The Promise Between Friends

The impact of Jinchuuriki going through labor was only kept in the dark to most people, and Konoha was still peaceful on the surface.

The sun in October was very hot. Even if it was already autumn, at noon, it was so hot that people would jump into the river without wearing a single piece of clothing to cool down.

On this hot noon, Kabuto and Hanayo were preparing to eat lunch under the tree.

The lunch break in Academy was very short, and they couldn't have lunch at home either, so everyone brought a lunchbox.

The two of them sat under a tree, and Hanayo opened her lunchbox.

She took a look at it. There were meatballs and vegetables. It looked like a good combination.

Kabuto opened his lunchbox, and a few round Dango shimmered under the sunlight.

Kabuto: …

This morning, Nagasawa said that he was a little tired and forgot to cook for him, so he just bought some Dango. Kabuto thought that Nagasawa was just joking, but he did not expect it to be true.

"Do you like Dango that much? People usually don't just eat some Dango for lunch." Hanayo looked at Kabuto with her two pure white eyes.

"No, since I am temporarily staying at my brother's house, and he forgot to cook for me today, so he bought some Dango for me," Kabuto explained.

"Then you can eat some of mine. It won't do to only eat Dango at noon," Hanayo said seriously.

"Forget about me. You won't be full if you share with me." Kabuto thought about it and rejected Hanayo's good intentions.

Kabuto didn't think it was good to involve his friend because of his own mistake. Moreover, it was only one afternoon, so it was not a problem.

At worst, he could just use his Shadow Clone to attend class while he helped himself to some street food.

The longer he attended the Academy, the more Kabuto felt that the lessons taught by Academy were useless to him.

It was not that he looked down on Academy's teacher, but he already knew all the things taught by the teacher. He knew more in some lessons, too, actually.

Therefore, Kabuto did not feel the need to attend the class now, and the only reason he went to class was because of Hanayo.

Since Hanayo happened to figure out that Kabuto used a Shadow Clone to take his place in class, she would use Byakugan to confirm whether it was the Shadow Clone or not every time Hanayo saw him...

"As friends, I can't see you go astray. Even if your grades are good, you have to seriously attend classes," Hanayo said at that time.

"It's okay. We are friends, and my bento is enough. How about this? I will eat two of your Dango in exchange, so we can call it even." Hanayo thought about it and said what she thought was a good idea.

Seeing Hanayo's serious expression, Kabuto agreed with Hanayo's idea. He couldn't refuse that hard. It was important to accept people's good intentions from time to time.

Using chopsticks, Kabuto picked up two Dango and placed them in Hanayo's lunchbox, while Hanayo gave half of her bento to Kabuto.

As if afraid that she would not split it evenly, Hanayo even specifically used Byakugan to raise her accuracy.

Kabuto looked curiously at Hanayo, who had activated Byakugan.

Hanayo seemed very cute when she did not activate Byakugan as she had fair skin and delicate facial features, but after activating Byakugan, Hanayo's lovely expression instantly became fierce because of the bulging veins near her eyes.

"Hanayo, when you activate Byakugan, do you feel different?" Kabuto asked curiously.

He was very curious about Byakugan. Or rather, he was very curious about Blood Limit. He was very curious about things that could increase his strength.

He had once had a wild idea of combining two types of Chakra into Blood Limit, but without a doubt, he failed.

Nagasawa told him that Blood Limit was either due to their ancestor or having good talent and good luck at the same time to succeed.

However, Nagasawa also told him that Shinobi with Blood Limit might not necessarily be stronger than ordinary Shinobi.

For example, the Third Hokage did not successfully cultivate Blood Limit, but combining various Ninjutsu and unleashing them with only one hand seal was definitely stronger than many of Blood Limit.

"Different? It's just that I can see further. I can see more clearly. If I look at people, I can directly see through the body, see their Chakra pathway system, that's all." Hanayo thought about it and said.

"It is already very strong." Kabuto praised after eating a mouthful of rice.

The Hyuga Clan was naturally born with a top-level sensory ability because of Byakugan.

Kabuto was also a little curious about what Sharingan was like, but unfortunately, Itachi had not awakened Sharingan. Otherwise, he could directly ask him.

After lunch, the two began to chat. Suddenly, Hanayo talked about academics.

"You can't let your guard down, or I may overtake you in the second year."

"That's probably impossible," Kabuto said after thinking for a moment.

"I wouldn't underestimate me so much if I were you. After the holidays, I will go to my uncle's house and ask him to teach me Gentle Fist. My strength will definitely increase a lot. Uncle Hiashi is an experienced Jonin who's no less strong than your Shinobi brother.

Seeing that Kabuto actually said that it was impossible for her to surpass him, Hanayo could not help but puff up her cheek.

Although it might be the truth, did he really have to put it like that?

Kabuto smiled and said, "Hanayo, you misunderstood. I'm not saying that you can't surpass me, but I probably won't be in the second year. I will graduate early at the end of this term and become an official Shinobi."

Hanayo was stunned and looked at Kabuto confusedly.

"I have watched the classes of the senior year, and I have mastered everything they learn there. I won't learn much if I stay in the Academy, so I decided to graduate early," Kabuto explained. 

After confirming that he could not learn any useful knowledge from the Academy, Kabuto was ready to apply for an early graduation. His objective of becoming a Shinobi was to do missions to earn money.

"But Kabuto, you have only been studying for a year. If you want to graduate early, you should at least do it in the second or third grade."

Hanayo raised his hand and felt that it was a little inappropriate, so she put it down again, but she felt uncomfortable. For a moment, she felt helpless.

"It doesn't matter what grade you are in. The important thing is that I can't learn anything at the Academy. Moreover, a former student that I know also graduated in the first grade." Kabuto said.

Hanayo originally wanted to say something, but after thinking for a while, she finally said, "If you can't learn anything, then there is nothing I can do. I guess it is time to graduate."

She could not let Kabuto waste time in the Academy because of her own selfish desires. That was not what a good friend should do.

"Then I hope you can pass the test smoothly and become an official Shinobi," Hanayo said with a smile.

"Well, you too, Hanayo. Work hard in the Academy. When you become an official Shinobi in the future, we can carry out missions together," Kabuto replied with a smile.

"Alright, then, it's a deal." Hanayo made a fisting sign.

Under the sunlight, the shadows of the two people overlapped.

Kabuto also clenched his fist when he saw this. He bumped hands with Hanayo and said, "Yes, we have an agreement."

........................

In the evening, the training team finished their training. When Tetsumaki Uchiha, Rai Uchiha, and the others returned to Uchiha's territory, they found that the captain of the training team stopped them and walked towards them.

"Captain Nagasawa." Tetsumaki Uchiha and the other three Uchiha greeted Nagasawa one after another.

"What do you guys hink about the training team?" Nagasawa smiled and greeted the four of them.

He wanted to alleviate the conflict between Uchiha and the village, so he would naturally pay attention to Uchiha in the training team and the Special Combat Division.

"Very good." Tetsumaki Uchiha replied briefly.

"The atmosphere here is very good. At first, I thought that Anbu was a place where no one talked or interacted with each other and just did all kinds of assassination missions." Rai Uchiha smiled.

"That might be an assassin team rather than Anbu." Nagasawa joked with a smile.

In this kind of leisure time, Nagasawa was an easygoing person.

"Let's go. I'm going the same way as you guys today." Nagasawa said as he noticed that the four of them seemed to be waiting for him to leave first.

The four of them felt that something was off. Since a higher-up like Nagasawa went to Uchiha's territory, did this mean something bad happened?

As if seeing through the thoughts of the four of them, Nagasawa said, "I have some personal matters to discuss with your Clan leader. It's not a big deal."

The four Uchiha soon remembered. When they held the banquet to celebrate Sasuke's birth, Nagasawa was also there, so they inferred that their patriarch should be pretty close to Nagasawa.

The five of them walked together and chatted. Sometimes they talked about missions, sometimes, they talked about training, and sometimes they talked about rumors.

"So you guys are all single? You guys have to be careful. Don't think that you'll be young forever. The Ninja World has problems because of the lack of new blood, you know. Do you know that the flame characters shining in the sky of Konoha that night were made by me? Aren't you Uchihas good at Shuriken Throwing? With steel wire, Shuriken, and Fire Release, it should be no problem to make a lesser version of it."

Nagasawa taught the four of them from the perspective of an experienced person.

The four Uchiha expressed that they had understood Nagasawa's intention. With Shuriken, steel wire, and Fire Release, they should be able to pull of something similar.

After arriving at Uchiha's territory, the five of them separated, and Nagasawa went alone to Fugaku Uchiha's home.

Looking at the back of Nagasawa, Rai Uchiha sighed, "Captain Nagasawa is really good. Although he is very serious and strict during training, he is very friendly in private. Even if we are Uchiha, he can joke with us. It'd be good if the entire Konoha were like Captain Nagasawa. Everyone will not be biased against us."

Tetsumaki Uchiha, who had always been quiet, spoke up.

"That's why Captain Nagasawa is so unique. There must be a reason why he wants Uchiha to join Anbu. He is a true inheritor of the Will of Fire."