Snatching Bells

Inside the Sarutobi Clan Territory.

Masahiko was wandering around out of boredom, while Hashirama and Tobirama had already been invited into the reception hall to discuss the alliance. In truth, before the war had even begun, they were already discussing how to divide the benefits.

Masahiko had no desire to listen to their wrangling, so he came out alone for a stroll.

The Sarutobi Clan Territory was quite large. Though it could not compare to the Senju or Uzumaki, it was no worse than the Kaguya.

Come to think of it, the entire western part of the Land of Fire felt sparsely populated, and the land was not particularly fertile either.

"Could it be because it's close to the Land of Wind, and the land has undergone severe desertification?"

Masahiko recalled another technical term from his previous life—land desertification—and instantly felt that his cultural level had risen.

Lost in those random thoughts, Masahiko gradually made his way to a corner of the Sarutobi Clan Territory.

There, he discovered two youths sparring with each other.

The two youths were only around twelve or thirteen, about the age Naruto had graduated, yet their strength had already reached the level of Standard Jonin.

Watching them, Masahiko felt an inexplicable awkwardness. If he had not been able to obtain Witness Points, his own strength would only have broken through to Standard Jonin when he was nearly forty-nine.

"Kids these days really don't leave anyone else a way to live..." Masahiko muttered.

Hearing his voice, the two youths stopped sparring and looked over at Masahiko in confusion. Clearly, it was their first time seeing someone with red hair.

One of them hesitated before speaking. "I heard that the Uzumaki Clan members in the far east of the Land of Fire have red hair. Uncle, are you from the Uzumaki Clan?"

Hearing the youth call him uncle, Masahiko was delighted. Being Hashirama and Tobirama's Second Grandfather felt great, but being called that by them always made him feel old. So he smiled and said,

"Young man, you've got a good eye!"

It was unclear whether he was praising the youth for recognizing him as an Uzumaki Clan member at once, or for calling him uncle.

The two youths exchanged a glance, clearly unable to understand why Masahiko was so happy.

The other youth hesitated, then asked, "Uncle, did you come here... for something?"

"Nothing. Just taking a stroll," Masahiko replied with a smile. "Since I have nothing better to do, and I happened upon the two of you sparring, I think you look rather pleasing. Let me give you some pointers!"

"Rasengan!" As he spoke, Masahiko condensed a Rasengan and slammed it into the ground, raising a cloud of dust.

"See this hand-signless ninjutsu? I have a bell here—it's a Shuriken Transformation Technique. Whoever snatches it from me, I'll teach this ninjutsu to." Masahiko was clearly indulging in a bit of mischief as he played the bell-snatching game.

The two youths looked at each other, then at the huge crater the Rasengan had left behind. They were clearly tempted. At the same time, they said, "Then we won't hold back!"

Afterward, neither of them rushed forward immediately. Instead, they tentatively threw several Kunai before hiding in nearby bushes.

Clearly, children who had cultivated to the Jonin level during the Warring States era were far more capable than single-minded Naruto. At a glance, they could tell Masahiko was not weak and knew to plan before acting.

However, Masahiko was not Kakashi. He possessed the Uzumaki Clan's Perception Ability, so their hiding was completely useless against him.

To avoid dampening the two youths' enthusiasm, Masahiko still pretended to search all around. Yet his acting was truly terrible. Searching around was one thing, but why was he looking up at the sky? It was not as if the two youths knew Buddha's Palm... In any case, his intention to lure them into attacking was far too obvious.

Sure enough, within Masahiko's perception, the two youths quickly changed their hiding places.

And so, the game of hide-and-seek continued for ten minutes, leaving Masahiko somewhat embarrassed.

"Alright, stop hiding... I'm half a sensory ninja. Even if you hide until tomorrow, you won't be able to sneak attack me."

Upon hearing this, the two youths jumped out from the bushes, their faces flushed, and chose to attack head-on.

"Ken!" one of the youths shouted.

"Got it, Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere!" the other youth answered, spitting several high-pressure wind spheres from his mouth toward Masahiko.

His original intention was to provide a feint for the other youth. Though there was only one bell, ninjutsu could be taught to each other after learning it, so there was no need for them to fight separately.

Unexpectedly, Masahiko dodged this feint rather awkwardly.

The youth who had been waiting for an opportunity to snatch the bell could not help stopping in his tracks. Embarrassed, he said, "Uncle, are you really okay... Is it really alright for you to face both of us at once like this?"

Masahiko did not know whether to laugh or cry. He gave him a thumbs-up. "Young man, that verbal interference was pretty good! Your companion wouldn't happen to be the legendary Gamaken, would he..."

"You're the toad!" The other youth's face turned red. "My name is Shimura Ken!"

"Ah, sorry, sorry. Continue. I won't get distracted again." Masahiko forcibly suppressed his laughter.

Shimura Ken suppressed his anger and said, "Sasuke, this time you provide the feint."

"Pfft..." Masahiko truly could not hold it in any longer and doubled over laughing.

The two youths exchanged glances, utterly confused. They both wondered whether something was wrong with this uncle.

"You two win. One Gamaken, one Uchiha Sasuke—I, Hu Hansan, admit defeat!" It took Masahiko quite a while to recover before he spoke.

"Then, Uncle Uzumaki Hu Hansan, does this mean we successfully snatched the bell?" Shimura Ken asked.

Masahiko's smile froze. Uzumaki Hu Hansan...

"My name is Uzumaki Masahiko, not Uzumaki Hu Hansan..."

The other youth spoke quietly. "My name is Sarutobi Sasuke, not Uchiha Sasuke..."

"Fine. Since you brought me so much amusement, I'll teach this ninjutsu to both of you." Masahiko found the name Sarutobi Sasuke somewhat familiar, but for the moment, he could not remember where he had heard it.

He spent an hour explaining the cultivation method and principles behind the Rasengan to the two youths, as well as briefly describing the future direction in which the technique could develop.

The two youths began practicing, while Masahiko wandered off toward another area.

"Oh, right, Sarutobi Sasuke!" Masahiko suddenly remembered. Isn't he the Third's father? Doesn't that mean the Third can learn the Rasengan too? Forget it, let him learn it...

"Wait, if Shimura Ken was sparring with Sarutobi Sasuke, could he be Danzo's father... Danzo learning the Rasengan..."

"Forget it. I'll deal with the future when it comes."

Masahiko thought it over for a long time. Although he had found Danzo extremely irritating in his previous life, he could not exactly turn around and kill Danzo's father now...

"Anyway, I'll live until the era when Danzo starts causing trouble. I can deal with him then..."

Masahiko wandered around for another half day without finding anything interesting. Just as he was thinking of going back to see how the two youths were progressing with the Rasengan, Tobirama appeared beside him in a Body Flicker.

"Second Grandfather, my brother and the others have finished their discussion. Tomorrow, we'll directly occupy the Iron Ore mine and guard it there... The Sarutobi Clan Head has prepared a banquet now, and my brother asked me to come call you." Tobirama said.

"I've been hungry for ages. Let's eat, let's eat." Masahiko rubbed his stomach and said with a smile.

As for Sarutobi Sasuke and Shimura Ken, compared to eating, they were not that important...