It's the last week of July. The temperature in Konoha Village is soaring, marking the peak of summer.
"Sasuke, get up and eat!" Uchiha Mikoto's voice echoed from outside the door.
"I know, Mom!" Sasuke woke up and responded as he got dressed.
After changing clothes, he pushed open the door and rushed out. But after taking just two steps, he abruptly halted.
He saw Uchiha Itachi, clad in his ANBU uniform, sitting near the entryway, putting on his shoes. If nothing unexpected had occurred, he was about to head out.
"Brother, why didn't you wait to have breakfast with me again?" Sasuke approached, a little irritated.
"Sorry, Sasuke," Itachi explained calmly. "I just received an urgent mission. I couldn't stay."
"It's always like this," Sasuke muttered with a huff.
"I'll come find you after the mission," Itachi tapped his forehead lightly. "I promise."
"Then make sure you find me at the training ground," Sasuke added. "I'll be doing special training with Kitazawa-sensei this month."
"Special training? New Fire Style ninjutsu?" Itachi guessed. "You've already learned three. Maybe you should try refining your Chakra Nature Transformation."
"Wrong. You'll never guess," Sasuke said smugly. "I'm not telling you yet. I want it to be a surprise."
What could it be? Could it involve the Sharingan? But what did Kitazawa—a non-Uchiha—know about the Sharingan?
Itachi smiled. "Then I'll look forward to your surprise."
"Sasuke, come eat," Mikoto called from the dining room, carrying two steaming bowls of ramen.
"Coming!" Sasuke watched Itachi disappear into the distance, then dashed to the table.
"Sasuke," Mikoto waited until he'd finished eating, then brought out two lunch boxes. "Here's your lunch."
"Why two?" Sasuke scratched his head. "I can't eat that much."
"One's for Kitazawa-sensei," Mikoto explained. "He's helping you train. You should show some gratitude."
"Right," Sasuke took both boxes. "I'll give it to him at noon."
"Are you training alone?" Mikoto asked, thinking of something.
"Not sure," Sasuke replied after a moment. "I don't know if Hinata and Naruto are joining."
"Then let me know when you're back," Mikoto said firmly. "If we're bringing bento, we shouldn't be partial. Everyone deserves one."
"But—" Sasuke hesitated.
He was going to say that Hinata and Naruto might not be full with just one box, but then thought, no need to worry, Kitazawa-sensei would handle it.
"Okay, that's it." Mikoto patted his head.
"Yeah." Sasuke nodded. Just then, a knock came at the door.
"It must be Kitazawa-sensei!" He bolted for the entrance and flung it open.
"Kitazawa-sensei!" Sasuke greeted him eagerly.
"Let's go, Sasuke." Kitazawa gave Mikoto a nod—a quiet greeting. They had met several times already, so no extra pleasantries were needed.
"Kitazawa-sensei," Sasuke asked excitedly as they walked, "What's today's special training?"
"Sasuke," Kitazawa said in a serious tone, "How far would you go to awaken the Sharingan?"
"I'll do anything!" Sasuke replied without hesitation.
"Good." Kitazawa nodded. "For the next two days, your training is simple: follow Might Guy's regimen."
"Huh?" Sasuke stared blankly. "What does that have to do with awakening the Sharingan?"
He didn't believe physical training could help with that.
"Don't ask. Just follow him. You'll understand soon enough." Kitazawa had a plan in mind—a youth-stimulation method.
Wearing the green bodysuit alone wasn't enough. Sasuke also needed public embarrassment.
"Fine." Sasuke clenched his jaw and accepted. It was only two days. He'd endure it.
Soon, they arrived at a training field where Might Guy, Rock Lee, and Naruto were already sweating it out.
"Kitazawa-sensei!" Naruto, dressed in a bright green jumpsuit, waved and ran over.
"I figured you'd be here," Kitazawa said, shaking his head. He had gone to Naruto's house first—but of course, he was already here.
"The moment I woke up, I couldn't resist joining Guy-sensei. That's the power of youth!" Naruto declared with a sparkling thumbs-up.
Kitazawa sighed. This kid was hopeless—always talking about youth.
"Kitazawa, long time no see!" Might Guy spotted him and came over energetically.
"Guy, do you still have extra green jumpsuits?" Kitazawa asked with a grin.
"Of course!" Guy's eyes sparkled. "Are you joining the youth force?"
"Not me—Sasuke," Kitazawa clarified.
"Kitazawa-sensei, I'm not wearing that!" Sasuke's face went pale as he quickly shook his head.
"Sasuke," Kitazawa turned to him and asked, "Don't you want to awaken your eyes?"
"But—" Uchiha Sasuke hesitated, his face torn with reluctance.
"This is the necessary price." Kitazawa patted his shoulder and added, "Trust me."
"Okay." After a long pause, Sasuke finally gave in—for the sake of the Sharingan. Under the watchful eyes of everyone present, he reluctantly pulled a green jumpsuit over his clothes.
"Sasuke, it looks great on you!" Naruto said sincerely. "That's the true spirit of youth!"
"I'm not doing this for the 'Way of Youth,'" Sasuke replied coldly. "I just want to open my eyes."
"You'll be training with Guy," Kitazawa said, barely suppressing his grin. "At noon, meet me at the academy's artificial lake."
"Naruto, let's go."
"Kitazawa-sensei!" Naruto followed enthusiastically. After a few minutes, he looked around and asked, "Wait… are we going to Ichiraku Ramen?"
"Yes," Kitazawa replied with a nod.
"But I already ate breakfast!" Naruto exclaimed. "Can't we start learning the Rasengan right now?"
"Hold on." Kitazawa chuckled. "The Rasengan is an A-rank jutsu—it's not something you just pick up."
"It's fine," Naruto said confidently. "As long as you're teaching me, I know I can learn it!"
Kitazawa couldn't help but laugh softly. I'm not as sure about that as you are…
Still, it wouldn't hurt to let him try.
"Uncle Teuchi!" As soon as they arrived at Ichiraku Ramen, Naruto shouted cheerfully.
"Naruto, what'll it be today?" Teuchi stepped out from the kitchen and spotted Kitazawa. "You following him around again?"
"We're not here for ramen," Kitazawa replied, shaking his head.
Teuchi looked confused. You came to a ramen shop and didn't want ramen?
"Actually, I'm here to talk about a partnership," Kitazawa explained. "I want to sponsor a competitive eating contest."
"Interesting," Teuchi raised a brow. "What kind of sponsorship?"
"Branding," Kitazawa replied. "We'll call it the 'Kitazawa Grocery and Ichiraku Ramen Competitive Eating Tournament.'"
"Ahh, I get it," Teuchi said. So this guy wanted to boost the name of his grocery store.
"I can offer 500,000 ryo," Kitazawa continued, revealing the number he'd already prepared.
He had spent a fortune on Sasuke's behalf—but he planned to recover it from the Uchiha clan later.
"Deal," Teuchi agreed after a moment.
From his perspective, it was a win-win. The ramen shop would gain exposure, and the tournament participants still had to pay for what they ate—only the top few would win prizes.
"I want to join too!" Naruto chimed in eagerly.
"You'll be full after two bowls," Teuchi teased with a smile. "You won't even make the top ten."
"Let's hold the tournament in two days," Kitazawa proposed.
"No problem," Teuchi nodded. "That's plenty of time to get ready."
"See you then," Kitazawa said, turning to leave. "Come on, Naruto."
"Bye, Uncle Teuchi!"
Naruto followed Kitazawa, practically skipping in excitement. He was about to learn the Rasengan—what could be more thrilling?
Soon, they arrived at the ninja academy.
"Naruto, before I teach you the Rasengan, I'll show you another jutsu," Kitazawa said as they stopped by the artificial lake.
"Huh?" Naruto looked disappointed. He had been hoping to jump straight into Rasengan training.
"This jutsu is called the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu," Kitazawa said with a smile. "It's also A-rank."
"Seriously?!" Naruto lit up. "I want to learn it right now!"
In the original story, Naruto had picked it up quickly. Though not explicitly timed, he'd likely grasped it within an hour or two.
Only after mastering the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu did Kitazawa feel confident Naruto could handle the Rasengan over summer break.
It was his real cheat skill. As for whether Naruto could handle it, Kitazawa wasn't too worried.
Back then, Naruto hadn't even graduated and had poor fundamentals. Now, he had already mastered Transformation Jutsu, Sexy Jutsu, Shadow Clone Jutsu, and multiple physical skills—his foundation was solid.
"I'll let my shadow clone teach you," Kitazawa said, forming the seals and creating a clone.
"Where are you going, Kitazawa-sensei?" Naruto asked curiously.
"To the Hyuga clan," Kitazawa explained. "You and Sasuke aren't the only ones who need special training—Hinata does too."
"Got it!" Naruto shifted his attention immediately, turning to the shadow clone. "Kitazawa-sensei, let's begin!"
Kitazawa smiled and headed off toward the Hyuga Clan Grounds.
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P@atreon/Arvinstorm (45+ Advanced Chapters)