Konoha: I Have a Gravity Training Room

Xia Mu stared at him speechlessly. "Shino, did you come here to set up a stall?"

Shino looked completely justified. "My family grows too many vegetables, and we can't finish them all anyway, so I brought some over. Oh, right. Let me demonstrate my One-Handed Seals. See if there are still any problems."

This guy had even learned to change the subject!

Fortunately, Xia Mu could not be bothered to say anything more. He watched Shino perform the Three Basic Jutsu with One-Handed Seals and nodded in approval.

Hot-Blooded Idiot

"Shino, you've indeed mastered One-Handed Seals. Just keep practicing from now on. Also, make sure both hands become proficient. Try converting your other ninjutsu to One-Handed Seals as well and get more familiar with them. You'll definitely need them in battle someday."

After giving him a few instructions, Xia Mu casually set the prepared pork trotters to stew. He did not forget to add dried tangerine peel, and he had soybeans ready as well.

Lotus root would have been even better, but it was damn expensive. Even if he bought some, he could not buy much. Since Choji would be here for this meal, it definitely would not be enough, so soybeans were better.

Seeing this, Shino decisively helped wash the vegetables.

Before long, Shikamaru arrived carrying a large chunk of venison. He had even brought a grill and seasonings, which was a huge help.

Choji had not brought much in the way of snacks, but he had carried over a large piece of beef. Drooling, he said, "I told my parents I was eating at a friend's house, and they insisted I bring some beef over. Hehe, Shikamaru brought a grill, so let's cook it together."

"What a pain. I'll grill it."

That was just how Shikamaru was. Everything was troublesome to him, but when it came to his friends, he never slacked off.

Xia Mu hurriedly said, "Give me some of the beef too. I'll make a few different flavors for you."

Naturally, Shikamaru and Choji had no objections. Xia Mu was treating them, so he could prepare it however he wanted. They would help out and wait for the food.

At that moment, Xia Mu was busy alone in the kitchen while Shino, Shikamaru, and Choji worked on the barbecue.

Shikamaru casually asked, "Shino, this isn't your first time visiting Xia Mu's house, is it?"

Shino nodded, sounding a little proud. "Xia Mu invited me over once before. His cooking is delicious. I was the first friend to taste his food."

"Is it really that good? Then I'm eating my fill today!"

Choji's stomach was already rumbling. The waves of fragrance drifting over made saliva pour from his mouth.

Fortunately, Xia Mu worked efficiently. Before long, he brought dish after dish to the table and had even prepared several bottles of juice.

The table was piled with food: soy-braised pork trotters, cured pork stir-fried with garlic sprouts, tomato and egg stir-fry, spicy chicken, spicy beef, poached chicken, stir-fried greens, pork and vegetable soup, grilled venison, grilled beef, and a huge pot of rice beside them.

Shikamaru's eye twitched. "Th-That much? Can we finish it all?"

Choji declared with certainty, "We definitely can! And it all looks so delicious. I won't leave even a single bite!"

Shino was tempted too. He had been unable to forget the last meal after eating it once. Now there were even more dishes, each one fragrant and colorful. They surely tasted just as good.

Xia Mu served everyone a bowl of rice, giving Choji a larger bowl. He even placed a whole basin of rice beside Choji.

He also gave everyone an empty bowl and prepared serving chopsticks and spoons. After all, this world was accustomed to individual portions, so Xia Mu had to adapt to local customs.

"All right, don't be polite. Dig in!"

As the host, Xia Mu picked up his chopsticks first after announcing the start of the meal. The others could hardly wait any longer.

Before long, no one at the table was talking. Everyone was buried in their food, afraid that being even slightly slower would let someone else snatch it first. The dishes they had thought they could not finish were soon wiped clean. Choji did not even leave a drop of pork trotter soup.

By the time the sky had just begun to darken, all four of them were slumped in their chairs, with the table a complete mess.

"Burp— I'm so full! It was way too delicious! I still want more!" Choji was clearly not satisfied yet.

"Xia Mu, you're really a great cook," Shikamaru praised sincerely.

Shino said nothing, only nodded repeatedly. He looked like he wanted to give ten thumbs-up, clearly extremely satisfied.

Xia Mu was satisfied too. Setting aside the fact that he had deliberately befriended them, simply eating with friends was far happier than being alone every day.

Sure enough, people did not like loneliness. Having friends was better.

"All right, don't just sit around after eating so much. Get up and walk around to help digest it, or your stomach will hurt when you sleep tonight."

Xia Mu urged the three of them up, and they wandered around nearby together. Before long, they reached the street, where they could still smell the food from the various stalls.

Choji wanted to eat more, but everyone stopped him.

When they passed Ichiraku Ramen, they saw Iruka eating ramen with Naruto. Naruto's face was constantly lit up with smiles. Having Iruka eat with him clearly made him very happy.

These two, who were not father and son yet would surpass father and son in the future, were probably beginning to build their bond at this very moment.

Shikamaru glanced at Naruto's back and casually asked, "Xia Mu, what do you think of Naruto?"

I look at him with my eyes!

Xia Mu was somewhat speechless, but he could roughly guess what Shikamaru was thinking. Shikamaru came from a major ninja clan and was smart, so he knew quite a lot. His feelings toward Naruto were probably complicated too. At present, Shikamaru and Choji had not yet become friends with Naruto, nor had they skipped class with him. Perhaps Shikamaru was unsure how he should interact with Naruto.

As the eldest son of the Nara Clan head, a clan affiliated with the Sarutobi Clan, whether it would be approved for him to associate with a Jinchuriki was enough to make anyone hesitate.

"He's just a hot-blooded idiot."

Xia Mu gave his answer.

That was right. To children, if they ignored the villagers' rumors about a demon fox, Naruto was not some Jinchuriki at all. He was simply a hot-blooded idiot.

Shikamaru was a child of a major clan and part of the Hokage's faction, so he really did not need to worry so much.

If he had been forbidden from befriending Naruto, the elders in his family would have warned him long ago. Why would Shikamaru need to overthink it himself? He was so smart that he had fallen into a misconception instead.

"A hot-blooded idiot?"

Shikamaru mulled over those words, then smiled. "Hehe, yeah, that description fits him perfectly. Everyone says I'm smart, but you aren't dumb either, Xia Mu. Your IQ might even be higher than mine."

Xia Mu waved a hand. "I don't believe in IQ scores. As they say, even the wise make mistakes after a thousand thoughts, while even fools can gain something after a thousand thoughts. I only know that one should think more. And you, Shikamaru, really are smart, but sometimes you don't need to think so much or make things too complicated. You should try to find the essence of things."

Shikamaru was even more surprised, as though he were meeting Xia Mu for the first time. "The essence of things? What is that?"

Xia Mu smiled and pointed at Shikamaru. "It's hard to explain, but I can give an example. Take you, Shikamaru Nara. On the surface, you're the eldest son of the Nara Clan head and a genius everyone recognizes. But your essence is just a salted fish with a bit of brains. A salted fish finds everything troublesome and cannot be bothered to turn over, yet it is forced to flip over and dry in the sun until one day it dries out completely."

Shikamaru slapped his forehead and could not help laughing. "That description of me fits pretty well too. Maybe I really am a salted fish. But I understand now what the essence of things means."

Essence was not some superficial adjective. It was the real truth.

Like Naruto: the Fourth Hokage's son, a Jinchuriki, Sakura's simp—those were all surface labels. His true essence was really just that of a hot-blooded idiot.

PS: The contract has been signed successfully. Please read with confidence.

Brawl

Time flew by, and more than twenty days passed.

During this time, Shikamaru seemed to have figured out many things. Somehow, he became friends with Naruto, perhaps because they had been punished and made to stand together for skipping class.

As a result, Choji became friends with Naruto as well.

Although Kiba Inuzuka had not yet gotten Akamaru, he often went out for walks during class hours. He formed a four-man class-skipping group with Naruto, Shikamaru, and Choji.

Even Xia Mu and Shino would occasionally go to the river to play with Naruto or stroll through the streets together because of their connections with Shikamaru and Choji. They were not particularly close friends, but they were at least familiar with one another.

For Naruto, his school life was already very happy now.

Not only did he have teachers who cared about him, but he also had friends who did not discriminate against or hate him. On top of that, there was a girl he liked. Every day was filled with laughter and roughhousing, immersing him in happiness.

Xia Mu maintained his usual attitude toward Naruto. He did not get close to him, but he was friendly.

Besides, Xia Mu only knew Naruto because of Shikamaru and Choji. Surely Hiruzen Sarutobi and even Shimura Danzō would not suddenly lose their minds and suspect that he was deliberately approaching the Jinchuriki.

But Xia Mu had no time to think about that much.

He was currently training according to his plan. Although he could not rapidly become stronger in a short time, his daily progress was remarkable.

For example, his physical strength had increased, his Chakra reserves had gradually grown, and he was actively absorbing knowledge at school and in the library. His body and mind had both developed greatly.

Today was the first of the month again. Tonight was the second activation of the Special Laboratory State.

This was extremely important to Xia Mu, and he had already prepared a research project. He was currently filling in the gaps in his research, striving to make everything succeed tonight.

Suddenly, a burst of noisy commotion made Xia Mu frown.

"What happened?" Xia Mu asked unhappily.

"At the school training ground."

A bug that had flown back perched on Shino's fingertip. He read the information it conveyed. "Seven second-years are planning to bully Naruto. Naruto is arguing with them right now. Shikamaru, Choji, and Kiba have already gone over to try and break it up."

"We're going too!"

Xia Mu had a bad feeling, not only because his thoughts had been interrupted, but because he felt it might turn into a fight.

If Naruto alone got into a fight, Xia Mu could ignore it. But since Shikamaru and Choji had gone, they would definitely get dragged in. As their friend, he could not stand by.

Shino could probably see that too, so he did not object.

The two hurried out of the classroom and ran straight toward the training ground.

By then, quite a crowd had gathered around the training ground. They could hear Naruto shouting indignantly, along with people cursing him. It was nothing more than things like "damn demon fox" and "why don't you just die?"

Logically, the Third Hokage had long issued orders that no one could casually mention the term "demon fox" in front of Naruto, much less bully him whenever they pleased. That included students at the school. Yet these guys, perhaps blinded by anger, actually dared to shout it out loud in public. They really had some nerve.

Naruto was most sensitive about being called a "demon fox." After being cursed, he did not know how to argue back. He even felt the ridicule and disgust in the gazes of the surrounding spectators, as though he had been isolated once again.

At that moment, Choji hurriedly stepped in. "Come on, come on, we're all classmates. There's no need for this..."

But the leader immediately glared at Choji. "Fat pig! Don't stick your nose into this, or I'll curse you too!"

"F-Fat pig? You dare call me a fat pig?"

Choji had been pushed past his limit. He immediately got angry and rushed forward, smashing a punch into the boy's nose and making it bleed. That was like poking a hornet's nest. The seven of them flew into a rage and lunged at Choji.

Shikamaru spoke with annoyance in his voice. "What a pain. Do these guys have nothing better to do?"

He called it troublesome, but he immediately rushed toward Choji. He would definitely fight for his friends. Anyone who dared insult Choji was asking for death.

Kiba, on the other hand, was excited. He decisively charged in too, shouting, "Naruto, you're such a coward! You need us to help you! Against guys like these, I'll knock them flying with one move. Just stand there and watch!"

"Hmph! I'm not just going to stand here and watch!"

Naruto snapped out of it. Moved by his friends' help, he shouted with reddened eyes and charged forward, intending to beat up the people who had cursed him.

But someone was faster than all of them.

Just as an older boy was about to hit Choji, a black shadow suddenly flashed forward and grabbed his wrist.

"Picking on someone younger than you? I won't be polite, then!"

Xia Mu snorted coldly. He squeezed down hard, making the older boy howl in pain, then slapped him across the face with his other hand. The boy staggered and fell to the ground.

Another older boy lunged at Xia Mu to grab him, only to be kicked down from behind. Shino had arrived at some point as well.

Seeing that his two friends had come, Shikamaru's confidence surged. He decisively started fighting the other side.

However, the seven opponents were second-years, after all. They had advantages in height and strength, and their fists and kicks were better than Shikamaru's group. With Chakra forbidden, Shikamaru's side fell into a disadvantage for a time.

Xia Mu and Shino, however, trained diligently every day. They were not the slightest bit flustered against opponents a year above them and instead pressed their opponents down relentlessly.

Of course, Xia Mu could have defeated all seven by himself, but he could not do that. He even deliberately took a few punches and kicks from time to time. If he performed too outstandingly, it would be easy for the rats lurking in the dark to take notice of him.

Better safe than sorry. Who knew what those rats might be thinking?

Caution could keep a ship sailing for ten thousand years.

Fortunately, the commotion here was large enough that it quickly drew over a teacher.

"What are you doing?! You dare fight at school? You think you're all impressive, huh? I'll definitely report this to Lord Hokage. Just wait for your punishment!"

Iruka brought up the Hokage, and both sides immediately stopped fighting.

Although the Hokage was only a village chief, he was undoubtedly the highest authority in the entire village and the idol of countless ninja and students. If the Hokage learned about their brawl, not only would they leave a bad impression, they might even be publicly criticized. That would be extremely embarrassing.

In less than ten minutes, the people watching the excitement scattered, leaving only the two groups who had fought.

Iruka was furious as he loudly demanded, "Speak! Why were you fighting?!"

Xia Mu seized the initiative and decisively raised his hand. "Reporting, Sensei. Shino and I heard that the second-years were bullying Shikamaru and Choji, so we came over to help. As soon as we arrived, we saw them trying to hit Choji, so Shino and I rushed in to stop them. But they were aggressive and refused to let it go, so we had no choice but to fight."

Shino nodded repeatedly. "That's right. Sensei, you know me. I'm usually very well-behaved. I don't fight."

Shikamaru took the opportunity to speak. "Sensei, you know me. I'm usually just lazy and like skipping class, but I've never argued with classmates, much less fought. They were the ones who started trouble this time. We were forced to defend ourselves."

Choji said, "Sensei, you know me. I only like eating. I don't like fighting."

I'll Make You Regret It