4 Chapter 4

At four o'clock in the afternoon, with the sun gradually descending in the west, the gates of the ninja school swung open. Ninja students poured out in pairs, chatting as they walked.

Blending into the crowd, Kakashi Hatake led the way with Kyomu Aragami trailing behind, maintaining a half-body distance, qualifying as companions.

"Let's head to the training ground on the east side of the village," Kakashi glanced back, rolling his eyes involuntarily. "Hey, you're daydreaming again."

"Huh? What did you say just now?" Kyomu Aragami snapped back to attention, an apologetic look in his eyes.

Smack.

Kakashi couldn't help but pat his forehead. "Why are you so prone to daydreaming? You even do it while walking."

"I was thinking about something."

"Even during class earlier, you were in the same state. Were you thinking then too?"

"Yeah, exactly." Kyomu Aragami nodded. "I definitely wasn't sleeping, though."

Sighing lightly, Kakashi shook his head. "Forget it. Just follow me."

"You lead; I won't get lost."

Kakashi ignored Kyomu Aragami, walking briskly ahead, guiding him out of the school gate and straight towards the public training ground on the east side of the village.

During the journey, Kyomu Aragami once again drifted into a daydream. Kakashi, somewhat accustomed, didn't bother to stop him, seeming to be slowly getting used to it.

Interestingly, despite Kyomu Aragami's absent-mindedness, his footsteps remained steady. Even when Kakashi intentionally quickened his pace, Kyomu Aragami didn't fall behind.

Multitasking?

Subjectively daydreaming while subconsciously making sound judgments or learning?

Surprisingly, Kakashi's guess was correct. Kyomu Aragami, under the influence of his passive skill, the "King of Pretense," was indeed in such a state.

As long as his conscious mind wandered, doing nothing productive, the passive skill would activate, collecting and assimilating knowledge from his surroundings.

Though the reality was as such, Kakashi quickly dismissed his previous judgment. He believed that Kyomu Aragami was simply a natural airhead, not someone with extraordinary talents.

Soon, Kakashi brought Kyomu Aragami to the east side training ground of Konoha Village.

The training ground was expansive, mostly used by active-duty Leaf Village ninjas, ranging in strength from lower to upper-tier chunin.

For Kakashi, this was an excellent place for training.

Likewise, for Kyomu Aragami, it was a perfect spot for slacking off and fishing for compliments.

The two arrived at a corner of the training ground, and Kakashi, excited, struck a pose and beckoned Kyomu Aragami.

"Let's spar!"

"I concede." Kyomu Aragami, lacking any enthusiasm, admitted defeat outright. "You can train first. If you're still here after I take a nap, we can spar again."

Kakashi was exasperated. "Why do you have no sense of honor? I was ready to assess your abilities, and you surrender without a fight, not a shred of competitiveness."

"No, you misunderstood. We've already sparred," Kyomu Aragami found a sturdy tree to lean against, strolling over casually. "I've lost, so I'm not reneging. You go ahead; I'll take a nap. The classroom chairs are hard; this place is more comfortable."

Squinting his eyes, Kakashi watched as Kyomu Aragami settled against the tree, a mix of frustration and helplessness building within him.

Kyomu Aragami was technically correct; voluntarily admitting defeat during a sparring session still counted as sparring, and he hadn't violated their agreement.

However, Kakashi couldn't resist the urge to reconsider his judgment. How could he assess Kyomu Aragami's true strength without engaging in an actual fight?

Staring at Kyomu Aragami for a while, Kakashi finally relaxed his clenched fists, turned, and walked towards the training equipment, beginning his own training for the day.

Huff, huff, huff.

As snores filled the air, Kyomu Aragami slept peacefully against the tree, completely out of sync with the vibrant training atmosphere around him. It was as if someone had dropped a spoiled ingredient into a delicious soup, giving it an odd taste.

Though Kyomu Aragami's snoring wasn't too loud, some people noticed him, shook their heads, and chose to ignore him.

There were no rules against sleeping in the training ground, as long as it didn't disturb others. Almost no one bothered to interfere.

Yet, Kakashi still felt an uncomfortable itch all over his body. Unable to tolerate it, he moved farther away from Kyomu Aragami. Out of sight, out of mind; he couldn't let him disrupt his training focus.

Unbeknownst to him, Kyomu Aragami enjoyed a deep sleep, even having a pleasant dream. Only when he felt someone pushing him did he rub his eyes, yawn, and wake up.

"Kakashi, done with your training?"

"What do you think?" Kakashi wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Just take a look at the time now."

Kyomu Aragami, belatedly looking up, saw a crescent moon hanging high in the night sky, estimating it to be around nine o'clock. Scanning the training ground, he realized it was just the two of them; no one else lingered.

"Ah, well, let's call it a day. See you tomorrow, Kakashi."

Getting up, stretching lazily, Kyomu Aragami waved his hand in farewell.

Just as he took a few steps, he turned back and asked, "Kakashi, are you coming here to train tomorrow too?"

Kakashi didn't want to answer that question. He didn't really want to bring Kyomu Aragami to the training ground again.

Being around a slacker, Kakashi worried about losing his current state of diligence and drifting towards the comfort zone he longed for.

About to shake his head to refuse, Kakashi was beaten to the punch by Kyomu Aragami's preemptive response, "Since you agreed, we'll meet here tomorrow."

Huh?

When did I agree?

Kakashi opened his mouth, wanting to call out to Kyomu Aragami, but he had already trotted away and gradually disappeared from sight.

"He runs quite fast." Kakashi shook his head helplessly. "Well, let it be. One more or one less doesn't matter."

Finally glancing in the direction where Kyomu Aragami vanished, Kakashi released his clenched fist, turned, and walked wearily away from the training ground.

He was tired and needed to hurry home for a bath and a good night's sleep.

Meanwhile, Kyomu Aragami, rubbing his stomach, walked straight into a sushi restaurant.

After placing his order, Kyomu Aragami, during the wait, leisurely digested the various knowledge he acquired on the training ground earlier.

"Umm... seems a bit impressive." After a while, Kyomu Aragami sighed. "I've mastered all the training subjects of the people on the training ground."

Feeling quite pleased, Kyomu Aragami grinned, propping his chin with his hand, contemplating whether to invite Kakashi for a sparring session another day.

Before making a decision, his ordered meal arrived.

Indulging in a hearty feast, Kyomu Aragami patted his round belly, swiftly paid the bill, and left.

However, on his way home, Kyomu Aragami's hands moved swiftly, forming seals one after another, a sight not easy to follow.

Roughly estimating, Kyomu Aragami's sealing speed was around four per second, undeniably impressive.

For those knowledgeable in the field, the hand signs he executed revealed mastery of over a dozen C and D-rank ninjutsu from all five chakra natures.

It was somewhat frightening.

'Learning ability at its maximum', the primary factor behind this extraordinary feat, many secrets of ninjutsu couldn't withstand the scrutiny and calculations driven by this skill.

Kyomu Aragami merely needed to passively accept the knowledge without any worries.

However, Kyomu Aragami's chakra reserves were limited. He was solely practicing hand seals, familiarizing himself with the flow of chakra within his body, with no intention of casting ninjutsu.

Soon, Kyomu Aragami frowned.

"This passive skill... it's a bit tricky. If I want to train independently, the progress is slower than a snail's pace."

Shaking his head, Kyomu Aragami abandoned the idea of training.

"Time to go home and sleep. I'll stick with Kakashi tomorrow and see how things go for a month."

Hands behind his head, swaying gently, Kyomu Aragami ambled home slowly.

(End of Chapter)