9 p.m.
Hideki, who did not dare go home, wandered the streets as the cold wind howled.
All right... that was an exaggeration. He was not exactly wandering the streets, and it was summer anyway.
Hideki was mainly hungry. He had expended too much just now—strength created miracles. He had poured in quite a bit of chakra and actually managed to use Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet.
Besides, it was not like Hideki did not dare go home.
Root looked lawless and outrageously arrogant, but today, the intent to "capture" him was definitely less than the intent to "show off."
Root differed from the ANBU, but both valued efficiency.
It would have been more efficient to drag him straight back to Root and then show off Root's power.
Thus, Hideki came to a conclusion: Danzo had his eye on him, practically drooling, but he did not dare openly snatch someone away.
Of course, if Hideki had lost today or failed to escape, that might have been another story.
Danzo: The old man reserved the right of final interpretation.
Ichiraku Ramen.
"Boss, one regular... no, one Supreme set meal."
Used to being poor, Hideki suddenly remembered the enormous sum of 3,955 ryo in his pocket. So, imitating Kushina, he splurged extravagantly.
How many days had this month even passed? His living expenses seemed to have the ability to reproduce. It would be a disservice to himself not to indulge a little.
"Coming right up, little customer." Young Ichiraku was exceptionally enthusiastic.
Come to think of it, Ichiraku was already in his early twenties this year. He should be getting married soon. Hideki was considering whether he should give a wedding gift. Maybe he could score a lifetime 20%-off coupon and make a small profit.
While waiting for his noodles, Hideki, who strove to work hard every second, began to space out.
But before the noodles arrived, two new customers entered the shop.
"Yo! What would you two little customers like to eat? Whoa! Young Master Asuma is here too! Sit, sit!... What would you like to eat, Young Master Asuma?"
"Two bowls of Supreme Ramen!"
Ichiraku became even more enthusiastic, so much so that Hideki felt the difference in treatment between an ordinary member and a Supreme VIP.
All he could say was that the young Ichiraku had not yet found his footing. In the end, life had still bent his back?
Hideki stopped spacing out and turned to look, only to see a little girl trying hard to hop onto a chair, along with a spirited young man with a toothpick in his mouth.
"A small bowl is enough, Boss... Asuma, stop doing this. I have money! And stop following me. If this gets seen by... Hideki!... Why are you here? What a coincidence."
The little girl was Kurenai Yuhi. Upon suddenly noticing Hideki, she looked somewhat surprised. Her bright red eyes blinked and blinked, making her rather adorable.
"Hello, Kurenai, I..." Hideki was about to offer a polite greeting.
"What are you doing here?"
Hideki was interrupted, and the other party did not seem particularly friendly.
That left Hideki rather confused. From his godlike perspective, Asuma seemed to have started pursuing Kurenai only after becoming an adult, though the ending had not been very good.
But judging from this... Asuma had been planning far ahead?
Still, that was none of his business. Even knowing that Kurenai would grow into a great beauty in the future, he truly had no interest in little girls right now.
There was no other reason. His upbringing would not allow it.
But while he had no interest in the little girl, his interest in this spirited young man Asuma was enormous...
"I had a mission today. It just ended, and I haven't eaten yet." Hideki answered with a smile, then pretended to lower his head. "Careful, Kurenai. There's a mosquito."
Pretending to swat a mosquito was secondary. Lowering his head and using the smooth forehead protector to precisely blind Asuma's dog eyes through light refraction was what really mattered.
Hideki had, after all, become like Obito.
Asuma: (*＞﹏＜*)!! Such dazzling light!
Kurenai: (✪▽✪)! Hideki is so considerate!
"Three bowls of Supreme Ramen~ Don't worry, little miss, eat up. There are just enough ingredients for three bowls tonight, and it would be a shame to waste them. I'll only charge everyone for small bowls!"
"Careful, it's hot... enjoy!"
Under Hideki's watchful gaze, Ichiraku displayed unparalleled emotional intelligence.
First, he used the price to preserve Asuma's dignity. Then, when serving the ramen, he showed great finesse as well.
Three bowls of noodles on one tray. The little girl's was served first, then Hideki's and Asuma's, one on the left and one on the right, with no distinction in order.
Viewing it through adult eyes, Hideki secretly gave Ichiraku a thumbs-up in his heart. As expected of you, Comrade Otsutsuki Ichiraku.
They said it was impossible to distribute water evenly from one bowl, yet Ichiraku had forcibly balanced three bowls of ramen. His prowess was truly terrifying.
"I'm digging in!" Hideki decided to finish quickly and go home to sleep. He would not fuss with Asuma tonight.
But the spirited young man Asuma clearly did not appreciate it. He glanced at Hideki, then at Kurenai, and immediately put on the bearing of Konoha's greatest second-generation official.
"Eating without washing your hands after swatting a mosquito? Hmph, so unhygienic! Kurenai, you'd better stay away from him!"
Hideki, who was slurping noodles: ??????
I just used Mighty Water Dragon Bullet to take on nine opponents and went straight godlike. Are you sure you want to provoke me?
Believe it or not, I'll make it an even number!
Hideki was about to lower his head again and swat another mosquito, but the little girl became unhappy first.
"How can you say that? Hideki only swatted the mosquito to help me. You... you're going too far!"
Hideki: Slurp~
Today's ramen was truly delicious~~~
Asuma, stunned for a long time: ε(┬┬﹏┬┬)3
Hideki was still happily slurping noodles.
Meanwhile, at the Root Base.
In the dark room, only flickering candlelight maintained any illumination. Danzo's shadow swayed endlessly, giving the place a somewhat eerie air.
"My lord... we failed." The disheveled Root ninja knelt on one knee, with only two Root youths behind him.
"The reason." Danzo, accustomed to reading scrolls in the shadows, narrowed his eyes slightly, yet never once looked directly at his subordinate.
"He mastered a B-rank ninjutsu, Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet... I was careless."
Much of the process had been omitted, but combined with the target's age and past, the words "I was careless" explained quite a lot.
"A B-rank ninjutsu... How long did it take?" Danzo asked without raising his head.
"Thirty hours, and his actual training time could not have exceeded five hours." The Root ninja answered quickly and precisely. He had clearly done his homework.
"Five hours?" Danzo finally put down the scroll and looked directly at his subordinate. That disheveled state finally entered his view in full.
It was clear that Danzo was somewhat surprised.
As the disciple of the first-generation Sea Release ninja, he understood better than anyone how difficult that technique was.
Though his teacher had simplified it to four hand seals, aside from his teacher, most people spent a long time merely learning those complicated seals when first studying it.
Yet Danzo was not shocked for long. Only the weak were ruled by emotion; the strong used their time to devise countermeasures.
"Prepare scrolls containing three Water Release techniques commonly used by the Second Hokage. At the same time, activate Miko and have her contact the target."
"Tell her... as long as she can make the target willingly join Root, then this old man... will grant her request to retire."
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