The Third Hokage was clearly being extremely cautious in how he handled the two little troublemakers, Lin Fan and Naruto.
If properly guided, the two could become the finest heirs to the Will of Fire and pillars of Konoha in the future.
It wasn't impossible that they might even grow to the level of the First.
But if they weren't managed well, both could become rogue ninja and eventually turn against Konoha.
Kakashi Hatake, meanwhile, had graduated from the Ninja Academy at just five years old and become a Genin. At six, he became a Chunin, and by twelve, he was the youngest Jonin in Konoha's history.
Later, he made a name for himself across the Five Great Nations with his missions in Anbu, earning the title of Copy Ninja.
Only a genius like him could earn the respect of these two troublesome little brats.
More importantly, Kakashi had the Will of Fire deeply rooted in his consciousness.
After experiencing the Hatake Sakumo incident as a child, he had decided to obey the village's rules.
He could also complete every mission the village gave him to perfection.
In the Third Hokage's eyes, Kakashi was the perfect person to instill the Will of Fire in the two boys and ensure they never betrayed Konoha.
All right, Lord Third. I'll make sure to discipline them properly.
At that moment, Kakashi looked at Lin Fan's impressive strength in the Crystal Ball and felt his scalp prickle.
The setting sun soon painted the Ninja Academy's training field a beautiful golden yellow.
All right, that's the end of our last sparring exercise. Class is dismissed!
After Iruka finished speaking, he headed toward the school building, while the students quickly gathered into little groups of two or three and prepared to leave.
Lin Fan, let's celebrate you beating that arrogant Sasuke by going out for barbecue!
Naruto draped his right arm over Lin Fan's shoulder and said with a squinting grin.
Sure. You brought me ramen yesterday, so it's my treat today. Let's go get barbecue!
Seeing Naruto looking so eager that he was practically drooling, Lin Fan happily agreed.
After all, if it was just a small group, he could afford a barbecue meal with the silver he had on him.
Sasuke also passed by Lin Fan.
Hmph, Sasuke, we're going to get barbecue. Want to come with us?
Naruto deliberately walked over to Sasuke and asked, looking crestfallen.
Get lost, dead last. I'm going to train right now. One day, I'll surpass Lin Fan and defeat him.
Sasuke slipped one hand into his pocket, shot Naruto a look, and left the school by himself.
Sakura hurried after him. "Sasuke-kun, where are you going to train? I'll bring you dinner later!"
Lin Fan didn't mind.
He was living off his compensation payments, after all, and his monthly allowance wasn't much.
So when it came to treating people to a meal, the fewer guests, the better.
But then something unexpected happened.
After the two of them left school, they ran into the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, Kiba Inuzuka, and Hinata.
Naruto was such a blabbermouth that he bragged to everyone he met about Lin Fan treating them to barbecue.
Ino: "Really? Lin Fan, my dream guy, is treating me to barbecue? I'm definitely going!"
Shikamaru: "It's a hassle, but if Lin Fan's paying, I won't turn him down."
Choji: "How did Lin Fan know what I love most? I definitely won't hold back, either."
And so, all seven of them ended up at a barbecue restaurant!
Before long, plates of grilled lamb skewers, pork belly, beef balls, chicken wings, marinated duck legs, and all kinds of other barbecue were brought to the table.
Soon, they were sizzling in oil, filling the air with the delicious smell of grilled meat.
Nothing beats barbecue and ramen. Dig in, everyone!
Naruto gripped his chopsticks and shouted excitedly.
After everyone had eaten and drunk their fill.
Lin Fan stared at the three hundred ryō in his pocket, feeling the pressure weigh on him.
Every plate of barbecue at the restaurant was clearly marked at twenty ryō, which wasn't expensive.
If it had only been him and Naruto, he would have had enough money.
The problem was that Choji had eaten twenty whole plates by himself.
Now he'd need six hundred ryō just to cover the meal.
And there were no credit or loan apps in the Naruto World. The only four hundred ryō he had would have to last him at least ten days until his next compensation payment came through.
So Lin Fan was trying to figure out how to dine and dash.
After they finished eating, Lin Fan asked Hinata and the others to sit and rest for a while.
Then he went to speak with the barbecue restaurant's owner by himself.
The owner was a single man with a bushy beard and an abundance of masculine hormones.
So Lin Fan decided to appeal to his interests and pulled a few freshly published magazines and comics from the Other-Dimensional Scroll.
They included My Neighbor's Sister, Loli and the Whip, Pretending to be a Man, and others.
Sure enough, the moment the barbecue restaurant owner saw the colorful covers, his eyes lit up.
He eagerly flipped through them.
Seeing that he had a chance, Lin Fan decided to show off his modern-day ingenuity.
He immediately had the owner bring him scissors, tape, and a fully ripe banana.
Then he personally demonstrated another use for the banana besides eating it.
Before long, it was done.
Custom-made to fit each person's size.
Top quality.
Ready to use.
An All-Nighter Artifact with manual speed adjustment had been made in no time.
With this artifact, there was no need to fear having a mountain of study materials to get through.
From now on, Mom wouldn't have to worry about my studies anymore.
After learning what the artifact was really for, the single owner of the barbecue restaurant was so full of admiration for Lin Fan's invention that it flowed like a mighty river, endless and unstoppable.
He immediately announced that Lin Fan's meal was on the house.
He also promised to give Lin Fan a discount every time he came to the restaurant in the future.
All the owner asked in return was to trade for the latest study materials Lin Fan had.
After leaving the barbecue restaurant, Lin Fan said goodbye to his friends.
Naruto went straight to find Iruka, hoping to pry some information out of him about the graduation exam.
Lin Fan, meanwhile, disappeared into the night with Hinata.
Soon, the two of them arrived at the entrance to Ichiraku Ramen.
Hinata looked confused. "Lin Fan, why did you bring me here?"
"Silly girl, you couldn't have eaten your fill with so many people around earlier."
Lin Fan knew better than anyone that Hinata had once eaten forty-six bowls of Ichiraku Ramen and won the Ninja Glutton Champion title.
How could a few small plates of barbecue possibly satisfy her?
Once they had picked a seat, the young lady Ayame immediately set about preparing ramen for Lin Fan.
Before long, two steaming bowls of miso tonkotsu ramen were set on the table.
"L-Lin Fan, I-I'm going to dig in!"
Hinata put her hands together and spoke timidly.
She really wasn't that interested in barbecue, and with so many people she knew around, she'd only eaten a little to be polite.
Her stomach was still rumbling right now.
Hinata hadn't expected Lin Fan to notice.
And now she could eat her favorite Ichiraku Ramen with him, just the two of them.
"Blow on it and take it slow, so you don't burn yourself."
Lin Fan gently blew on the ramen and spoke to Hinata with an affectionate smile.