Yin Release Chakra Amplification

The setting sun slanted low, and as school ended, evening approached. Oshima did not head straight home after classes; instead, he made his way directly toward the Hokage Office.

During his final assessment, Oshima had clearly received a message from the Anbu: "The Hokage summons you." Thus, the moment class concluded, Oshima hurried off to meet with the Third Hokage.

Entering the Hokage Building and walking down the corridor leading to the office, Oshima could clearly sense shadows flickering slightly in certain spots before immediately returning to stillness.

These were the hidden Anbu, quietly verifying the identity of the visitor.

Pushing open the doors to the Hokage Office, Oshima saw the Third Hokage busy with official duties. The Third Hokage was reading with great focus, so Oshima quietly knelt on one knee, waiting for the Third Hokage's instructions.

"Ah, Oshima, you've arrived. Stand up. You are no longer in the Anbu; you are now just an ordinary teacher at the Ninja Academy," the Third Hokage said with a faint smile, gesturing for Oshima to rise.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the Third Hokage got straight to the point.

"How do you feel about this batch of students?"

Oshima replied solemnly, "They are excellent. A few even possess the potential of a Jonin. Hatake Kakashi is very strong; he is already nearing the standards for graduation."

"But what surprises me most is Uchiha Lihuo. This boy has strength not inferior to Kakashi's. Though, considering he is of the Uchiha clan, it is perhaps not so strange."

"Of course, Sarutobi Asuma is also quite remarkable. His ninjutsu and taijutsu are extremely outstanding... (eight hundred words omitted here)."

"Alright, alright, stop praising Asuma. I know his situation well enough," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, though he could not suppress the smile at the corners of his mouth.

"Uchiha Lihuo, he is indeed a talent. We should keep a close eye on him in the future."

Oshima nodded repeatedly in agreement.

After Oshima departed, the Third Hokage fell into deep thought.

"Mind-Body Decapitation Technique, Shadow Clone Technique, hand seals so fast that even I struggle to track them, and rapid progress in taijutsu... Uchiha Lihuo, are you truly a genius, or..."

With that thought, Sarutobi Hiruzen summoned his direct Anbu subordinates.

"Bring Orochimaru here. Tell him to investigate Uchiha Lihuo."

The scene shifts back to Lihuo.

When they arrived at the Dango Shop, Kakashi knew the food must be excellent, for the shop was packed with customers, and the queue even stretched out into the street.

"With so many people, will we still have time to train after we buy them?"

Upon hearing this, Lihuo did not reply to Kakashi, but instead shouted toward the interior of the shop.

"Uncle Asahi, three skewers of three-colored dango, please! Make them sweet!"

"I only need one skewer."

"Oh, right, forgot about you. Uncle, make it four skewers!"

Hearing Lihuo's voice, the middle-aged man inside, who was busy working up a sweat, immediately beamed.

"Coming right up, little Lihuo!"

Before long, a little girl about Lihuo's age ran out.

"Brother Lihuo, here is the dango you wanted."

"Heh, thanks, Little Shopkeeper," Lihuo said with a grin.

Watching Lihuo's smiling expression, Kakashi felt a sense of strangeness. After all, in his previous interactions with Lihuo, he had only ever seen a look of intense fighting spirit; he had never seen Lihuo so amiable.

Seeming to notice Kakashi's confusion, Lihuo handed him a skewer of dango and explained, "The owner's cat went missing a while ago. The whole family was worried sick and was just about to go to the mission desk to post a request. I happened to be buying dango, so I just helped them find it."

"How were you able to find it?"

Lihuo took a bite of a dango, a look of enjoyment on his face. "Dummy, the Uchiha clan is the closest to the ninja cats. I know everything that happens in the cat world, big or small."

"After I found the kitten, the owner gave me a 'free meal' coupon as a thank you. I thought the name sounded bad, so I changed it to a 'skip-the-line-and-buy-dango' coupon."

Suddenly, Lihuo and Kakashi heard a series of passionate shouts.

"Before Lihuo arrives, I will walk around the village on my hands! If I can't do it, I'll do 1,000 push-ups!"

The owner of the voice goes without saying—it was the target of their trip: Might Guy.

"Guy, over here!" Lihuo called out happily when he saw his friend.

Seeing Lihuo, Guy sprinted over instantly and, disregarding his image, gave Lihuo a bear hug.

Kakashi's eyes narrowed. "So fast!"

"Good brother, you're finally here! Training was so boring without you."

"You came just in time. I haven't touched this skewer yet; it's yours."

"A good brother for training suddenly appears, offering a gift of friendship under the early autumn sunset!" This was youth!

Lihuo hurriedly shoved the dango into Guy's mouth before he could say anything else embarrassing.

"Kakashi, this is my training partner, Might Guy."

"We've met."

"Right? I believe you two will become great friends and, in the future, great ninjas."

"But he can't even use ninjutsu."

Suddenly, a crisp female voice cut in, as melodious as an oriole.

"Look at his hands and feet, they're covered in marks from training. He must work incredibly hard. With his perseverance, he'll likely become an outstanding ninja in the future."

"If you don't believe me, the supplementary enrollment list for the Ninja Academy will be out soon. You can go check it yourself; the old Hokage wouldn't let someone with talent go to waste."

The three of them looked toward the source of the voice. It was a girl dressed in the attire of the Nara Clan. Her hair was tied up high, revealing a fair neck, and her face was cute and beautiful, with dark hair hanging down on both sides, giving her a very energetic appearance.

At this moment, the girl was standing in line, holding a finished stick of three-colored dango in her hand.

Lihuo recognized her at a glance; she was the "metronome" from the morning, the girl who had been dozing off in class. Out of politeness, Lihuo introduced himself.

"Hello, my name is..."

"Uchiha Lihuo, I know. I watched your match with Hatake Kakashi."

"Right, this is Might Guy, my good friend."

The girl before them smiled slightly, her large eyes curving into crescents, looking very adorable.

"Nice to meet you both. My name is Nara Lumiao."

Lihuo noticed the finished dango stick in her hand and asked casually, "Are you still waiting in line?"

"Yeah, I bought one, and it was so delicious that I decided to get another."

"I have one left here that I haven't touched. If you don't mind..."

Before Lihuo could finish, Lumiao snatched the dango and began to devour it.

"Thanks," Lumiao said with her mouth full.

With that, all four of Lihuo's dango sticks were gone, yet he had only managed to eat one himself. Lihuo couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.

It seems not everyone in the Nara Clan is a genius; some are even just gluttons, Lihuo muttered to himself.

But who would have thought that Lumiao's next sentence would make Lihuo break out in a cold sweat.

"Back then, when your Shadow Clone failed its first strike, why didn't you retreat? Instead, you risked being dispersed just to pat Kakashi on the head."

This question was critical.

"I could understand the rest of the duel, but why did you have to pat his head?"

"And shortly after that head pat, you used the Lion Combo. You clearly had that kind of speed, so why didn't you use it from the start?"

Lihuo was startled by the question. He looked at Lumiao and saw that she still had a bit of dango syrup on the corner of her mouth, her large eyes filled with curiosity.

To Lihuo, however, it felt like a murderer watching Conan piece together the clues. A sense of crisis welled up within him. Lihuo's eyes darted around, and in a flash of inspiration, he came up with a desperate excuse.

"It's just a bad habit of mine," Lihuo said dryly. As he spoke, he lightly tapped Lumiao on the head. "I suppose you could call it a peculiar quirk."

As soon as he heard the system notification chime, he quickly pulled his hand away, fearing he might cause her displeasure.

Lumiao was slightly stunned, then she chuckled. "Not just anyone gets to pat my head, but since you gave me dango, I'll let it slide this time."

With that, she walked toward the Nara Clan compound, still eating her dango.

As Lihuo let out a sigh of relief, he checked his rewards for this encounter.

Ding! Patted the head of a C-rank ninja: Nara Lumiao. Please select one of the following rewards:

50,000 Ryo

Basic Chakra Control

Yin Release Chakra Amplification

Upon seeing the last option, Lihuo's eyes widened instantly.

"I bet correctly!"

Select "Yin Release Chakra Amplification"!