Afternoon.
Naruto changed into his new training clothes.
They fit him snugly.
Naruto was excited all afternoon.
Not only did he have a friend to train with, but Sasuke had so many kunai and shuriken that they could train with them without ever running out.
It was a kind of luxury he had never experienced before.
On top of that, delicious food was brought to them whenever they wanted.
This life made Naruto incredibly content.
As for envy and jealousy... with his simple-minded brain, he just didn't feel them.
After dinner, the two little ones took a bath and returned to their room.
"Sasuke, why did you choose to become friends with me?"
Naruto lay on the bed, looking curious.
"Why?"
"There's no particular reason. I just wanted to be friends with you."
"By the way, Naruto, I have a really powerful training method. Do you want to try it?"
"Maybe you'll get stronger really quickly!"
Sasuke suddenly sat up and looked at Naruto seriously.
"What is it?"
As soon as Naruto heard that he could get stronger, he immediately forgot his earlier question.
He eagerly waited for Sasuke's answer.
"Crackle, crackle..."
Sasuke raised his hand, and lightning danced across his palm.
"Lightning Style!"
"Sasuke, you've mastered not only Fire Style, but Lightning Style too!"
"I'm so jealous."
Naruto's eyes widened in amazement.
"This is a training method that's unique to me, but I think you can do it too, Naruto."
"You already know how to mold chakra from class, right?"
"It's the special energy stored in our bodies, created by combining our training experience with the energy in our cells."
"Lightning Style can stimulate our cells... In other words, I can use it to temper them and make them stronger."
After Sasuke explained how it worked, Naruto was clearly eager to give it a try.
Even though the arcs of electricity in Sasuke's hand caused a little pain, they couldn't dampen Naruto's anticipation.
"Yeah, I want to try!"
Naruto nodded seriously.
"All right!"
Sasuke nodded and reached out his hand.
Naruto swallowed.
Then, with determination, he reached out and took Sasuke's hand.
Lightning surged through him at once.
The powerful sensation of something invading his body made Naruto shudder.
But his body was incredibly strong.
Lightning of this level couldn't do any real damage to him.
At the same time, Sasuke used the lightning to sense what was happening inside Naruto's body.
Naruto's powerful cells began to be tempered almost as soon as the lightning washed over them.
"Quick, start molding your chakra," Sasuke urged.
"Okay!"
Naruto immediately sat up straight and began molding his chakra.
Drawing on what they had learned during the day, the two little ones entered a special kind of "dual cultivation."
Soon, a look of surprise and delight appeared on Sasuke's face.
This guy Naruto really was Kishimoto's favorite son!
His physical strength, the amount of chakra he could mold...
Even Sasuke couldn't help feeling a little envious.
At the same time, Sasuke sensed what was happening inside Naruto's body.
The Uzumaki Clan's constitution really was impressive.
Compared to Naruto's, Sasuke's own cells were nowhere near as strong.
Perhaps it was an issue with the Uchiha Clan's bloodline.
"Hm?!"
As Sasuke pondered, a strange sensation arose inside him.
Though he wasn't trying to mold chakra, his body began doing so automatically.
His cells contracted and expanded, and chakra surged through him.
Most importantly, that chakra began tempering his cells alongside the Lightning Style.
Ding! Congratulations, host. You have completed your 268th tempering. Ding! Congratulations, host. You have completed your 269th tempering. ...
As the familiar system notifications rang out, the corners of Sasuke's mouth slowly lifted.
He didn't know exactly how it worked, but he seemed to have figured out the trick to completing this task.
In that case...
"Naruto, adjust your chakra molding to match mine."
"Get ready. I'm going to increase the Lightning Style output."
Sasuke spoke in a low voice.
Seeing that Naruto's gaze remained determined, Sasuke released even more powerful lightning without hesitation.
"Crackle, crackle..."
The wild lightning spread in every direction.
But Sasuke quickly drew it back and brought it under control again.
The two of them spent the entire night training.
Early the next morning.
Lightning Release Nature Transformation Tempering Progress: 659/1000
Sasuke looked at the progress on the panel, in high spirits.
One or two more sessions, and he'd probably complete the task.
Besides looking forward to the task reward, Sasuke was also eager to see what his body would be like after a thousand temperings.
"Grrr..."
Just then, a growling sound from beside him interrupted Sasuke's thoughts.
"Hehe..."
"I think... I'm hungry."
Naruto scratched his head awkwardly and spoke with a sheepish grin.
"Come on, let's go eat."
Sasuke took Naruto to wash up, then led him toward the living room.
Mikoto and the cook had already prepared breakfast.
After training all night, neither of them had the slightest resistance to food.
They greeted everyone and immediately dug in.
Mikoto rested her chin in her hand and watched the two little ones with a gentle smile.
A figure with red hair appeared in her thoughts.
"Kushina, this child is healthy and kind."
"You..."
Mikoto murmured inwardly. The moisture in the corners of her eyes made her feelings clear.
The weekend.
"Mom, Naruto and I are going to his house to play."
"Tomorrow, I'll go to school with Naruto."
"I've packed everything, so don't worry, Mom."
"Mm, I can cook. Aunt Bubin is coming with us too."
"We're off..."
After saying goodbye to Mikoto Uchiha, Sasuke and Naruto headed into the village together.
In secret, the Uchiha elite jonin and the Anbu ninja followed them as well.
Without a doubt, the biggest event in the village right now revolved around these two little boys.
Sasuke understood what was going on. Naruto didn't notice a thing.
At the Hokage Office.
After the Anbu reported all the information, he knelt on one knee and waited for the Hokage's orders.
"I understand."
"Go notify the school. I'll give a speech there on Monday."
"Handle everything else as we planned."
Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke calmly.
"Understood."
The Anbu vanished.
Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up the report in his hand.
[Uchiha Sasuke has displayed talent on par with Uchiha Itachi]
[He has already attracted the attention of Fugaku Uchiha, who is now doing everything he can to train him]
Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn't worried at all about the Uchiha Clan producing another genius.
As long as they were still in the village, then... that genius belonged to the village!
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