"Sluuurp... sluuurp..."
Hearing the sounds of someone eating noodles coming from Ichiraku Ramen, the corner of Kakashi's eye twitched slightly.
He had actually been taken advantage of by a junior.
And now he felt even hungrier.
This was the first time Kakashi had encountered such a situation. In the past, everyone who saw him would quickly retreat.
Yet this junior named Uchiha Yuan dared to look him straight in the eye, completely unconcerned by his cold attitude.
That made him remember Uchiha Yuan deeply.
Inside Ichiraku Ramen, sensing the fluctuations of Kakashi's unstable aura, the corners of Uchiha Yuan's mouth lifted slightly into a smug smile.
In fact, he had been teasing Kakashi.
Uchiha Yuan had always admired Kakashi greatly.
Whenever he thought of the Kakashi who had emerged from his pain—a taciturn young man who would spend all day holding smutty books—and then looked at how cold and unapproachable he was now, he simply couldn't resist teasing him.
A moment later.
Uchiha Yuan walked out of Ichiraku Ramen, rubbing his stomach as he went.
"I'm so full. And I ran into Kakashi-senpai today. What great luck."
After Uchiha Yuan had gone some distance, a figure flashed into existence at the entrance of Ichiraku Ramen.
It was Kakashi.
He gazed at Uchiha Yuan's back, then turned and walked into the shop.
"One bowl of Seafood Ramen."
Ayame was cleaning up the bowls and chopsticks. Hearing the voice, she raised her head in surprise. "Kakashi, why did you suddenly leave earlier?"
Kakashi was silent for a while before saying, "That boy from the Uchiha Clan was a little annoying."
Ayame chuckled. "Kakashi, you're the senior admired by all the Ninja Academy students. Yuan kept talking about you just now. He really respects you."
Hearing this, Kakashi curled his lips beneath his mask. He hadn't sensed even the slightest respect from Uchiha Yuan.
If he truly respected his senior, would he have snatched his ramen?
After leaving the commercial district, Uchiha Yuan headed toward the clan grounds.
When he passed a riverbank, he spotted Hatake Harukaze's figure in the distance and immediately stopped.
On the grassy bank, Hatake Harukaze was surrounded by a group of boys. Several of them were shoving him around.
"Boy from the Hatake Clan, if you don't want to get beaten up, hand over your allowance!"
As he spoke, one of the boys searched Hatake Harukaze and pulled out a cloth pouch.
Looking at the few coins dumped from the pouch, the leading boy said disdainfully, "Why do you only have this little money today? You really are a poor wretch."
"Of course. The Hatake Family produced the disgrace of the ninja world."
"Aoki-ge, who's the disgrace of the ninja world?"
"I don't know. I only heard some clan elders mention it. They said the Hatake Family has someone who's the disgrace of the ninja world, a sinner against the entire village."
Hearing this exchange, Hatake Harukaze's eyes immediately reddened. He furiously punched one of the boys who had spoken.
However, the leading boy reacted even faster. He kicked out, sending Hatake Harukaze flying.
Hatake Harukaze tried to get up from the ground, but two boys immediately stepped forward and planted one foot each on his back.
No matter how desperately he struggled, he couldn't break free from their restraint and rise.
The leading boy took two steps forward, his face full of disdain. "I've always heard the clan elders praise Kakashi of the Hatake Clan, saying he's a genius. Apparently, he had the strength of a Chunin at five years old.
"I never expected that you, who are also from the Hatake Family, can't even dodge one of my kicks.
"Looks like the Hatake Family is nothing special after all. They're the family that produced the disgrace of the ninja world. You're all useless."
Lying on the ground, Hatake Harukaze roared angrily, "Shimura Ken, you can insult me if you want, but you can't insult my Hatake Clan!"
"Hmph, the Hatake Clan."
Shimura Ken let out a cold laugh. "In my eyes, your Hatake Clan is nothing but a bunch of useless people. Even if the so-called genius Kakashi Hatake were here, I'd still say it.
"The Hatake Clan is nothing but a bunch of useless people."
"Ptui!"
Hatake Harukaze spat at Shimura Ken with all his strength.
Shimura Ken reached out and wiped the spit from his face. His expression turned vicious as he shouted furiously, "You lowlife! Beat this bastard senseless!"
Amid a series of punches and kicks, Hatake Harukaze didn't make a sound. He merely glared at Shimura Ken with wide, hateful eyes.
Seeing that Hatake Harukaze refused to submit or beg for mercy, Shimura Ken revealed a vicious grin. He then raised one foot and stomped toward Hatake Harukaze's head.
"Bang!"
The next moment, a fierce gust of wind suddenly swept up. Everyone's vision blurred, and then they saw three figures—including Shimura Ken—soaring through the air before crashing into the river.
"Ken!"
"Shimura-dono!"
This sudden turn of events made the boys beating Hatake Harukaze stop.
Then they saw an unfamiliar, handsome-looking boy appear among them.
Moreover, the aura this boy displayed made it clear that he wasn't concerned in the slightest about being surrounded. His gaze was fixed solely on Hatake Harukaze.
The group of boys didn't dare move recklessly. Instead, they all revealed wary and guarded expressions.
Because they had seen the Uchiha fan crest on the unfamiliar boy's clothes.
He was an Uchiha.
"Hatake, you look pretty pathetic."
Uchiha Yuan looked down at Hatake Harukaze as he spoke.
Facing Uchiha Yuan's gaze, Hatake Harukaze lowered his head gloomily. "Uchiha, I've made a fool of myself in front of you. What brings you here?"
Having been seen by a classmate in such a miserable state, Hatake Harukaze didn't know what to say for a moment.
"I just happened to be passing by."
Uchiha Yuan smiled faintly, then his gaze suddenly sharpened as it swept across the group of boys.
Although he didn't know these boys, he recognized several of them as students from other classes at the Ninja Academy.
"How dare you bully my classmate!"
"So what if we bullied him? Don't think everyone's afraid of you Uchiha!"
A boy stepped forward and looked at Uchiha Yuan without backing down.
Uchiha Yuan noticed the clan crest on the boy's clothes. He was from the Sarutobi clan.
At that moment, a huge splash suddenly erupted from the river beside them. Shimura Ken then leaped out of the water and landed on the bank.
"Who ambushed me?!"
Shimura Ken shouted furiously, and then his gaze landed on Uchiha Yuan.
His expression darkened. "So it's an Uchiha boy."
The next second, Shimura Ken kicked off with both feet and charged straight at Uchiha Yuan like a cannonball fired from its barrel.
Without saying a word, he directly attacked Uchiha Yuan.
The next moment, four consecutive, violent collisions rang out almost simultaneously.
Then a figure was sent flying backward.
Before you continue