svetikya Chapter 400: Scorpion's Child?
Chapter 400: Scorpion's Child?
Since Yakushi Nonou became the president of the Konoha Research Institute, life at the orphanage has undergone a complete transformation.
The dilapidated wooden house was renovated into a spacious and bright brick house. The children not only had plenty of food and brand-new clothes, but even their monthly allowance was doubled.
Nonou even used her salary and bonuses to purchase many new Konoha household appliances for the orphanage, such as a large refrigerator that can preserve food and an air conditioner that can heat and cool.
However, as Yanjiu Institute's branches sprang up all over the Land of Fire, Nonou became increasingly busy, with very little time to return to the orphanage.
Today, after finally finishing processing a batch of beauty orders from wealthy women, Nono finally managed to spare half a day to happily return to the orphanage, carrying bags full of snacks and toys.
"Children, your headmaster is back!"
Nonou pushed open the orphanage gate with a gentle smile on her face.
However, the scene of children cheering and rushing towards him as expected did not occur.
The courtyard was quiet, with only a few slightly older children hiding behind the pillars in the corridor, peeking curiously into the center of the courtyard.
"What happened?"
Nono followed the children's gaze with a puzzled look, and was immediately stunned.
A group of "uninvited guests" stood on the lawn in the center of the courtyard.
A boy with striking red hair was stiffly holding a small, adorable boy who looked only two or three years old.
The boy's face, which was usually expressionless and even exuded an aura of unapproachability, was now filled with bewilderment and a hint of irritation.
Beside him, Kana Uzumaki and Shizune were surrounding the little boy, holding rattles they had gotten from somewhere, shaking them and making extremely childish "giggle" sounds.
"Good boy, call me sister, and I'll give you candy~" Xiangna smiled like a flower, trying to bribe the little boy with a lollipop.
Jingyin, holding Tuntun in her arms, joined in the fun: "Tuntun, hurry up and perform for the baby! Pfft!"
"Pfft!" Tun Tun obediently spit out a small snot bubble.
However, the little boy wasn't interested in Chanel's candy or the silent pig. He just clung tightly to the red-haired boy's collar, buried his head in the boy's neck, and looked around timidly with his big, bright black eyes.
Standing at the doorway, watching this bizarre scene, Nono's brain began to work frantically.
A boy who looks about fourteen or fifteen years old.
A two- or three-year-old boy.
There were also two girls next to him who were clearly helping to entertain the child.
"That red-haired boy... isn't he Scorpion, the genius puppeteer from the Science Research Institute? Kana and Shizune often go to the institute to play..."
Nonou's gaze swept back and forth between Sasori's delicate face and the little boy's pink face.
She wondered if it was just her imagination, but she felt that there was a faint resemblance between the two people's eyes and brows!
An extremely bold and melodramatic script instantly took shape in Nono's mind.
"A young prodigy, in his youthful arrogance, unexpectedly becomes pregnant. Unable to raise the child due to his busy work schedule, he secretly travels to an orphanage with his young illegitimate child and two kind female friends to seek help..."
Nonou gasped, instinctively covering her mouth with her hand, but the exclamation still escaped her lips:
"Are kids these days...so open-minded?!"
Although the exclamation was not loud, it sounded exceptionally clear in the quiet courtyard.
"Why?"
Kana stopped shaking the rattle and turned around with a blank look on her face: "Nonou-neechan, you're back? What's open?"
Scorpion still had that dead fish-like look in his eyes, but he slightly turned his head and glanced at Nono with the look of someone looking at an idiot.
And silence...
Shizune was stunned for a moment, then she seemed to suddenly understand the meaning behind Nono's words. Her whole face turned bright red, and even her ears were practically steaming!
"No, no, no! Dean Nonou, you've misunderstood! You've completely misunderstood!"
Jingyin waved her hands frantically, almost throwing the baby in her arms out of her arms.
Her face flushed, and she began to explain incoherently:
"This...this child isn't Senior Scorpion's! Nor is he ours! He...we found him during a mission!"
"Found it?" Nono was stunned for a moment, and the melodramatic script in her mind instantly collapsed.
"Yeah yeah!"
Kana also realized what was going on. Although she didn't fully understand what Nonou meant by "openness," she knew from Shizune's reaction that it wasn't a compliment.
She quickly ran over and grabbed Nono's hand, chattering away as she explained:
"Nonou-neechan, don't overthink it! Kushina-neechan took on a mission a few days ago, asking us to help a caravan find its lost goods."
"We found this little guy in a dilapidated house that had been ransacked by robbers. There was no one around, and he was just crying there. Kushina said that the area had been rather unsafe lately, so he must be an orphan."
Kana pointed to the little boy in Scorpion's arms, her tone somewhat helpless.
"We felt we couldn't leave him alone in that place, so we brought him back to the village. Kushina-neechan originally said she wanted to adopt the baby; she loves children, but..."
"But Lady Tsunade disagrees," Shizune continued, blushing. "Lady Tsunade said she doesn't mind adopting a child herself, but Kushina isn't married yet. If she suddenly brings a child back, even if Minato-senpai doesn't mind, there will inevitably be gossip in the village. So..."
Jingyin looked around and breathed a sigh of relief: "So after thinking it over, we felt it was better to send him here. After all, the orphanage is better now, and the baby will receive better care here."
After hearing Shizune and Kana's explanations, Nono finally breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time felt a little embarrassed by her own absurd imagination.
"Oh, I see. I'm so sorry, I was overthinking it."
Nono gave a gentle smile, walked up to Sasori, and reached out to take the child.
"Leave him to me, I'll take good care of him. Little one, come here, let me give you a hug~"
However, just as Nono's hand touched the little boy's clothes...
"Waaaaaahh ...
The little boy, who had been quietly nestled in Scorpion's arms, suddenly burst into a deafening cry.
He clung tightly to Sasori's clothes, not only refusing to let Nono hug him, but even trying to burrow into Sasori's arms with both hands and feet.
"Oh dear, this..." Nonou awkwardly withdrew her hand.
"it's useless."
Scorpion finally spoke, his voice filled with deep weariness and helplessness.
He stiffly patted the little boy's back, trying to calm him down, but the clumsy action clearly did little to soothe him.
"This little rascal is weird; he wants me to carry him when he gets tired."
Sasori's eye twitched; this brat was much more troublesome than a Jinchūriki.
He only stops crying when I hold him.
Seeing this genius boy, who had shone brightly in the Chunin Exams, being completely outmaneuvered by a two- or three-year-old toddler, Nono, Kana, and Shizune exchanged glances and couldn't help but cover their mouths and chuckle.