Chapter 21
Chapter 21: Hormones, Haters, and the Harem King Seal of Approval
"Good night," Jae Gu said with that confident smile he'd recently unlocked—probably after grinding charisma points. "And don't let the date keep you up all night."
He leaned in and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. Smooth. Confident. A perfect mix of respectful and flirty. The kind of move that earns you a thumbs-up from fate and a full 10/10 on the imaginary scorecard of the Harem King himself.
"It's cute that you think you can make me lose sleep," Moon replied, grinning like she already had a better comeback chambered. "See you in the morning with those adorable sleepy eyes."
She turned around and walked into her house with confidence in every step. Jae Gu watched the door close and smirked to himself.
"Hm. I think my prediction might be right," he muttered, already picturing her trying to act all grumpy at training tomorrow but secretly glowing.
Inside the house, Moon's night wasn't over yet.
Lee Moon Gwang, her loving but completely unfiltered father, was waiting in the living room with crossed arms and judgey dad eyes set to maximum power. He looked her up and down like he was scanning her for battle damage.
"I see you're still clean. Honestly thought you might've jumped him already."
Moon blinked. "What the actual fuck, Dad? Do I look like a feral dog in heat to you?"
"I just think you're a little too active sometimes. You've got that wild energy, like your hormones might activate and you'd just… berserker mode him."
"You think hormones are a superpower? What is this, X-Men: Romance Edition?"
Gwang shrugged. "You tell me. Was he respectful?"
Moon rolled her eyes. "Yes, he was a gentleman. No funny business. Zero touching. The guy's cleaner than your gym towels."
"Good," Gwang said, nodding with satisfaction. "I got the vibe he was a decent guy. Meanwhile, you looked like a gorilla in a prom dress."
That did it. She punched him square in the gut—not enough to break anything, but definitely enough to make him wheeze like a broken vacuum.
"I looked fabulous, you blind bat. Maybe go get your vision checked before you mistake a mirror for a trash can."
He winced, rubbing his stomach, but he was grinning. This was how they bonded—through loving insults, roast battles, and occasional punches to the solar plexus.
Moon had long since accepted this weird dynamic as normal. It was how boys acted with their dads, right? So she did the same. And now it was just second nature. With Dal Dal, it was similar: rivals in everything, but Moon wouldn't trade the banter for anything. With Queen, it was different—Moon admired her, envied nothing, and still made fun of her like a champ. Because if you're not laughing at life, what's the point?
"Was it fun?" Gwang asked. And for once, his expression was serious.
Moon blinked. He didn't ask that often. She smiled—really smiled, and it was all teeth and bright eyes.
"Yeah. It was fun."
Gwang raised an eyebrow. "You want to eat with me? I can heat something up."
"Nah," she said, still glowing. "You go ahead. I'm heading up. Good night, old man."
"Night, gorilla."
She flipped him off with a smirk and headed upstairs, still riding the high of the night.
Meanwhile, Gwang remained in the gym-room-turned-living-room, watching her go with narrowed eyes.
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then cracked his knuckles like a bouncer about to throw someone out of a club.
"Guess I'll have a little talk with the young man soon," he muttered. "A real man talk."
It wasn't a threat.
Okay, maybe it was.
But it came from a place of love. The terrifying, overprotective kind.
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Getting to my room, I dropped my jacket like it owed me money and belly-flopped onto the bed with the grace of a sleepy walrus. Shoes? Abandoned at the door like a defeated enemy. Dignity? Somewhere around the third punch I threw during training this morning.
Ceiling. Yep. Still there. Staring at me like, "Wow, girl, you actually went on a date?" And honestly, same.
I mean, me? On a date? With a good-looking guy? That's not a typo, folks. Jaegu had a face like he walked out of a webtoon cover, but more importantly—he wasn't afraid of me. That alone deserved a medal. Maybe two.
Boys usually took one look at me and ran like I had declared myself the CEO of Cooties Incorporated. Or maybe it was the biceps. Or the time I broke a punching bag. Or that one time I tried to fight gravity and jumped off a roof (for science, obviously).
What can I say? I've never done the "normal girl" thing. I raced motorcycles. I climbed buildings just to see if I could. I once tried running across a pool because anime made it look doable. Spoiler: it wasn't.
My idea of romance was knocking someone out—with affection, of course.
So yeah, when Jaegu smiled at me like I wasn't terrifying and actually seemed to enjoy my company? It felt... weird. Not bad weird. Just weird-weird. Like "why is there whipped cream in my ramen" weird. And I kinda liked it?
My dream's always been simple: punch hard, punch fast, and win the Asian Elite Championship to make Dad proud. Climbing to the top of the women's boxing world wasn't going to be easy—heck, it was already near-impossible—but I was willing to get my teeth knocked out trying.
Dad always said, "Get to the top of the women's league first. Then we'll talk about fighting dudes built like refrigerators."
Even Jaegu had that same practical look in his eyes when I mentioned it. But he said something unexpected too.
"You could definitely become a top MMA fighter if you went beyond boxing."
That one hit harder than a right hook.
Sure, I lost to Queen all the time thanks to her insane kicks, but I never considered switching over. I loved boxing. The rhythm, the simplicity, the way a clean jab could rewrite someone's afternoon.
Still, his words stuck in my brain like gum in hair. Maybe he saw something I didn't?
And now I had this relationship thing happening. Was it a fling? Was it serious? Did I need a manual for this? Should I be texting Dal Dal with, "Hey, don't freak out but I think I'm dating your crush"?
Nah. I grinned.
"She's totally going to be jealous. Hehehe."
I rolled over, legs flopped sideways on the bed while my head nearly kissed the floor.
"Ugh. Stop thinking. Not my style."
I launched myself up like a rocket-propelled mess and stared at the demon sitting at my desk.
Homework.
It stared back like a villain from a horror flick. Time for the final boss battle.
"Homework, I'm gonna slay you. Say your prayers—HAH!"
I grabbed my pen like it was a weapon and sat down to conquer the deadliest challenge of the night while blasting a weirdly cheerful song that made brainwashing sound like a party.
♪Okay then!
All right everyone! I'm going to tell you
The things you've been dying to know, the thing's you're not sure about
I'm going to tell you everything!
Well, the reason everyone's happy is because it's your duty
Are you happy? It's your duty! Are you fulfilling it?
We here at the Happiness and Peace of Mind Committee hope for and support the happiness of all
Happiness is your duty
Happiness is your duty
Happiness is your duty
Are you happy? It's your duty!
Happiness is your duty
Happiness is your duty
Happiness is your duty
Are you happy? It's your duty!
So be at peace, and fulfill your duty!
Your happiness is our happiness
Are you happy? It's your duty! Are you fulfilling it?
If you're not happy, there's…
Hanging, beheading, firing squad, boiling, drowning, electrocution,
Immolation, live burial, lethal injection, stoning, sawing, crucifixion,
Take your pick! ♪
"Okay... what kind of culty nightmare lyrics are these?" I muttered.
But I kept writing. I wasn't sure where this thing with Jaegu was going, or what the future held for my boxing dreams, or whether my music taste meant I needed psychological help…
…but for tonight?
I was happy.
And maybe, just maybe, that was enough.
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Rock Lee:
Let me tell you something they don't write in those cheesy relationship manuals: going on a date when you've got ninja trauma, soul-transfer theories, and a destiny to punch in the face is...weird.
Don't get me wrong—dates are fun. Like, really fun. Cute keychains, awkward laughs, food you're too nervous to actually taste—10 out of 10, would recommend. But if you're a guy like me—raised in the world of chakra-chucking psychos and one false move meaning instant kaboom—you don't just stroll through a romantic moment without a few mental survival drills.
Still, here I was. Alive. Breathing. Dating.
Which, considering I had technically died, was already a win.
"So, uh, this is dating, huh?" I muttered to myself, staring at the little matching trinket in my hand like it held the secrets of the universe. Spoiler alert: it didn't. It was just shaped like a dragon punching a heart. Cute, but not exactly profound.
Don't get me wrong. I wanted to be here. This stage of life was important. First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes training your tiny warrior offspring to leap-kick boulders. Totally normal goals. I mean, what else is life for, if not passing down your ultimate taijutsu techniques to your future kids?
People always said romance added color to your life. Right now, mine looked like a toddler had attacked a canvas with glitter paint and a sugar rush. Confusing but not unpleasant.
Young—yeah, her. My girlfriend. The real deal. She's the type who could punch through a concrete wall and still complain about her math homework like a normal teenager. I liked that about her. She was beautiful, strong, unpredictable, and completely terrifying in a way that made you want to follow her into battle and offer her snacks.
When I was with her, things were different than hanging out with the guys. Not better, not worse—just...more. More uncertain. More exciting. More "oh no, what if I say something dumb and ruin this moment forever."
But that's the ninja life, right? Constant danger, emotional landmines, surprise attacks...and occasionally, flowers and holding hands. Go figure.
Now, I knew the dark side of love too. I'd seen strong men brought low by heartbreak. I'd seen women destroy empires over betrayal. In the ninja world, marriage was more of a polite suggestion. Monogamy? Rare. A lot of guys said "don't bother," "just enjoy the ride," "live like a free spirit." But me?
Nah. That wasn't the path I wanted.
I didn't want empty bonds or meaningless flings. I wanted someone to stand beside me when the world was crumbling and still believe we could rebuild it together. And if that meant getting my heart broken in the process? So be it. I'd been hit harder.
Of course, none of this would've happened if I hadn't died first.
Yeah, plot twist. Pretty sure my original body got absolutely vaporized during that last great battle. Chakra storms, flaming jutsu, desperate teleportation jutsus...you know, regular Tuesday. Minato's portal was supposed to save us. Instead, it yeeted my soul across dimensions like a thrown kunai.
Next thing I knew, boom—reborn. New life. New name. Sun Mi's body, to be exact. Yeah, that whole "soul-transfer into a pregnant woman" thing still weirded me out a little, but I've decided not to ask too many questions. Unless a cosmic being shows up to clarify, I'm running with this theory.
Even if I went back, what was waiting? A crater? A wasteland where my family once stood?
Sometimes I'd get flashes of them. My comrades. My senseis. My childhood. Gone in fire, wind, and ash.
It hurt. But I'd built up my resistance to pain, emotional or otherwise. What's one more wound when you've survived death?
No, I wouldn't look away. Not from my past, not from my goals, and definitely not from Young.
This life—whatever it is, wherever it's going—was mine now. And I'd live it with fists raised, heart steady, and eyes forward.
So yeah, going on dates? Pretty fun.
But it's not just about fun. It's about rebuilding from the ashes. About choosing your future, one punch at a time.
And I'm ready for it.
Let's go.