The Provocation?

When they left the hospital, Yakushi Nonō did indeed lend Houka some money and promised that if he ever ran short again, he could come to her.

Houka knew that although the woman before him was a member of Root, she was kind by nature and especially fond of children. Otherwise, she wouldn't eventually leave Root and become the head of an orphanage.

If Uchiha Fugaku had offered him a loan, Houka wouldn't have accepted it under any circumstances. But he was perfectly at ease borrowing money from Yakushi Nonō.

"Thank you, Sis. By the way, I still don't know your name." Houka blinked his clear, wide eyes, putting on the sweet, well-behaved expression of a good little boy.

"My name is Yakushi Nonō." She stroked Houka's black hair and smiled warmly.

Perhaps she was the kindest person in Konoha's Root.

Houka lowered his head slightly, his heart filled with complicated emotions. Someone so good would meet such a tragic end.

Can I change her fate?

His heart suddenly tightened.

Changing a character's fate in the original story seemed easy enough. But when he truly considered doing it, he felt as if he were challenging destiny itself.

Still, he quickly put the thought aside. He was only a six-year-old boy right now. It was far too early to be thinking about such things.

After saying goodbye to Yakushi Nonō with Uchiha Obito, Houka returned home.

"Houka, I'm going to buy meat!" Uchiha Obito said happily, money in hand. "You're too skinny. You need to build yourself up!"

"Okay. But if you see an old lady trying to cross the road, please don't give her all the money again." Houka spread his hands helplessly.

"Heh, I know." Uchiha Obito scratched his head with an awkward grin, then turned and ran out.

"Oh, right. My weights."

During his hospital stay, the weights had been taken off him. Now that he strapped them on again, his body immediately felt heavy.

"I guess I haven't completely recovered yet." Houka gritted his teeth and stood up straight, his back ramrod straight. "But I can keep going!"

He began his recovery training, slowly walking around the backyard. At the same time, he circulated his Chakra through his body, trying to stimulate his cells.

"Yakushi Nonō is a member of Root, but she's a good person. And she's a Medical Ninja, so I could learn Medical Ninjutsu from her!" Houka's eyes suddenly lit up, and he couldn't hold back his excitement.

Houka's body recovered at an extraordinary rate, but that didn't seem to help his injuries much. And who could guarantee they wouldn't get hurt while training?

Even the Blue Beast of Konoha couldn't guarantee that!

"Besides, once I become a ninja, I'll have to go on missions all the time. Getting hurt will be unavoidable. Learning Medical Ninjutsu has to be a priority, and the sooner the better."

After all, the Third Shinobi World War was only a few years away.

"The best medical ninja in Konoha right now is probably Princess Tsunade, one of the Sannin. Unfortunately, Tsunade should have developed Hemophobia by this point. And I'm a member of the Uchiha Clan."

The Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan weren't on nearly as good terms as people might imagine.

So Yakushi Nonō was Houka's only target.

As he walked, Houka gradually got used to the weights. Then he raised his hands as he walked and began practicing Hand Seals.

Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Boar!

Houka's hand signs were already very precise, but he still wasn't fast enough. That called for diligent practice; there was no shortcut.

The sun climbed higher. Houka had been doing recovery exercises for over an hour, and he was drenched in sweat. Every so often, he glanced outside.

"Why isn't Obito back yet?"

Houka had a bad feeling about it.

"Did that guy get so caught up when he saw an old lady by the road that he couldn't leave until he'd escorted her across, crying and pleading the whole time?"

Just as Houka was imagining the worst about Uchiha Obito, the sound of a scuffle and muffled groans came from the street outside.

"Th-that sounds like Obito?"

Houka froze, then rushed outside.

"Hahaha! You're that stupid, and you think you can awaken the Sharingan?"

"What a moron!"

"You hang around with Tenten and that loser Houka all the time. Of course you're a pair of idiots! Hahaha!"

"That Houka guy is such an eyesore. Getting knocked out after challenging Kakashi was humiliating enough. Now he's training Taijutsu and passing out, too. What a joke."

"Of course. He must know he can't awaken the Sharingan, so he switched to Taijutsu. Otherwise, he won't even be able to graduate."

"Poor, stupid losers."

Several Uchiha children shoved Uchiha Obito around, their words dripping with mockery.

"Hey, what have you got there? Is that meat?"

"Hahaha! You've got money to spare, huh? Eating meat when we can't even afford it! Obito, could you share some with us?"

"You bastards!" Uchiha Obito clutched the meat to his chest and glared at them angrily. "Don't push it!"

"Push it? You and that Houka guy have brought more shame on the Uchiha Clan than any of us!"

"Yeah, beat him up!"

"Get him!"

Smack! Smack! Smack!

As one of the bottom-ranked students at the Ninja Academy, Uchiha Obito wasn't even worth five opponents in a fight. Outnumbered as well, he was soon beaten to the ground, groaning and unable to speak.

A few Uchiha clan members passed by on either side of the street. They saw what was happening but paid no attention. Kids fighting was perfectly normal.

"Stop!"

Houka finally arrived. "You want to die?!"

Seeing Uchiha Obito in such a state, Houka could barely keep his Sharingan power from going berserk.

"Well, if it isn't Uchiha Houka! Hahaha, the coward finally showed his face."

"I heard you passed out while training Taijutsu. How pathetic."

"How did someone like you end up in the Uchiha Clan?"

"You'd better stick to selling things at a stall, you idiot. What are you doing trying to be a ninja?"

"Serves you right, moron! Idiot!"

Earlier, when Houka had gone out with Uchiha Obito, they'd run into several Uchiha kids who mocked them. At the time, he hadn't even bothered arguing with them. But now, he didn't think he could hold back.

"What, you want to fight? Have you even learned the Three Body Technique, you idiot?"

"Hahaha! Look at that stupid face!"

Uchiha Obito had finally recovered enough to move. Lying on the ground, he saw Houka and shouted, "Houka, run! You're still injured. You can't fight!"

Uchiha Obito was in bad shape. His clothes were torn in several places, and his face was black and blue, streaked with blood. When he opened his mouth, it looked like he was missing a tooth.

Houka's eyes suddenly narrowed. A faint scent of blood seemed to fill the air, and his out-of-control Sharingan power was almost impossible to suppress. Houka reacted quickly, narrowing his eyes and immediately forming Hand Seals.

Snake—Goat—Monkey—Boar—Horse—Tiger!

"Hahaha! He's actually forming Hand Seals?"

"Idiot! Who does he think he is? You think he can use a jutsu?"

"Wait, those hand signs are... the Great Fireball Technique?"

"What?! The Great Fireball Technique?! I'm terrified! Hahahaha!"

"Hahaha, idiot! That Fire Release jutsu isn't something you can use that easily!"

Houka narrowed his eyes to slits and smiled coldly. "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"

Houka opened his mouth and spat. Scorching flames burst out, forming a basketball-sized fireball that shot straight toward the Uchiha children.