Itachi Is Targeted

Of course, it was not without drawbacks. The biggest flaw of the survival kit was—no weapons!

Other than a knife no longer than fifteen centimeters, the survival kit provided no weapons. Those who chose it were not allowed to bring their own ninja tools either. In other words, choosing the survival kit meant fighting the other students without ninja tools, because the ninja kit contained nothing but weapons, a waterproof sheet, and two days' worth of rations. Even the rations were ninja rations—the kind supposedly not even dogs would eat.

However, the school was not completely cutting off the students' way out. Aside from the treasure hunt, it had hidden three survival kits throughout the forest. Finding any one of them would allow one person to live comfortably for the seven days. Otherwise, the students could only ration their supplies or search the forest for food themselves. With these students' physical condition, plus water being everywhere in the forest, they would not starve to death even if they went seven days without food.

Such harsh conditions immediately sparked dissatisfaction among a large number of students. The new students might not have dared to say much, but those who had already spent a year at the school had nothing to fear. They started making a scene on the spot, leaving the instructor extremely embarrassed.

"Everyone, quiet down. Tough conditions are for your own good... I admit it's a little hard... You should try to understand..." The instructor kept explaining in a humble tone, only to make the crowd even noisier. The scene descended into chaos until—"Shut up, all of you!"

The instructor's furious roar instantly silenced everyone. "Keep making noise and see if I don't make things difficult for you! Want to try throwing ninja tools and not being able to throw them at all? Want to taste rations with something extra mixed in? Want to be assigned to the most remote and dangerous area? If you do, then keep shouting! I guarantee all your dreams will come true!"

The instructor's threats clearly worked. The brats who had just been shouting and clamoring now stood obediently and listened to his lecture.

"If you don't want to suffer later, then listen carefully! Come up one at a time and report your equipment. No prohibited ninja tools, no personal rations, no... That is roughly it. Collect your cards now. When it is time to depart, you will receive the corresponding equipment according to your cards. Don't even think about slipping anything past us, and don't think about cheating!"

Yuun, who had chosen the survival kit, quickly became the center of attention. He was required to wear a red coat and had to keep it on until all his equipment was confiscated. Fortunately, the coat did not look bad. Red was not really Yuun's style, but for the sake of the survival kit's supplies, he put up with it.

Aside from Yuun, only two others had chosen the survival kit, though both of them looked like the absentminded sort. The survival kit was neither overly generous nor too sparse. The instructor had not been wrong when he said it could let someone live comfortably for seven days. Though it had no tent, a ninja could easily use the waterproof sheet's ropes to make a simple shelter. There was also a fishing rod for obtaining food.

"I'm Gekko Hayate. Cough. Nice to meet you, Yuun... cough..." Before Yuun could finish admiring the equipment he had just received, a thin, small boy walked up and introduced himself.

"You should call him senior," Hana Inuzuka said unhappily.

"Forget it." Yuun waved a hand casually. Though Gekko Hayate would only become a Special Jonin in the future, that was because his health was too poor. If he had been given a healthy body, it was hard to say what he might have achieved. At the very least, he should have reached Asuma's level. "Hana, what did the teacher say? Where were we assigned?"

"I have no idea. They only said we're entering through East Gate Thirteen." Hana Inuzuka unceremoniously began rummaging through Yuun's backpack.

"Hey, hey, hey, don't start eating so soon." Yuun helplessly snatched the food from Hana Inuzuka's mouth. "This is important emergency food."

"Cheapskate. Letting me eat two slices won't hurt you." Hana Inuzuka made a face, then said to Gekko Hayate, "From now on, you're the little brother. If I tell you to go east, you're not allowed to go west. Now call me big sis."

Watching Hana Inuzuka lecture Gekko Hayate in her childish voice, Yuun could not help laughing.

"What are you laughing at?" Hana Inuzuka snatched the beef jerky Yuun was dangling in his hand and chewed it with relish. "Mm, this must be beef jerky from the Haruna family. Only their beef jerky is this chewy."

"You..." Yuun helplessly packed up his backpack. Letting Hana Inuzuka eat a few pieces was no big deal, but if she finished it all, that would be a real pain. Beef jerky was tasty to chew, and it did not swell much in the stomach. The amount that provided a day's worth of calories was really only enough for one meal. Someone with a big appetite could even eat two days' worth in one sitting.

"Yuun, Itachi's group is assigned to East Gate Nine." Hana Inuzuka narrowed her eyes into thin slits as she looked toward the crowd still collecting equipment. "How about we go knock him out from behind?"

"What, are you still holding a grudge?" Yuun rubbed Hana Inuzuka's hair irritably. "You've held onto it for that long?"

"What?" Hana Inuzuka seemed to enjoy having her head patted and made no move to resist. Her voice even took on a slightly nasal tone. "I've got my eye on his teammate's beef jerky. If we don't grab it soon, that fat bastard will definitely eat all my beef jerky." She finished with a pitiful look at Yuun.

Yuun snorted with laughter again. But faced with the little girl's sharp teeth and claws, he could only agree helplessly, silently apologizing to Itachi's two temporary teammates.

Who was Itachi? A super genius who graduated at seven during peacetime, awakened the Sharingan at eight, became a Chunin at ten, joined the Anbu at eleven, and awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan at thirteen. The war had still been ongoing when Itachi was young, but by the time he began growing at an astonishing pace, it had already ended. Frankly speaking, if he had grown up during wartime, his rate of progress would have been even more shocking. However, there was also a high chance that he would have died before growing up. Such examples were not unheard of. With Itachi's physique, he probably would not have lived long in wartime.

He noticed almost the moment Hana Inuzuka set her sights on his two teammates, but even he found the situation troublesome. If it were only Hana Inuzuka, he was confident he could protect his two teammates. But Hana Inuzuka and Yuun always acted together. When the time came, Yuun would likely make a move as well, along with their teammate whose abilities were still unknown.

Thinking of Hana Inuzuka's two teammates, then looking at his own, Itachi felt helpless in every possible way. That was right—both his teammates had chosen the survival kit. From the looks of it, they were planning to rely on him, the powerhouse who ranked first in most subjects, for protection. Fortunately, they had enough sense to hand over their two days' worth of beef jerky immediately. Looking at the bag of beef jerky in his hand, then at Hana Inuzuka watching it like a hawk, Itachi truly considered bribing the girl with it if he could.