Infinity

Under the gentle moonlight, the competition in the playground had ended, yet the atmosphere remained tense.

Kakashi suddenly pointed towards Satoru in the playground, his voice as cold as ice: "You cheated."

As these words came out, the once silent playground stirred.

When the three of them heard this, their eyes shifted to Kakashi, his eyes shining sharply as he continued: "You didn't win with speed at all."

Facing his accusation, Satoru faced him with a thin smile on his face.

He didn't rush to defend himself but waited for his next words.

Kakashi's eyes widened, and the Sharingan in his left eye seemed capable of seeing through all lies, and he said bluntly: "There's a defense layer around you. If Minato-sensei wants to take your belt, he has to break through the defense layer. So, you didn't win the match with speed."

Minato adopted his usual demeanor, extending his hand to stop Kakashi's speech, with an appreciative touch on his face: "Satoru's strength is indeed great. Since the rules are set like this, defeat is not a big deal."

However, a trace of curiosity appeared in his eyes, "But I'm curious, what 'barrier' did I just touch?"

As Satoru heard this, a mysterious smile appeared on his lips.

He extended his palm, inviting Minato, and said, "You can come and feel it."

"May I?" When Minato saw this, surprise appeared on his face.

Satoru smiled and said, "Of course."

After hearing his firm answer, Minato extended his hand and slowly brought his palm closer to Satoru.

However, as he was about to touch Satoru's palm, it seemed like he had touched an invisible barrier, preventing his hand from moving forward.

"Is this... blocked?" Minato said with an incredulous expression on his face.

He felt the presence of the barrier, but couldn't understand its principle.

His palm was only a stone's throw away from the other party's hand, yet it couldn't touch it.

Satoru looked at his surprised expression, waved his fingers in the air, and explained: "It's not because it's blocked, but the closer someone or something gets to me, the slower it becomes."

"This is... Infinity."

"Infinity?"

After hearing this, Minato murmured to himself. He looked at him with admiration: "Indeed. No wonder I couldn't penetrate your defense."

Jiraiya stared at Satoru with relief in his eyes.

Satoru smiled and shook his head and said, "Actually, no one lost in the game among us."

He paused and continued, "This is just a competition between disciples of the same teacher. You are indeed faster than me. If it weren't for Infinity, I might have really been defeated by you."

Minato shook his head gently, with admiration in his eyes. He looked at him and said softly, "If I lose, I lose. The strength of a senior brother is truly unpredictable. As expected of a senior brother, you are very strong."

This time, Jiraiya approached while holding Satoru's neck with one hand and Minato's neck with the other hand, with a smile on his face: "It seems that this competition has ended successfully!"

He said proudly, "You are indeed my proud disciple. Sensei is very proud of you!"

Hearing this, Satoru rolled his eyes and showed a helpless smile.

Jiraiya looked at the sky and suddenly suggested, "It's late now. Now, who wants to go to the bathhouse with me to bathe and relax?"

Hearing this, Minato quickly freed himself from Jiraiya's grip, with an apologetic smile on his face: "Sorry, Jiraiya-sensei, I have to go home quickly. Otherwise, Kushina will be angry again."

"I have to prepare for the Hokage succession in the next two days, so I'll take my leave."

After saying this, before Jiraiya could react, Minato's figure had disappeared from his place.

Jiraiya and Satoru were left staring.

"This kid..." Jiraiya chuckled and shook his head, then he glanced at Kakashi standing beside him, "Hey, kid, do you want to go to the bathhouse with me to bathe and relax?"

Kakashi frowned and looked at Satoru. He was about to refuse, but Jiraiya's next words made his heart beat faster.

"There are many beauties there... Oh no, I mean, there are many materials I made."

Hearing that, Kakashi, who was initially expressionless, suddenly felt a ripple in his heart.

He glanced at Jiraiya, but there was a hint of curiosity in his eyes.

Then...

The three of them went to the bathhouse together.

"Is... Captain Kakashi really going to take a bath?"

The ANBU members in the distance secretly followed Satoru. They hid in the corner and watched the three of them enter the bathhouse. They looked at each other in disbelief.

"Captain must have a purpose for this. Let's wait and see what happens."

The ANBU members in the corner discussed in low voices, and finally reached a consensus and decided to continue observing secretly to see the deeper meaning behind it all.

＊＊＊

The next morning, the sun shone on the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

"As expected of the strongest ninja village, all facilities are available." Satoru walked out of the bathhouse, yawning, and casually playing with his wet hair with one hand. He turned to see Kakashi following him, with a cute smile on his lips, "You're really responsible."

"But where did you go with Jiraiya-sensei last night?"

When Kakashi heard this, an uncomfortable blush appeared on his face, remembering some of what he experienced with Jiraiya last night.

He scratched his head, bowed his head slightly, and said with embarrassment: "I..."

He sighed inwardly: (Jiraiya-sama is just a lecher who likes to peep!)

But he didn't say it.

As Kakashi raised his head, Satoru's figure disappeared without a trace.

"Where did that guy go?"

He froze in place, his eyes filled with wonder. He looked around, trying to find traces of the man, but there was no one around.

At this moment, telepathy technique sounded in his ears again: "Captain!"

The ANBU's voice revealed concern, "We only saw you coming out of the bathhouse alone, the Amegakure ninja has disappeared again!"

"Disappeared again?"

Cold sweat traces appeared on Kakashi's forehead. After yesterday's experience, he knew that the other party's strength was extraordinary, but he didn't expect that he would only daydream for a moment, and the man disappeared again.

Recalling the instructions of the Third Hokage, Kakashi felt the pressure.

The Third Hokage placed great hope on him and gave him the important task of monitoring the envoy from Amegakure. However, within a day, he lost track of his target twice, making him start to doubt his abilities.

"Oh, so comfortable." Jiraiya slowly emerged from the bathhouse, with satisfaction on his face.