The Uchiha Family Dinner

Aoba prepared gifts for Asuma and Kurenai too.

"Kurenai, take a look at this."

Aoba said as he handed over a box of... cigars.

"This is imported from the Land of Snow, a limited-edition premium cigar made from the Ice Snow Lotus. Smoking it not only satisfies the craving for nicotine, but also keeps the mind clear and the spirit invigorated.

Most importantly, these cigars don't have the typical stench of ordinary tobacco. Instead, they leave a pleasant fragrance in the mouth afterward."

Before Kurenai could react, Aoba immediately spoke to Asuma.

"This one is for you. I'm not very good at Genjutsu, so I've always tried to use external objects as a certain supplement. This pair of bracelets is my third-generation prototype, and it can be considered to have barely achieved some effect.

As long as you infuse chakra into both bracelets and rub them together, it can release a kind of sound wave that causes dizziness and even nausea. Of course, the user will be exempted from this effect by the technique formula on the bracers.

This is considered a Genjutsu concept of mine, utilizing the pervasive effect of sound to launch a Genjutsu attack. You might want to find a Genjutsu expert to help me see if this effect can be improved."

Although he called it entry-level, in reality, this thing already had absolute practical combat effectiveness.

Against Genin and Chunin, the effect of this thing was already very obvious. With the slightest lapse in attention, they would be stunned for a moment. Although the duration was very short, ninjas were assassins by profession, and this brief dizziness was often the death knell of life and death.

Against Jonin and even Elite Jonin, the effect of this thing was still somewhat lacking. In actual combat, it was hard for it to play a decisive role and could only carry out a certain degree of interference.

Even so, the value of this thing was still quite high. Furthermore, unlike the previous ones for Kakashi and Guy, the two gifts for Kurenai Yuhi and Anko had universality.

This thing was also a ninja tool Aoba prepared to launch for takeout. That was right, he was getting ready to peddle goods and make money. Doing experiments at home was simply too expensive.

His savings over all these years had been squandered in less than half a year. Taking out these gifts this time also meant having these few people help him peddle them.

The one Aoba gave to Kurenai was even an integrated version. Aoba was not planning to add the self-exemption function to those sold externally. If she wanted to not be affected herself, she should go buy Anko's kind of earphone.

Of course, all this was a story for another day. The official launch would have to wait until after the new year. The most important thing today was to watch the show.

Aoba's previous maneuver could be said to be very obvious. The cigars were clearly for Asuma, but he gave them to Kurenai. The bracelets were for Kurenai, but he gave them to Asuma.

Aside from the fact that giving Kurenai bracelets right in front of Asuma was a bit awkward, there was also the intent of teasing the couple.

Kakashi, Guy, and Anko all understood Aoba's maneuver. The few of them all looked at that pair with expressions of watching a play.

Asuma turned his head to look at Kurenai Yuhi, just as he wanted to say something, the bracelets in his hand were directly snatched away and replaced with the cigars.

Asuma didn't mind that his gift was different from the others. This guy was different from the other few. He was the son of the Third Hokage, and although he went against the old man, money and equipment on him were never lacking.

To put it simply, his weapons, that pair of Flying Swallow Blades, were top-tier weapons forged by integrating Chakra Metal. Although they couldn't compare to divine weapons like the Kusanagi Sword, they weren't far behind.

It was just a pity that this guy's usage was truly mediocre.

Driven by Aoba, the gathering was very lively.

And just while Aoba was gathering with several friends, a special gathering was also taking place in the large estate of the Uchiha Clan.

The host was... Sasuke Uchiha.

Sasuke Uchiha felt that this was the hardest day of his life. It was much harder than learning the Great Fireball Technique for the first time, learning Uchiha Shuriken throwing for the first time, and even learning tree-climbing and water-surface walking for the first time.

Hosting a gathering at home and inviting his classmates to attend—no matter which angle one looked at it, this behavior had nothing to do with Sasuke Uchiha.

With his arrogant nature, he rarely spoke to classmates on ordinary days. Suddenly inviting them to his home for a gathering was a difficulty no less than letting Sasuke Uchiha go and kill Itachi Uchiha.

Yet right now, Sasuke Uchiha was doing it because someone told him that if he could accomplish this matter and keep at it, he would be taught a ninjutsu powerful enough to kill Itachi Uchiha.

Sasuke Uchiha believed it, so he braced himself and pulled this off.

In reality, the most nervous place in the entire Konoha was not Sasuke Uchiha, but the Hokage's Office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, upon learning that Sasuke Uchiha had invited a group of classmates, immediately dispatched the ANBU to begin monitoring this matter.

Sasuke Uchiha was a very important character indeed. It was not that he himself was important, but rather that he was the kite string on Itachi Uchiha. Once Sasuke Uchiha ran into trouble, that good card of Itachi Uchiha would be completely ruined.

Therefore, Konoha's attention toward Sasuke Uchiha was actually beyond imagination. They watched his every move while simultaneously restricting the growth of his strength.

That's right, Sasuke Uchiha's strength was under Konoha's strict control. As for the reason, it could only be said that some people had a guilty conscience.

Yet compared to Sasuke Uchiha growing stronger, his actions right now alarmed Hiruzen Sarutobi even more.

This child had actually begun to understand how to build his own network of relationships. For Hiruzen Sarutobi, this was even more terrifying than Sasuke Uchiha suddenly awakening his Mangekyō.

Therefore, the old man didn't even go home tonight, squatting in front of the crystal ball and staring fixedly at the Uchiha estate.

Meanwhile, inside the Uchiha estate, the Konoha Twelve Rookie Ninja were all present. Regarding Sasuke Uchiha's invitation, although the group felt somewhat surprised, after consulting their parents, they all arrived.

Moreover, many parents were very thoughtful, having their children bring along plenty of pastries and snacks.

Preparing a gathering was extremely tedious. They anticipated that Sasuke Uchiha, being a child, might not think things through thoroughly, so they helped him make preparations in advance.

And reality proved that Sasuke Uchiha was indeed not good at handling this.

"Hey, I gotta say, Sasuke, I never expected your house to be this big. Do you live all alone? Don't you feel scared?"

Naruto was as carefree as ever. In this world, his relationship with Sasuke was much better than in the original plotline.

Mainly, when Aoba was teaching, Naruto had peeked from the side. Later, Aoba allowed him to train together with Naruto, so the two grew familiar and became friends.

Well, although Sasuke refused verbally, the fact that he occasionally brought two bento boxes showed that he actually cherished his friendship with Naruto. It was just that the arrogant boy would never admit defeat out loud.

"What's there to be scared of? Even though there are lingering grievances all over this place, they won't harm me."