The one sobbing bitterly in the alley was none other than Might Guy, who called himself "Konoha's Proud Azure Beast"!
He had originally come to retrieve his bag of chestnuts, but he never expected to overhear Zhang Miao's assessment of his father.
The Third Shinobi World War had only ended not long ago, so after hearing Zhang Miao's words, Might Guy immediately recalled that green figure standing in front of him when they faced the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
That was the back of someone called "Father"!
To protect the younger generation of ninja, Might Duy had stood alone before the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, showing everyone the way of survival he had staked his life on.
With his life, Duy had passed on to the younger generation of ninja the way a ninja ought to live.
But regrettably, like most ninja who died in the Third Shinobi World War, Might Duy was like a small stone tossed into a pond. After sending out a few ripples, he quickly vanished, and very few people remembered him. No one had ever called him a hero.
But now, a little child could so clearly recount his father's achievements, place him on equal footing with the renowned Konoha White Fang, and even call him a "true hero." How could that not move Might Guy?
At that moment, Might Guy decided to forgive Kakashi.
"Kakashi, since I was able to meet a boy who recognizes my father, I'll forgive you for telling others about the acorns!"
He wiped away his tears, clenched his fists, and suddenly became fired up with fighting spirit.
"Kakashi! Let us stake our youth on a blazing showdown!"
With that, Might Guy took off running again, and soon only a billowing cloud of dust remained in the street.
While Might Guy searched everywhere for Kakashi, preparing for a "showdown of youth," Zhang Miao was at his residence, staring wide-eyed at the newly assigned Anbu.
Zhang Miao: "Stare—"
Anbu: "..."
The new Anbu was a young man wearing a pointed-beak mask. Under Zhang Miao's stare, he immediately began to feel uneasy and subconsciously turned his face away.
But to his surprise, the moment he turned away, he found the red-haired child standing before him again, asking, "Pointy Beak, where's Uncle Cat Face? Where did he go?"
"Uh... the squad captain, he..."
He was just about to speak when a voice from beside him interrupted him.
"Owl!"
Upon hearing that voice, the pointed-beak-masked Anbu codenamed Owl immediately fell silent.
Seeing this, Zhang Miao sighed helplessly, then turned with an unhappy expression toward the slender figure walking over.
"Hey, Sister Nightingale, don't you know it's very rude to interrupt someone when they're speaking... Ow..."
Before Zhang Miao could finish the last word, two slender fingers pinched his cheek, and his little face immediately twisted in misery.
"Pinching someone's face for no reason is also very rude. Let go already, mm... it hurts..."
"Hmph!"
Hearing Zhang Miao's words, Nightingale snorted coldly. Not only did she not release his cheek, she glared at him in annoyance.
"Then wasn't it rude of you to falsely accuse someone this morning? And besides, is that part of a girl's body something you can touch whenever you want? Hmm?"
"Ah... ow, ow, ow, ow..."
Feeling Nightingale tighten her grip, Zhang Miao immediately cried out and begged for mercy.
"Sister Nightingale, I was wrong. I won't dare pinch you again next time... mmph mmph mmph..."
Before Zhang Miao could finish, Nightingale hurriedly covered his mouth. Then, blushing, she nodded toward the curious-looking Anbu beside them.
"Owl, go out first!"
"Yes!"
At Nightingale's words, the pointed-beak-masked Anbu answered and turned to leave. Only after he was gone did Nightingale remove the hand covering Zhang Miao's mouth and pinch his little cheek again.
"Uzumaki Ryunosuke, I'm warning you: you are not allowed to tell anyone about this. Otherwise, just see how I deal with you! Hmph!"
With that, Nightingale turned and walked out, leaving Zhang Miao standing there with a blank expression.
"Uh..."
Staring at the closed door, Zhang Miao was stunned for a while before shaking his head helplessly.
"Sigh, women really are unreasonable. I'm still a child!"
After saying that, Zhang Miao walked over to Naruto's little bed and slowly raised his hand.
"Foolish little brother, feel your big brother's Iron Palm of Love! Smack!"
"Waaah, waaah, waaah..."
As Naruto's cries rang out, the system notification immediately followed.
"Ding—Congratulations, Host, you have obtained Nine-Star Ninja Naruto Uzumaki (Asura) Fragment x1, Eight-Star Tailed Beast Kurama (Yang) Fragment x4!"
Hearing the notification, Zhang Miao finally smiled in satisfaction, then turned toward the door and shouted.
"Sister Nightingale, come in and feed him!"
Nightingale: "..."
Hearing Zhang Miao shouting from inside the room, Nightingale now regretted not leaving with Takumu.
But because Zhang Miao had misled her earlier, she had slapped Takumu, leaving Nightingale unsure how to face him.
"This hateful little brat!"
But Naruto's loud crying was no joke. Remembering the Third Hokage's instructions, Nightingale could only grit her teeth and open the door to enter.
"Wasn't he fine just now? Why did he suddenly start crying?"
"Who knows?" Hearing Nightingale's question, Zhang Miao shrugged innocently. "Maybe he's hungry. Just feed him some milk!"
After saying that, Zhang Miao tossed a chestnut into his mouth and crunched it loudly. When he was done, he even lifted his chin at Nightingale.
"Sister Nightingale, want some chestnuts?"
"Hmph!"
Looking at Zhang Miao gnawing on a huge bag of chestnuts, Nightingale snorted again, then turned and went into the kitchen to prepare formula, muttering under her breath.
"This little monster!"
Although she said that, Nightingale was genuinely amazed by Zhang Miao.
Ordinary children needed more than a year before they could talk and walk, and most had to be two years old before they could walk and run independently. Even then, most of their speech came from imitating adults.
But Ryunosuke was different!
Not only had his body developed exceptionally quickly, looking like a one-and-a-half-year-old child at just six months old, but he had also learned to walk and run within a few days without anyone's help.
The Hokage had even sent medical ninja to examine him, but they found nothing unusual. In the end, they could only classify it as the power of the Uzumaki Clan's Kekkei Genkai.
But that was nothing. What amazed Nightingale most was Zhang Miao's intelligence. He had actually escaped while under the watch of two Anbu, and even used his identity as a child to frame his fellow Anbu—and succeeded!
It was simply unbelievable!
If the Hokage had not personally told her the truth, Nightingale would never have believed that a child under one year old could have done such a thing!
Without a doubt, he was a genius!
So when Nightingale saw Kakashi and Zhang Miao together, she could not help sighing. "Birds of a feather flock together!"
In Nightingale's eyes, Kakashi—who had graduated from the Ninja Academy at five, become a Chunin at six, and advanced to Jonin at twelve—was undoubtedly Konoha's most dazzling genius.
And Zhang Miao, if nothing unexpected happened, might someday become a genius no less remarkable than Kakashi!
"Perhaps I'm witnessing the growth of a genius!"
At that thought, Nightingale felt an inexplicable sense of pride and excitement.
Unfortunately, that excitement was quickly doused without mercy, because before she could finish preparing the formula and leave the kitchen, Zhang Miao's voice reached her ears again.
"Hey, Sister Nightingale, do you have a boyfriend? How about taking off your mask and letting me have a look? If you're decent-looking, I'll reluctantly take you as my Eighteenth Concubine. How about it?"
Eighteenth Concubine?
Hearing Zhang Miao's words, Nightingale nearly crushed the baby bottle in her hand!
"This hateful little brat!"
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