Promise

"Hmm? A coincidence?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's pupils suddenly contracted, his expression uncertain.

If it was not a coincidence, then this was the first time his Telescope Technique had been noticed by someone below Jonin—and that someone was only a five-year-old child!

That was hardly scientific. It was basically impossible, no matter how gifted the child was!

Only those with powerful spiritual energy could detect this ninjutsu, and such people were generally at the Jonin level.

The accumulation of spiritual energy required a long process. Being a genius did not mean you automatically had more spiritual energy; it took time to build up.

Fortunately, after Katsuo glanced over, he returned to listening attentively to the lesson. This made Hiruzen Sarutobi believe even more that it had merely been a coincidence.

Interesting little brat!

Orochimaru licked his lips, his expression unchanged.

Others might have thought it was simply an unbelievable coincidence, but Orochimaru was deeply interested in such extraordinary things.

"Was that an illusion?"

"No, it was the Third Hokage's peeping ninjutsu!"

After pausing in a daze, Katsuo ignored it and focused on the lesson.

He discovered that the ninja knowledge this teacher taught was all practical material!

It was precisely the foundational knowledge Katsuo needed most right now.

Those precious experiences, knowledge, and techniques captivated him completely.

Katsuo even noticed that the vast majority of students were listening very attentively. They were not nearly as carefree as Naruto's class in the Original Work anime.

Before they realized it, the dismissal bell rang. The quiet classroom became noisy as most of the children introduced themselves and got acquainted with one another.

Before long, they formed groups of varying sizes.

The two largest groups were led by Hiashi Hyuga of the Hyuga Clan and Nawaki Senju of the Senju Clan.

Senju Nawaki in particular had already taken several underlings from their class alone, not to mention the many followers from other classes. He was beginning to look like the big boss of the class, outshining the Hyuga Clan's prince, Hyuga Hiashi.

Several children from smaller clans friendly with the Uchiha Clan also came over to befriend Katsuo, only for a single sentence from him to infuriate them!

"Go play in the sand somewhere else!"

What a joke. How was a grown man in his twenties or thirties supposed to chat with little kids aged five or six?

Get along with them?

Seeing this, Uchiha Mikoto immediately looked at him with curiosity.

But Katsuo took out some dried snake meat, bit off a piece, and chewed it laboriously. He had absolutely no intention of acknowledging her.

After getting nowhere, Uchiha Mikoto took out her lunchbox. The lavish lunch immediately drew Katsuo's attention.

He did not stare at it enviously, but his eyes kept sneaking glances at it from the corners.

That's way too lavish!

The scent alone brought tears to Katsuo's heart after he had spent a week chewing tough dried snake meat!

"Here, this one is yours." Uchiha Mikoto handed him a lunchbox with a smile.

"Mine?" Katsuo asked in surprise and confusion.

Just as he was about to refuse, Uchiha Mikoto's face flushed slightly as she said softly:

"I heard from Sister Kuiko that none of the adults in your family are around anymore. I don't know where they went, but there probably isn't anyone to cook for you, so I had the servants prepare an extra lunchbox."

Katsuo fell silent, staring wordlessly into her bright black eyes.

Uchiha Mikoto's cheeks reddened under his gaze, and she hurriedly turned her head away.

"Thank you!"

"But you won't need to trouble yourself in the future. I brought my own food!"

"It's no trouble, no trouble! Grandfather said you're my bodyguard. Bringing an extra lunchbox for my bodyguard is hardly troublesome, right? Besides, I didn't make the lunchboxes myself!"

Uchiha Mikoto said with a smile. Then she wiped her chopsticks and prepared to eat.

Hearing that, Katsuo snatched her chopsticks with a deliberately fierce expression, glared at her, and began wolfing down the food.

Mikoto had once asked Sister Kuiko why Katsuo had become so skinny—nothing but skin and bones a week ago. Sister Kuiko had told her he had starved himself into that state, and kind-hearted Mikoto remembered it.

Mikoto smiled with narrowed eyes and began eating her lunch as well.

After swallowing a piece of braised pork, the corner of Katsuo's mouth lifted slightly.

As expected of the most perfect wife and mother in Naruto. She really is gentle and kind!

Before they had even finished their lunch, a large group of elementary school students stormed into the classroom, led by Uchiha Fugaku!

Seeing how aggressively they approached, Katsuo quickly picked up his lunchbox and ran.

Mikoto was completely dumbfounded at the sight!

Her grandfather had told him to stand up to Uchiha Fugaku for her, so that Fugaku would stop bothering her all the time.

It would have been one thing if he could not handle it, but he had left so decisively???

And leaving so decisively would have been one thing, but he had even taken the lunchbox with him???

"He... just ran away? He... just ate my lunch! How could he be so... shameless!"

Mikoto stood there muttering in a daze, directly ignoring Uchiha Fugaku's ingratiating questions.

What kind of joke is this? Me, stand up to them? With what? I've only trained for one week, and she wants me to take on a whole group of elementary schoolers? Second-years, too...

Katsuo crouched in a corner, eating his lunch as he thought speechlessly.

After finishing his lunch, Katsuo let out a satisfied burp and headed toward his camp. He had spent the entire morning attending lessons, so he would use the two or three hours of noon break to continue training his body.

Others could rest, but he could not. Others could play, but he trained. Since he had made up his mind to return to Earth, he needed the power to return.

He understood that in this ninja world, even the dead could be revived and the moon had been created. Nothing was impossible. Though going home was harder than climbing to heaven, Katsuo would not give up!

In the days that followed, Mikoto did not say a single word to Katsuo. Every time she saw him, she pouted, sulked, and turned her head away, leaving Katsuo scratching his head with a bitter smile.

What left Katsuo even more amused and helpless was that she still prepared a lunchbox for him every day!

Even though he had not fulfilled his duty as her bodyguard!

As he ate the lunch she had prepared, Katsuo looked at the back of her head and smiled.

"Give me another twenty days, and I'll drive that fly Fugaku away for you."

Mikoto's entire body trembled when she heard that, and she finally looked at Katsuo.

She rolled her eyes and glared at him.

"Forget it. If you get beaten up, I won't be able to save you. No need."

Hearing Katsuo say that, she forgave him. After all, she was still a pure and kind child. Otherwise, she would not have stayed angry while continuing to prepare lunch for him.

"What? You don't believe me?" Katsuo smiled again.

"Really?"

"Really!"

Twenty days would be enough for him.

With his absurd Chakra refinement speed, precise Kunai throwing accuracy, and exceptional reaction speed, all of it came from his powerful spiritual energy.

Twenty days were only to let him train his body until, at the very least, he was no weaker than children his own age!