The Kamiya Family

"These are called Chakra Meridians—the pathways through which chakra flows inside the body!"

"Then these pathways—"

"Alright, alright, Kamiya Keiyun. The other kids are almost home by now. If you're still at school, your family might start worrying. Let's call it a day for now. You can come ask more questions another time, okay?"

"Huh? Wait, Sensei, I still want to ask—"

Shoved out of the office, Kamiya Keiyun felt a bit speechless. He'd come with a whole bellyful of questions, and now it felt like he'd learned something, yet nothing at all.

All he'd gotten were two terms: Chakra Control and Chakra Meridians.

Fine. He'd head back for now and ask again when he got the chance.

He sprinted all the way to the school gate. From a distance, he spotted a girl in a dark purple kimono standing there, waiting for someone.

"Older sister?" Kamiya Keiyun called out. "Over here!"

"What were you doing at school? I saw the other kids come out ages ago!" Kamiya Sanyō grabbed his arm. "This is Konoha. Don't treat it like our old hometown!"

"What's so special about Konoha?" Kamiya Keiyun asked.

"Well..." Kamiya Sanyō fell silent. There were differences, for sure, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what they were.

"Mm, the people in this village have to go out and fight. I heard someone died recently!" Kamiya Sanyō whispered.

"Huh?" Kamiya Keiyun was unimpressed. "There's a war going on outside. Konoha's sending troops. People dying is normal, right?"

"This time is different. I heard it involves some big shot!" Kamiya Sanyō tugged him along. "Dad said we should stay out of sight for a while."

"Oh." Kamiya Keiyun thought it over. A big shot? Who?

Well, he didn't know the plot, so whatever.

Since his sister was leading him, he didn't worry about getting lost. He just focused on refining chakra again.

Moving was definitely different from sitting still. When seated, he could draw out chakra in a single thought, but while walking, it was unstable. He tried several times and failed!

Still, with Heaven Rewards Diligence backing him up, he finally succeeded after walking two streets!

It took nearly twelve minutes total—barely faster than starting chakra refinement from scratch!

Once he had one success, it got easier. By the time they reached the front door, he could refine chakra in a single thought, just like when sitting.

"We're home!" Kamiya Sanyō called out as they stepped into the yard.

Their house was a typical detached house. The entrance led to a small yard, only 1.5 meters wide and 4 meters long, planted with some flowers and grass.

Beyond that was a two-story building. The ground floor had one living room, one bedroom, and a bathroom. Upstairs were four rooms: two bedrooms for Kamiya Keiyun and Kamiya Sanyō, one storage room, and one empty room.

There was also a backyard, a bit bigger at 2 meters wide and 4 meters long, also planted with flowers and grass, and used for drying clothes.

Kamiya Hiromi was sitting on the living room sofa, reading a book. Hearing them come in, he turned his head and asked, "Keiyun, did you hear anything at school about Konoha's White Fang?"

"Who's that?" Kamiya Keiyun thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Never heard of him."

"You haven't heard, huh." Kamiya Hiromi sighed. "Good. If anyone at school asks you about that, just answer the same way."

"What happened?" Kamiya Keiyun was curious. "Konoha's White Fang—is that a nickname? What's up with him?"

"Nothing. Just stupid political infighting." Kamiya Hiromi shook his head. "But we're just farmers now. No need to worry about that stuff."

"Oh, okay." Kamiya Keiyun nodded, then glanced at Kamiya Sanyō. So that's the big shot you meant?

Kamiya Sanyō nodded back but didn't dare speak.

The Land of Fire had always favored men over women. She used to be a miko, which gave her some status, but after moving to Konoha, her only path left was marriage—so she had no standing at all.

"Here, food's ready!" Kamiya Koromo came out of the kitchen carrying dishes. "The grain prices in Konoha have stabilized lately, so I bought extra meat. Keiyun needs to grow, so eat up."

"Yes!" Kamiya Keiyun noticed Kamiya Hiromi's expression wasn't great.

That made sense. With the war over, grain prices naturally dropped. Their family had leased a big plot of land, so lower prices meant less profit.

But he'd keep that to himself and not burden the family.

"How are you doing at the ninja academy?" Kamiya Hiromi asked.

"Pretty good. The teacher said I have talent," Kamiya Keiyun replied.

"Good." Kamiya Hiromi nodded. "If you can become a chūnin and marry a ninja to start a family line, our Kamiya Family might just become a ninja clan someday."

"Mm-hmm." Kamiya Keiyun nodded silently. Seeing the food was mostly laid out, he joined his sister in pressing his palms together. "I humbly receive!"

Then he wolfed it all down.

After dinner, Kamiya Hiromi went out—no one knew where. Kamiya Koromo was busy washing dishes. Kamiya Sanyō gently tugged Kamiya Keiyun, and they went upstairs to her bedroom.

"What's wrong with you?" Kamiya Keiyun asked as soon as he stepped in, seeing her low energy.

"Father wants to marry me off!" Kamiya Sanyō looked miserable. "You're in the academy now. Maybe you'll become a ninja soon. Can you talk to him for me? I'm only twelve—I don't want to get married yet!"

"Holy crap!" Kamiya Keiyun even dropped a curse. "Married at twelve? That's just animal behavior!"

"You're cursing Father again!" Kamiya Sanyō was exasperated.

"It's fine. He can't understand anyway." Kamiya Keiyun didn't care at all. "Besides, it's not like I haven't cursed him before."

Kamiya Hiromi was the typical traditional Japanese patriarch—high and mighty at home. Kamiya Koromo was only fit to cook for him. Where he went, who he hung out with, what he did—no one in the family had the right to ask.

Kamiya Sanyō and Kamiya Keiyun had even less standing at home. They were just children—who cared what they said or thought?

Especially Kamiya Keiyun. In his early years, he couldn't learn Japanese and was treated like an idiot, leaving a deep impression on Kamiya Hiromi.

He had always been raised by Kamiya Sanyō, and the result was that he learned Japanese while she learned the national language.

Later, Kamiya Keiyun tried to communicate with Kamiya Hiromi. He had a belly full of modern knowledge; a little display could have lifted the family out of poverty, so why were they stuck farming?

But Kamiya Hiromi wouldn't listen at all. A simple "you're just a brat" shut Kamiya Keiyun down.

From then on, Kamiya Keiyun understood that this man was an unreasonable old fossil. In future exchanges, he just grunted in agreement.

His biggest goal had once been to grow up quickly and leave home to stand on his own.

As for now, he'd added another goal: to get his sister out of this pit.

He wasn't obsessed with her. If a decent young man came along, he'd be happy to see her marry well. But the key was that Kamiya Sanyō was only twelve—what was there to marry off?

"Who is he marrying you to? Do you know?" Kamiya Keiyun asked.

"They say it's a man named Shimura Ken, from the Shimura Clan. He's a ninja, but he lost a leg in the war," Kamiya Sanyō said, then suddenly sensed something was wrong. "Why are you asking? What are you planning?"

"Has the engagement date been set?" Kamiya Keiyun pressed.

"Not yet. They're still discussing it," Kamiya Sanyō replied.

"This..." Kamiya Keiyun frowned. How do I stop something like this?

If I were eighteen, I'd have a say in the house and could block this marriage.

If I were eight, I'd already be a famous genius at the ninja academy. By then, plenty of people would want to marry my genius sister, and a one-legged ninja wouldn't stand a chance.

But I'm only five now. I'm in first grade, been at school one day, and have no reputation yet.

What if they finalize the engagement in three to five days?

"Sister, do ninjas have a lot of influence?" Kamiya Keiyun suddenly thought of a question.

His sister was very pretty. Raised from childhood as a Miko, she was well-read and refined, skilled in brewing, singing, dancing, and several musical instruments. Under Kamiya Keiyun's influence, she also had beautiful handwriting.

A girl this outstanding would be goddess-level in his past life in Huaxia. Even in the Land of Fire, she could marry into nobility without issue.

So why, in Konoha, was she being matched with a crippled ninja?

"They do have a lot of influence. Konoha is a village built by ninja clans, and those clans enjoy noble status in the Land of Fire. I heard there's a ninja named Tsunade who was even granted the title of princess!" Kamiya Sanyō said.

Though she had no job in Konoha, as a girl, she'd easily infiltrated one of Konoha's top intelligence networks—the Konoha Girls' Shopping Group.

Those girls were always in the know.

"Then why don't you become a ninja too?" Kamiya Keiyun asked again.

"Ah, me?" Kamiya Sanyō was taken aback. "No, no, I'm not qualified for that! Besides, becoming a ninja takes talent!"

"You're my sister. We share the same blood. If I have talent, there's no reason you don't," Kamiya Keiyun said.

"But... I'm already twelve!" Kamiya Sanyō shook her head. "Look at your academy—don't they all start training at four or five?"

"No. Lü Dongbin started at forty, Wang Chongyang began martial arts at forty-five. When it comes to training, it's never too late!" Kamiya Keiyun pressed Kamiya Sanyō down onto the bed.

"Cross your legs, close your eyes. I'll teach you the Chakra Refining Technique."