Practicing Taijutsu

The moment Jin heard that someone was willing to pay, his little face lit up. "Lord Hiashi, you're too kind. Hinata is your daughter—you can sit wherever you want."

Hiashi greatly admired Jin's ability to change his attitude at a moment's notice, though Jin's words made him smile awkwardly. "I only wanted to tell you that the Konoha Ninja Academy will be starting soon. Are you all going to attend together? If so, you should hurry and register. There's only one day left before the deadline."

Smack! Jin slapped his forehead. "I nearly forgot about that. No wonder I came out of seclusion today." What Jin meant was that he had suddenly felt like coming out of seclusion today.

But Hiashi did not see it that way, and thought in surprise, Could that old man behind this kid have arranged everything already?

"Boss, I'm full! This time, you can't beat me. I even finished your share!" Naruto interrupted without a care in the world.

"Thank you for the reminder, Lord Hiashi. We'll go register right away. And thank you for the meal." Jin spoke to Hiashi, then waved everyone over.

The group left the barbecue restaurant, each carrying large and small bags of barbecue as they headed toward Jin's home. A mournful cry from Lord Hiashi sounded behind them! Jin snickered. "If someone else is paying, why wouldn't we pack some to go?"

"Hinata, you don't mind me playing a little joke on your father, do you?" Jin asked teasingly.

"Of course not. Jin, are we really going to school?" Hinata asked.

"We are. Of course we are! We're all going together," Jin said.

"Boss, I want to go to school too! But we just finished eating barbecue. Can we register tomorrow instead?" Naruto asked.

"Rest for an hour, then I'll take you out to have some fun. As for the rest of you, don't come along. It isn't suitable for your ages. Hinata is a girl, so it wouldn't be appropriate for her either. You can stay home." Jin suddenly came up with a brilliant idea.

"Jin, what exactly are you going to do? If you don't tell me, I won't let you go!" White stared at Jin.

"Actually, I'm just going to find a few kids my age to practice taijutsu with. You're all older than me, so we aren't on the same level. And Hinata is a girl, so I can't exactly fight her," Jin explained.

"Fine. Remember to come back early tonight. Otherwise, you'll bear the consequences!" White warned him, then took the other two home. Kimimaro did not ask a single question.

Jin and Naruto arrived at the Konoha Ninja Academy. The two sat on swings, watching the academy students coming and going. Naruto yawned boredly, swaying back and forth on the swing. Jin even wondered whether Naruto had already learned to use chakra. Seeing Naruto sleep so steadily on the swing, he could not figure it out no matter how much he thought about it. Several children entered Jin's sight. A little girl with long yellow hair and another with long pink hair caught his attention. Jin hurriedly poked Naruto beside him. When Naruto still did not react, Jin immediately whispered, "Brother, wake up and check out the beauties!"

Naruto jolted awake and looked around. "Where? Where? Wow, what a beautiful girl! She's even prettier than Boss Hinata! Boss, I have something to do, so I'll be going first."

Jin was now wearing his clan's clothes, looking rather cool. He could only helplessly watch Naruto's retreating figure as he abandoned his friend for beauty, then shook his head. "Sigh, Naruto is still so persistent. Forget it, let nature take its course." Jin began swinging again, watching the unfolding scene from afar.

Naruto ran up to the pink-haired girl and said with a grin, "Hello, my name is Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meet you. Can we be friends?" Jin listened from a distance and thought, Why does that sound so familiar? Where have I heard it before? Right, isn't that dialogue printed on the back of the Paradise of Loved Ones book I gave Naruto?

"Hello, I'm Sakura Haruno. Nice to meet you, but we don't know each other at all, so... no!" Sakura Haruno said, glancing at the beautiful girl with long yellow hair beside her.

"I won't give up! I'll prove it to you!" Naruto declared, his eyes shining.

"Hello, I'm Ino Yamanaka. Nice to meet you. She's an arrogant one, so ignore him. Do you know the name of that boy on the swing?" Ino Yamanaka asked.

"Oh, you mean my boss? His name is Uchiha Jin," Naruto replied.

Whoosh! Whoosh! One yellow-haired and one pink-haired figure charged toward Jin. Jin was shocked. "Damn, they're way too fast! Not good, I'm out!" Jin vanished in a puff of smoke. Ino Yamanaka and Sakura Haruno began fiercely arguing. As Naruto listened to their escalating quarrel, he sensed that something was wrong and quietly slipped away. The sounds of fighting—thump, bang, boom...—came from behind him, and he immediately made a decision. When I find a wife someday, I need to find a safer one! Boss is still the best—he ran first. Where could he be now?

After running off, Jin stopped at a corner.

"Are you Sasuke Uchiha? Sasuke, who awakened the Sharingan at two years old?" a handsome child asked.

"You've got the wrong person! I'm his older brother," Jin answered, thinking, I was just worrying about having nothing to do, and then you showed up. Don't tell me you want to challenge me?

"Oh, so you're that genius's idiot brother! My name is Neji Hyuga. Go back and tell him that after the opening ceremony, I'm challenging him. If he dares not accept, then he's a coward!" Neji Hyuga said.

"Neji Hyuga, is it? You're unlucky to have run into me!" Jin smiled in satisfaction. "Take my punch first!" Jin used the strength appropriate for a seven-year-old boy and began the fight.

Bang—crack—thud—clang—bang— After a fierce battle, Jin clapped his hands. "You're not my match either. Go home and train for another two years!"

Neji Hyuga spat. "Just you wait!" He limped away. Jin thought, Grow up quickly! Your taijutsu still isn't good enough! What luck. Isn't that Rock Lee? He probably hasn't started training yet.

"Hello there, watermelon-head!" Jin walked up with a smile and greeted him.

"Who are you? My name is Rock Lee. You can call me Lee," Rock Lee said.

"A pretty little girl just went to the ninja academy to register. I want you to come take a look with me," Jin coaxed.

"Really? Then I'll go first?" Rock Lee said, about to run off.

"What? You're trying to steal her from me? No way. Let's fight, and whoever wins gets her!" Jin continued fooling him. Without waiting for Rock Lee's answer, he rushed forward and gave him a beating. Then he said, "You're too weak! And you thought you could compete with me? Go home and practice more. That pretty girl is mine! Hahaha—" Jin laughed arrogantly.

"Damn it!" Rock Lee said from the ground.

"It's getting late. I've practiced enough taijutsu, so I should head back. Why is that look White gave me when she said 'bear the consequences' so terrifying?" Jin thought.