Want to spar with me?

Four years later, Zeyu was twelve years old. With his graduation from the Ninja Academy imminent and his own ninjutsu training mostly complete, he would occasionally return to the archives to study other scrolls.

He had mastered the Flying Thunder God Mark, an incredible ninjutsu, and had scattered the Flying Thunder God Mark all over the place. However, he didn't dare use it casually yet; being discovered would inevitably lead to interrogations, and he preferred to avoid unnecessary trouble.

His small household was celebrating in advance, mostly because Meiling was off work today, and... there was a guest.

Zeyu looked at the spread of dishes on the table. Even though they were all his favorites, he had no appetite at all. Watching the two of them bustling about in the kitchen, he felt a bitter knot in his chest.

Aunt Meiling had a boyfriend!

Although she was only his aunt, they had shared a family bond for so many years. With someone suddenly wedging their way in, he felt as if he were being pushed out.

His heart felt hollow, as if he were no longer loved.

Zeyu pouted as he watched Meiling place the final dish on the table, looking up at her with a resentful, mournful gaze.

Meiling immediately understood, reaching out to pat Zeyu's head.

"Alright now, it's not like I didn't tell you on purpose. I'm bringing him here to introduce you, aren't I? Sato is a very good man, you should try to get along with him."

"Hmph." Zeyu wasn't buying it this time, turning his head away to sulk.

Meiling was out of options. She grabbed a chicken leg from a plate, shoved it into Zeyu's mouth, and turned away to tidy up.

Zeyu felt helpless. After all, Aunt Meiling wasn't young anymore; it was time for her to find someone to marry. She couldn't keep taking care of him forever.

But his heart just felt uncomfortable.

He gnawed on the chicken leg in frustration.

Once the chicken leg was finished, the other two sat down as well.

Knowing he couldn't do anything about it, he decided to just let things take their course.

He dropped his sour expression, muttered a polite "Thank you for your hard work, Uncle," and began to scarf down his food.

Sarutobi Sato was quite happy. When he first met this little guy, the kid had looked like he'd just eaten something foul, as if he really disliked him. Sato had felt a bit dejected, but after Meiling's encouragement, his mood had improved.

He was just a child, after all; it was normal to be unaccustomed to new people. He needed to be patient. Since he intended to marry Meiling, they would be one family soon.

"Zeyu, that kid, he's really grown up," Meiling thought, feeling a wave of emotion as she watched Zeyu focused on his meal.

But Zeyu still felt very unhappy inside; he desperately needed to vent!

The next day, after finishing his training, Zeyu wiped the sweat from his forehead and was just about to head down the mountain when he heard a loud boom in the distance.

Zeyu shouldered his small bag and headed toward the source of the sound.

He soon reached the side of a road, where he saw a giant bear, nearly five meters tall when standing, surrounded by a crowd. Some of the people wore light leather armor and carried round shields, others held hemp ropes, and some stood guard with swords around a palanquin. A flag stood on the palanquin, and a broken cage lay nearby; it was clear the giant bear had escaped and was trying to flee.

"Beast Taming Group? They train wild beasts?" Zeyu questioned after clearly seeing the words 'Beast Taming Group' on the flag.

Just then, the giant bear let out another roar. Ignoring the people around it, it accelerated and charged toward the palanquin at the back of the crowd. Anyone who tried to block its path was either sent flying by the impact or swatted away with a single swipe.

Zeyu thought to himself, Oh no, that bear is trying to capture the leader to break the siege.

He immediately moved and dashed out.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

A fireball two meters in diameter shot out from the side, striking the giant bear. The bear let out a howl of pain, its fur on its right side and belly catching fire. It immediately dropped to the ground and rolled, trying to extinguish the flames with sand and dirt, kicking up clouds of dust as it did so.

The surrounding people couldn't see what was happening and didn't dare approach. Once the bear extinguished the fire, it scrambled up and took advantage of the lingering dust to run away.

At that moment, Zeyu walked over slowly. As the dust settled, everyone stared at the handsome, red-haired youth.

"Was that him who attacked just now?"

"It must have been. How impressive."

"Is he a ninja from Konoha? Could he help us?"

The crowd whispered among themselves.

Just then, an old man with a long beard walked out from the crowd, approached him, and asked, "Young man, was that your handiwork just now?"

"Yeah, it was me."

"Then, may I ask if you are from Konoha? What is your name?"

"Who are you, and what do you want?" Zeyu asked, looking puzzled. Seriously? I saved you, why are you interrogating me?

"You misunderstand, young man. I saw that your skills are extraordinary, and I wanted to ask if you could help us subdue that giant bear. We will provide ample compensation," the old man said, unhurried and calm.

"Oh, is that so? Sure," Zeyu replied, holding up one finger.

The old man understood immediately and pulled ten banknotes from his sleeve, preparing to hand them to Zeyu.

"This is one thousand ryo. I hope that suffices, young man."

Zeyu frowned and didn't take them.

"Ahem, what I meant was ten thousand ryo."

At these words, the old man felt a bit awkward. Ten thousand taels? Wasn't that just highway robbery?

"Ahem, young man, isn't this a bit against the rules? There's no way it costs that much. Besides, Konoha isn't far from here; posting a commission at the village wouldn't cost nearly this much."

"Oh? Is that so? And will that bear just stay right where it is waiting for you?" Zeyu asked, arms crossed over his chest, his tone casual.

"Uh, that..."

"And what if someone takes the commission the moment it's posted? Can you be sure they'll actually be able to tame a giant bear?"

"Uh..."

"And what about the processing fees? The time it takes? What if the giant bear causes more destruction while you're waiting?"

"Ah, this..." The old man grew increasingly helpless. The boy in front of him was right; he had no rebuttal.

"And what about..." Zeyu was about to continue, but the old man cut him off.

"Alright, young man, that's enough. Ten thousand it is. I'll pay it, I'll go get the money right now." He turned and trotted toward the sedan, exchanged a few words with the person inside, and then stepped in.

Before long, he returned with a stack of silver and handed it to Zeyu.

After taking the money, Zeyu began to count it, dismissively brushing off the old man's chatter.

"Uh, young man, I am the steward for this Beast Taming Group and the manager for this operation. Please hand the giant bear over to me once you've tamed it."

"Mm-hmm, yeah."

"May I ask your name, young man?"

"Mm-hmm, yeah—wait, what!?" Zeyu stopped counting, sensing something was wrong, and immediately asked, "How come there's only half?"

The old man felt helpless. It seemed this brat was doing business for the first time and didn't even know about deposits. To think he'd been swindled by a kid like this.

"Ah, young man, this is just the deposit. You'll get the rest once the job is finished." Nothing else for it, I have to rely on him now, the old man thought to himself.

"Oh, right, of course. My apologies, that was my oversight," Zeyu said, tucking the money into his pocket.

"May I ask your name?"

"Zhao Yun Zilong," Zeyu said with a smile, then took off running toward the place where the giant bear had last been seen.

I'm not telling them my real name, Zeyu thought. If I swindle this much money, what if they come looking for me to settle the score or cause me trouble later?

After running over a hill, he found the giant bear by a small waterfall, lapping up water.

Zeyu set down his backpack and slowly approached.

The giant bear caught the scent of a human nearby and stood up to investigate. Seeing Zeyu behind him, it let out an immediate, angry roar.

Zeyu chuckled. "Yo, you dare roar at me? I've been training for so long and don't even know what my own level is. Why don't you spar with me?" Zeyu still had some pent-up frustration he needed to vent.

He cracked his knuckles and continued walking toward the bear.

The giant bear was stunned. Did this little thing really think so little of it?

It flew into a rage, charged at Zeyu, and swiped a massive paw at him as it closed the distance.

Zeyu didn't panic in the slightest. He leaped high into the air, dodged the swipe, and kicked the giant bear square in the face.

The bear winced, its head knocked to the side by the immense force. Once it regained its footing, it swiped again.

Zeyu blocked the bear's paw with his arm, lunged forward, and landed a punch in the bear's gut with a dull thud.

The bear immediately clutched its stomach in pain.

It stopped fighting back, collapsed onto the ground, and began to whimper.

"Huh? Keep going, why are you lying down?" Zeyu was baffled. How could this bear be so fragile? He'd only hit it twice!

He climbed onto the bear's head and tugged at its ears, trying to make it get up.

In truth, thanks to years of training, a regular diet, and proper nutrition, Zeyu's strength had long since exceeded normal limits—he was at a level that could be called superhuman. Zeyu was somewhat aware of this, which was why he hadn't used lethal force.

Even so, those two hits were painful; if not for the bear's thick hide, it would have died instantly.

The giant bear felt incredibly aggrieved. This brat was way too strong—stronger than its own mother!

The bear, which only wanted to eat its fill, had no desire to risk its life. It looked at Zeyu with wide, pleading eyes.

Zeyu was still sitting on the bear's head, hanging upside down to meet its gaze. Seeing those pleading eyes, he immediately understood.

"No way, you're done already? No, keep sparring with me for a bit longer. I'll go easier on you, okay?"

The giant bear felt even worse hearing this. Why did he still want to fight?

It pouted and whimpered, trying to act cute to get out of it.

Zeyu was about to say something else when a loud boom echoed in his ears.

Zeyu jumped down immediately and scanned his surroundings.

It turned out the sound was coming from the giant bear's stomach.

Good grief, I thought it was thunder, Zeyu thought to himself.

The giant bear before him was still staring at him with wide, expectant eyes, leaving Zeyu with no choice but to let out a sigh.

"Alright, fine, I'll let it slide this time, but you have to come with me."

The giant bear sat up, rubbed its belly, and continued to gaze longingly at Zeyu.

Zeyu finally understood; good grief, it was a total glutton of a bear, wasn't it?

"Fine, I'll get you something to eat first, alright? Once you're full, you're coming with me immediately," Zeyu said, shaking his head helplessly.

The giant bear's eyes immediately lit up with stars; it could finally eat.

Zeyu instructed the bear to stay put and not wander off, but just as he was about to leave, he felt uneasy and turned back to leap onto the bear's back.

He left a Flying Thunder God Mark on the bear's neck before setting off to find food.

Afterward, the man and the bear sat by the waterfall stuffing their faces. Once they were full, Zeyu rode the giant bear off to complete his task.

When Zeyu reappeared before the crowd, everyone was startled.

The previously fierce and irritable giant bear was now incredibly docile, following commands easily even without the need for a rope.

Zeyu, who was counting his money on the side, was very satisfied with the bear's performance; it hadn't caused any more trouble, saving him a lot of hassle.

"Though, isn't its size a bit too much? Why didn't I notice that earlier?" Zeyu remarked as he watched the crowd surround the bear to fasten a lead rope to it.

He then tucked the money into his bag and walked away.

At that moment, a head poked out from a sedan chair, watching the youth's receding figure as a soft murmur escaped its lips.

"Zhao Yun Zilong, is it?"