Achievement: Lifelong Rival

"Greetings, nice to meet you." Hatake Sakumo smiled warmly as he stepped forward to greet Might Duy and his son, then looked at Might Guy and said, "I'll have to ask you to look after Kakashi from now on."

"Please get along well with him."

"No, that won't be possible." Before Might Guy could answer, Might Duy refused with a dead-serious expression.

"Why..." Hatake Sakumo's eyes widened. He involuntarily took a step back and exchanged a glance with Yuhi Shinku. Had he just encountered a legendary "monster parent"?

Seeing Hatake Sakumo's reaction, Kakashi explained from the side, "This guy didn't pass the school's entrance exam."

"Ah, my apologies. I ran into you at the gate of the Ninja Academy and just assumed..." Hatake Sakumo said, glancing at the scars on Might Guy's body left by his rigorous training.

"Guy will definitely pass the make-up exam!" Yuki Yuichi leaned in toward Kakashi, draped an arm over his shoulder, and gave Might Guy a thumbs-up.

"Youth is fickle like that, but as long as you work hard, you will surely be rewarded!"

"That's right!" Might Guy roared with excitement, his eyes brimming with tears as he looked at Yuki Yuichi: "I will definitely pass the make-up exam and become a student at the Ninja Academy!"

With that, Might Guy marched forward, and Might Duy flashed a smile at the group before following behind him.

Watching their retreating figures, Hatake Sakumo chuckled at Kakashi and said, "Kakashi, don't get arrogant just because you got into the Ninja Academy."

"If things keep going like this, that kid will surely become stronger than you."

"Him?" Kakashi looked at Might Guy's back and rolled his eyes, looking utterly unimpressed.

"Even the guy next to me is much stronger than him."

Yuki Yuichi: "???"

I suspect you're taking a jab at me, kid, but I have no evidence.

"Kakashi, Guy is actually very strong. His hard work is second to none!" Yuki Yuichi said earnestly.

"Besides, Uncle Duy has created a very powerful secret technique that can drastically increase one's strength."

Yuki Yuichi's words didn't carry much weight with Hatake Sakumo or Yuhi Shinku; they were just kids, after all—what could they possibly know about ninjutsu?

However, Hatake Sakumo agreed with the sentiment. He crouched down and said with a smile, "Yuichi is right. Did you see the injuries on that boy?"

"That is the symbol of his hard work. The school isn't that foolish; the list of those who need make-up exams hasn't been posted yet, has it? Go ask him his name."

"He will be a good rival."

Kakashi was taken aback. Compared to Yuki Yuichi's words, he trusted his father's judgment more.

Since his father had said so, he was genuinely curious about how this person could possibly catch up to him.

With that thought, Kakashi immediately called out to Might Guy: "What is your name?"

Hearing Kakashi, Might Guy turned around, flashed a grin, and pointed a thumb at himself: "Might Guy!"

"I will become a man stronger than anyone else!"

After saying that, Might Guy left with Might Duy.

[Achievement Unlocked: Rival for Life.]

[Nothing is more worth commemorating than witnessing the life of two men. This kick is left for you!]

[Reward: Nintaijutsu: Guard]

[Nintaijutsu: Guard: Passively gain 20% damage reduction. Perhaps you can try tanking a Tengai Shinsei to see what the Pure Land is really like.]

Seeing the achievement reward trigger, Yuki Yuichi's eyes filled with joy.

He was very satisfied with this reward. If he remembered correctly, this was a secret scroll from that "head-patting" mobile game in his past life; activating it reduced damage by 90%, while the passive effect reduced it by 20%.

Although he only received the passive damage reduction, it was enough to make him happy.

Reduced damage meant increased sustainability, and his first achievement reward—the Uzumaki Naruto (Ninja Academy Student) template—had already granted him the Uzumaki clan's bloodline, which provided high stamina.

With the addition of Nintaijutsu: Guard, he would only become more formidable.

What made him even happier was that he hadn't triggered any rewards despite all his efforts over the past few years, yet now it had triggered without him doing anything. This gave him a rough idea of how to trigger the rewards.

The first achievement was about childhood sweethearts, and the second was witnessing a rival for life.

Both of these were related to characters from the original story!

It seemed that to trigger achievement rewards, he had to interact with characters from the original plot. As for the specifics, he had a general idea, but it would require some practice.

"Yuichi, what's wrong?" Yuhi Kurenai noticed Yuki Yuichi standing there in a daze and curiously tugged at his hand.

"Ah." Feeling Yuhi Kurenai's touch, Yuki Yuichi snapped back to reality and gave her an excited hug.

Seeing this, veins popped on Yuhi Shinku's forehead, and his fists tightened.

"Shinku, it looks like you've found a good son-in-law," Hatake Sakumo teased with a smirk.

"Sigh." Yuhi Shinku sighed at the remark but said nothing.

On the other hand, Yuki Yuichi found Hatake Sakumo's lack of seriousness quite strange.

Shouldn't the White Fang of the Leaf be a cold, stoic, and rigid person?

Why did he seem like such a goofball?

Whether it was the conversation with Might Duy or the way he was teasing Yuhi Shinku, he gave off the impression of a man who didn't take things very seriously at all.

A low-budget version of Jiraiya?

Thinking this, Yuki Yuichi glanced at Kakashi, who seemed to have grown accustomed to this, and then it dawned on him.

It seemed that in the original story, Kakashi mentioned that the One Thousand Years of Death was a taijutsu secret technique created by his father.

Anyone capable of creating such an unserious ninjutsu probably wasn't all that serious themselves.

And considering he was a warm-hearted man who would abandon a mission for the sake of his comrades, he likely wasn't the stern type either.

"I'll see you two off here; from this point on, you'll have to head to the classroom to report on your own," Yuhi Shinku said, looking at Yuki Yuichi and Yuhi Kurenai.

"Remember, don't go around causing trouble, and listen to your teachers at school."

"Understood, Papa," Yuhi Kurenai nodded obediently.

"Understood, Papa," Yuki Yuichi replied, still lost in thought about Hatake Sakumo, and subconsciously echoed Yuhi Kurenai's words.

Upon hearing this, Yuhi Shinku narrowed his eyes slightly, "What did you just call me?"

Seeing his father's unfriendly expression, Yuhi Kurenai tugged on Yuki Yuichi's arm, but his attention was still fixed on the matter of Hatake Sakumo. He didn't notice and spoke again instinctively: "Papa."

"You naturally evil Uchi... you little brat Yuki, I'm going to beat you up right now!"

Yuhi Shinku landed a punch on Yuki Yuichi's head, and Hatake Sakumo, standing to the side, stepped in to hold his shoulders and drag him back: "He's still just a child!"

"They are the future of Konoha, Shinku, calm down!"

Having been struck by Yuhi Shinku, Yuki Yuichi clutched his head. Realizing the situation was dire, he let out a yelp, grabbed Yuhi Kurenai's small hand, and bolted toward the school.

"Run! Uncle Shinku has lost his mind!"

"But don't worry, Kurenai, I will protect you!"

Being dragged along by the hand as they fled into the school, Yuhi Kurenai listened to his words while running, her little face flushing bright red.

"You detestable brat!"

Yuhi Shinku's voice drifted from afar, still carrying a few parting instructions: "Kurenai, don't let this brat fool you!"

Hearing Yuhi Shinku's words, Yuki Yuichi couldn't help but curl his lip, thinking to himself, Heh, Kurenai has already been molded into my shape!

The Ninja Academy was not as small as it appeared in the anime.

The population of Konoha was actually quite large.

Rather than a village, it was more like a city.

Although the total population of Konoha had never been officially tallied, based on Yuki Yuichi's estimates over the years, it was no less than four or five hundred thousand—comparable to a small city.

With such a large population and only one Ninja Academy, it was only natural that the school wouldn't be small.