Konoha, Hokage Office.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi held the Crystal Ball, watching intently.
Suddenly, his expression changed.
His eyes went wide.
His calm expression turned to shock.
"This boy Zhou Cheng really does have extraordinary talent."
"He can learn a ninjutsu after seeing it once, and even cast it successfully."
"Even if it was only an E-rank ninjutsu, the Clone Technique."
"The Clone Technique still requires a certain degree of chakra control."
"And he made it look so effortless."
"This boy actually dared to challenge Neji!"
"He has courage, but he's a little rash."
"Even without activating his Byakugan, Neji is the strongest among his classmates."
"With his Byakugan active, he's already stronger than an ordinary genin."
"Besides, the others started training when they were four or five."
"Can you really claim that one month of effort will surpass someone else's five or six years?"
"Still, this is good. It gives me more time to observe you and see whether you can become one of my direct followers in the Hokage's faction."
He puffed away at his pipe, clouds of smoke streaming from his mouth.
"Relying on ANBU investigations alone is too slow. I'll find a chance to use an interrogation ninja art on both Zhou Cheng and Haku, and uncover the deepest secrets in their minds."
"If there are still no issues after that, I'll focus on nurturing them."
Meanwhile, beneath Konoha, at Root.
Tuan Zhan sat all alone in the darkness.
His sole exposed eye gleamed coldly in the dark.
"Lord Danzo, today was Zhou Cheng's first day at school. After watching his teacher demonstrate a ninjutsu once, he successfully cast it himself."
The eye in the darkness instantly lit up.
"As expected, I wasn't mistaken."
"This boy's talent really is monstrous."
"Someone like him must be under my control."
Then, seeing that the Shinobi had not withdrawn, he gestured for him to continue.
"In front of everyone, Zhou Cheng declared that he would challenge Neji Hyuga in a month."
Danzo sprang to his feet.
"What? He dared to challenge Neji Hyuga!"
"The boy is being a little rash. Neji Hyuga is said to have the greatest talent in the Hyuga Clan's history."
"He's already awakened his Byakugan at such a young age, and his taijutsu skills are impressive too."
"Most importantly, he started training at four."
"He has a full five-year head start on Zhou Cheng."
"Does Zhou Cheng intend to catch up to five years of training in a single month?"
"That really is a little rash."
Then he slowly sat back down.
No one could make out his expression in the darkness.
"Still, this is good. If he can defeat Neji Hyuga in a month, I'll wrest him away from Hiruzen, whatever the cost."
Meanwhile, in Zhou Cheng's classroom, the uproar finally began to die down.
Once their shock passed, everyone wore a different expression.
Most looked at Zhou Cheng with disdain and contempt.
No one believed he could defeat Neji.
There were exceptions, of course.
The blond-haired, blue-eyed Naruto stood up and loudly cheered Zhou Cheng on with a grin.
"Zhou Cheng, I believe you can do it!"
His words prompted a wave of eye rolls.
Idiot.
A dead last was still a dead last.
He couldn't even see the situation clearly.
Neji was the most talented person in their generation.
Closing a five-year gap in one month?
Only an idiot would believe that.
Zhou Cheng smiled too. Naruto really did have the strongest Talk no Jutsu.
"Thank you, Naruto!"
Afterward, word that a child had declared he would challenge Neji Hyuga spread.
It soon spread among the Shinobi parents of the students in their class.
They all simply laughed it off.
There was no need to waste any thought on something whose outcome was already certain.
Even an ordinary genin had to stay absolutely alert when facing Neji Hyuga.
One careless mistake could easily lead to an unexpected defeat.
Soon, classes at the Ninja Academy ended.
They were all children, eagerly waiting for class to end even while lessons were still underway.
Now that school was over, they could hardly wait to rush outside.
In just a few minutes, the classroom had emptied.
Only Zhou Cheng, Haku, Naruto, and Hinata remained.
Mentally, Zhou Cheng had long since ceased to be a child.
Naturally, he had no childish urge to rush out of school and play the moment classes ended.
Since he stayed, Haku naturally stayed too.
Naruto simply didn't want to return to his empty home.
So he wanted to spend a little longer somewhere with other people.
As for Hinata, she had made a boxed lunch for Naruto.
But with others present, she was too shy to take it out.
"Naruto, see you tomorrow!"
Zhou Cheng said goodbye to Naruto, then stood and headed toward the classroom door.
As he passed Hinata, he gave her a gentle smile.
"Hinata, you can do it. You're the best!"
Then he left the classroom as Hinata blushed bright red.
"Th-thank you, Zhou Cheng!"
She was so embarrassed that her head nearly sank to her chest.
Just as Zhou Cheng stepped outside the classroom, Naruto's voice rang out behind him.
"Zhou Cheng, you've got to win!"
Zhou Cheng stopped. Without turning around, he raised a thumb with his back to Naruto.
He admired Naruto, even setting aside his protagonist's halo.
That indomitable spirit of his.
His ninja way of always following through on his words.
Those were things many people could learn from.
Many people gave up all too easily when they encountered difficulties.
There was also his cheerful, sunny disposition.
Had someone else grown up in that kind of environment,
even if they hadn't turned dark, they wouldn't have become anyone particularly admirable.
Take Uchiha Sasuke, for example. If Naruto hadn't been there,
Konoha would never have known peace from the moment Sasuke obtained the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
Well, in the early story, Naruto really was a little weak compared with the other young standouts if he didn't rely on his Nine-Tails cheat.
Should I help him out?
Naruto's chakra nature is wind. Even if I wanted to help, I couldn't. Still, I could have Haku teach him after he awakens Ice Release.
Soon, the two of them returned home.
Neither felt like cooking, so they each made a tub of instant ramen and made do with that.
After eating, they went out into the courtyard.
Zhou Cheng took out the ninjutsu scroll the Third Hokage had given them and looked at Haku.
"Let's learn the water release ninjutsu first."
Haku nodded firmly. Although he possessed a kekkei genkai, he was still a novice when it came to other ninjutsu.
Besides, as a Shinobi, no one would complain about learning too many ninjutsu.
They first opened the scroll for the simplest one: Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique.
The scroll recorded the hand seals for the ninjutsu.
The direction and speed of chakra circulation.
And every precaution they needed to take.
His top-tier talent for chakra control increased Zhou Cheng's learning speed for any ninjutsu.
On top of that, he had the experience and theory provided by Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Zhou Cheng felt that he already knew this ninjutsu inside out.
The Third Hokage had given them all these ninjutsu, so they didn't have to worry about anyone coming to cause trouble while they practiced.
Zhou Cheng began practicing right there in the courtyard.
"Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique!"
Zhou Cheng opened his mouth, and a thick stream of white mist poured out, instantly spreading throughout the courtyard.
The mist wasn't particularly dense, however. Zhou Cheng knew that was because he hadn't infused much Chakra Reserves into it.
Besides, his current chakra reserves wouldn't support unlimited use.
The mist's density depended on how much chakra the caster poured into the ninjutsu.
Zhou Cheng didn't continue sustaining the white mist, so it soon dispersed.
Then he saw Haku staring at him in awe.
"Big Brother Zhou Cheng, your talent is truly astonishing. No, it's terrifying!"
"That's a D-rank ninjutsu, and you learned it in one try?"
Zhou Cheng smiled and walked over to Haku.
"Your talent is no worse than mine. Don't underestimate yourself!"
Seeing the sincerity in Zhou Cheng's eyes, Haku nodded firmly.
Then, just like Zhou Cheng, he formed hand seals and mobilized his chakra.
"Water Release: Hidden Mist Technique."
Everything around them remained still.
"Just as I thought, I failed!"
Haku lowered his head, a little dejected.
Zhou Cheng also thought he had failed and was about to comfort him.
But a cloud of white mist suddenly appeared in the courtyard.
"This is the Hidden Mist Technique!"
"Right, the scroll said there were two ways to use the Hidden Mist Technique."
Zhou Cheng recalled the scroll's contents.
"I used the first method, breathing thick mist out through my mouth."
"You must have used the second, condensing thick mist from the air."
Zhou Cheng smiled happily.
"See? Your talent is no worse than mine!"
Haku smiled gently.
But neither of them knew that someone had seen every move they made in the courtyard with perfect clarity.