"A get-together?"
Naruto's breath hitched, and he instinctively reached for his pocket. But before he could say a word, Sasuke spoke up first.
"No problem—but you're the one who said we should balance work and rest. So… do we still have some time now?"
"You little…"
Kitagawa Gen rubbed his chin, and suddenly his eyes lit up. He smiled and said, "Forget training for now. Instead, I can teach you a really interesting jutsu. No matter who you're up against, as long as you use your head, it can protect you and create an opening."
"A jutsu?"
Both Sasuke and Naruto's eyes lit up. Gen nodded, then pulled out two kunai and handed them over.
"Take these—and get ready to attack me."
"Huh? What's on these—"
"Explosive tags? That's way too dangerous!"
Naruto and Sasuke's eyes widened. Sure, they'd trained with explosive tags before, but actually using them for real? That was pushing it.
"A shinobi's not playing house. This is also a test for you."
Gen didn't think twice about it. Glancing around to make sure no one was nearby, he leapt back, raising one hand upright.
"Wait, then attack. And don't hold back—otherwise it's meaningless."
"Mm."
Sasuke and Naruto both swallowed hard. They were tense, but they braced themselves.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"
With a rumble of chakra, two earth walls shot up from the ground. Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a glance and nodded to each other.
But just as they channeled chakra into the explosive tags to ignite them, both of them froze in shock.
Because the two earthen walls were covered with carved statues!
"Hokage… Hokage-sama?"
"F-Father?"
Both Naruto and Sasuke were stunned. How could they throw kunai with explosive tags at that?
And in the same moment, the exact same thought crossed their minds:
Who could be shameless enough to do something like this?
[Whoosh—]
As they stood there frozen, two kunai suddenly burst through the walls, grazing past their faces and striking the wall behind them.
"See? This move's pretty useful, isn't it?"
Gen's voice rang out as the two earthen walls slowly sank back into the ground. Seeing the two brats still stunned, he chuckled.
"This jutsu can both protect you and instantly throw your opponent off balance—doesn't that give you the perfect opening to strike?"
"…"
Sasuke gripped his kunai tightly in silence, while Naruto pressed his lips together.
"That's way too shameless!"
"Shameless?"
Kitagawa Gen arched an eyebrow and gave a dismissive laugh.
"Please. We're shinobi—anything goes for us. Learn from it, or you won't even make it to graduation."
"Damn it…"
Gen's words left Naruto fuming, while Sasuke grew quiet, sinking into serious thought.
Sure, it felt shameless—so much so that he was half-tempted to stab Gen right there.
But… as a shinobi, there really wasn't anything wrong with it, was there?
"All right, when the time comes, you can ask that Pervy Sage how to learn this jutsu—assuming you've got the right chakra nature for it."
Gen shrugged like it was nothing.
"Of course, there are plenty of other tricks like this. It's up to you to figure them out… Hm? Why are your kunai still in your hands?"
"…"
Naruto and Sasuke froze for a beat, then hastily hurled the kunai away.
[BOOM—]
With a thunderous explosion, the three of them stared at a house not far away—now sporting a gaping hole in the wall.
Smoke billowed out, and faint coughing could be heard from inside.
"Damn it! I still have ten years left on that mortgage!"
"…"
Gen was silent for a moment, then turned to the two boys, who were standing there in shock. He spoke in a low voice, "I don't know exactly what happened—but I know for sure you two just caused trouble. Later."
Before the words had even finished leaving his mouth, he yanked his collar up and bolted. Naruto and Sasuke reacted fast—but the homeowner had already stormed out, grabbing Naruto, who was last in line. Naruto's face went pale, and he immediately latched onto Sasuke in front of him.
Sasuke wanted to grab Gen, but in the blink of an eye, the guy was gone.
"Idiot! Let go of me!"
"No way—you threw it too."
"Can't you just say, 'Don't mind me, run!'?"
"Then why didn't you grab that bastard Gen instead?!"
"You two little punks—pay up!"
The shouting rang out below, while Gen stood atop a utility pole, looking down at the two unlucky brats.
Seeing Naruto clutching Sasuke, and remembering how Sasuke had tried to grab him too, Gen let out a sigh.
"As I thought… the education system in Konoha has some serious issues."
"Forget it. I'll just find a chance to test out my Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion instead."
He had been wanting to try the Silver Wheel Reincarnation Explosion for a long time.
It was just that he'd been waiting for the Moon's "cooldown" to end. Now that some time had passed since his return, he could finally give it a shot.
"This year, there's nothing major—just waiting for the jōnin evaluation. Then I'll finally get to see the reward for my main quest."
This so-called main quest had always been giving him trouble.
The very first one had held him up for thirteen years. Fortunately, the first reward had been outstanding.
As for the second quest's reward—honestly, he wasn't nearly as invested in it.
After all, for him, the key was advancing the evolution of his bloodline.
And the starter pack had already given him some of the best things this world could offer.
"What's left will probably revolve around boosting this bloodline. Either way, having it is better than having nothing."
With that thought, he glanced at Naruto and Sasuke—those two unlucky brats—being escorted away by the suddenly-appearing ANBU along with the wronged homeowner, heading toward the Hokage Building. He couldn't help but chuckle.
"Sasuke is pretty amusing at this stage. Too bad he changes after the Chūnin Exams. Makes me wonder what this year's Chūnin Exams will turn into…"
"Eh, forget it. No point overthinking. I'll try it out while I have the time—got a dinner gathering tonight anyway."
"Sorry, sorry, I'll find a way to make it up to you. This was just an accident."
...
Inside the Hokage's office, Sarutobi Hiruzen was apologizing to the wronged homeowner, while Sasuke and Naruto stood trembling beside him, too afraid to say a word.
They had blown up someone's house for no apparent reason, and it was entirely their own fault. Naturally, they didn't dare make excuses.
As for blaming Kitagawa Gen?
They didn't even dare think about it. Sure, Kitagawa Gen had taught them some enemy-handling techniques—underhanded, perhaps, but undeniably effective.
Besides, if that kunai had exploded in their own hands, the price to pay would have been far worse than money.
And frankly, just imagining Kitagawa Gen's nasty temperament if they complained was enough to send shivers down their spines.
"You two—what on earth happened?!"
Only after the homeowner left, satisfied, did Hiruzen turn to the two little ones.
He could feel his blood pressure spiking. Why had there been nothing but bad news lately?
"Blowing up someone's house? You actually went through with it? Is this what the Academy teaches you?!"
"It was… just an accident…"
Naruto mumbled, and Sasuke nodded along.
"Just an accident, just an accident…"
"Accident or not, remember—you're future shinobi of this village, its protectors."
Hiruzen sighed, speaking in a more measured tone.
"So how can you act like this inside the village? Couldn't you have gone to a training ground instead?"
"…"
"This time, I'll let it slide. But I hope you've learned your lesson. Don't ever pull such reckless stunts again. Focus on your training. Understand?"
"…Yeah."
Naruto and Sasuke both nodded. They truly didn't dare utter a single word about Kitagawa Gen.
"In that case, you may go."
Seeing that the two boys were now on their best behavior, Hiruzen sighed again. At this point, what more could he say?
Other than tightening the Academy's discipline, what else could he do? Besides, his work focus now needed to be on other matters.
'Akatsuki… the mysterious 'Ōtsutsuki Genshiki'… and the Chūnin Exams.'
Sarutobi Hiruzen rubbed at the bridge of his nose, feeling an unshakable sense of irritation.
Perhaps the only thing that genuinely pleased him these days was Kitagawa Gen's progress.
"Hokage-ojiichan."
Lost in thought, Hiruzen was brought back by Naruto's sudden voice.
"I've developed a jutsu of my own. I want you to see it."
"Oh? A jutsu? Developed by you?"
Hiruzen blinked in surprise, and Naruto nodded.
"That's right, I made it myself. Gen told me to have you evaluate it, so… Shadow Clone Technique!"
"Oh, wait—? Gen? Stop right th—"
"Ninja Art: Harem Technique!"
With a puff of smoke, several indistinct, golden-haired beauties emerged, their forms shimmering in the haze.
Sasuke's eyes went wide, and his face flushed red.
Hiruzen froze, his expression blank—until a sudden spray of blood burst from his nose and he collapsed heavily to the floor.
"Eh?!"
"Hokage-sama!"
"Quick! Call for a medical ninja!"
In an instant, chaos erupted in the Hokage's office.
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