Dispute Sparked by the Lion's Head

At noon, it was lunchtime.

Renye had brought a packed lunch ahead of time and didn't go home to eat.

He wasn't alone in this...

Training was already grueling enough—who had the energy to go home for a meal?

"Renye-kun, what's this?"

Motoya Nara was completely captivated by the plump, glossy, richly colored Braised Lion's Head in Renye's lunchbox.

The surface of the meatball was coated in a tempting sauce, and just looking at it stirred up a fierce appetite.

Motoya Nara's throat moved involuntarily as he stared at the Lion's Head with longing.

Seeing this, how could Renye not know what was on the guy's mind?

"Here, try one."

"Really? Thanks, Renye-kun!" Overjoyed, Motoya Nara took the Lion's Head Renye handed him and ate it with his rice ball.

The soft, tender Lion's Head, the fragrant sauce, and the plain rice ball collided on his tongue. Motoya Nara's cheeks puffed out as he squinted in satisfaction and mumbled, "So good, I love it!"

Clearly, he was a foodie.

He had no other hobbies—just enjoying good food and sleeping.

Renye smiled faintly. "Glad you like it."

Having someone genuinely appreciate his cooking made him happy.

The commotion drew the attention of those nearby.

Their gazes all landed on the Braised Lion's Head.

Looking at that tempting meatball, then at their own plain lunches, they suddenly found their food tasteless.

"Danzo, I want some!" Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at his friend.

They were closest to Renye and could clearly smell the aroma wafting from the Lion's Head.

"Don't be so pathetic, Hiruzen!" Danzo Shimura scolded irritably, but his bobbing Adam's apple gave him away.

He wanted some too, but he couldn't swallow his pride and do something so embarrassing.

After all, he'd had a conflict with Uchiha Renye before.

If he went scampering over, what would others think of him?

Unless he didn't want to stay in Konoha anymore.

Hiruzen Sarutobi watched as Renye kept popping Lion's Heads into his mouth, and seeing the delicious meatballs dwindle, he knew he couldn't just keep staring.

So he walked over to Renye.

Seeing this, Danzo Shimura panicked. "Hiruzen, what are you doing? Get back here!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi ignored his friend's shouts.

Right now, he only wanted to taste the Lion's Head.

"Damn it, that guy's been seduced by food!" Danzo Shimura's face darkened as he watched silently.

He never thought Hiruzen would be conquered by a meal—how shameful.

"Renye-kun, try some of my Tempura." Hiruzen Sarutobi cheerfully held out his lunchbox.

Renye was a bit surprised by Hiruzen's move, but he quickly noticed the other's gaze fixed on the last Lion's Head.

He immediately understood—so he was after the Lion's Head.

"Thanks, Hiruzen."

Renye picked up a piece of Tempura and put it in his mouth.

It tasted decent. He'd had enough Lion's Head, so a change of flavor was welcome.

Seeing Renye eat it, Hiruzen Sarutobi grinned. "Renye-kun, what's this?"

He pointed at the Lion's Head, looking puzzled.

"This is Braised Lion's Head I made myself. It's not bad. Want to try some?" Renye asked.

"Can I?"

"Of course."

With Renye's permission, Hiruzen Sarutobi quickly picked up the Lion's Head and placed it in his own lunchbox.

"Renye-kun, thank you so much for sharing your food."

After greeting him, Hiruzen Sarutobi turned and jogged back to his friend.

"Danzo, look!" Hiruzen Sarutobi held up the Lion's Head, waving it in front of Danzo's eyes, his triumph undisguised.

Danzō Shimura closed his eyes, pretending to rest. Hearing the commotion, he slowly opened them.

He put on a curious expression. "What's that?"

"Heh heh, Renye says this is called lion's head meatball." Hiruzen Sarutobi said cheerfully.

"Let me see." Danzō Shimura leaned in toward the lion's head meatball.

At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi still hadn't realized the gravity of the situation, and kept rambling on about how he'd obtained the last lion's head meatball.

Danzō Shimura stared at the lion's head meatball right in front of him, a smug smile of success spreading across his face. "Hiruzen, you're still too naive!"

With that, he suddenly opened his mouth wide.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart jolted. He tried to pull his hand back, but it was already too late...

In the blink of an eye, Danzō Shimura had already stuffed the lion's head meatball into his mouth.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes flew wide in shock at this sudden move, his hand still frozen in the position of holding the meatball up.

His face was a picture of disbelief. It took him several seconds to snap out of it, and then he roared in fury:

"Danzō, you animal!"

As for Danzō Shimura, his cheeks were bulging as he chewed and mumbled indistinctly, "The flavor really isn't bad!"

Seeing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes went bloodshot, his glare fierce.

If he were from the Uchiha Clan, he'd probably be Awakening the eyes right about now.

"Danzō, you bastard!"

This lion's head meatball had been so hard for him to get!

Danzō had gone way too far!

Renye had just finished eating and was lounging lazily under a tree, ready to enjoy a nice nap.

Just then, he suddenly heard a commotion not far away.

"What's going on?"

Renye looked puzzled and followed the sound—only to freeze.

There, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzō Shimura were tangled up, brawling.

Renye: "???"

Aren't these two supposed to be best buddies?

How did they end up fighting?

"Danzō, give me back my lion's head meatball!"

"Hey, you're actually hitting me for real?"

Hearing their exchange, Renye finally understood and couldn't help but laugh and shake his head.

He never thought a lion's head meatball would be the cause of the conflict.

"That Danzō really is a piece of work..."

No wonder he was the Pot Hokage—he'd shown his dark side even as a kid, scheming against his own best friend.

"Stop fighting, you two!"

One student tried to step in and break it up, but the two were so heated that they ended up hitting him too.

Seeing that, everyone else immediately dropped any thought of mediating.

From then on, Class A had an unwritten rule—never try to break up a fight.

The ruckus soon caught Takuma Senju's attention.

"Everyone, stop right now!"

Hearing their homeroom teacher's voice, the two, now bruised and swollen, instantly halted.

Takuma Senju's face was dark. "Who told you to fight?"

They both hung their heads in silence.

They knew the teacher was furious right now, and the best thing to do was say nothing...

Seeing them stay quiet, Takuma Senju scanned the crowd and sneered, "You like fighting so much? Then this afternoon, we'll have practical combat training. You can fight to your heart's content!"

Renye: "..."

Class A: "..."

They hadn't expected that just watching the excitement would land them in trouble.

In an instant, everyone shot resentful glares at the two.

Clearly, Danzō Shimura and Hiruzen Sarutobi had incurred the wrath of the whole class.

"This is all your fault!" Danzō Shimura muttered under his breath.

"If you hadn't stolen my lion's head meatball, would I have started it?!" Hiruzen Sarutobi was nearly fainting with rage.

That bastard Danzō was actually trying to turn the blame around!

Hiruzen Sarutobi clenched his fists, a decision made in his heart.

During this afternoon's practical combat training, he was going to beat Danzō to a pulp!