Village Exclusion

"Damn it!!"

"Inazu! It's you guys again!!"

"What right do you have to say that about us?!"

Stepping out of the orphanage's wooden cabin, Hane only saw them on the grass not far away.

Urushi was glaring daggers at a group of kids of similar age, flanked by several other children from the Konoha Orphanage.

Meanwhile, the two girls, Mayuna and Momoka, were struggling to hold back the impulsive Urushi from the sidelines.

"Hmph!!"

"Am I wrong?"

"You lot were all picked up from the outside; who knows if you're spies sent by other villages??"

The kid standing at the front of the group facing Urushi and the others looked to be about five or six years old, yet his face wore a sour, mean-spirited expression that had no place at such an age.

They were children from Konoha village, and bullying or ostracizing the kids from the Konoha Orphanage was nothing new for them.

This was the reality of the ninja world.

After all, the sunny scenes from the original story, where the protagonist Uzumaki Naruto spent all day shouting, "I'm going to be Hokage," were merely the tip of the iceberg shown to the audience due to the limited scope of the original work.

Where there is light, there is shadow.

Especially in this turbulent era of the Third Shinobi World War, petty squabbles like the one before him were perfectly normal.

"You're the one who's a spy sent by another village!!"

Sure enough, the impulsive Urushi decisively slammed a fist right into the face of the kid named Inazu.

"Damn it, you actually dare to hit me!"

Caught off guard and bleeding from the nose after being struck by Urushi, Inazu immediately retaliated with a punch of his own. "Everyone, attack! Beat these strays to death!!"

In the next moment, the group of kids began shoving and pushing, quickly devolving into a chaotic brawl.

Mayuna and Momoka watched from the side, burning with anxiety.

"Oh my..."

"It's Urushi and those boring brats again."

Seeing the fight between the kids not far away, Hane let out a bored yawn.

This wasn't the first time Hane had seen such a scene today; even if he helped Urushi and the others drive this group away, the same scene would inevitably play out again in a few days.

Besides, although he wasn't a ninja yet, he had already successfully refined chakra.

If he were to get involved in these children's squabbles, it would be a bit like an adult bullying kids.

Moreover, he figured that a little scuffle between these brats wouldn't lead to anything serious.

Currently focused solely on how to train and develop the abilities of his String-String Fruit, Hane walked past them on his own.

"Hey! Hane! You disloyal jerk!"

"Aren't you going to come over and help?!"

Seeing Hane strolling past leisurely, Urushi immediately shouted at him, throwing another heavy punch at the kid in front of him as he spoke.

"Not interested. This is just you kids playing around."

Hearing Urushi's voice, Hane just shrugged without looking back.

He had absolutely no interest in these childish scuffles, possessing as he did the soul of an adult man.

Compared to this, Hane only wanted to focus on training and improving his own strength.

Only then would he have a chance to properly protect himself and those he cared about amidst this Shinobi World War and the many changes to come.

A sudden turn of events.

A kid with brown hair suddenly darted out from the nearby woods.

He looked to be about seven or eight years old and charged right into the middle of the fight between Urushi and the other children.

With just a few punches and kicks, he sent Urushi and the several Konoha Orphanage kids flying!

"Ugh! That hurts!!"

"What incredible strength!!"

Knocked flat onto the ground by a single punch, Urushi felt as if his entire body were falling apart.

"This guy??"

Hane, who had turned back to notice this scene, saw his calm expression shift slightly. "Chakra?!"

Because Hane had keenly sensed that when the brown-haired kid threw his punches, a faint blue glow had shimmered around his body—it was clearly the use of chakra.

"Is this brat a ninja?"

Looking at the brown-haired boy who had suddenly appeared before him.

Seeing his agility and speed, which were clearly different from the other children, Hane's amber eyes narrowed instantly.

"Hahaha! Had enough yet?!"

"My brother Itachi! He's an honor student at the Ninja Academy!!"

Watching Urushi and the other orphans from the orphanage all knocked to the ground by the boy who had suddenly appeared, Inazu stood with his hands on his hips, looking triumphant. "You bunch of strays picked up from the streets! Do you know how tough we are now?!"

Thud!!

A dull sound of impact rang out.

Inazu hadn't even finished his sentence.

Blood sprayed from his nose as he was sent flying by a single punch.

"Inazu!!"

Seeing his younger brother sent flying by a punch.

The brown-haired boy, Itachi, was startled and stopped what he was doing.

"Strays picked up from the streets, huh?"

"I can't exactly pretend I didn't hear that..."

A youthful, indifferent voice rang out.

A white-haired child with delicate features, dressed in the kimono of the Konoha Orphanage, was already standing before them.

The one who had thrown the punch to send Inazu flying was none other than Hane, who had just been "standing by."

"Hane!!"

Seeing Hane make his move.

Mayuna and Momoka, the two girls nearby, immediately brightened and covered their mouths in surprise.

"Hane?!"

Seeing that Hane, who had unloyally walked away just moments ago, had actually sent Inazu flying with one punch.

Urushi, lying on the ground, gaped in astonishment, unable to speak.

"A student at the Ninja Academy is supposed to be half a ninja, at least."

Having suddenly appeared before them and sent Inazu flying with a punch.

Looking at the furious Itachi before him, Hane curled his lip in disdain. "You've already refined chakra, yet you're picking on a bunch of kids."

Even without using ninjutsu, the gap between someone who had successfully refined chakra and an ordinary person was immense.

It was just like a martial artist bullying a commoner; Hane found Itachi's act of picking on those weaker than him completely intolerable.

"You brat! You hit my brother?!"

Seeing the white-haired kid who had suddenly appeared.

After hitting his brother Inazu, he was actually lecturing him.

Itachi gritted his teeth, a fierce look flashing in his eyes.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Several faint sounds of air being cut rang out.

In his rage, Itachi actually threw three shuriken directly at Hane!

"Hane! Watch out!!"

Seeing the furious Itachi actually using ninja tools in what was supposed to be a children's scuffle.

Urushi, lying on the ground nearby, was struck with sudden terror.