Naruto: Choosing from Birth — Chapter 20

"The full name is the Special Assassination and Tactical Squad!"

"It's a special forces unit!"

And since when did the Will of Fire become your family's symbol?

That was Konoha's symbol!

That was me! The Will of Fire, Konoha's distinctive socialist Nindo theory, authored by the great Professor of Ninjutsu.

The Third Hokage's forehead veins throbbed. For the first time, he realized that the teachers and students at the Ninja Academy had apparently been living in dire straits all along.

"Isn't that still assassination? Underhanded, way too underhanded. My father told me that when facing an enemy, you should defeat them openly and honestly, make them submit wholeheartedly. Assassination and sneak attacks are always crooked paths. If you get obsessed with that stuff, you'll never reach the pinnacle of strength."

"Besides, my father told me to join the Konoha Military Police Force after graduation! Facing the rising sun, with spring blossoms blooming! You'd look incredibly impressive just walking down the street."

So you were just messing with me!

But the Third Hokage understood. It seemed this brat had made up his mind long ago.

"Get out! I never want to see you again!"

If he weren't worried about the Uchiha Clan finding another excuse to cause trouble, he really wanted to give this kid a good beating and teach him a lesson.

Hoo...

No, a politician's self-cultivation, a politician's self-cultivation...

"Hokage, I remembered! Your name was listed as the author of the Will of Fire. How did you manage to write such a long work? That's incredible!"

"Get out... Stop being a brat. If you really think it's incredible, why do you get zero every time? Get out..."

Uchiha Cheng skipped toward the school gates, ready to head to Hundred Delicacies District for a feast.

"Oh, right. Nomura-sensei, I'll leave the ninja tools on the field to you. Give them to the students as gifts."

His voice drifted over from outside the school.

Nomura looked at the Third Hokage, whose angry expression had long since vanished.

He shook his head with a helpless smile and went to gather the ninja tools scattered all over the ground...*

"Thanks again, Cheng-nii, for bringing us victory."

"Yeah. We misunderstood Cheng-nii before. He bullied us so we could all improve. Look at those two big guys from Cloud Village—that was real bullying."

"Tragic! One of them looked like a pig's head, and two of his front teeth got knocked out. His words leak air now. The other had all three of his ninja swords shattered and got kicked off the arena. He still hasn't woken up. He's probably heartbroken and doesn't want to wake up."

"One word: poor. If he weren't poor, would he have used so many metal scraps as swords? Sigh, I suggest he switch villages and come to Konoha. At least Konoha is the richest."

"Hey, brothers from Cloud Village, eat up. Don't stand on ceremony with us. It's not like we're paying."

We aren't paying! Our village has to pay! The Kumogakure Students found this Konoha friendship meal particularly hard to swallow.

By the time Uchiha Cheng arrived at Hundred Delicacies District, his classmates were already eating with great enthusiasm.

Even the initially reserved Kumogakure Students had loosened up and were stuffing themselves. They were all still kids, after all. There was no grudge too deep to share a meal over.

At that moment, Choza Akimichi was surrounded by people. He was competing in eating with Killer B, who had awakened and was now devouring food.

Seeing them battle so intensely, the students nearby joined in one after another.

They spontaneously started an eating contest.

"Eat! I'm a professional!"

With his mouth stuffed full of food, Choza Akimichi patted his round belly and spoke.

"Ninja Art: Multi-Size Technique!"

In an instant, his entire body expanded by a size. After swinging his arms and stretching a little, he once again threw himself into the mountain of food before him.

But at the same time, both his Chakra and the food in his stomach were being consumed at a rapid pace.

"My god, Ninjutsu can be used like that?"

"Doesn't that count as cheating?"

"I'm convinced by the way you Konoha people use Ninjutsu."

The surrounding students immediately erupted into a noisy commotion.

When they noticed Uchiha Cheng had arrived, a huge crowd of little fans swarmed around him.

"Hello, Cheng-nii! I prepared grilled corn for you."

"Get out of the way. What's so good about grilled corn? Look at mine—grilled octopus! It smells amazing!"

"Gross. It looks all limp and makes me lose my appetite. Cheng-nii, I prepared grilled chicken wings for you."

Faced with his classmates' enthusiasm, Uchiha Cheng waved a hand.

"No. I appreciate everyone's kindness. Don't be polite with me, everyone. Eat as much as you want, and if you can't finish, pack it up and take it home!"

"Also, make sure to treat our generous benefactors, our friends from Cloud Village, well. They may have arrived crying, but they must leave smiling, or people will think we were poor hosts and won't dare come back next time."

"Got it, Cheng-nii!"

"Don't worry, Cheng-nii!"

After dismissing his classmates, Uchiha Cheng found Mikoto Uchiha.

At that moment, Mikoto Uchiha, Kushina Uzumaki, and the others were quietly grilling beef skewers.

When she saw Uchiha Cheng approach, Mikoto brushed back the Hidan by her forehead and handed him the grilled meat she had prepared, brushed with honey and Lao Gan Ma.

"My little sister sure is thoughtful. You know my tastes."

Uchiha Cheng took the grilled meat and began eating it in huge bites.

Mikoto said nothing. A glistening drop of sweat hung from her fair, adorable nose, and she watched Uchiha Cheng feast with a gentle smile.

"Hmph! You didn't even say thank you. Mikoto spent a long time grilling that." Kushina said unhappily from beside them.

"If it were you, I'd thank you. But Mikoto is family, so why say such things? Even if she wanted the moon from the sky, I'd pluck it down for her."

Uchiha Cheng shot back at Kushina.

"Wh-who's family with you?" Mikoto's little face instantly flushed red. She turned away and began grilling corn.

"Hmph!!!"

Kushina took a vicious bite out of a chicken wing and turned her face away, unwilling to pay attention to a certain someone.

After finishing every bit of grilled food, Uchiha Cheng personally began grilling delicious food for Mikoto as well.

Just then, Kushina suddenly handed him a seasoned grilled chicken wing.

"What's this? Unprovoked kindness usually means someone's up to no good."

"You... Hmph!!! I won't lower myself to your level."

"I... I just wanted to ask Cheng-nii to teach me how to train."

"Ding! Faced with Kushina Uzumaki's request, please choose."

"1: Refuse directly. You're still a child yourself, so don't go teaching others! Reward: Sand Armor! Sand Armor possesses powerful defensive strength. It is said to even thicken one's skin."

"2: Agree to guide Kushina's training. Reward: Medical Ninjutsu: Mystical Palm Technique! Bumps and bruises are unavoidable during training. What you need at times like this is a 'mobile hospital.'"

"3: Ignore Kushina. Neither refuse nor agree. Reward: Silent Killing Technique! Hidden Mist Technique! Sometimes, when you don't know how to deal with something, it's best to turn invisible first and calm down."

Hmm, the rewards for every option were pretty good, and they all seemed fitting.

But forget the Sand Armor. Even bullets can't pierce my skin—why would I need Sand Armor to reinforce it?

As for the Mystical Palm Technique, that high-level Medical Ninjutsu wasn't something just anyone could learn. No, plenty of medical ninja couldn't even use it.

In that case...

"Guide your training? That's not impossible!"

Uchiha Cheng accepted the grilled chicken wing.

"You agreed?"

Kushina's face lit up with excitement. With Uchiha Cheng's guidance, she was one step closer to her goal of becoming a female Hokage.

"However... you have to eat this entire roasted lamb leg!"

Uchiha Cheng tore off a whole lamb leg and placed it on the grill.

Judging by its size, it could conservatively equal several whole roast chickens.

"Huh?"

Kushina stared at the enormous lamb leg, her gaze gradually turning vacant.

Sure enough, I knew there would be countless hardships and obstacles on the path to becoming Hokage.

If I can't even get past the eating challenge, what right do I have to pursue becoming Hokage?