"Naruto, I'll take Lee to the hospital first. We'll talk properly next time we meet."
Might Guy didn't blame Naruto for injuring Lee. To him, getting hurt in a decisive battle was normal—and Guy could also tell that Naruto had already held back.
Naruto nodded and said goodbye to Might Guy.
Mounting his sulking White Wolf, he continued toward the riverbank to fish.
Guy carried the injured Rock Lee on his back, with Neji Hyuga and Tenten following behind.
From his hairstyle to that green bodysuit, Lee looked exactly like Guy. At this moment, the two seemed more like father and son than teacher and student.
On the way back to the Konoha hospital, Lee asked,"Guy-sensei, why is Uzumaki Naruto's body so strong? Why is he so fast? When he kicked me just now, I had no strength to resist at all. Could it be… does he also have some secret technique like the Eight Gates that enhances his body?"
However, Guy slowly shook his head."I don't know, but I can see that even without any secret technique, Naruto's body is far beyond that of an ordinary person."
"So this is the youth that belongs to geniuses? Truly enviable." Lee sighed.
"The difference between people really is huge. That guy not only has good looks, but his talent is also amazing." Tenten muttered on the side.
"Lee! Do you feel discouraged? That something you've worked so hard for, someone else surpasses with ease?" Guy, rarely serious, asked him.
Lee was stunned, then firmly shook his head."No! Just like you said earlier, Guy-sensei—so long as I keep surpassing myself, that's enough!"
"Well said!!" Tears streamed down Guy's face. If Lee weren't injured, teacher and student might have embraced each other while weeping.
Neji remained silent.
Since that match, he had begun paying closer attention to Naruto's circumstances.And he soon realized that in Konoha, Naruto's situation was even harsher than his own daily life.
Yet Naruto lived so freely. By comparison, Neji thought of himself—always cursing fate, even venting his anger on his innocent cousin.
***
When only three days of vacation remained, Naruto sat on the sofa at home, pulling out the scroll he had taken earlier.
Forbidden techniques weren't urgent for now. Instead, he searched the scroll again, and soon found his next target: Medical Ninjutsu.
In terms of combat strength, there was little room for breakthrough in the short term.But future missions as a shinobi could bring many unknown risks.
Though his physical ability was strong, having medical ninjutsu at hand would be another layer of protection.
Separating the medical ninjutsu scrolls, Naruto suddenly laughed.Maybe because he had died once before, he seemed to have grown more afraid of death.
His path of development was starting to resemble that of Orochimaru's, in a way.
As usual, he split into over a dozen Shadow Clones to begin studying various medical ninjutsu.
Chakra Scalpel, Mystical Palm Technique, Yin Healing Wound Destruction…
With his immense mental power, Naruto and his Shadow Clones advanced with astonishing speed.
In less than three days, he had nearly mastered all the medical techniques.
Back in the original story, even Sakura Haruno spent years barely reaching proficiency.Naruto's progress in medical ninjutsu was at least a thousand times faster than hers.
After training, Naruto dispelled the clones, stretched, and realized he was a little hungry.
Throwing on a white shirt, he headed to Ichiraku Ramen.
As soon as he sat down, Teuchi greeted him with a cheerful squint-eyed smile."Naruto, huh? The usual, the biggest bowl of tonkotsu ramen?"
Naruto nodded.
These past few years, he had occasionally come here to eat.
First, the flavor was indeed excellent, and the servings generous.Second, Teuchi was one of the very few in Konoha who didn't despise him, and even greeted him with kindness.
As Naruto watched Teuchi focus intently on preparing the noodles, his eyes flickered and he activated the Transparent World to peer into those squinting eyes.
In his past life, he'd often seen netizens speculate that Teuchi was the ultimate hidden boss—Ōtsutsuki Teuchi.
But under the gaze of Transparent World, all he saw were ordinary black pupils.Not the Rinnegan with nine tomoe, as the rumors claimed.
Teuchi kept his head down kneading the dough, but as if sensing something, he suddenly looked up with his usual gentle smile.
That abrupt intuition made Naruto suspicious again.
Soon, Teuchi set down a bowl of ramen even larger than a washbasin in front of him.
Slices of glistening tonkotsu pork covered the surface, topped with a soft-boiled egg, enough to make one's appetite flare instantly.
Naruto picked up his chopsticks and began to wolf it down.
The pork was tender and juicy, the noodles springy and satisfying, the broth thick and flavorful.
When you're starving, a bowl of freshly made oversized tonkotsu ramen like this brings unparalleled satisfaction.
Just as Naruto was slurping noodles, a silver-haired man in a mask pulled open the curtain and stepped inside.
Ichiraku was laid out like a bar counter, with a row of seats in line.
The masked man sat two seats away from Naruto and ordered a bowl of seafood ramen.
Naruto didn't look over—he already knew.The one sitting beside him was Konoha's technician, Kakashi Hatake.
Only, he wasn't wearing an Anbu mask this time, but a simple black face covering.
Naruto continued eating as usual, but in his heart wondered: would tomorrow's assigned sensei really still be Kakashi?
While waiting for his order, Kakashi casually pulled a little orange book from his ninja pouch and began reading with relish.
Naruto couldn't help muttering inwardly:'Your whole pouch is full of Icha Icha Paradise. If you're not embarrassed, who would be?'
Soon, Naruto finished his ramen, down to the last drop of broth.
But he didn't leave right away. Instead, he sat in place, waiting for one thing.
When Kakashi's seafood ramen arrived, Naruto perked up, watching intently out of the corner of his eye.
He wanted to see how this guy ate with a mask on.
Kakashi put away his book, clasped his hands together, and politely told Teuchi:"Itadakimasu!"
Then, to Naruto's shock, Kakashi didn't take off his mask.Instead, right where his mouth should be, there was a hidden slit!
He slurped down the noodles through that gap, and within thirty seconds, had finished the whole bowl.
Most impressive of all, not a drop of broth stained his mask—proof of his mastery.
Naruto was a little disappointed he didn't see Kakashi's full face.
But with Transparent World earlier, he had glimpsed Kakashi's outline in black and white.
Sure enough, Kakashi was ridiculously handsome.Though compared to Naruto himself—and to you, the reader—he still fell just a bit short.