"Nice to meet you." Hatake Sakumo greeted Might Duy and his son with a broad smile. Looking at Might Guy, he said, "I'll be counting on you to look after Kakashi from now on."
"Please get along with him."
"No, I can't do that." Might Guy hadn't even answered before Might Duy flatly refused.
"Why...?" Hatake Sakumo's eyes widened. He took a step back and exchanged a glance with Yuhi Shinku. Had he just run into one of those legendary overprotective parents?
Seeing Hatake Sakumo's reaction, Kakashi explained from the side, "He didn't pass the school's entrance exam."
"Ah, sorry. I saw you at the Ninja Academy's entrance and assumed..." Hatake Sakumo said, glancing at the training scars covering Might Guy.
"Guy will definitely pass the exam!" Yuki Yuichi sidled up beside Kakashi again, slung an arm over his shoulder, and gave Might Guy a thumbs-up.
"That's youth for you—full of ups and downs. But as long as you keep working hard, you'll definitely reap the rewards!"
"Exactly!" Might Guy shouted, his eyes brimming with tears as he looked at Yuki Yuichi. "I'll pass the retest and become a Ninja Student at the Ninja Academy!"
With that, Might Guy headed off. Might Duy smiled at everyone and followed after him.
Watching them go, Hatake Sakumo chuckled at Kakashi, then said, "Kakashi, don't get cocky just because you got into the Ninja Academy."
"At this rate, that boy will definitely become stronger than you."
"Him?" Kakashi rolled his eyes at Might Guy's retreating figure, his disdain plain to see.
"The guy standing next to me is way stronger than him."
Yuki Yuichi: "???"
I'm pretty sure you're taking a dig at me, but I have no proof.
"Kakashi, Guy is really strong. He works just as hard as anyone!" Yuki Yuichi said earnestly.
"Besides, Uncle Duy created a powerful secret technique that can greatly increase his strength."
Hatake Sakumo and Yuhi Shinku didn't take Yuki Yuichi's words to heart. They were kids—what did they know about ninjutsu?
Still, Hatake Sakumo agreed with what he'd said. He crouched down with a smile and asked, "Yuichi's right. Do you see the injuries on that boy?"
"They're proof of how hard he works. The school wouldn't be foolish enough to leave him off the list of students who need to retake the exam, and the list hasn't been posted yet, has it? Go ask his name."
"He'll make a good rival."
Kakashi was taken aback. He trusted his father more than he trusted Yuki Yuichi.
If his father said so, he was genuinely curious what made that boy think he could catch up with him.
With that in mind, Kakashi called out to Might Guy, "What's your name?"
Hearing Kakashi, Might Guy turned around with a smile and pointed his thumb at himself. "Might Guy!"
"I'll become a man stronger than anyone else!"
After that, Might Guy left with Might Duy.
[Achievement unlocked: Rival for Life.]
[There's nothing more memorable than witnessing two men's entire lives. This kick is for you!]
[Reward: Nintaijutsu: Guard]
[Nintaijutsu: Guard: Passively reduces damage taken by 20%. Maybe you can try tanking a Tengai Shinsei and see what the Pure Land looks like.]
Seeing the achievement reward activate, Yuki Yuichi's eyes lit up.
He was very pleased with this reward. If he remembered correctly, it was a secret scroll from that mobile game he'd played in his previous life. Activating it reduced damage taken by 90%, while its passive effect reduced damage taken by 20%.
The reward only gave him the passive damage reduction, but that was still enough to make him happy.
Taking less damage meant he could keep fighting longer. And the Uzumaki Naruto (Ninja Student) template from his first achievement had given him Uzumaki blood, which already made him extremely resilient.
With Nintaijutsu: Guard, he'd only become even tougher.
What made him happier still was that he'd spent all these years trying different things without triggering an achievement reward, yet now he'd triggered one without doing anything. He was beginning to understand how the rewards worked.
The first achievement had been Childhood Sweetheart; the second was witnessing a Rival for Life.
Both had something to do with characters from the original story!
It seemed he had to interact with characters from the original story to trigger achievement rewards. He already had a rough idea of what he needed to do, but he'd have to put it into practice to be sure.
"Yuichi, what's wrong?" Yuhi Kurenai asked curiously, seeing him standing frozen in place. She gave his hand a little shake.
"Ah." Feeling Yuhi Kurenai tug at him, Yuki Yuichi snapped out of it and, overcome with excitement, hugged her.
Yuhi Shinku's brow twitched. His fists clenched.
"Shinku, looks like you've found yourself a good son-in-law," Hatake Sakumo teased with a grin.
"Ha..." Yuhi Shinku sighed but said nothing.
Yuki Yuichi, however, found Hatake Sakumo's irreverent manner strange.
Wasn't the White Fang of the Leaf supposed to be cold, stern, and humorless?
Why did he seem like such a goofball?
Whether he was talking to Might Duy just now or teasing Yuhi Shinku, he came across as a bit of a clown.
A low-budget Jiraiya?
Thinking this, Yuki Yuichi glanced at Kakashi, who seemed used to it, and finally understood.
Kakashi had mentioned in the original story that the One Thousand Years of Death technique was his father's creation.
Anyone who could come up with an irreverent technique like One Thousand Years of Death probably wasn't very serious either.
And he was the sort of warmhearted man who would abandon a mission for his comrades. He probably wasn't very stern, either.
"We'll leave you here. From this point on, you'll go to your classrooms and check in on your own," Yuhi Shinku said to Yuki Yuichi and Yuhi Kurenai.
"Remember, don't cause trouble, and listen to your teachers at school."
"I know, Dad." Yuhi Kurenai nodded obediently.
"I know too, Dad." Yuki Yuichi was still thinking about Hatake Sakumo. Hearing Yuhi Kurenai, he absentmindedly copied her and answered.
Yuhi Shinku narrowed his eyes. "What did you just call me?"
Seeing the dangerous look on her father's face, Yuhi Kurenai tugged at Yuki Yuichi's arm. But his attention was still on Hatake Sakumo, and he didn't notice. He answered automatically, "Dad."
"You naturally evil little Uchi... Yuki brat, I'm going to beat you up myself!"
Yuhi Shinku punched Yuki Yuichi on the head. Hatake Sakumo grabbed him by the shoulders and dragged him back. "He's just a kid!"
"They're the future of Konoha, Shinku. Calm down!"
Yuki Yuichi clutched his head after Yuhi Shinku hit him. Seeing things take a turn for the worse, he yelped and grabbed Yuhi Kurenai's hand, pulling her toward the school.
"Run! Uncle Shinku's lost it!"
"But don't worry, Kurenai. I'll protect you!"
As Yuki Yuichi dragged her by the hand into the school, Yuhi Kurenai ran alongside him, listening to his words with a bright red face.
"Darn brat!"
Yuhi Shinku's voice carried from far behind them, followed by another warning: "Kurenai, don't let that brat fool you!"
Hearing Yuhi Shinku, Yuki Yuichi curled his lip and thought to himself, Hah, Kurenai already fits me perfectly!
The Ninja Academy wasn't as small as it looked in the anime.
Konoha actually had quite a large population.
It was more like a city than a village.
Konoha's population had never been counted, but based on Yuki Yuichi's estimates over the years, it was at least four or five hundred thousand—enough to rival a small city.
And with so many people and only one Ninja Academy, it naturally wasn't small.
Before you continue