Youth Sustenance Pills

After Kakashi left to carry out a mission, Nightingale left as well. Zhang Miao found his days even more boring than before.

Every day, aside from having a so-called "battle of youth" with Might Guy at the front door, he spent his time playing with Naruto around the house and nurturing their brotherly bond.

Zhang Miao felt that if this went on, boredom would surely kill him.

The only thing that gave Zhang Miao a little comfort was that although Nightingale had left, Owl was still quite dutiful. He was remarkably efficient at feeding Naruto and changing his diapers, so Zhang Miao did not have to worry about any of it.

In fact, he had never worried about it at all.

When the first rays of morning sunlight shone into the house, Zhang Miao got up, picked up Naruto, and ran to the doorway with a thump-thump-thump to bask in the sun, while sending Owl off to make formula.

As expected of an Anbu elite, Owl moved with great efficiency. Before long, he came out of the kitchen holding a bottle of prepared formula.

"Here!"

"Thanks, Owl!"

After thanking him, Zhang Miao took the bottle and pressed it against his cheek to check its temperature.

The bottle was still a little hot. Zhang Miao frowned, still feeling uneasy, so he simply put the nipple into his own mouth and took two sips. Only after confirming that it was fine did he feed it to Naruto.

Watching Zhang Miao go through that entire routine, Owl, wearing a Pointy Beak mask, helplessly shook his head.

"Ryunosuke, I think you could take very good care of Naruto even on your own!"

By now, Owl had grown familiar with Zhang Miao and had gotten used to all sorts of his behavior. Naturally, he no longer regarded Zhang Miao as an ordinary child.

And Zhang Miao was as punchable as ever.

"Take care of him by myself?" Hearing Owl's words, Zhang Miao let out a long yawn and shook his head. "No, no. I'm really not good at changing a kid's poop diapers!"

Owl: "..."

Damn it, just because you're not good at changing poop diapers, does that mean I'm good at it? Uh... I actually do seem pretty good at it...

No! That's not the point!

The point was, why had an elite Anbu like him become, in this brat's eyes, someone who was good at changing poop diapers?

This kid was infuriating!

At that thought, Owl really wanted to grab Zhang Miao and give him a beating. But when he considered how much the Hokage valued the two brothers, Zhang Miao and Naruto, Owl ultimately did not dare lay a hand on him.

Just as Owl was wondering if there was some way to teach this brat Zhang Miao a lesson, a familiar laugh sounded from nearby.

"Hahaha! Ryunosuke, stake your youth and have a blazing battle with me!"

Owl: "..."

Upon hearing that voice, Owl knew who it was without even looking up.

Might Guy!

Owl had to admit, he was somewhat impressed by this thick-browed youth with a watermelon haircut and a green jumpsuit.

For some time now, this guy had brought a huge pile of food every day to challenge Zhang Miao. Day after day, he never missed a single one.

The foods came in all varieties too: chestnuts, rice balls, Mitarashi Dango, tempura, even potato chips, cup noodles, biscuits, and more. Unfortunately, he had never won against Zhang Miao even once, and every time, he ended up sending himself to Leaf Village Hospital.

Yet this guy was exceptionally tenacious. The moment he got out of the hospital the next day, he would immediately bring food over to challenge Zhang Miao again. He was practically the textbook example of losing repeatedly yet fighting on again and again!

At the same time, Zhang Miao's stomach was one of the things that shocked Owl the most. When he had heard Nightingale say that Zhang Miao could drink five large bottles of milk in one sitting when he was one month old, he had found it unbelievable. But now that he saw it for himself, he completely believed it.

Damn it, this kid's stomach was a bottomless pit!

With that in mind, Owl's gaze toward Might Guy filled with sympathy.

Competing in appetite against a little monster like that? Good luck to you.

Perhaps because Owl was wearing a mask, Might Guy failed to notice his sympathetic gaze. Seeing Owl look at him, he immediately gave him a thumbs-up.

"Senior Anbu, I'll definitely work hard this time!"

As he said that, he grinned at Owl, and a dazzling gleam flashed across his pearly white teeth.

At that sight, Owl felt a cold drop of sweat emerge at the back of his head.

Was this kid okay?

In fact, Might Guy was still fine at the moment, but he would soon not be, because Zhang Miao had finished feeding Naruto and rose to his feet.

After spending the past few days together, Owl had learned Zhang Miao's routine. Before Zhang Miao could say anything, he proactively took Naruto from his hands.

Seeing Owl being so "sensible," Zhang Miao immediately gave him an approving look.

"Mm, not bad. You're quite perceptive. If you can't make it in the Anbu someday, you can come work for me as a private nanny!"

Owl: "..."

Nanny my ass! If it weren't for the Hokage's orders, did you think I'd want anything to do with you?

And even if I couldn't make it in the Anbu someday, I could still be an ordinary ninja. Why the hell would I become your nanny?

This kid was way too infuriating!

Owl had already made up his mind. Once the Third Hokage returned, he would definitely apply for a different mission. As long as this damned brat Zhang Miao was around, this job was impossible to do!

Zhang Miao had no idea what Owl was thinking. After handing Naruto over to him, he put on his shoes, jumped down from the corridor outside the house, and slowly walked over to Might Guy.

"Hey, Acorn Guy, what are we competing to eat today? With such a small basket, I'm afraid there won't be enough, right?" Zhang Miao raised an eyebrow as he looked at the basket in Might Guy's hand.

"Hehehe!"

Hearing Zhang Miao's words, Might Guy immediately chuckled, then whipped off the cloth covering the basket, revealing a huge pile of black pellets.

Looking at the basket filled to the brim with fist-sized black balls, Gao Ming blinked.

"What the hell are these black lumps? Are you sure they're edible?"

"Of course they are!"

As soon as Zhang Miao finished speaking, Might Guy took out a black pellet from the basket and looked at Zhang Miao with a solemn expression.

"These are my homemade Youth Sustenance Pills! They are the ultimate ration pills, made from over twenty ingredients brimming with the vigor of youth, including deer antler, ginseng, persimmons, pork skin, and more! Eat just one, and your whole body will be filled with strength! Ryunosuke, let us settle this in a contest!"

Zhang Miao: "..."

Damn it, eating that thing would kill someone, wouldn't it? It would definitely kill someone, right?

Zhang Miao looked at the large black pellets in the basket with utter disgust, firmly deciding that he would never eat one.

But there was no way he would simply admit defeat either. His eyes darted around, and then he smiled at Might Guy.

"Hey, Acorn Guy, since these are your homemade ultimate ration pills, how about this? As long as you can eat this entire basket in one go and remain perfectly fine, you win this contest!"

"Really?" The moment he heard Zhang Miao's words, Might Guy perked up, his eyes shining as he stared at him. "If I eat them all, I win?"

"Of course!"

Seeing Might Guy's eager expression, Zhang Miao immediately nodded.

"Owl is here too; he can be our witness. But let me make this clear—if you throw up after finishing them, or get food poisoning, then I win!"

"Alright! No problem!"

Might Guy was utterly confident in his own creation. After agreeing, he reached into the basket with both hands, grabbed two large black pellets, and shouted.

"Let's eat! Awooooooo..."

Zhang Miao: "..."

Owl: "..."