Challenge

A simple meal, combined with the occasional small joke from Houka, quickly bridged the gap between him, Rin, and Kurenai Yuhi. Little girls are easy to fool—bah, easy to coax. Asuma Sarutobi, however, was a bit precocious; he watched Houka with a gaze filled with scrutiny.

As the biggest "second-generation fire" in Konoha, he had received elite education since childhood and would not easily believe that Houka had changed his personality so quickly.

"Wash the lunch boxes when you're done." Houka stretched, pushing several lunch boxes toward Uchiha Obito.

"Nani? Why me!" Uchiha Obito was busy bragging to his goddess Rin; he had no desire to do such a thing.

"I'll do it!" Rin volunteered to take the lunch boxes.

"No, no, let me do it. No need to trouble Rin with such trivial matters, hehehe." Uchiha Obito was suddenly excited.

"Thank you for the bento, Houka!" Kurenai Yuhi said with a naive, adorable smile. "Next time, I'll treat you to a bento I made myself."

"Mm, you're welcome." Houka looked at Kurenai Yuhi's big, naive eyes and really wanted to pinch her chubby cheeks.

Not long after the meal, the students who had gone out to eat returned one after another.

Shortly after, Shin Kiyono appeared and led everyone to the outdoor playground.

For the afternoon class, Shin Kiyono had arranged training for shuriken and kunai. It was impossible to train indoors, and the playground had a dedicated training field.

"Shuriken and kunai are just too simple; they pose no difficulty for me at all." Masamune Hyuga held his head high with an arrogant air, his eyes darting toward Houka from time to time, full of provocation. "Unlike some people, who can't even awaken their eyes and faint during taijutsu practice. What an idiot!"

The Kekkei Genkai of the Hyuga clan is the Byakugan, which they are born with. As long as they train hard, whether they are from the main branch or the branch family, they can easily awaken it. It grants a nearly 360-degree field of vision, allowing them to see the flow of Chakra in the surrounding environment. It also possesses telescopic vision to see into the distance and x-ray vision to see through objects, as well as the ability to see an opponent's meridian system and acupoints. Furthermore, they can use Chakra to multiply the eyes' capabilities, seeing things over a kilometer away. Its insight far exceeds that of the Sharingan!

Therefore, in the ninja world, the Byakugan is known as one of the Three Great Dojutsu, alongside the Sharingan.

"Bastard, who are you calling an idiot!" As a good friend of Houka, Uchiha Obito clenched his fists and charged forward.

Houka smiled and reached out to grab Obito's hand, then said to Masamune Hyuga, "Hey, kid from the Hyuga clan, are you looking for a beating?"

"Hm? Looking for a beating? Hahaha, Uchiha Houka, are you challenging me? Who do you think you are! Have you already forgotten about challenging Kakashi last semester? But you're lucky; I'm in a good mood today, so let me help you relive that experience!" Although Masamune Hyuga was a member of the Hyuga branch family, he had decent talent; otherwise, he wouldn't have been placed in the same class as Asuma Sarutobi. His Gentle Fist had already reached the level of Eight Trigrams Two Palms. At the age of six, few could stand against him.

"Is Uchiha Houka going to challenge Masamune Hyuga again?"

"Seriously, he's such an idiot, yet he still insists on causing trouble!"

"Masamune Hyuga might not be as good as Kakashi, but he's still very strong."

"Isn't Uchiha Houka embarrassed enough already?"

"I heard quite a few people from the Uchiha clan want to teach Uchiha Houka a lesson. Hehe, there's going to be a good show this semester."

The students' chatter soon caught the attention of Shin Kiyono, who was walking in front. He glanced back at the situation, his brows furrowed. He felt that this child, Uchiha Houka, was truly a piece of rotten wood, but...

Letting him learn a lesson now is better than him being killed by someone after becoming a ninja!

Thinking of this, Shin Kiyono decided not to intervene in the challenge between Uchiha Houka and Masamune Hyuga.

Uchiha Obito looked at Houka. He was the only person in the entire school who knew how hard Houka had worked over the vacation and how much progress he had made. If it weren't for the overwhelming genius aura of Kakashi, he would have once thought that Houka could already defeat Kakashi!

Nearby, Rin and Kurenai Yuhi looked at Houka with some confusion; it seemed difficult for them to associate him with the Houka who had prepared the delicious meal earlier.

"Don't worry, Houka will be fine!" Uchiha Obito gave a thumbs up to the two cute girls.

A group of students discussed the challenge between Houka and Masamune Hyuga with great interest, looking forward to the upcoming battle!

But the person involved, Houka, suddenly felt a bit bored. He put his hands behind his head and yawned.

His mood was very complicated right now; he wanted to grow up quickly to get rid of these childish school games, but he also hoped that time would pass more slowly so he could improve his strength as much as possible before the Third Great Ninja War arrived.

It seems I need to find a way to learn the Shadow Clone Technique. In the future, I'll let a clone attend class while the original body focuses on cultivation.

The ninja school's playground was very large. In the corner near the north, there was a training field specifically for shuriken and kunai, with many cold-glinting kunai and shuriken placed nearby.

Being a ninja is not a game, so these pieces of equipment were all forged from refined iron and were extremely sharp.

Shin Kiyono turned around and was about to speak when Masamune Hyuga couldn't help but blurt out, "Teacher Shin Kiyono, I have something to say!"

Shin Kiyono looked at Masamune Hyuga, then glanced at Houka, and nodded. "Masamune Hyuga, speak your mind."

"Understood, Teacher Shin Kiyono!" Masamune Hyuga walked out with a grand air, his Byakugan scanning all the students in the class before settling on Houka's face. He showed a look of disdain and said loudly, "Teacher Shin Kiyono, just now, Uchiha Houka wanted to challenge me, Masamune Hyuga! Although I, Masamune Hyuga, come from the Hyuga branch family, I will never tarnish the reputation of the Hyuga clan. Therefore, I have accepted Uchiha Houka's challenge. I ask that Teacher Shin Kiyono act as the referee for our duel!"

Houka let out a "pfft" and laughed out loud, amused by Masamune Hyuga.

We are all six-year-old brats; please, can you speak in a way that fits our age!

Talking about the reputation of the Hyuga clan, a duel, and a referee—why don't you just fly up to the sky and stand side-by-side with Kaguya Otsutsuki?!

"Uchiha Houka, what are you laughing at!" Masamune Hyuga's gaze glared fiercely.

"Ah? Was I laughing?" Houka scratched his head, his expression extremely punchable.

Shin Kiyono coughed lightly, looked at Houka, and asked solemnly, "Uchiha Houka, have you really decided to challenge Masamune Hyuga?"

"Hehe, it's just asking for humiliation anyway."

"Although there's no suspense in the outcome, I'm still looking forward to seeing Uchiha Houka get beaten until his teeth are scattered all over the floor."

"Me too."

Nearby, students were already excitedly discussing it.

Houka glanced at these people; they were all on his blacklist. If they didn't offend him in the future, they would just go their separate ways, but if they dared to offend him, he would naturally beat them until their butts were blooming!

"Teacher Shin Kiyono, well... let's call it a challenge."

Shin Kiyono nodded. "Then I permit this challenge. Both of you, come to the center of the field!" (To be continued)