Blood-Red Chili

In the blink of an eye, the school term began. Four chunin teachers were assigned to lead four new classes, and because Hyuga Nichigetsu belonged to the Hyuga clan, he was placed in a class similar to an honors track. With its tidy campus, spacious and bright classrooms, fully equipped training grounds, and a library with a massive collection, Nichigetsu couldn't help but marvel at how Konoha truly excelled when it came to education.

Sitting in the classroom, Nichigetsu felt a bit conflicted; he had spent over twenty years of his previous life in school, and now he had to do it all over again. For that reason, he had specifically chosen a seat in the last row by the window. The chunin teacher looked somewhat familiar—small eyes hidden behind round, black-rimmed sunglasses, with a ninja headband wrapped around his head.

"Hello, everyone! My name is Ebiki! Following me is the best shortcut to becoming a ninja because I am the elite among teachers! Naturally, those I cultivate are elites as well! Do you all want to become elite ninjas?" The chunin teacher pushed up his sunglasses and delivered this line with a very cool, affected air. The children were so easily swayed that their eyes began to sparkle.

Nichigetsu's jaw hit the floor. Could this sunglass-wearing guy be... Ebisu's old man? How did I end up with this guy on my first day? Good heavens, if the Sannin couldn't make it, couldn't you have sent the White Fang of Konoha or Sarutobi Shinnosuke to teach me instead? Heaven seemed to be busy sleeping.

"Now, let's go around and introduce ourselves," Ebiki said. Nichigetsu sighed, thinking that this was truly characteristic of Konoha.

"My name is Mizuno Ai, and I love going on picnics with my family..."

"I'm Watanabe Jiro, and I like catching frogs..."

"Hello everyone, my name is Hashimoto Kaori, and I love my mom and dad the most..."

When it was the turn of a young boy, he appeared quite handsome, wearing a black jacket with his hair loose and parted in the middle. He held his head high with an arrogant expression.

"Uchiha Jun, 5 years old. I hate weaklings the most! I like quite a few things, and I usually enjoy practicing shurikenjutsu and taijutsu. As for my dream, it's to become a powerhouse!"

He was arrogant and rather wild, projecting an air of "stay away." The eyes of all the young girls in the class were glued to the boy, their faces filled with infatuation.

"Wow, he's so cool!"

"Uchiha Jun, is it? He feels so edgy!"

"He's from the Uchiha clan. I heard everyone in the Uchiha clan is super strong."

The boys, meanwhile, looked on with faint jealousy and disdain.

"Tch, stop acting so full of yourself."

"I won't be weaker than you."

"The Uchiha are all just police officers; they're so cold and creepy."

Nichigetsu couldn't help but grumble to himself: Why does the Uchiha clan only produce people who want to do big, dramatic things?

Finally, it was the turn of Nichigetsu, who was sitting in the last row. He stood up, appearing very gentle and relaxed, a smile on his face and a faint sense of confidence in his eyes. His black hair hung loose, with side-swept bangs covering half his forehead. The children all turned to look at him, appearing quite curious.

"Hello, classmates. My name is Hyuga Nichigetsu, 5 years old. I hate unreasonable rules the most, and I love eating all kinds of delicious food. As for my dream, I want to open a clinic, and if possible, a restaurant as well. Also, I want to avoid being bullied and protect the people who are important to me."

Because of Nichigetsu's gentle demeanor, the others felt more inclined toward him.

"He seems like a guy who's easy to get along with."

"He's actually quite handsome, too."

"People from the Hyuga clan must be really strong, right?"

"Why does he have that strange mark on his forehead?"

"I heard that people from the Hyuga Branch Family all have a mark like that!"

Nichigetsu ignored whatever the children were discussing and sat down as soon as he finished. The Uchiha boy from earlier also turned his head slightly, sneaking a glance at Nichigetsu.

"Nichigetsu of the Hyuga clan, huh?"

Teacher Ebiki began the lesson, starting right off with history: "How Konoha was founded!" Nichigetsu, of course, already knew how Konoha was founded, so he could only slump over and sleep.

"A long time ago, the world was in the Warring States period..."

"And so, the First Hokage chose to establish the village beneath this cliff face..."

"The name 'Konoha' comes from..."

After sleeping for a while, Nichigetsu felt it was a complete waste of time. While Teacher Ebiki turned to write on the blackboard, he pulled out a scroll containing a puppet that looked just like him; from a distance, it was hard to tell the difference if one wasn't looking closely. Nichigetsu set up the puppet, propped up a book to hide it, and secretly leaped out the window. Everything was completed in an instant; no one noticed his departure.

Should I go train for a while? If only I knew the Shadow Clone Technique, I could leave a clone in the classroom to endure the brainwashing, Nichigetsu thought as he walked through the campus. I'll just take a good look around the school first. Maybe there's something interesting.

Nichigetsu arrived at a small grove by the playground where a swing set stood. Suddenly feeling a surge of excitement, he immediately hopped onto the swing. Is this the place Naruto always hangs out? I really should have brought a camera; these classic scenes are worth capturing as a souvenir.

Just then, a roar erupted from the woods!

"You dared to call me 'Tomato' behind my back again!!!"

This was followed by the frantic shrieks of several children.

"Ahhh, the Tomato heard us! Run, everyone!" "Yikes! The Tomato is chasing us! Ugly Tomato!" "The Bloody Habanero has gone mad!" "Run away!" "Help!"...

Several children, aged eleven or twelve, came sprinting toward him, followed by a young girl with long red hair. Her hair whipped through the air like a fiery red octopus, her eyes wide with rage and her fists clenched tight. A large, vein-like "cross" mark throbbed on her forehead as she screamed, "You still dare to call me that! Don't you run away!!"

Uh... to think I'd run into her here. It seems Uzumaki Kushina hasn't graduated yet. The 'Bloody Habanero' really lives up to her reputation, Nichigetsu thought, feeling a chill run down his spine as he watched the furious Kushina.

"Help me! Help me!" One of the children spotted Nichigetsu on the swing and ran toward him, pleading for rescue, but his foot slipped and he fell. Kushina, radiating an intimidating aura like a terminator, stepped heavily on the ground, slowly closing in on the fallen child.

"I-it was them who called you 'Tomato,' not me!"

"Hmm?! You said 'Tomato' again, didn't you..."

"It wasn't me who said Tomato, uh, I mean, not Tomato..."

"Still talking back!" Kushina's round eyes blazed with terrifying light, her face flushed completely black with rage. Her long red hair danced wildly in every direction as she grabbed the boy on the ground, her knuckles cracking as she clenched her fists.

"I, I, I won't do it again! Ah, help..."

"Bang! Bam! Pow! Thud, thud, thud..."

Watching the boy get soundly thrashed by Kushina, Nichigetsu couldn't help but give a mental thumbs-up, praising her: "Young lady, you're a real man! Brother Minato, you truly are a man among men!" Of course, Kushina hadn't gone too far; the boy was just beaten up without suffering any serious injuries. Still, the fierce, brutal, and terrifying sight made a large drop of cold sweat roll down the back of Nichigetsu's head.

After chasing the boy away, Kushina returned to her normal state. Her long red hair fell to her waist, and her round face, large eyes, and delicate, beautiful features bore a striking resemblance to Naruto. Dressed in a beige short-sleeved ninja outfit, she was only about eleven years old, yet she already showed the budding promise of a great beauty.

Nichigetsu mused to himself: "Naruto's mom really is a great beauty; that head of red hair is truly stunning. Come to think of it, I'm a descendant of the Senju Clan, and she's from the Uzumaki Clan—we're practically relatives!" A sense of kinship suddenly washed over him.

Kushina turned her head to look at Nichigetsu, who had been sitting on the swing watching the show, and glared at him: "Hey, you kid from the lower grades over there."

"Huh? Is, is something the matter?" Nichigetsu acted as if he were just a passerby.

"Kid, aren't you lower-graders supposed to be in class right now? Why are you here?" Kushina stared at him intently, as if interrogating someone suspicious.

"Oh, I already know the material they're teaching, so I came out for a stroll."

"You're a child from the Hyuga Clan, right? What's your name?" Kushina continued.

"Hyuga Nichigetsu. I'm five this year. Who are you?" Nichigetsu feigned ignorance.

"Me? I'm going to be the first female Hokage!" Kushina held her head high, speaking with absolute confidence.

"Hokage? Hmm! Good luck! You can do it!" Nichigetsu nodded, thinking: "Kushina, you're a ninja of the Uzumaki Clan; your sealing techniques are legendary. You could say half of the Fourth Hokage's strength comes from you. The Uzumaki Clan also possesses the Sage Body. If you can properly utilize the power of the Nine-Tails, becoming Hokage isn't impossible. Heh, even if you don't succeed, once your husband or son becomes the village leader, they can just carve out a piece of land for me to open a clinic."

Just as Nichigetsu was busy thinking about how to befriend Kushina to secure that clinic land, his response caught her off guard. Usually, when she spoke of her dream, others would either dismiss it, look at her with disbelief, or openly mock her. But this kid didn't seem to think that way; he seemed to genuinely believe in her.

At that moment, a voice drifted over from nearby: "Hokage? That's not something a tomato like you could ever be." A few older children walked over. The leader was clearly taller and bigger than the others, wearing a ninja headband—he was a genin.

"What did you say?!" Kushina knew the leader was a genin, but she didn't lose her nerve. She widened her eyes and clenched her fists, glaring at them.

"You beat up my brother, so I'm going to teach you a lesson, To-ma-to!" The genin boy laughed arrogantly, pointing at Kushina's face. His brother, whom Kushina had just disciplined, stood behind him. The others also balled their fists, looking ready to jump in.

"Hmph! He was the one always looking for trouble, trying to bully me!" Kushina pointed angrily at the genin's brother, who immediately shrank to the back.

"Hmph! Enough talk! Anyone who bullies my brother needs to be properly 'educated'!" The genin rubbed his knuckles, which cracked loudly.

"On what grounds?! I was just defending myself!" Kushina stood tall, refusing to back down.

"On these grounds!" The genin pointed his thumb at his ninja headband, then waved his hand: "Get her, everyone! Beat her up!" Several of them rushed at Kushina and tangled with her. Nichigetsu wanted to see her strength, so he didn't immediately step in to help.

These older kids were strong. Instead of clashing head-on, they swarmed her. The genin snuck up from behind and delivered a hand-chop that knocked Kushina over. The group immediately pinned her down, and the genin grabbed a handful of her red hair.

"Hit her! Turn her face into a rotten tomato!" "How could a tomato be Hokage!" "How could the village ever accept a hateful tomato!" "Serves you right, tomato! Let's see you act tough now!"...

"This ugly red hair is such an eyesore. Let me cut it off!" The genin yanked hard on her red hair and pulled out a steel kunai.

"Yeah! Shave her bald!" "Cut off that annoying hair!" "Hair as disgusting as coarse yarn!" "Why is such an ugly tomato even here?" "Hmph! If I looked like that, I would've found a hole to bury myself in long ago!" "Hahaha!"... The group continued their insults.

Kushina struggled desperately, and much of her hair had already been pulled out. But it was useless; the genin held the kunai against her hair, and it looked like he was about to slice it off. Kushina's eyes turned red, and she bit her lip, tears of humiliation and sorrow streaming down her face as she watched them prepare to cut her hair.

Nichigetsu, watching from the side, frowned. This is bad, he thought. This wasn't in the original story... It's my fault! I accidentally caused a butterfly effect. If he hadn't been there today, Kushina wouldn't have been disciplining that boy and stayed behind to talk to him. These kids wouldn't have run into her at this moment, and even if they had, she wouldn't have been in such a pathetic state.

Just as the kunai was about to slice through her red hair, "Snap!" Nichigetsu grabbed the genin's wrist. The genin looked up to see a five- or six-year-old kid and tried to ignore him, but he found his hand held firmly in a grip that wouldn't budge. He tried to shake Nichigetsu off, but the boy only squeezed tighter, causing the genin to wince in pain: "Brat, what do you think you're doing?"

"Hey, do you feel proud of yourself as a genin for bullying a student? What kind of skill is it for a bunch of older boys to gang up on a girl? Is that what being a ninja is for? Besides, don't you think it's a bit much to cut off her beautiful red hair?! Stop it, or you're going to regret it!" Nichigetsu stared at the genin, his voice low and imposing.

The genin grew anxious, but since Nichigetsu was alone, he shouted viciously: "Brat! Let go! Or I'll beat you up too!"

"Wrong answer, kid!" Nichigetsu activated his Byakugan, tapping his other hand against the genin's elbow. The genin's arm went numb, his grip loosened involuntarily, and the kunai clattered to the ground.

"You bastard!" The genin let go of Kushina's hair and threw a punch at Nichigetsu's face. Nichigetsu tilted his head to dodge easily, then countered by poking the genin under the armpit and on the side of his waist. The genin felt a sharp jolt of pain and collapsed to the ground.

Nichigetsu immediately straddled him, deactivated his Byakugan, and unleashed a flurry of punches to his face! The genin screamed in agony, begging for mercy.

"The genin got taken down! Run!" Seeing their strongest member defeated in one move and then mercilessly beaten without a chance to retaliate, the other kids felt a chill down their spines and fled, leaving Kushina behind.

Nichigetsu had no choice. If he had fought them all at once, he wasn't afraid of their numbers—their strength was nothing to him—but he couldn't protect Kushina while fighting them off. Plus, his taxing Byakugan meant he couldn't afford a long battle. He chose the strategy of striking the leader to scare the rest away.

"Get lost, you little punks! Don't think that just because you're genin you can bully people. You'd better learn some humility! Or I'll deal with you again next time!" Nichigetsu released the genin's collar and stood up. The bruised and battered genin didn't dare stay; he scrambled up and ran away, crying and shouting.

Only Kushina remained, kneeling on the ground, her tears falling into the grass.