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"Please come again, Obito, Rin."
Sara's sweet voice rang out, but to the two kids, it sounded more like the voice of a demon.
Given her current skill level, Sara shouldn't have been cooking alone. But as her father, Akio had personally asked Hand Ramen to let her prepare the food, and Teuchi didn't refuse.
And so, after eating a bowl of uniquely flavored ramen, Obito swore never to return. Even Rin looked slightly queasy… Mainly because Sara was watching them with a beaming smile, making it impossible for them not to force down every last bite while repeatedly saying, "Delicious!"
"Sensei, it was just a portrait. Did you really have to go that far?" Obito finally caught on.
"What do you mean, go that far?" Akio shot him a glare. "Your sister Sara's cooking isn't something just anyone gets to try."
"I'd rather be one of the ones who never gets to…"
…
It took a good while for the two children's expressions to return to normal. Akio, on the other hand, seemed unfazed—habit truly is a terrifying thing.
"Sensei, are you close with the Hokage?" Obito suddenly remembered that the portrait had been given to Akio by Hiruzen.
"Hmm, you could say we're fairly close," Akio replied nonchalantly, exuding a dignified aura—though something felt a bit off to him.
"Wait… am I really showing off by name-dropping Hiruzen? That doesn't sound right…"
Before Akio could reflect on it any further, Obito spoke up excitedly. "Then Sensei, could I ask you for a favor? For the team assignments… I was hoping…"
As he spoke, he stole a glance at Rin.
"Hoping what? If you don't say it, how would I know what you want?" Akio teased.
"I was thinking… Rin's a girl, after all. If we could be in the same team, I could look after her. And you'd be less worried too, right, Sensei?"
Akio was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter. Glancing at Rin, who was giggling behind her hand, he quipped, "I think it's more likely she'll be the one looking after you."
Obito's face turned beet red, while Rin softly added,
"Obito, we're already on the same team."
"Huh? Really? Sensei Dan didn't tell me anything!"
"He told me to go to the photo studio at 9 a.m. tomorrow. You're scheduled at the same time, right? Everyone else's photo times are staggered."
"Oh, I see!" Obito exclaimed in realization. "Then… who's our third teammate?"
Rin gently shook her head. "I don't know."
Obito turned to Akio, who chuckled, "You might be in for a little surprise…"
Seeing their puzzled expressions, Akio waved a hand. "You're meeting tomorrow. Go home and get ready. Obito, try not to be too late."
"Like I would ever—" Obito started to retort, but then realized he wasn't confident in himself either, and sulked off in resignation. Rin giggled and chased after him.
Akio shook his head and returned to his small shop—not to carve seals this time, but to practice Gentle Fist. He was getting closer to reaching the maximum level, Level 10.
Gentle Fist (0000)
"At this pace, I'll probably max it out by this time next year. Wonder how much stronger I'll be by then…"
The next morning.
After dropping Sara off at the nearby Ichiraku Ramen, Akio made his way to the Konoha photo studio in just a few steps. All the new graduates were to have their official team photos taken here, one group per hour.
From just before 7 a.m., Akio watched familiar and unfamiliar children arrive under the guidance of their assigned jonin.
"Why isn't Dai leading a team?" he murmured, then quickly understood—someone like Dai probably didn't have the strategic aptitude for team leadership. Despite being a jonin, his missions usually needed to be led by other jonin—or even chunin.
As for Guy's teammates, Akio recognized them somewhat. One was Genma Shiranui, who always had a stick of grass in his mouth. The other… he couldn't recall the name.
At 8 a.m., another team arrived. Akio didn't recognize the three students, but he did know their team leader very well—it was Inoichi Yamanaka.
"So the Ino-Shika-Cho trio got split up, huh… I wonder who Shikaku's team is. Don't tell me it's Asuma?"
"Actually, it makes sense. Minato mentored Kakashi, Kakashi taught Naruto. Shikaku trained Asuma, Asuma trained Shikamaru—it all fits."
Before Akio could continue speculating, Kakashi arrived just a few minutes after 8. Still that same cold expression, short sword strapped to his back… and—wait, was he wearing sandals?
Akio only then noticed Kakashi's shoes exposed his toes. Probably to better accommodate training.
About ten minutes later, Minato showed up and greeted Kakashi. Kakashi looked genuinely excited. After their mission in RĹŤran, he had come to trust Minato deeply. Becoming his jonin sensei was the perfect arrangement.
Of course, Sakumo would've been an even better choice as Kakashi's mentor—but he was now the deputy commander of the ANBU, so he couldn't just pull out of active duty.
Sakumo…?
At that moment, Akio remembered something.
"Wait, wasn't Sakumo dead by now in the original timeline? That mission…"
"Ah well. Hopefully not. Things are better this way."
At 8:30, Rin arrived, beaming as she greeted Kakashi. She immediately apologized to Minato, saying that Obito would probably be late…
There was still half an hour until their scheduled meeting, and Rin was already predicting Obito's tardiness.
And sure enough, as 9 a.m. approached, there was still no sign of him.
Akio, who had been waiting nearby for over an hour, shook his head and walked over.
"Sensei!"
"Boss Hagoromo!"
"Obito probably got lost on the path of life again. You'll be waiting a while."
"That dead-last… hasn't changed a bit," Kakashi said, seemingly annoyed. The two just couldn't help but clash—though maybe that's just how best friends always seem on the surface.
By 9:30, Obito still hadn't arrived, and the studio owner was starting to panic—he had more sessions lined up.
"You go handle your work, I'll take the photo," Akio said, pushing the confused studio owner aside.
"Thanks for the help, Boss Hagoromo," Minato said.
Akio nodded and waited with them. It was nearly 10 when Obito finally came running in.
"Sorry I'm la—wait, Sensei? You own this place too?"
Akio chuckled. "The owner ran off thanks to you. Hurry up and say hi to your teammates."
Only then did Obito notice Kakashi—and promptly sank into despair. He had been so excited to be on the same team as Rin…
Fighting between teammates is part of friendship too… probably.
Anyway, under Minato's direction, the group finally took their official team photo—with multiple angles and expressions, thanks to Akio's suggestion.
Because Minato's team composition had shifted slightly from the original timeline, Akio earned a full 20 Witness Points.
Witness Points: 997
"Just 3 away from 1000… This is driving me crazy. Where can I get three more?!"
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