Youth gone by

After carrying two hundred jin of supplies home, Bieshu Feifan's shoulders were a little sore.

As soon as he set down the bundle, Bieshu Feifan sensed someone standing behind him.

And in a tree not far away, there was someone wearing an animal mask.

Bieshu Feifan frowned and looked back, only to find a ping-pong paddle blocking the way behind him.

An Uchiha. What were they here for this time?

They really wouldn't leave him alone.

"Need something?"

Bieshu Feifan's voice was neither cold nor warm, but it carried a strong warning.

At the same time, he held the sword he had just bought in his left hand and gripped its hilt with his right.

The moment this Uchiha made any suspicious move, he would draw.

The Uchiha who had come this time was sixteen or seventeen, with very typical Uchiha features.

Long, straight black hair. Very handsome.

The Uchiha Clan generally seemed to be good-looking,

except for Uchiha Fugaku,

and his younger cousin.

"I'm Uchiha Tai. Brother Ji said you're very strong, more Uchiha than most Uchiha.

I've come to spar with you. Make your move.

I won't hit too hard, so you can relax."

Looking at the supremely confident Uchiha Tai, Bieshu Feifan sneered.

"As expected of the Uchiha Clan. Can you think of no way to beat an opponent except picking on someone younger?

If Madara Uchiha had been born two years earlier, maybe he could've picked on someone younger and killed Lord First Hokage ahead of time.

Isn't that right?"

Bieshu Feifan didn't speak loudly, and the distant Anbu couldn't hear him.

But Uchiha Tai, standing right before him, heard every word and immediately lost his composure.

Madara Uchiha was a forbidden name.

Yet this Bieshu Feifan had actually said it right to his face, with a mocking expression to boot.

Just as Uchiha Tai was about to strike,

Bieshu Feifan spat.

"And don't say I'm more Uchiha than the Uchiha. I've never hit anyone younger than me in my life.

I have my pride. I can't stomach that kind of humiliation."

Uchiha Tai froze. Bieshu Feifan's words had struck him right in his pride.

He was an almost adult Uchiha, yet he was going out of his way to attack a seven-year-old brat.

Though a Dove Faction Elder had arranged this, it did seem rather embarrassing.

But Uchiha Tai had already accepted the mission, so he couldn't very well leave now.

Yet he couldn't swallow his pride and strike first, either.

And so Uchiha Tai simply stared at Bieshu Feifan.

He neither attacked nor left.

Seeing him like this, Bieshu Feifan had no idea what he was getting hung up on.

Still, Bieshu Feifan kept his right hand on the sword's hilt, ready to strike at any moment.

But one minute passed,

then two minutes,

and Uchiha Tai still hadn't moved.

Bieshu Feifan, however, was getting impatient. He didn't want to waste time. He still had training to do.

"Uchiha Tai, right? If you want something, you can tell me. My big brother is the Hokage."

Uchiha Tai still said nothing. He was waiting for Bieshu Feifan to attack first.

Then it wouldn't be picking on someone younger, but teaching an arrogant brat a lesson.

But how would Bieshu Feifan dare attack him?

Seeing Uchiha Tai remain silent, Bieshu Feifan grew increasingly impatient.

"Uchiha Tai, if you're here to ask about my hairstyle, I suggest asking your Military Police Force. They had an excellent hairstylist locked up there before."

At the mention of the hairstyle, Uchiha Tai snapped back to his senses.

His mission was to destroy Bieshu Feifan's hair. Why was he trying to spar with a brat?

As long as he went easy, it wouldn't count as picking on someone younger.

He was merely practicing ninjutsu and accidentally burned a brat who wasn't watching where he was going.

Great. A perfect explanation.

Having sorted out his thoughts, Uchiha Tai instantly formed hand seals.

Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique.

A massive ball of flame hurtled straight at Bieshu Feifan.

Bieshu Feifan was already prepared for this.

As expected of an inherently evil Uchiha.

Bieshu Feifan pushed hard off the ground with both feet, dodging the Great Fireball.

Uchiha Tai had activated his Sharingan by now. Single-Tomoe.

Bieshu Feifan's mouth twitched. Single-Tomoe? That's it?

So he was just some Uchiha small fry.

Had they been out in the wilderness, he would have been quite happy to gouge out the man's eyes.

Anticipating where Bieshu Feifan would land, Uchiha Tai launched another Great Fireball at that spot.

Bieshu Feifan easily dodged it.

Uchiha Tai frowned. This Bieshu Feifan really did have some skill at anticipating attacks.

Uchiha Tai formed a few more seals and spat out four or five small flames.

Several cut off Bieshu Feifan's retreat, while one went straight for his head.

Bieshu Feifan now noticed that Uchiha Tai's attacks seemed to be aimed at his hair.

"Uchiha Tai, if you're jealous of my hairstyle, I can give you some money to get it cut yourself."

After dodging this Phoenix Flower Jutsu as well, Bieshu Feifan spoke tentatively.

He wanted to know why this Uchiha was targeting his hair. Could he simply dislike the sight of it?

Uchiha Tai said nothing, merely taking a slight breath.

Then, instead of spitting more fire, he pushed off with his feet and shot toward Bieshu Feifan.

So fast!

Bieshu Feifan was shocked. He had thought a Single-Tomoe Uchiha would have only mediocre skills.

But now it seemed he did have a few tricks.

Bieshu Feifan immediately activated his Sharingan's visual power and saw his opponent's moves clearly.

But his seven-year-old body was still too weak to keep up with his footwork.

After he barely managed to fend off a dozen or so moves, Uchiha Tai used his superior physique to sweep Bieshu Feifan to the ground with a kick.

Then Uchiha Tai swung his fist straight at Bieshu Feifan's face.

Bieshu Feifan was alarmed. His opponent was clearly putting all his strength into this blow,

and he might not be able to take it.

So Bieshu Feifan instantly rolled to the side.

The instant Bieshu Feifan's gaze shifted away, Uchiha Tai grabbed him.

At the same time, he used a Shadow Clone, which began forming seals behind Bieshu Feifan.

Held by an adult, Bieshu Feifan couldn't break free at once. Then he saw another Uchiha Tai forming seals behind him and panicked.

Was he done for?

"Help! An Uchiha is attacking someone in the street-"

Before he could finish, the Uchiha Tai behind him had already attacked.

He spat a mouthful of fire at Bieshu Feifan's half-and-half hairstyle.

In just an instant,

all three Hokage were burned away.

The multicolored explosion was gone too.

"Aah!"

The flames burned Bieshu Feifan's scalp.

This time, Uchiha Tai released his grip on him.

Bieshu Feifan hurriedly rolled aside and put out the fire on his head.

Seeing that Bieshu Feifan's hairstyle was completely destroyed, Uchiha Tai chuckled, took out a hundred ryo, and tossed it beside him.

"A little reward for you. Shave your head, you disgrace."

As Uchiha Tai left, the distant Anbu left as well.

Bieshu Feifan, who had been rolling around in pain, instantly climbed to his feet, picked up the money, and went inside.

Needless to say, today's incident had to be Hiruzen Sarutobi's doing.

Bieshu Feifan silently cursed as he cleaned the ashes off his head.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, you petty bastard. No wonder Orochimaru killed you.

When Bieshu Feifan met Might Duy again the next day, he was bald and had changed his clothes as well.

Might Duy immediately regained his former energy.

"Feifan, your youth has returned! Let's run five hundred laps around Konoha."

Looking at Might Duy's big front teeth and raised thumb, Bieshu Feifan smiled faintly.

"All right. Let the past scatter on the wind."

Might Duy was clearly in a much better mood today.

His only annoyance was that Might Guy still wanted to learn that strange dance of Bieshu Feifan's.

The peaceful days didn't last long. Just as Bieshu Feifan's hair had grown back into a short crew cut, he received another deployment order from Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The war needed cannon fodder again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, fuck your mother.

I'm already this abnormal, and you're still sending me to the battlefield? What happened to caring for mentally disabled children?

After receiving the notice, Bieshu Feifan angrily packed his things at home.

He'd barely had a few peaceful days before Hiruzen Sarutobi started pulling his bullshit again.

Things were still better with that son he'd picked up in the Land of Wind. There was food, lodging, and ninjutsu.

Sulking, Bieshu Feifan gathered his belongings.

During this time, his Magnet Release had made considerable progress.

The metal he needed to use had already been sealed into the scrolls on his arms.

One consolation was that Might Duy had finally been called up in this draft.

Bieshu Feifan felt much better about it.

But if they even needed Might Duy, it seemed the war had nearly exhausted their cannon fodder.

This time, they didn't enter the Hokage Building.

Including Bieshu Feifan, Hiruzen Sarutobi had scraped together another few hundred underage cannon fodder from who knew where and handed them over to several jonin.

Just like at the beginning, cannon fodder like Bieshu Feifan knew nothing,

and simply followed the main force toward the Land of Rain.