Riverside Picnic · First Hearing of the Mafia

Uchiha was busy on Saturdays, but he was free on Sundays.

That was because he had basically finished researching and thinking through everything he needed to. All that remained was to train step by step.

Once he stopped using his brain, time seemed to pass a little too quickly. In the blink of an eye, it was Friday after school again.

Before leaving, Kurenai Yuhi asked as usual, "Hara, we're having a picnic by the Naka River tomorrow. Do you want to come?"

Her tone was full of anticipation.

She had expected the same refusal as the previous few weeks, but after a brief moment of thought, Uchiha Hara nodded. "Sure. I have time this weekend."

His rapidly improving strength and clear path of growth had loosened his taut nerves somewhat. He no longer felt that a moment of leisure was a waste.

Besides, his usual route had basically been limited to school and home. That was good for training, but not for his future plans.

The picnic site was near the edge of the village, making it a perfect chance to expand his range of activity and observe Konoha's barrier firsthand.

"You're really coming?" Kurenai Yuhi was startled by the affirmative answer and hurriedly asked again, afraid she had misheard.

"When a beauty invites me, how could I refuse?" Hara said with a smile.

Kurenai Yuhi's face instantly turned red, and she completely forgot that Hara had rejected her more than once before.

Saturday, downstream of the Naka River, on a patch of grass.

Only after arriving did Uchiha Hara realize that quite a few people were there. Several familiar faces had already gathered on the grass.

Anko Mitarashi was wolfing down dango without the slightest concern for her image. Seeing Uchiha Hara, she mocked him indistinctly through a mouthful of food. "Yo, what a rare sight. The busy man finally decided to show his face?"

Kakashi Hatake was holding a book and reading. Uchiha Hara's eyesight was excellent now, and with a glance from far away, he was shocked to discover that the book was actually called Make-Out Paradise!

Wait, Kakashi was reading this book at such a young age?

Leaning beneath the shade of a tree, he glanced at Uchiha Hara with his only exposed right eye, which counted as a greeting.

In front of him, Rin Nohara smiled gently at Hara before continuing to arrange the food.

Uchiha Obito stuck close to her, noisily trying to help Rin. He ended up kicking over a basin full of vegetables, earning a helpless scolding from her.

Who knew how he had managed to trip in such a tiny space? It was practically unscientific.

Aside from them, Might Guy was also there.

He was doing a handstand in an open area nearby, shouting passionately, "This is youth! Before enjoying delicious food, complete one thousand handstand push-ups!"

Uchiha Hara paid no mind to Anko's mockery and replied with a smile, "I was busy for a while. There were indeed some matters I needed to handle, but they've reached a stopping point now. Still, aren't you afraid of getting fat, lying down and eating dango like that?"

He might not acknowledge Boruto, but that fat Anko from Boruto had certainly left a deep impression on him.

Anko rolled her eyes. "I have the kind of body that never gets fat no matter how much I eat, okay?"

"You'd better!" Uchiha Hara chuckled, then turned to Kurenai Yuhi. "Do you often come here for picnics?"

Kurenai Yuhi shook her head. "Not really. We only started last week. Rin and Anko found this place. Um, the scenery is nice, and it's quiet. Then Rin invited Kakashi, and Anko brought me along!"

There was no need to mention Obito. He had definitely spotted Rin and followed the scent here.

Might Guy had definitely come along with Kakashi.

Still, Rin had been the one to invite Kakashi. It seemed the guesses from his previous life had been right after all. Rin really did like Kakashi.

Unfortunately, their team was rather special. If she revealed her feelings, the entire squad might instantly fall apart. They might even start fighting among themselves, never mind carrying out missions.

If nothing unexpected happened, perhaps Rin would marry Kakashi, Obito would be assigned a wife by his clan, and the three of them would each go their separate ways.

But fate had been unkind. She had been targeted by that old schemer, and in the end, Rin never got to confess her feelings before she died.

"From now on, I can come with you often," Uchiha Hara said softly.

Kurenai Yuhi's eyes immediately curved into crescents, and a bright smile bloomed across her face. She nodded hard. "Mm!"

"What are you planning to eat?" Uchiha Hara had come empty-handed. Mainly because he had no idea what they were eating, and no one had told him to bring anything.

"Oden!" Kurenai Yuhi said.

Oden was really just a vegetable hotpot. There was not much meat in it, so the cost was low. It suited ordinary families and students from the Ninja Academy like them, who did not have much money.

"I see!" Uchiha Hara nodded. No wonder the ingredients Rin had laid out were all radishes, cabbage, greens, and tofu.

"I'll go catch some fish," Uchiha Hara said. Just eating vegetables was rather dull.

"You know how to catch fish?" Kurenai Yuhi asked in surprise.

"Is that hard?" Uchiha Hara was even more surprised by her reaction. Was catching fish some highly technical skill?

Did I accidentally expose my strength?

"No, it's just that none of us know ninjutsu or how to fish. How are we supposed to catch them?" Kurenai Yuhi asked in return.

So ninjas could only catch fish with ninjutsu?

Realizing he had not accidentally exposed anything, Uchiha Hara relaxed considerably.

"What's so difficult about that?" As he spoke, he looked around, and then his gaze casually swept across the river.

He discovered a small dock on the opposite bank, where several people in matching uniforms were loading and unloading goods.

What caught his attention was the clear emblem embroidered on the chests and backs of their clothes—a purple thunderbird with its wings spread.

"What clan's crest is that? I don't think I've seen it before." Uchiha Hara pointed across the river.

Kurenai Yuhi followed his gaze and explained, "That isn't a clan. They're from the Thunderbird Gang."

"The Thunderbird Gang? A gang?" Uchiha Hara froze for a moment before shock filled his face.

Wait, there were actually gang organizations in the Hidden Leaf Village, the ninja stronghold?

He silently filed this discovery away, then found a straight wooden stick.

After sharpening one end, Uchiha Hara took the stick to the riverbank and carefully watched the fish swimming in the water.

His actions drew plenty of attention. Not only were Kakashi and Obito watching him, but even many adults by the river were looking over.

Uchiha Hara was not worried about revealing anything. It was just spearing fish. Even ordinary people could do that, let alone ninjas.

"Now!" Uchiha Hara suddenly thrust out his hand, and a fish was already impaled on the tip of his stick!

"So amazing!" Kurenai Yuhi quickly applauded, showering him with emotional validation.

Uchiha Hara modestly waved a hand. "Eh, it's nothing, it's nothing!"

Seeing that Rin Nohara also seemed inclined to come over, Uchiha Obito immediately became unhappy. "What's so impressive about that? He just got lucky!"

Uchiha Hara instantly retorted, "That wasn't luck. I specifically practiced this, okay? Watch me spear another one for you!"

He removed the fish he had caught and returned to the riverbank.

Before Obito could say anything, Uchiha Hara stabbed forward again and caught another fish.

Obito was speechless. He really had practiced!

"I'll give it a try too!" Kakashi's hands itched from watching. He stopped reading entirely and came over to ask for the stick.

Uchiha Hara was not stingy. The stick was straight, but it was straight in an utterly unremarkable way. It was not worth collecting.

Kakashi went to the riverbank as well. The moment he saw a fish pause, he thrust hard!

The tip of the stick grazed past the fish's body.

"Don't aim at the fish. Aim beneath it!" Uchiha Hara said. "There's refraction in the water, so the fish's position we see isn't its real position!"

"That happens?" Kakashi froze, then immediately adjusted his stance.

The defining trait of top students was that they were good at learning and summarizing, while poor students were more likely to turn into contrarians.

I'm not talking about Obito!

Though Kakashi was only five, he already possessed Genin-level strength. Now that he had acquired the key technique for spearing fish, there was naturally no reason for him to fail. On his second try, he directly speared a fish!

"Kakashi is amazing!" This time, Rin was the one praising him.

"What's so amazing about that? I could do it too!" Obito immediately walked over. "Give me the stick!"

"Find your own stick!" Kakashi waved him away. This was his first time spearing fish, and he had not had enough fun yet!

As he speared fish, he asked Uchiha Hara, "How do you know how to do this?"

Though spearing fish did not look very technical, it still required speed, reflexes, and observation skills.

"Life forced me to!" Uchiha Hara spread his hands openly. "My family was poor before, and there was often nothing to eat. I could only find a way myself. I didn't know how to fish, so I tried spearing them. Fortunately, it wasn't hard. I learned after a few days of trying!"

Kakashi was stunned. "Wait, can the Uchiha clan be poor too?"

Kakashi's family was not poor, but they lived in the civilian district, so he had seen poor people before.

Uchiha Hara laughed. "Where aren't there poor people? Of course the Uchiha clan has poor people too!"

"No wonder Hara's lunchbox is cabbage and tofu every day. So that's why!" Listening to Uchiha Hara, Kurenai Yuhi recalled things from everyday life that she had never noticed before.

Still, although Hara's family was poor, his clothes were always washed clean, and he never had any strange smell on him. He looked fresher than many children who had parents.

As expected of Hara. Even living alone, he could still take good care of himself.

It would be nice if Hara could live with me!

Kurenai Yuhi thought silently. She did have a father, but Yuhi Shinku was Sarutobi Hiruzen's capable subordinate.

Being capable meant there was endless work to do.

So Kurenai Yuhi was often lonely as well.

Although she had Anko for company, boys and girls were different.

Unfortunately, she could only think such things to herself. No matter how hard she tried, she could not think of a reason to invite an Uchiha to live in her home.

I want to grow up soon!

For the entire day, Uchiha Hara did not train for once.

In the morning, he played by the river with his classmates. At noon, they had their picnic, and in the afternoon, he accompanied Kurenai Yuhi as they held hands and wandered around the village.

Not only had his relationship with Kurenai Yuhi grown much closer, but the Hidden Leaf Village, which he had previously only seen on maps and in anime, had gained a few touches of real substance.

He also discovered details he had never noticed before. For example, Konoha really did have gangs, and there seemed to be quite a few of them.