"You've been messing around with all these random things lately—is your training getting neglected?"
Ruri glanced around the house, her tone sounding vaguely dissatisfied.
From her perspective, Hakushi's strange research was just a waste of time.
"It's just a personal hobby. Honestly, I like doing research more than training."
As he spoke, Hakushi picked up a small pouch from the table and tossed it to Ruri.
Ruri caught it, then frowned.
"What's inside?"
"Good stuff—my specially made Soldier Rations Pills. They restore chakra and stamina a bit more efficiently than the ones sold on the market, plus they're easier to digest and won't strain your digestive system."
Soldier Rations Pills are a handy food that ninjas often eat while working outside, as they recover stamina and chakra.
But with their bitter, unpleasant herbal taste, most people avoid eating them unless absolutely necessary to fix their stamina and chakra shortage.
Besides, since they're hard to digest, eating too many can cause digestive problems.
"You're exaggerating."
Ruri snorted, but still put the pouch full of special pills into the ninja tool bag strapped to her leg.
"Why did you suddenly decide to make Soldier Rations Pills?"
"Because you can't wait to graduate from Ninja School, right? You'll need them soon."
Hakushi spoke with a look as if he saw through everything.
Ruri glanced at Hakushi, saying nothing.
Hakushi paused, then continued, "So, when do you plan on graduating?"
Ruri replied, "Your guess makes sense, but unfortunately, you're wrong this time."
"Wrong?"
Ruri smiled faintly and said, "That's right. Personally, I'd love to graduate early, but the clan elders aren't so eager. Graduating now would mean heading straight to the front lines, and for a fresh Genin, the death rate is very high."
Hakushi understood, nodding. "I see. It's all about protecting the prodigy—graduating as expected is better than rushing. Honestly, that's the natural outcome."
Graduating means saying goodbye to peaceful days.
The standard graduation requires six years of study at Ninja School.
Right now, Hakushi and Ruri are only third-year students, so they still have a few years to strengthen and grow before normal graduation.
Of course, there are always supposed geniuses who graduate early and then get sent to the front lines.
Hakushi thinks the Konoha upper levels probably set a rule: during wartime, kids under ten aren't allowed to graduate early from Ninja School…
But thinking about it, Hakushi realized he was just assuming things.
Back in the Warring States, kids as young as four or five went into battle all the time.
Even though the Ninja Realm situation has improved a bit, kids under ten still often end up on the battlefield.
Graduating from Ninja School makes someone a proper ninja—they're not seen as just children anymore.
But that kind of thing could mess up their values, making them prone to extreme paths.
"Ruri, your clan elders aren't waiting for you to graduate with Jonin-level skills, are they?"
Hakushi suddenly realized something.
Ruri, already eight years old, is at least Chunin level in strength; in a few years, if she worked harder, she might just reach Jonin level.
Of course, she might lack battle experience, but her ninja techniques and basic skills certainly wouldn't.
From childhood, Ruri got elite training from the Uchiha Clan.
Her starting line was already miles ahead of regular ninja children.
After graduation, she could slowly accumulate experience—but to rookie ninjas, their strength baseline is crucial.
One more bit of strength on the battlefield means one more chance to survive.
Hearing Hakushi's words, Ruri rolled her eyes at him.
This guy thinks Jonin are cabbages by the roadside?
The gap between Jonin and Chunin is even bigger than between Chunin and Genin.
A Jonin is a ninja who's outstanding in at least one or several fields.
Even with Ruri's pride, she wouldn't dare say she could reach a master's level in any field in a few years.
The Jonin selection is far tougher than becoming a Chunin.
After chatting at Hakushi's place for a while, at six in the evening, the two of them went to Ichiraku Ramen Shop for dinner, then said goodbye.
◎
"Sorry, something came up last minute—I got here a bit late."
It was already dark in the thick forest behind the school.
The one who'd agreed to meet Hakushi here was Ayane.
Two years had passed, and she'd gone from a first-year to a third-year student. She was a little taller than before.
Hearing the voice behind her, Ayane slowly turned around, hands folded behind her back.
She wore a white outfit with the Hyuga Clan crest on it, deep blue pants, black straight hair down to her waist, eyes pure white without any impurities, and her smile gave a bright, genuine sense of beauty.
"It's fine, I just got here myself. But Hakushi-kun probably got delayed by Ruri, right? Sometimes I really envy her."
The Uchiha Clan, as the ones running Konoha's Security Team, were always strict and decisive, giving off an arrogant, overbearing vibe. Coupled with their obsession with power, they offended plenty of ninja clans and civilians—but at least their clan wasn't as cold and ruthless as the Hyuga Clan, who treated their own as slaves, kept caged up.
Because of that, Ayane, also from a noble clan, truly envied Ruri's free personality and lifestyle.
If only she'd been born in the Uchiha Clan.
"Yeah, she lectured me again."
Hakushi scratched his head, troubled.
"Don't say that. I think it's proof you two are great friends."
Ayane smiled. Though she hadn't interacted with Hakushi openly since that incident, she secretly knew everything about him.
For example, he'd hidden his real strength—already at Chunin level.
He had a very close relationship with Ruri, the Uchiha genius.
He was running some secret, unclear experiments.
His sense of belonging to the village was nearly zero, and he'd already planned to leave and become a Renegade Ninja.
And as their communication deepened, Hakushi hadn't hidden any of this from Ayane.
Hakushi believed that, since they were partners, they should be honest.
At least, he should share part of his plans and goals with Ayane to reassure her.
"Yeah." Hakushi, aware that their time together was limited, didn't want to dwell too long, so dove straight in: "Everything's okay on your end, right?"
"Yeah. I'm just a nobody in the branch family—the Main Family wouldn't waste much effort or attention on someone like me."
Words meant as self-deprecation, but from Ayane's mouth sounded calm and flat.
After two years, she could restrain her anger pretty easily.
Still, in her pure white eyes was a hidden sadness and sigh.
Speaking, Ayane took out a small package wrapped in cloth from her ninja tool bag and handed it to Hakushi.
"Thanks for your effort."
Hakushi took the package, speaking softly.
"It's what I should do. But… studying blood alone won't be enough, right?"
Ayane asked.
As the experiments got more formalized, Hakushi was starting to tackle heavier research.
Studying blood was an important step.
The blood was Ayane's, as well as from other Hyuga Clan branch members.
All the precious samples Ayane gathered herself, carefully.
Because Ayane and Hakushi both knew one thing: if they ever left Konoha, they'd have to break the Caged Bird Seal so Ayane could be free.
Otherwise, if Ayane was exposed as a Renegade Ninja, the Main Family would kill her instantly with a jutsu.
What Hakushi wanted was to experiment on that issue.
Breaking the Hyuga Clan's Caged Bird Curse Seal so Ayane could be free.
Honestly, with Hakushi's current abilities, it felt like a fantasy.
Hakushi seemed to notice Ayane's anxiety—of course, this was literally life-or-death for her, so he understood her nervous, uneasy feelings.
"Blood is just one starting point, but not strictly necessary. The answer to breaking the Caged Bird Curse Seal isn't here."
Hakushi just wanted to use the blood Ayane provided for comparisons, to get more accurate data and find a tiny opening.
If Hyuga Clan's secrets could be discovered just by studying blood, it'd be underestimating a bloodline clan that's lasted for generations.
"Besides, we can't get much more material right now—maybe slowly, later."
Hearing this, Ayane felt reassured.
Gathering the blood had already used up all her tricks. As for getting full human samples, that was just a recipe for disaster and capture.
"Time's almost up. We should split up here—if we stick around much longer, someone might notice us."
Hakushi worried that news of their secret meetings would leak, and if it did, not only Ayane, but he himself would be thoroughly investigated.
If things got to that point, it would be a real headache.