Three White-Haired Boys

Life at the Ninja Academy was dull and boring. A full year had passed since Uchiha Nen first enrolled.

When he came to his senses, he was already a second-year student.

When it came to what he had gained over the past year, Nian felt there was one phrase that described it perfectly:

Barely satisfactory.

Compared to insights, he seemed to have far more complaints.

He had thought that once he entered the academy, he would be able to learn some powerful Ninjutsu secrets. At the very least, there would be teachers to guide them through professional skill training. Yet in the end, they mostly learned textbook knowledge. Outdoor practical classes were pitifully few, and proper Ninjutsu lessons could be counted on one hand.

The first-year final exam assessed each student's understanding of the "Ninja Five Items"—Taijutsu, Ninjutsu, individual combat, squad combat, and tactics. There were five papers in total, all theory exams worth fifty points altogether, requiring students to define what it meant to be a ninja from every angle.

At the Uchiha Clan Territory, in Nian's home, five test papers lay carelessly scattered across the table. Each bore the exact same score: six points. Every subject had landed precisely on the passing line.

He was a man of his word. This semester, he had followed the path he had decided upon during the entrance ceremony: hide his strength and remain unknown. Even in class, he tried not to draw anyone's attention, becoming an insignificant little nobody.

Perhaps that was not difficult for him. After all, his real life was no different.

Although his strength had long surpassed what children his age should possess, aside from Tong Ren, Orochimaru, and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio whom he had beaten into pig heads on the first day of school, no one knew about it.

Even when he accidentally got into conflicts with others, he neither fought nor argued. His emotions were so steady that he did not seem like an Uchiha at all.

Because he kept such a low profile, he had become a complete outsider in class. Naturally, his seat was by the window in the back row, and even the teacher had only a vague impression of him.

At the start of the school year, Nian suddenly noticed that there was an odd new boy in the class.

The guy was clearly skinny, yet he insisted on wearing a ridiculous Green Jumpsuit. With a shiny Watermelon Head, he gave an incredibly loud introduction and was the sort of weirdo who went out to run five kilometers even during breaks.

According to Tong Ren, the boy had been held back from their class. Since he had failed the final Ninjutsu assessment, he could only repeat the year.

Nian did not care about that. The only things he cared about were the Secret Technique scroll in his arms and... the mysterious man who had given him that scroll years ago.

Unfortunately, ever since they had parted two years ago, the three of them had never seen him again.

One day, Nian and Orochimaru were invited to Tong Ren's home as guests. The reason was that Tong Ren's sister, Uchiha Chiri, had successfully passed the assessment that day and become a member of the Hidden Leaf Police Force.

As they chatted happily, their encounter from two years ago inevitably came up, along with the mysterious man. The moment Chiri heard about him, she stood up, swiftly locked the doors and windows, and drew the curtains tightly.

With a grave expression, she warned them never to let anyone discover that they had any connection with that man.

"Big Sister, is he a bad person?" Tong Ren asked with a frown. Nian grew tense as well, his Hands unconsciously twisting together.

Orochimaru, however, remained expressionless.

Good and bad? Right and wrong?

What standards were used to judge such things?

They were nothing more than differences in position and belief.

Personally, he did not care about the man's past. At the very least, what he had seen was a confident, powerful, principled man shrouded from head to toe in mystery.

"I never said he was a bad person. I'm only warning you not to let the village find out that you have dealings with him," Chiri said softly. A trace of reminiscence drifted through her bright, moist eyes. "Right and wrong must be judged with your own Eyes."

"The only thing I can be certain of is that he would never harm you."

Time flew by, swift as a galloping white horse. Another year passed in the blink of an eye.

Nian had now spent two unremarkable years at the Ninja Academy.

Though he was an insignificant little nobody in class, Tong Ren and Orochimaru added a little color to his life. He trained with them during the day and studied Secret Techniques at home at night, so his days were not too difficult to endure.

One matter did pique his interest somewhat: Tong Ren and Orochimaru, whom he remembered as being even stronger than himself, were not actually first in their respective classes.

According to the two of them, the fourth-year final assessment was "ninja sparring"—in plain terms, a friendly match where they stopped before things went too far.

Winners advanced, while losers entered the elimination round. The teachers would give their final scores based on the strength displayed during the sparring matches, so even losing was not a big deal.

But if someone was so hopeless that they could not even cast a single Ninjutsu, then they could only regretfully repeat the year.

"Wait, don't tell me. Let me guess..." Nian pondered for a moment, then said to Orochimaru, "The first in your class wouldn't happen to be the Princess Tsunade you mentioned, would it?"

He had heard that this girl had a distinguished status. Not only was she the granddaughter of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, but she also possessed the bloodline of the Land of Fire's Daimyo's Residence.

"No." Orochimaru shook his head. "The first in our class does not come from a prominent clan. He is a boy named Kato Dan. His Illusion Technique mastery is very high. With only the most basic Hell Viewing Technique, he easily defeated every opponent."

"Huh? He sounds impressive," Tong Ren said in surprise. "The first in our class is called Hatake Sakumo. He specializes in Taijutsu and swordsmanship, and he moves incredibly fast. I'd say he's stronger than most genin."

"Hatake Sakumo? That kid with a whole head of white hair despite being so young?" Orochimaru remembered him. "I heard that this clan is very skilled with the sword."

At that moment, Nian spread his arms from behind them and patted both their shoulders. "Well then, it looks like I'll be training with two discouraged Seniors today."

"What are you talking about? I don't care whether I win or lose." Tong Ren curled his lip.

Orochimaru truly did not care. "Other than techniques that grant Immortality, I have no interest in even the strongest methods."

As usual, the group went to the Training Ground to practice, only to discover that their Secret Base, Exclusive to them, had Uninvited Guests today!

It was a boy with flowing white Long Hair, wildly throwing Shuriken at a target. His movements were decent and his gaze was focused, but his accuracy was only around twenty or thirty percent—pitifully low.

After throwing all his Shuriken in one go, the boy panted heavily. Looking at his "results," he suddenly dropped to his knees in humiliation and let out an unwilling roar.

"Aaaaaaah!"

The skin on his Hands had already been worn raw, and sweat covered his face. He had clearly been practicing alone for a long time.

Nian frowned deeply at the sight.

"White hair... is this the Hatake Sakumo you were talking about?"

"No, he's called Hiruko. He's in our class," Orochimaru explained. "In class, he occupies the same position as you, Nian: unnoticed, ordinary in strength. The difference is..."

"Nian is pretending, while he really is weak," Tong Ren said with his arms crossed.

"Forget it. Let's pretend we didn't see him," Nian suddenly said. "Even the smallest bit of pride needs to be protected."

"Fine, we'll do as you say."

Orochimaru tilted his head. "Then what are we going to do?"

Tong Ren's eyes rolled. "Anyone want to soak in a hot spring?"

The three immediately hit it off and sprinted toward the bathhouse. As they passed a street corner, they suddenly spotted a white-haired kid sticking his butt out beside a tall wall, eagerly peering through a crack in it at something.

"White hair... is this the Hatake Sakumo you were talking about?"

"Unfortunately, no." Orochimaru remained expressionless. "He's called Jiraiya. He's in our class."

"More importantly..." Tong Ren frowned. "Behind that wall is the Open-Air Hot Spring of the Women's Bathhouse, isn't it?"