Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
Sounds of figures tearing through the air echoed over the central streets of the village.
Watching those shadows darting across the rooftops, both civilians and ninjas alike knew something major was going down tonight.
But since no alarms sounded, and those figures didn't direct people to take shelter, the villagers soon relaxed.
Clearly, it had nothing to do with them—and more importantly, it wasn't dangerous.
Kenjiro lounged on a single-seater on the balcony, sipping juice and enjoying the starlit sky.
Even the occasional figures leaping past his rooftop didn't warrant a glance from him.
Time passed. Eventually, when the silhouettes over the main street disappeared and pedestrians thinned out, Kenjiro finally got up and went back inside.
Before long, the lights in the living room turned off.
Fresh from a shower and in pajamas, a faint smile played across Kenjiro's handsome face.
'The Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu… it's mine now.'
No one knew that far away, in a man-made cave behind a waterfall, several figures with different appearances had been merged with the cliff walls using stealth techniques. Their far-vision abilities—spanning over 80 kilometers—had been locked onto a boy in an orange jacket: Uzumaki Naruto.
From the moment Naruto walked out of the Hokage building, every move he made was under surveillance.
Their powerful clairvoyance and x-ray-like sight bypassed even the Nine Tails sealed inside Naruto, and escaped detection from Hiruzen Sarutobi, who had been watching Naruto with his Crystal Ball Jutsu.
As Naruto opened the Scroll of Seals, those figures unfurled blank scrolls of their own, working in coordination to record the training method for the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Those figures weren't strangers—they were all Kenjiro's transformed shadow clones.
Once they finished copying the jutsu and hid the scroll away, the clones erased all traces of their presence and dissipated on the spot.
The moment Kenjiro received their memories, he didn't rush to retrieve the scroll.
He already had what he needed. No rush.
Lying on his bed, Kenjiro's thoughts drifted to tomorrow's team assignments.
Same thing he'd been thinking for a while now.
He was almost certain Hiruzen had been spying on his training with Hinata, and even his fight with Uchiha Sasuke.
Despite not having graduated yet, he had already mastered chakra control techniques like tree-walking and water-walking—things the academy hadn't even taught yet. Not to mention beginner-level Wind and Fire Release, and even a B-rank technique like the Shadow Clone Jutsu.
In every sparring match or open fight, he completely outclassed both the Hyuga clan heiress and the lone Uchiha who had awakened his Sharingan.
As a civilian, a talent like that couldn't exactly compare to prodigies like Minato Namikaze—who became Jiraiya's student at twelve and defeated Cloud ninja—or Kakashi Hatake, who was already a Jonin and creator of the A-rank Lightning Blade, but Kenjiro wasn't far behind.
After all, those two came up during the war era. Kenjiro was a product of peace.
In such an outstanding generation, Kenjiro stood out like a beacon. Even if Hiruzen wanted to avoid offending the noble clans, surely he wouldn't dump Kenjiro into a random squad with a basic Jonin instructor?
If that did happen, it'd be clear: Hiruzen had no intention of investing in him.
Which would also mean fewer eyes watching him.
And that... would give Kenjiro more freedom to act in secret.
With that thought, Kenjiro no longer cared much about the team assignment results, and closed his eyes to sleep.
-----🍥-----
The next morning, when neither Hinata nor Hanabi came by, Kenjiro headed out to retrieve the scroll for the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Considering Hiruzen's Crystal Ball Jutsu worked like a third-person omniscient camera, Kenjiro just lay down while reading the scroll.
Even if he couldn't detect being watched, this way he'd be protected from Hiruzen's peeping.
Without any shortcuts, the hand signs and chakra manipulation for the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu were actually different from the standard Shadow Clone Jutsu.
It used fewer hand signs, but the chakra cost was massive. Without an enormous chakra reserve, casting it could severely injure—or even kill—you.
Only those with an exceptionally large chakra pool could learn it safely.
"They say Kakashi Hatake is a unit of measurement for chakra... but he could use this jutsu when he was only five or six."
Kenjiro mused to himself, Even with the Sharingan constantly draining him for over a decade, Kakashi's chakra levels still matched those of an elite Jonin.
After losing the Sharingan, his chakra recovered in just a few years—enough to form an Earth Wall jutsu that spanned all around Konoha and even carved dog heads into it.
If not for the Sharingan slowing him down, he might even rival Kisame Hoshigaki in chakra output.
Outside of Jinchuriki, very few in this era could actually perform the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Kenjiro was now one of them.
At that moment, he was beyond glad he hadn't wasted his starter gift on Naruto back then.
If he had, he'd only have a large chakra pool—nothing else.
Even with Sasuke's Sage Eye, it would take years, maybe over a decade, before he could awaken the Rinnegan.
But now? With his red-level Otsutsuki Bloodline, red-level Sage Eye, and red-level "Byakugan's Prince" talent—he could feel his latent power stirring.
Less than five minutes later, Kenjiro stowed the scroll away.
He'd already learned the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
There was no need to test it. With his chakra reserves, he could easily create hundreds, even thousands of clones by simply following the chakra flow described in the scroll.
To avoid Hanabi finding it and trying something reckless, he didn't bother hiding the scroll—he destroyed it.
He had already learned it.
If needed, he could always rewrite it—or teach someone directly.
By midday, when Hinata and Hanabi still hadn't shown up, Kenjiro figured they probably wouldn't come today and went out to buy some ninja gear.
After all, there was still one final assessment before actual missions could begin.
On the way, he saw Naruto being tailed by Konohamaru, with Special Jonin Ebisu secretly following behind.
Naruto's forehead protector had replaced his old green goggles—clearly, he'd just had his profile photo updated.
He was chatting with Konohamaru, head down, completely unaware of Kenjiro's presence.
Kenjiro didn't say anything either. Just glanced over and kept walking toward the ninja tool shop.
When he got back home, he noticed two extra pairs of shoes by the door.
From one of the downstairs rooms—converted into a dojo—came the crisp, rhythmic sounds of impacts, sharp yet heavy.
Opening the door, he saw Hinata and Hanabi sparring in white training gear, Byakugan activated, veins bulging at their temples.
Their arms blurred as they struck, blue chakra flames flickering around them. Every clash of hands sent visible shockwaves rippling through the room.
It was easy to tell Hinata was holding back, just guiding Hanabi's movements.
If she wasn't, Hanabi would've been covered in bruises by now.
From Kenjiro and Hinata's perspective, Hanabi was still too green—she only knew basic Gentle Fist strikes. Her attacks were way too predictable.
And her stance was too weak—tons of openings.
Kenjiro figured he should find time to teach her tree-walking and water-walking soon.
Aside from having slightly less pure Byakugan than Hinata, Hanabi wasn't inferior in any other area. She had the potential to learn higher-level chakra control early—just like Hinata once did.
"Big brother, take this!"
Kenjiro was snapped out of his thoughts by Hanabi's shout.
She charged at him in her training clothes, veins bulging, fingertips wreathed in blue chakra.
For a kid her age, it was pretty intimidating.
But Kenjiro just smirked. He didn't even drop the shopping bag in his hand.
In a blur, he vanished and reappeared beside her—like he'd teleported.
His barefoot lightly tapped Hanabi's stomach.
With a soft but forceful impact, her body lifted off the ground and flew back toward Hinata, who caught her mid-air.
"Come on then. Both of you at once."
Kenjiro tossed his gear bag into the corner and beckoned the girls with a playful smirk.
The Hyuga sisters exchanged a glance, then nodded seriously—and charged.
"Big brother, you're way too cocky! You'll regret this!" Hanabi shouted.
Hinata didn't speak, but her fingers sliced through the air like arrows, each one carrying terrifying force and chakra.
The sound of impacts—louder than before—immediately filled the first floor of Kenjiro's house.
Occasionally, the sounds of pain and yelps echoed through the air. If the house weren't well soundproofed, passersby might've gotten the wrong idea.
But after half an hour, the sparring sounds gave way to playful bickering.
"Ughhh it hurts! Big brother, I hate you! I'm gonna bite you to death!"
"Didn't you say I'd regret it? What happened to that confidence? Quit biting—your wounds are already healed. Your sister still needs treatment."
"I don't care! Sis, bite the other side! Let's make him cry!"
"Hahaha—wait, wait, the bite marks will fade on their own! Stop licking, it tickles!"
"Hehe~ We're not stopping! This is payback!"
"…Sigh."
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