The System's Compensation

Someone let out a loud burp.

"Thanks for treating me so generously, old man." Hyuga Matsuba rubbed his round little belly and spoke with great satisfaction.

The empty plates before them were already half a person tall. Jiraiya did not dare calculate how much this had cost. It looked like his wallet was about to be completely empty again.

"You're such a little kid, yet you have such a huge appetite." Tsunade could not believe what she was seeing.

Indeed, it was far too unexpected. Hyuga Matsuba was only a snot-nosed little brat, yet he had eaten like a bottomless pit and still did not seem uncomfortable.

Orochimaru once again became a mere spectator. What did it matter to him whether the kid ate a lot or a little? He was not paying a single coin anyway.

At first glance, Orochimaru, sitting there quietly without saying much, was rather captivating. This was the kind of gigolo those novels talked about.

"Don't worry about me." Hyuga Matsuba tugged at Tsunade's clothes. The reason he could eat so much in one go was actually inspired by the Six Powers—using a huge amount of food to temporarily replenish the energy in his body.

"You're a total glutton, the pig kind!" Jiraiya felt like dying. After this meal, he was truly broke beyond broke.

But Jiraiya was not the only one on the verge of tears. The BBQ Restaurant owner had not made a cent either. This child had nearly eaten his restaurant empty.

"It's getting late, and we've finished all the meat. Let me thank everyone here for your hospitality. If fate allows, we'll meet again!" The sun had begun to sink westward. Time really passed quickly.

Orochimaru's gaze had been fixed on the little guy the whole time. His sixth sense told him this child was no ordinary brat. This kid must be hiding some secret.

"What secret? His secret is that he eats a lot!" Jiraiya sighed from the bottom of his heart.

"You idiot, I have nothing to say to you." Orochimaru felt deeply worried about Jiraiya's intelligence.

"You shameless bastard! You ate my food, spent my money, and now you're insulting me! Don't run!" Jiraiya flew into a rage.

Tsunade watched the two of them chase each other around, her forehead filled with ellipses. Yet she vaguely felt that Orochimaru's words were not baseless. After everything that had happened, she too felt that some secret had yet to be discovered.

Hyuga Matsuba carried a mysterious yet familiar aura. That aura was like... right! Her grandfather, Hashirama Senju!

"Ah, Orochimaru has really led me astray. What am I even thinking? Still, that little Hyuga Matsuba is eight hundred times better than that foolish Nawaki." Whenever Tsunade thought of that adorable little boy's face, her heart melted.

Tsunade reluctantly looked in the direction Hyuga Matsuba had gone before finally returning to her Training Ground.

"What incredible luck. I only came out for a meal, yet I ran into the Hokage's three disciples." Hyuga Matsuba found the experience quite interesting.

Before going out to look for food, he had never expected something so fantastical to happen. Not only had he met all three of them, he had even gotten a free meal. If they met again later, perhaps they could play together as friends. Just thinking about it made him happy.

Hyuga Matsuba returned to the back mountain and suddenly heard a burst of commotion. It sounded like someone was talking.

"What time is it? Which guy is working so hard that he's still secretly training here?"

"Why not take a look and find out?"

Hyuga Matsuba paused, quietly changed his route, and eventually returned to the Training Ground.

"Hizashi! I was wondering what you were doing here from so far away. So you were training hard. You're really diligent." Hyuga Matsuba acted as though nothing had happened.

Hizashi Hyuga did not want to bother with Hyuga Matsuba and continued training. He had been striking this wooden post for a long time. A faint glow of Chakra flickered around his wrists. It seemed he had already mastered the Chakra Refinement Technique.

"Are you venting because you're angry? You're using so much force." Hyuga Matsuba pretended to be surprised.

Hizashi Hyuga was enraged. His eyes locked onto Hyuga Matsuba. "What does what I do have to do with you? You're a useless little piece of trash. Even if I told you, you might not understand. You're our disgrace, and you still have the nerve to talk here? Why don't you piss in a puddle and take a good look at yourself?"

Hyuga Matsuba did not have the Byakugan. No matter how disdainful Hizashi Hyuga sounded, there was still a trace of envy in his heart.

Hyuga Matsuba clearly noticed it as well and felt that Hizashi Hyuga was truly saying one thing while meaning another.

"Someone like you will never become truly ruthless. Your eyes have already betrayed you."

Hyuga Matsuba also despised people who threw their weight around by relying on others.

"Shut up! You piece of trash, do you even know what techniques and Chakra are? Are you still dreaming because you haven't woken up yet?"

Being mocked by a little brat made the anger in Hizashi Hyuga's heart flare up at once.

Unlike Hyuga Gangjin, he was the clan head's son and had known more than others since childhood. He understood perfectly well what that damned Caged Bird Seal was and what it was used for.

So although he mocked Hyuga Matsuba relentlessly, he secretly envied him beyond measure. In the eyes of the clan, Hyuga Matsuba was worthless, the disgrace of the entire Hyuga Clan, but there was no Caged Bird Seal on his forehead.

If everything could be done over, Hizashi Hyuga wished he had never possessed the Byakugan. The Caged Bird Seal was a ticking time bomb, leaving him in constant torment. He felt that his fate was no longer under his own control.

After a long period of waiting and training, Hizashi Hyuga had finally obtained the Chakra Refinement Technique not long ago. All he wanted now was to train harder, rewrite his fate as soon as possible, and escape the life of being bound.

For once, Hyuga Matsuba had no plans to train today. First, his abilities had improved today, making a qualitative leap. Second, today was the day he had finally grown another year older.

As an orphan, Hyuga Matsuba had been lonely since childhood. Only he himself remembered days like this.

Today was his fourth birthday. Although no one had given him a birthday present, the system would update today. The Lottery page would gain another chance, and ten thousand Exchange Points would also arrive today.

Over the past year, aside from his daily training, Hyuga Matsuba had spent his spare time searching for ways to increase his Lottery chances and Exchange Points. Unfortunately, he had found nothing so far.

Still, that might not necessarily be a bad thing. If the system had made those two things mission rewards, Hyuga Matsuba might not have been so free now. He would surely have been running all over the place for rewards.

But there was only one opportunity a year, and the wait was far too long. It truly had both advantages and disadvantages.

What Hyuga Matsuba looked forward to most was not the Exchange Points, because all the good items were expensive. With only ten thousand Exchange Points, he did not even know whether he could exchange them for a Jianbing Guozi. For now, all his hopes rested on the Lottery.

Hyuga Matsuba shrugged and prepared to go home just like that. Behind him, Hizashi Hyuga felt extremely annoyed. Was this trash deliberately here to mock him?

Hizashi Hyuga's anger surged, and he threw out a punch at Hyuga Matsuba's back.

However, Hizashi Hyuga did not strike with full force. He had only used his physical strength and had not activated any Ninjutsu.

Lost in fantasies of good fortune, Hyuga Matsuba had never expected to be hit. Everything happened too quickly, and he took the punch solidly.

After feeling the sharp pain radiating from his back, Hyuga Matsuba turned around and looked at the furious Hizashi Hyuga.

"You dared to attack me?"

That punch had indeed been forceful. Hizashi Hyuga's hand had turned red from the impact, yet he merely stood there, staring directly at Hyuga Matsuba.

Hizashi Hyuga had not expected Hyuga Matsuba's back to be so tough. He was clearly the one who had struck first, but his own hand hurt terribly. He had nearly cried out.

He had been the one to attack first, yet he was still the one suffering. If people heard about this, they would laugh their teeth out.

Hyuga Matsuba raised an eyebrow and said calmly, "As the saying goes, give and take. You gave me a punch, so shouldn't I let you experience what a punch feels like too?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Hyuga Matsuba raised his fist, as though he truly intended to punch Hizashi Hyuga in the face.