The Uchiha Brothers

Tossing a cold coin in his palm over and over, Hyuga Kiyonari could only sigh helplessly as he spread his hand open.

Right now, his wallet was cleaner than his face, all thanks to that barbecue the day before yesterday.

He had to admit, the Akimichi Clan possessed a truly unique mastery when it came to "eating." The two of them had gotten carried away and kept ordering more. Especially that girl, Hinata Hyuga; her cheeks had been stuffed so full she looked like a hamster hoarding food for the winter.

The result was that she didn't have enough money, and he had ended up covering twenty percent of the bill. Even that twenty percent was higher than what he'd spent at Ichiraku Ramen that night; if he really wanted to get technical, he was the one who had come out ahead.

The clan wouldn't be distributing living expenses for a while yet. The remaining money was enough to keep him fed, but if he wanted meat with every meal, that was likely going to be difficult.

"It looks like I have no choice but to make a trip to that place."

The "that place" Kiyonari referred to was the Forest of Death, a location outside Konoha that made people tremble at the mere mention of its name.

As a ninja of the village, even a "reserve" one, he wasn't supposed to leave the village at will. However, the Forest of Death was technically classified as being within the borders of Konoha.

Besides, with the ice and snow melting after the start of spring, the animals in the forest were coming out to move about, making it the perfect time for hunting.

This wasn't his first time doing this. He skillfully dragged a wooden box out from under his bed, which contained the tools he needed: a short bow with excellent flexibility, a quiver containing twenty arrows with neatly aligned tail feathers, a small, razor-sharp skinning knife, and a bag for his catch.

After checking every tool one by one and confirming everything was in order, he slung the short bow over his back, hung the quiver and bag from his waist, clipped the knife to the other side, and headed toward the Forest of Death.

The outskirts of the forest.

The melting snow had turned the ground soft and muddy, which was excellent for tracking prey.

Kiyonari slowed his pace as he moved through the woods, scanning the ground carefully. Soon, he discovered a string of fresh footprints; judging by the shape, they were rabbits.

He followed the trail cautiously, occasionally stooping to push aside ferns blocking his path or turning sideways to squeeze between two trees growing close together, all without making a single unnecessary sound. After walking another hundred meters or so, he found a few rabbit droppings under a low-lying shrub.

They should be nearby.

He slowed his breathing and searched the surroundings meticulously. Finally, beneath a slightly open slope, he spotted several gray wild rabbits gnawing on tender grass roots near their burrow. They would take a couple of bites, then stand up to scan the surroundings, only lowering their heads to continue eating once they confirmed it was safe.

Kiyonari didn't rush to draw his bow. Killing just one would be too wasteful; his target was the entire nest.

He took a wide detour, slowly approaching the rabbits from the other side. Only when the distance was short enough did he seize the moment the rabbits were focused on eating and lunged out, his large hands pinning two plump rabbits to the ground.

The startled rabbits scattered in a panic. Kiyonari was quick-eyed and nimble, grabbing another one and stuffing it into his bag. However, one rabbit darted through a gap he hadn't noticed, flashing toward the depths of the dense forest like lightning.

"Trying to run?"

Kiyonari let out a cold snort. His right hand pulled the knot to seal the bag, while his left hand drew the short bow from his back and nocked an arrow. The entire sequence was fluid, without a hint of hesitation.

Whoosh—

The arrow left the string with a piercing whistle, accurately predicting the rabbit's escape route, passing through the back of its neck and pinning it to the ground.

He jogged over to pull the arrow out of the mud. It was hard to imagine such power coming from a three-year-old child, a thought that made him want to complain.

"Chakra really is useful."

He then weighed the contents of the bag; this was enough to last him a few days. He then headed toward a small stream nearby where the sound of water could be heard.

Kiyonari crouched by the riverbank, using his sharp knife to slit the rabbits' bellies and clean the entrails... Just as he finished processing the second rabbit, a series of strange noises suddenly erupted from the bushes behind him.

"Rustle, rustle... Snap!"

The sound of bushes being pushed aside, followed by heavy weight snapping dead branches.

Kiyonari immediately became alert. He gripped his skinning knife tightly in his right hand and turned to look.

"ROAR!"

A low, guttural growl echoed, and then, a massive wild boar, its size comparable to a small truck, crashed out of the woods!

Its entire body was covered in coarse, dark-brown bristles, and two long, curved, ghastly white tusks glinted in the sunlight. A pair of bloodshot eyes stared fixedly at Kiyonari and the rabbit carcasses at his feet.

Clearly, this boar, having gone hungry during the snowy days, had been lured by the heavy scent of blood.

"Damn it!"

Kiyonari's heart sank to the bottom of his chest. The weapon in his hand was no different from a toothpick to a beast of this caliber. If he wasn't careful, he would end up becoming its meal.

The boar breathed heavily, spraying hot white steam from its nostrils. Its hind hooves dug into the mud, signaling the start of a charge.

"Run!"

Kiyonari threw the rabbits in his hand toward the beast, channeled chakra into his legs, and leaped to the other side of the river.

"BOOM!"

The boar wasn't distracted by the thrown rabbits. Its massive body, like a hundred-ton king traveling at high speed, trampled over the river and crashed into the forest, destroying everything in its path.

"Is anyone there! Help me!"

Kiyonari leaped between tree branches, heading in the direction of Konoha while shouting for help.

Just then, two figures suddenly appeared on a treetop not far ahead.

One figure was slightly taller, wearing a black top, with two slowly rotating black tomoe embedded in his scarlet eyes. The other figure was shorter, looking about the same age as Kiyonari, with a hint of nervousness and excitement on his face.

It's them?!

Itachi Uchiha glanced toward this side, his gaze locking onto the rampaging wild boar, and whispered to his younger brother, Sasuke Uchiha, beside him.

"Sasuke, aim for the eyes."

"Yes, brother!"

As the words fell, Itachi Uchiha leaped into the air, flicking three kunai attached with explosive tags to intercept the path between Kiyonari and the wild boar.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The sudden explosions caused the charging boar to stumble; sensing the threat, it halted in its tracks and let out a series of furious roars.

Seizing this opportunity to escape the danger entirely, Kiyonari landed on a branch adjacent to Sasuke Uchiha, simultaneously nocking an arrow and aiming for the boar's eyes.

"Whoosh—whoosh—"

The two arrows were fired one after the other, but only one found its mark in the boar's eye.

"Awoo!"

The boar let out a shrill, miserable shriek and began to thrash about wildly, slamming into the trees on either side.

Just then, Itachi Uchiha's figure appeared above the boar as if he had teleported. Gripping a ninja blade, he drove it downward without mercy into the beast's other eye socket, plunging it deep into its brain.

With a wet squelch, the boar's massive body convulsed violently a few times before finally falling completely silent.

The battle was over.

Kiyonari jumped down from the tree and plopped onto the ground. Looking at the Uchiha brothers before him, he offered his sincere thanks: "Whew—thank you for saving me."

Itachi pulled out his ninja blade and wiped the blood off on the boar's hide: "This boar should be the one mentioned in the mission."

"Mission?"

"A D-rank mission. This boar has been destroying nearby crops, and our task was to drive it away."

At this moment, Sasuke jumped down from the tree, looking at the enormous boar and shouting excitedly: "Brother, we did it! This guy is huge!"

But no sooner had he shouted than he realized there was someone else present, so he quickly coughed twice, putting on a cold and aloof expression.

Itachi nodded, looked at Kiyonari, and said: "The mission only required us to drive it away, which means we can divide this boar. Do you... need me to help you carry it back?"

Kiyonari was stunned for a moment, then smiled and replied: "Thank you, that would be a great help. My name is Kiyonari Hyuga, and you two?"

"Itachi Uchiha," Itachi replied indifferently.

"Sasuke Uchiha!" Sasuke mimicked his brother's manner, stating only his name.