Ebara felt the room's temperature drop to arctic levels.
The Third's piercing glare made him feel like he was stranded in a blizzard.
He quickly corrected Asuma, "Asuma, I just taught you that nursery rhyme. How'd you forget already? Sing with me."
"Daddy's daddy is called what? Daddy's daddy is Grandpa.
Daddy's mommy is called what? Daddy's mommy is Grandma…"
Ebara sang, cautiously eyeing the Third.
The Third's expression softened at the rhyme but still watched Ebara warily, unconvinced.
"It's a nursery rhyme…" Biwako sighed, relieved.
Ebara grinned. "Exactly. Asuma's old enough to learn about family, so I made it up. Almost caused a mix-up, huh?"
"I knew it," Biwako said, nodding with a smile.
The Third snorted. "You sure it's just a rhyme?"
Ebara's heart raced, but he kept his cool. The key to lying is believing your own lie.
"Absolutely, positively, definitely!" he said firmly.
The Third stared, snorted again, but let it slide.
Ebara exhaled internally, dodging a bullet.
Spotting paper and pen on a table, he said, "I'll write the rhyme down for Asuma to memorize later."
He scribbled it out.
"Simple, but good for kids' learning," the Third said. "Finally doing something useful."
He added, "Follow me."
The Third led the way to his study.
Ebara hurried after.
Inside, the Third pressed his hand to the wall.
Five lights—fire, wind, lightning, earth, water—flashed.
The wall opened, revealing a secret room.
A five-element seal locked it, accessible only to those who knew the counter.
No wonder Naruto stole the Scroll of Seals so easily, Ebara thought. The Third let him. A seduction jutsu fainting him? No way. And only fodder genin chased him, with Iruka, a chunin, dragged in by Mizuki.
The room was spacious, about a hundred square meters, packed with scrolls.
Ninjutsu, taijutsu, secret arts, sealing techniques—everything.
The Third grabbed three scrolls from a wall and tossed them to Ebara.
Ebara unrolled them, disappointed.
Shadow Clone, Wind Style: Net, Wind Style: Blade.
"I thought it'd be the Second's Scroll of Seals," Ebara muttered.
"Give 'em back then," the Third snapped.
"No way! Only an idiot would," Ebara said, clutching them.
Shadow Clone: Creates physical clones with independent consciousness and durability. Super practical.
Wind Style: Net: Summons a net-like wind, strong, fast, wide-ranging, with control effects.
Wind Style: Blade: Turns wind into sharp blades, slicing flesh and bone instantly.
"Practice these," the Third said. "Master them, and your strength will jump."
Ebara nodded.
Shadow Clone was a no-brainer. The wind techniques were exactly what he needed.
"Who do you want on this mission?" the Third asked.
"Since Tsunade's gone, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Sakumo Hatake," Ebara said casually.
Too bad Tsunade was on a mission.
A free trip with her would've been prime romance time.
Without her, he'd settle.
Thwack!
The Third, fed up, smacked Ebara's head with a scroll.
"You want those three? Then what's the point of you?"
They were Konoha's top young shinobi.
Especially Sakumo Hatake.
Low-key, clever, humble, strong.
Already a jonin, he was destined for fame.
If no better candidate emerged, the Third would pick Sakumo as his successor.
"Kushina's critical to us!" Ebara said, rubbing his head. "Send the best!"
"At most, Jiraiya can go," the Third grumbled.
Ebara sighed, seeing the Third's resolve. "Fine, Jiraiya it is. Better than nothing."
"Leave at dawn."
"Got it."
The mission was urgent—delays risked trouble.
"Go. Study those scrolls and prep for tomorrow," the Third said.
"Hold on, let me stay a bit," Ebara said, eyeing the scroll-filled room greedily.
"Stay, and I'll make you leave," the Third said, forming seals.
Ebara reluctantly shuffled out, looking back every step.
"Don't stare. Get stronger, and you'll come back plenty," the Third said. "Aiming too high isn't smart."
"Fair," Ebara said, shrugging.
They left the study.
"I wanna eat this…" Asuma said, toddling over with a paper, pointing at it.
Ebara didn't look, bolting out.
Run slow, and the Third'll keep me here.
He vanished in a flash.
The Third, seeing Ebara's speed, knew what was up.
That punk taught Asuma something bad again.
He looked at Asuma's paper.
A giant, crooked "shit" was scrawled on it.
"Eat, I wanna eat…" Asuma said, hugging the Third's leg, pointing at the paper, drooling.
His drool soaked the Third's pants.
Clearly, the word's "meaning" had him hooked.
"EBARA!!!" the Third roared, shaking the village.