Sō! Kyū! Ha! Ta! Ke!!!

His little brother had become Orochimaru's apprentice?

About this, Kakashi only wanted to say one thing.

Had his standing in the lineage just dropped?

As everyone knew, Jiraiya and Orochimaru had trained under the same master.

And Kakashi's teacher, Minato Namikaze, was Jiraiya's apprentice, which meant Kakashi had to address Jiraiya as his grandmaster.

In other words... at that thought, Kakashi looked straight at Sōkyū Hatake.

Good grief, how the hell had his little brother suddenly become his senior martial uncle? (Orochimaru was two weeks older than Jiraiya, which meant Kakashi had to address Sōkyū Hatake as his senior martial uncle rather than his junior martial uncle...)

"Yes, Grandpa Hokage. A little while ago, at my father's funeral, Master Orochimaru came to find me specifically, hoping I would become his apprentice," Sōkyū Hatake said outright.

This was also something Orochimaru and Sōkyū Hatake had agreed on from the start, with the reason being that Hatake Sakumo had once saved Orochimaru.

And since Kakashi had already been taken on as Minato Namikaze's apprentice, he would take Sōkyū Hatake instead.

After this whole explanation, Hiruzen Sarutobi had no further suspicions.

"Mm-hmm, good boy. Orochimaru is a very knowledgeable man. I hope you'll study hard under him," Hiruzen Sarutobi said with a beaming smile, the wrinkles on his face nearly deep enough to crush a fly.

"Yes, I'll definitely study hard! Everything is for the village!" Sōkyū Hatake said outright, a determined expression appearing on his young face.

"Very good. Then I won't disturb you any longer. Little Sōkyū, this summoning beast is quite good. Make sure you nurture it well," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, looking at Pikachu on Sōkyū Hatake's shoulder.

Things were just as Hiruzen Sarutobi had thought. Hiruzen Sarutobi had definitely come because of Pikachu's Thunderbolt, and this explanation would at least mean much less trouble in the future.

Especially that last sentence-Sōkyū Hatake had worked the Will of Fire directly into it.

How could that not win you over?

"Take care, Grandpa Hokage!" Sōkyū Hatake said outright.

After Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others left, the look Kakashi gave Sōkyū Hatake grew even stranger.

"What's wrong, Kakashi?" Obito had been watching Kakashi all along, and when he noticed the strange look in Kakashi's eyes, he asked.

"Sōkyū... did Orochimaru really take you on as his apprentice?" Kakashi was still a little dumbfounded.

"Of course, Kakashi... my martial nephew!" Sōkyū Hatake looked at Kakashi with a wicked grin. He knew this had to be what was on Kakashi's mind.

Kakashi? Martial nephew???

After hearing how Sōkyū Hatake addressed him, Kakashi's response was, Are you asking for a beating, you brat?

At once, veins bulged on Kakashi's forehead, and he unconsciously picked up the wooden sword beside him.

Only then did Sōkyū Hatake notice something was off with Kakashi.

Looking at the wooden sword in Kakashi's hand, Sōkyū Hatake couldn't help swallowing.

Uh...

Was it too late to run?

"Sō! Kyū! Ha! Ta! Ke!!!" Kakashi said outright, the wooden sword in his hand already swinging down.

"You actually dare attack your senior martial uncle! Soru!!!" Sōkyū Hatake was immediately alarmed at Kakashi's expression. His feet didn't pause for an instant, and he left the spot with a Soru.

That fast? Kakashi's strike missed, leaving him puzzled for a moment. Although he hadn't used his full strength, he was still at the Chunin level, while Sōkyū Hatake hadn't even attended the Ninja Academy, had he?

"Hehe, you two have fun! Obito, I'll leave my big brother to you!" Sōkyū Hatake gave a wicked grin, then hurried out of the Hatake Clan compound.

Obito Uchiha, who had been entrusted with this task, looked completely bewildered.

Since when... did Kakashi need to be left in my care?

Having escaped, Sōkyū Hatake let out a sigh of relief. Luckily, he'd made it out, or Kakashi probably wouldn't have let him off so easily.

Grrrrumble~

Just then, Sōkyū Hatake suddenly felt hungry. He glanced around, and a familiar sight happened to appear before him.

Ichiraku Ramen!

Sōkyū Hatake walked straight over. In all the days since he'd transmigrated here, this was his first time coming to eat at the renowned Ichiraku Ramen.

"Welcome~ Oh, it's Lord White Fang's younger boy." Just as Sōkyū Hatake walked in, Teuchi came out of the kitchen and spotted him immediately.

"Uncle Teuchi... my name is Sōkyū Hatake. I remember my father mentioning your name." Sōkyū Hatake looked at Teuchi with some curiosity.

Teuchi was the name of Ichiraku Ramen's owner. That name might not sound very familiar, but there was another name that was very famous.

Otsutsuki Ichiraku!

Looking at Uncle Teuchi before him, Sōkyū Hatake was rather curious.

Uncle Teuchi stood before him in a chef's uniform. Just as the rumors said, Teuchi hadn't opened his eyes at all, but simply looked at him through narrowed eyes.

"Lord White Fang... I really do miss him. The last time Lord White Fang came here for noodles was half a year ago. It feels like yesterday... ah, sorry, I shouldn't have said that." Uncle Teuchi promptly smacked the back of his own head and looked at Sōkyū Hatake apologetically.

"It's fine, it's fine," Sōkyū Hatake said outright.

"Little Sōkyū, what would you like? It's on me today." Uncle Teuchi looked at Sōkyū Hatake gently, as though he saw a trace of Hatake Sakumo in him.

"For me..."

"Tonkotsu~ Tonkotsu ramen~ My daddy makes the best tonkotsu ramen~" Sōkyū Hatake was looking at the menu, just about to say something, when a little child's voice suddenly interrupted him.

The voice came from behind the counter. Looking toward it, he saw a little girl about Sōkyū Hatake's age speaking with her lips puckered.

"Ayame, this is Lord White Fang's son, Sōkyū Hatake. As for his age... he's exactly one year older than you. Call him Big Brother Sōkyū." Teuchi looked at Ayame dotingly and walked right over to her as he spoke.

"Big... Big Brother Sōkyū?" Ayame tilted her head as she spoke, as though trying to work out what that meant.

"Hello, Ayame." Sōkyū Hatake looked at Ayame curiously. In the original story, Ayame was an intellectual young woman. Who would have thought she'd been such a soft, adorable little girl as a child?

"Have tonkotsu!" As though she'd remembered something, Ayame once again recommended the tonkotsu ramen to Sōkyū Hatake.

"Haha, all right, all right. Uncle Teuchi, I'll have a bowl of tonkotsu ramen, then."