Chapter 29: I Really Value My Life
Tsunade left in a rush.
Hyuga Kiyonari had originally wanted to ask about Shadow Clone Jutsu, but she left far too hastily, only leaving behind "leave the bowls for Shizune to wash."
Forget it. He'd have to figure it out himself for now.
On the bright side, at least he didn't have to wash dishes.
Kiyonari turned toward the village training grounds. When exercising, he habitually went to a relatively secluded public training ground where few people went—quiet and suitable for focused practice.
Ninja academy students were required to master the Three Basic Techniques upon graduation.
Specifically: Clone Jutsu, Transformation Jutsu, and Substitution Jutsu. Among these, the clones created by Clone Jutsu had no physical form—they were merely shadows.
The Shadow Clone Jutsu gifted by the Third Hokage was rather special. Created by the Second Hokage Senju Tobirama, inspired by Senju Hashirama's Wood Clone, it produced corporeal clones. Shadow clones possessed independent thought and action capabilities, could use ninjutsu, and returned their memories to the original when dispelled.
Hyuga Kiyonari entered the training ground but found it wasn't empty as usual. At the training ground's center, two people were practicing shuriken throwing.
Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Itachi.
Sasuke noticed someone approaching, turned his head to look, a flash of surprise in those black eyes.
"Oh, it's you," Sasuke said, tone carrying a trace of reluctance. "Hyuga Kiyonari."
Kiyonari raised his hand in greeting. "Sasuke, and Itachi—what a coincidence. Didn't expect to run into you here."
Uchiha Itachi responded politely. "Hello, Kiyonari-kun."
"I didn't actually want to come to this training ground. The Uchiha have our own training grounds, but brother insisted on dragging me here." Sasuke seemed to be deliberately explaining something.
Kiyonari's lips curved slightly. "Sasuke, do you know there's an idiom called 'protesting too much'?"
"I am not!"
Sasuke's face reddened slightly. If not for Shisui always stealing his brother away, he wouldn't have come here!
Just then, Sasuke seemed to remember something and immediately shouted, "Hyuga Kiyonari, I want to compete with you in archery!"
Kiyonari found it troublesome and waved dismissively. "I've already witnessed Sasuke's archery. I'm completely no match for you—I concede defeat. Besides, I came here today to practice Shadow Clone Jutsu."
"Stop pretending!" Sasuke's face showed complete dissatisfaction. "Brother already told me—the arrow that hit the boar was yours. Mine missed."
Kiyonari fell silent for a moment, finally admitting. "It was mine. But that was just good luck."
"Luck?" Sasuke clenched his fists, youthful pride overriding everything. "I don't believe it!"
"Hitting the boar's eye at that distance and angle—that's definitely not simple luck. Since that day, I've been practicing hard at home, waiting for this moment. I absolutely must compete with you again."
"If you can win this competition, I'll have brother teach you Shadow Clone Jutsu."
However, even with the stakes raised this high, Kiyonari still shook his head in refusal. "No."
"Why not?" Sasuke felt somewhat confused. "Don't you want to learn Shadow Clone Jutsu?"
"The person competing with me is you, but the one paying the price is your brother. So how will you compensate Itachi?"
These words stunned Sasuke. He opened his mouth, not knowing what to say.
Uchiha Itachi looked at Kiyonari, a trace of appreciation flashing through his eyes.
Not constrained by clan concerns, not constrained by personal interests, even considering others' contributions. This way of thinking was rare among peers—no, among everyone he knew.
Kiyonari... truly worthy of Lord Hokage's and Lady Tsunade's regard.
Sasuke lowered his head somewhat ashamedly. "I... I didn't think that far."
However, Itachi spoke up. "Kiyonari-kun is right. However, I'm also very interested in you."
"So I'll proactively propose you compete with Sasuke once. Win or lose, I'll teach you Shadow Clone Jutsu. This isn't a wager—it's my appreciation of you."
"In that case..." Kiyonari pondered briefly. "Sasuke, let's add a wager. If you lose, you have to promise me one thing. Vice versa."
"What thing?"
Kiyonari grinned, leaning close to whisper two sentences in his ear. Instantly, Sasuke's ears flushed bright red.
"N-no way!" He reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
However, Kiyonari subdued him with one light phrase. "Could it be... you think you'll lose?"
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
Sasuke pulled out a bow and arrows, pointing at the shuriken target they'd been practicing on. "We'll step back another fifty paces—one hundred paces total distance. Three arrows each. Bullseye is ten points, each ring decreasing by one point. Compare final total scores. How about it?"
Kiyonari nodded. "Fine."
Sasuke shot first. He drew the bowstring, aimed at the target, then released.
Whoosh—
The arrow sliced through the air, accurately striking the target's eighth ring.
But Sasuke frowned, clearly dissatisfied with that result. He took a deep breath and shot the second arrow.
Whoosh—
This arrow hit the target's center. Then the third arrow shot even better—also hitting the bullseye.
Itachi nodded. "Total score is twenty-eight points. Sasuke, well done."
Sasuke turned to look at Kiyonari, eyes carrying a challenging meaning. "Your turn."
Kiyonari walked to the starting line, drew an arrow and nocked it on the bowstring. He closed his eyes, steadied his breathing, feeling the surrounding wind direction and air flow.
Then he opened his eyes and drew the bowstring.
Whoosh—
The first arrow struck the bullseye. Sasuke's eyes widened, but what surprised him came next.
Kiyonari didn't pause, consecutively shooting his remaining two arrows. The second arrow split the first arrow's shaft and hit the bullseye. Before the trembling arrow tail could settle, the third arrow struck it again, splitting it and embedding in the bullseye.
Itachi looked at the arrows on the target, surprise flashing through his eyes.
"Truly remarkable archery," Itachi couldn't help praising. "This level of precision would have few rivals even in the Anbu."
Sasuke bit his lip—not just defeated, but completely crushed.
"I yield."
Kiyonari returned the bow and arrows. There was something he didn't say: Don't challenge my livelihood with your hobby.
Before the system awakened, Kiyonari had practiced archery daily.
Not only to hunt and supplement his living, but more importantly—if he could master archery to perfection, on future battlefields he could legitimately hide and shoot from cover. Why use Gentle Fist for close combat with enemies?
To that end, when he'd extracted his first thread of chakra, he'd purchased chakra paper to test his affinity.
His chakra nature was—Wind.
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