The jōnin meeting ended.
After Sarutobi Hiruzen left, Kitazawa was immediately surrounded.
Plenty of jōnin started asking the questions they cared most about—like what it took to become a teacher for the Advance Class.
Before this meeting, being a Ninja Academy teacher was a thankless job. Now it had become the hot ticket.
It took Kitazawa a good half hour to finally shake them off.
Leaving the conference room, he spotted Yakushi Kabuto not far away.
"Kabuto, what are you doing here? Did your squad run into a problem?"
Kitazawa walked over and asked.
"No, we three just wanted to treat sensei to lunch," Kabuto answered with a mild smile. "We're leaving the village tomorrow, so it'll be a while before we can eat together again."
"Then let's go. It's about noon anyway."
Kitazawa glanced at the sky. The meeting had started at nine and ran two hours; he'd been held up another thirty minutes afterward. It was definitely lunchtime.
Normally he ate bento at the Academy with Hinata, Naruto, and the others. But since Kabuto had invited him, it would be rude to refuse.
"Yakinuku?"
Kitazawa followed him to a yakinuku place.
He quickly noticed something off: the restaurant was completely empty—too quiet.
He was a regular here and had been many times. It was always busy; never once had he seen it deserted.
Kitazawa shot Kabuto a look but didn't call him out.
"This way please, Kitazawa-sensei," Kabuto said, lifting a hand. "We booked the deluxe private room."
Kitazawa nodded and stepped up to the private room's door.
With Kabuto watching expectantly, he pushed it open.
"Happy birthday, Kitazawa-sensei!"
A chorus of voices rang out.
The first thing he saw was a massive cake.
Twenty-two candles were stuck into it—one for each year of his life.
Around the cake stood Uchiha Sasuke, Uzumaki Naruto, Hyūga Hinata, Hyūga Neji, Yakumo Kurama, Karin, and the others.
"Thanks."
Kitazawa smiled.
He'd suspected something, but seeing it for real still made him genuinely happy.
His hard work over the past year hadn't been for nothing.
At first, he trained Naruto, Sasuke, and the rest because he wanted system rewards. But people aren't made of wood—spend enough time together and feelings follow.
"Sensei, blow out the candles!"
Naruto could hardly wait.
"You're more impatient than Chōji," Kiba ribbed him with an elbow.
"I'm not in a rush for cake!" Naruto huffed. "I just want to know what birthday wish sensei will make!"
"What are you talking about?" Kiba complained. "You're not supposed to tell people your wish."
"Huh?" Naruto's eyes went wide. "On my last birthday I said mine out loud."
"It's fine," Nara Shikamaru said lazily, hands behind his head. "Everyone knows what your wish is anyway."
"Is it really that easy to guess?" Naruto scratched his head.
"Your brain is full of Hokage," Yamanaka Ino said with hands on hips, grinning.
"Yeah, well, if you want to be Hokage, you've gotta get past—uh—me first!" Kiba gave a thumbs-up. He'd learned about the Hellhound and was working on Fang Over Fang; his confidence was sky-high.
"The Hokage will be me," Sasuke cut in out of nowhere.
"Eh?" Sakura looked at him on reflex.
"Sasuke, since when were you interested in being Hokage?" Shikamaru voiced the question on Sakura's mind.
"It's nothing. I just want Naruto to taste defeat," Sasuke said evenly.
In truth, Fugaku had brought it up in casual conversation two days ago. From his father's expression and tone, Sasuke sensed a desire there he'd rarely seen; Fugaku was always so steady and severe.
If he pulled it off, he'd earn major praise and recognition.
So Sasuke added "become Hokage" to his list of goals.
"As expected of Sasuke-kun!" Sakura's eyes sparkled. "So cool!"
"But you just lost to Naruto," Kiba couldn't resist puncturing his ego.
"That was then. This is now. The future is the future," Sasuke said stiffly, refusing to back down.
"Ahem." Kabuto cut in before the bickering could escalate. "Kitazawa-sensei, the candles first."
"Sorry," Naruto said at once. "We got carried away."
Sasuke, Kiba, Shikamaru, and the others all looked a bit sheepish.
"It's fine," Kitazawa said easily. "Birthdays should be lively."
He patted Naruto's shoulder, stepped forward, and blew out the candles.
Hands together, eyes closed, he made a wish.
Before the system, his wish had been simply to survive safely to the end.
Now that he had the system, his wish had changed.
At the moment, he wanted to keep growing stronger—strong enough to be the strongest in the shinobi world.
"Alright, let's eat cake."
He opened his eyes.
"Ki—" Naruto started to ask about his wish, then remembered Kiba's point and stopped.
"Who wants the first slice?"
Kitazawa picked up the knife and cut a piece.
"Me!" Akimichi Chōji shoved to the front, hand shooting up.
"Chōji hasn't taken his eyes off the cake since he saw it," Shikamaru teased.
"Then it's yours," Kitazawa said with a smile, passing it over.
"Thanks, sensei!" Chōji said, thrilled.
Kitazawa cut a second slice.
Scanning the room, he caught a timid glance.
"Hinata."
He set the cake down in front of her.
"Th-thank you, Kitazawa-sensei." Hinata froze for a beat, then felt her heart leap.
She took a bite; her mouth filled with sweetness—just like her mood.
"For you." Kitazawa picked up the third slice and noticed Naruto practically bouncing.
"Thanks, sensei!" Naruto grinned and dug in.
Soon the cake was all handed out.
Kitazawa took the last piece and tried a bite. It tasted just like he remembered.
Looks like cake doesn't change much no matter what world you're in.
"Kitazawa-sensei." Chōji was the first to finish and handed over a gift box. "This is my present!"
Seeing that, Naruto quickly presented his own.
"Thanks," Kitazawa said. He didn't open them on the spot.
He did notice they'd all used the same style of gift box.
When he received Hinata's, he was surprised. It was heavy.
What on earth…?
He tamped down his curiosity and put the boxes away one by one.
He wasn't worried about mixing them up; each box had a name label.
That had Kabuto written all over it—he was the type to care about details.
Once the cake was gone and the gifts were handed over, it was time for lunch proper.
"Sensei, today you just eat. We'll handle all the grilling!" Kiba pulled Kitazawa to the head seat.
"Nice!" Naruto said confidently. "Wait till you try my 'Blooming Youth' yakinuku! Hot-blooded and delicious!"
"How is yakinuku 'hot-blooded'?" Shikamaru muttered.
"You eat it and your blood starts boiling!" Naruto plopped a slice of beef onto the grate.
"That's not hot-blooded—that's burning your mouth," Kitazawa joked.
Everyone paused, then burst out laughing. The room filled with a warm, happy buzz.
"Just you wait!" Naruto declared, fired up. "My Youth BBQ will set your hearts ablaze!"
"We're grilling too," Ino said, handing three skewers to Hinata and Karin. "The girls' yakinuku will definitely taste better!"
Byakugan.
Holding a mutton skewer, Hinata activated her dōjutsu; veins rose at the corners of her eyes.
With that, every change inside the meat on the grate was clear as day.
She could pull it at the perfect moment.
"…?"
Sensing chakra, Kitazawa turned and stared, full of question marks.
Using the Byakugan… to grill?
Who taught you that?
Then again, in theory, the Byakugan was perfect for yakinuku. With x-ray vision, you could keep the meat at peak tenderness.
Sasuke glanced left and right. He'd eaten yakinuku before—grilled by Mikoto or by Itachi.
Doing it himself was a first.
No problem. If he didn't know how, he'd just copy on the spot.
Luckily, yakinuku wasn't complex. No need to pop open his two-tomoe Sharingan.
"I'll help you, Sasuke-kun!" Sakura said quickly, noticing his awkward motions.
"No need," Sasuke replied calmly. "It's just grilling. Not a big deal."
"Sasuke-kun's yakinuku will definitely be the best!" Sakura said at once.
"Of course," Sasuke nodded slightly.
Before long, a plate was set in front of Kitazawa.
"This is my Youth BBQ!" Naruto pointed at a beef skewer.
Kitazawa took a bite.
How to put it… the shop's meat came half-prepped; as long as you didn't char it, it wouldn't taste bad.
"It's good," he said after a pause. "It just doesn't make me feel… 'hot-blooded.'"
"Eh?" Naruto turned to stone.
The others laughed again.
"Sensei, try ours," Ino said, introducing the plate. "These were grilled by me, Hinata, Yakumo, Karin, and Izumi-senpai!"
Kitazawa arched a brow and picked up Hinata's mutton skewer.
He was genuinely curious how Byakugan-assisted grilling would taste.
After a few chews, his eyes brightened. It was excellent—aroma, fat, salt, and meat all in balance.
"Delicious."
He gave Hinata a smile.
Hinata let out a quiet breath and couldn't help the little curl at her lips.
"Alright, don't just watch—dig in," Kitazawa said, sharing out the meat in front of him.
"Whoa, this one's super salty!" Naruto yelped around a bite of beef.
Sasuke glanced over and felt his heart skip.
Keeping his face neutral, he wordlessly passed Naruto a cup of milk.
Because that salty skewer… was his.
He was confident, but for a first attempt his timing had been off.
At least no one knew which skewer he'd grilled.
"Thanks," Naruto said after two sips. "Sasuke, where's yours?"
"They got mixed together. No idea which ones are mine," Sasuke said evenly.
"What a shame," Naruto sighed.
"It's fine," Shikamaru said casually. "Just have Sasuke make you one later."
"…" Sasuke's expression froze.
"You're gonna have to get in line!" Sakura huffed. "I haven't had Sasuke-kun's yakinuku either!"
"Popular guy," Kabuto mused, pushing up his glasses. "I want a taste too."
"…"
Right now, Sasuke just wanted to run.
Too late for that; he gritted his teeth and grilled three skewers.
Fortunately, with one attempt under his belt, the second round wasn't a disaster. Maybe not amazing, but at least edible.
The yakinuku ended amid laughter and chatter.
"There's something I should tell you," Kitazawa said at the restaurant door. "I'm heading out on a mission tomorrow. I might be gone a week or two."
"Huh?" Naruto's eyes went wide.
"That long?" Ino looked reluctant to part. Hinata even stepped forward without thinking.
"I'm a teacher, but I'm also a shinobi. Missions are part of the job," Kitazawa reassured them. "Don't worry—someone will guide you while I'm away."
"Is it Iruka-sensei?" Aburame Shino asked, worried that Iruka didn't know Fire Release—which would make it hard to continue his explosive beetle mutation plan.
"No," Kitazawa said with a smile. "It's Hatake Kakashi."
"Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto's eyes lit up.
"You know him?" Sasuke looked over instinctively.
"He's Konoha's number one technician—knows over a thousand jutsu!" Naruto beamed. "He helped me develop my Sexy Jutsu!"
"…?" Sasuke stared. Sexy Jutsu… had something to do with Hatake Kakashi?
"Sasuke, introduce Kakashi to everyone tomorrow," Kitazawa said.
"Mm." Sasuke nodded.
"You already know this Kakashi-sensei?" Kiba asked quickly.
"I've been training with him the last two days," Sasuke replied.
"Training what?" Naruto asked, curious.
"Secret," Sasuke said, giving him a look. "Keep slacking and I'll beat you soon."
"As expected of my lifelong rival!" Naruto clenched his fists, fired up. "That's the power of youth! I'm going to find Guy-sensei right now!"
He spun and sprinted off.
"…" Sasuke's mouth twitched. He really wanted to say, Don't work that hard!
But he had to admit—Naruto was giving him a lot of pressure.
"I'm off too. See you," Sasuke said, skipping his lunch break and heading straight for the Academy.
"See you, Kitazawa-sensei," Kiba, Neji, Shikamaru, and the others said their goodbyes and left.
In the end only Hinata, Kabuto, Uchiha Izumi, and Aburame Torune remained.
"You three, meet at the village gate tomorrow at nine," Kitazawa told Kabuto's trio.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei," they answered in unison.
"Hinata, did you have something else to say?" Kitazawa asked once the three had gone.
"N-no," Hinata trembled slightly and lowered her head.
"I'll walk you home," Kitazawa said, smiling as he ruffled her hair.
"Mm." Feeling his big hand, Hinata's lips lifted again.
"By the way, what did you get me? Why was it so heavy?" he asked as they walked.
"A ninja blade," Hinata said, lifting her face; a spark of hope flashed in her pale eyes. "I hope you'll like it."
"A ninja blade?" Kitazawa was taken aback.
He pulled out Hinata's gift box and opened it.
Inside was a sheathed ninja sword.
There were plenty of ninja blades in the shinobi world. The most famous were the Seven Ninja Swords of the Mist.
From the style, Hinata's gift was the standard ninja sword—a bit shorter than a katana.
Kitazawa drew it and, after a quick look, fed chakra into the blade.
He sensed it immediately.
The chakra flowed through the metal without the slightest resistance.
Impossible—unless the blade was forged with chakra metal.
The thought made him blink.
Even with assets over ten million ryō, he couldn't bring himself to buy a chakra-metal sword; it would wipe him out in one go.
He looked at Hinata on instinct.
She might be the Hyūga clan's young lady, but it wasn't like she could casually spend ten-plus million ryō to make a sword for someone else.
There was no doubt Hiashi had approved this.
The Hyūga were trying to win him over—or rather, win Tsunade through him.
"Thank you," Kitazawa said seriously. "Sensei loves it."
Hinata's face blossomed into a smile.
"Let's go, Hinata-chan," Kitazawa said, reaching out to gently pinch her cheek.
Hinata blinked, cheeks flushing, and hurried to keep up.
"See you next time."
He stopped at her gate.
"Goodbye, Kitazawa-sensei." Hinata stepped into the courtyard and reflexively looked back—but he was already gone.
"Back already?" came Hyūga Hiashi's voice.
He stood in the yard, gazing toward the gate.
Spending ten million ryō on a sword for Kitazawa had hurt.
But after today's jōnin meeting, he felt Kitazawa was worth befriending at that price.
If the Hyūga wanted a line to the next Hokage, it would have to be through Kitazawa and Hinata.
They had no direct connection to Tsunade.
~~~
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