobu's previous experience, she had assumed he would react more amenably if he didn't wake up to find himself underground. Instead, everything he said seemed designed to frustrate her, so, at least for the time being, she needed to get some fresh air and cool her head.

Seeing Shizune depart the cave in a huff, a fatigued expression developed across Nobu's face as he grumbled, "How the fuck do I keep getting confined to caves with psychotic kunoichi watching over me? And this one is even more touched in the head than Yui. Whoever trained her is a real piece of shit. Seriously, it's like fate is trying to piss me off to the point where I start training just to unfuck all the bullshit in this world..."

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Understanding that this was a very real possibility, especially with the whole fiasco regarding his public alias, Nobu's clicking gradually increased until he was pretty sure he had broken his previous world's record. He would genuinely rather mind his own business, but, if shit like this was going to keep happening, he would need as much strength as possible just to avoid becoming some spoiled brat's plaything. At the very least, he needed to become strong enough to be able to travel without depending on little girls to guard him...

...

..

.

With the sun gradually peering over the horizon, a melancholic light reflected in Yui's obsidian-blue eyes. She could still make it back to the Clan if she moved at her own pace, but, even if Nobu wasn't particularly heavy, his size would make running difficult. In other words, she could still complete her mission. The only caveat was that she would need to leave Nobu behind.

"I've failed as a warrior...Nobu might not have been my Lord but he was still my responsibility. Was this Grandmother's way of ascertaining whether or not I qualify as a warrior...?"

Though it might have seemed like she was speaking to empty air, Yui was actually addressing the presence that had appeared nearby. In response, Yuriko emerged from the shadows of a nearby oak tree, a slightly apologetic look on her face as she said, "I honestly don't know how to answer that question. We received this mission from the counter, just like any other. We don't know who issued it or their reasons for doing so. If we were made aware of such things, it might lead to some kunoichi attempting to seek revenge against specific Elders after being given difficult or distasteful tasks...you know how it is..."

Nodding her head in understanding, Yui slowly rose to her feet, fatigue visible in her countenance as she asked, "So? What now? If I really wanted to, I could still make it back to the Clan on time..."

Punctuating her words, Yui began to slowly manifest a katana in her left hand. Despite this, Yuriko maintained a defenseless posture, shaking her head before saying, "No. You've been acting strange ever since we reunited but you're still the same Yui I grew up with. You would never simply abandon someone you were charged with protecting. I don't know why you're escorting that man but he is clearly important to you given your reaction following Rynka's sneak attack. You were fighting like a warrior who had just lost their Lord. It was honestly a little terrifying..."

Raising her left arm, Yuriko displayed the massive bruise that ran from her armpit to the middle of her ribs. This was how it looked even after she had been circulating her aura for an entire evening. Previously, tiny beads of blood had been appearing on the surface of her skin as the entire region swelled to resemble a pitch-black mushroom cap.

Seeing the bruise, a slightly apologetic look appeared on Yui's face as she exhaled a weary sigh and absorbed the katana back into her aura. Yuriko was actually the closest thing to a friend she had in the entirety of the Yoshitsune Clan. She was the only person who could even come close to rivaling her in a fight, so, whenever it came time to spar, the two of them invariably ended up being forced to face each other.

"Sorry...I should have held back..."

Shaking her head, Yuriko adopted a rare smile and said, "Don't worry about it. It was actually pretty interesting to see you get all worked up. For a while there, I was starting to think you were one of those freaky automatons from Granus. Seriously. Even if you want to become a warrior, you should really learn to smile."

Seemingly with the intent to demonstrate, Yuriko pushed up the sides of her mouth using her index fingers. Unfortunately, her eyes were almost perpetually half-lidded during the day, and, much like every other member of their generation, she had effectively lost her purpose when the first son of the Oda Clan kicked the bucket. They had literally been birthed to serve as his hands, feet, eyes, and ears in the outside world, yet, long before they could ever fulfill their duty, he up and died on them. Since then, they had spent the last ten or so years idling about in the Clan Compound, training, and babysitting the members of the younger generation.

Surprising both Yuriko and Rynka, Yui actually giggled in response to the kunoichi's attempt at a smile. Yuriko, in particular, had a completely stupefied expression on her face as it had easily been more than a decade since she saw anything but a resolute glower on Yui's face.

Since there had only been a single major change since their last meeting, Yuriko couldn't help but ask, "Just who is that man you were escorting? Based on his appearance and cultivation, I assumed he was just some farmer you were tasked with protecting. Could he be...don't tell me he is actually someone important?"

As their mission had only been to hinder Yui, not harm the person she was escorting, Yuriko was genuinely afraid they had committed a grave error by nearly burying him. She also knew Shizune wouldn't be able to restrain her curiosity, so, depending on how things had developed, there was a very real chance she had used him as a guinea pig for her seduction techniques.

Alleviating the vast majority of Yuriko's concerns, Yui waved her hand in a dismissive manner before explaining, "He has a unique viewpoint and the potential to become someone incredibly important in the future. For now, he is merely the Grandson of a former vassal of the Oda Clan. I was escorting him back because the Matriarch requested it. He isn't officially a part of my mission."

Nodding her head in understanding, Yuriko began to approach Yui before stopping a few meters away and asking, "Just to be clear...we're not fighting any longer, are we?"

Surprising both girls, yet again, an amused chuckle emanated from Yui's throat before she quickly adopted a more serious expression and said, "To be honest, there are very few things I would enjoy more than beating everyone involved in this mission. However, as that would be more than a little petty, I'll let you off so long as you return Nobu. He is someone the Matriarch has taken an interest in. If anything happens to him, it is not my wrath you need concern yourselves with..."

Having been under the 'guidance' of the Matriarch several times, an involuntary shiver ran through Yuriko's body as she forced a smile and said, "I...don't have him..."

Though she didn't notice it herself, Yui immediately clenched her hands into fists the moment she heard Yuriko's words. Then, with a severe expression on her face, she asked, "Where is he? Who has him?"

With her smile becoming increasingly wry, Yuriko barely resisted the urge to take a few steps back in response to the pressure radiating from Yui's body. She kind of wished she had, as, the moment she answered, "Shizune..." Yui's aura erupted into a violent tempest as she shouted, "That flowery bitch...!" in a surprisingly feminine expression of outrage...

...

..

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(A/N: It's official. Yui has been corrupted by our boy.)