Friday.
After breakfast, Yakumo left home for his morning run and happened to run into Mori Yasuko just as she was heading out.
The two set off together for their daily exercise.
“Yakumo, you seem a little different lately.”
“Different how?” Yakumo felt his heart tighten.
Had his childhood friend really noticed something was wrong?
Yakumo began rapidly considering how he would explain himself if she pressed the issue.
He walked through the crowd with an expressionless face, all the while wondering where he might have slipped up.
Was it because he’d recently refused to train with her?
Perhaps it was the way he’d been treating her lately?
Or had she noticed that he’d been paying more attention to Kurenai Yuhi?
“Your presence feels different today,” Yasuko continued after a moment of thought.
“You’ve become much sharper, almost like Kakashi.”
“Maybe I’ve made a little progress in swordsmanship lately.
You know I’ve been practicing for the past few days,” Yakumo explained, secretly breathing a sigh of relief.
“But haven’t you only been practicing swordsmanship for four days?” Yasuko pressed.
“Maybe I’m just a swordsmanship genius,” Yakumo replied with a laugh before asking, “Can other people notice this change in my demeanor?”
“What kind of genius are you?
A genius who’s never won a fight in his entire life?” Yasuko rolled her eyes.
“As for other people, they probably won’t even pay attention to such a small change.”
“That’s good, then.”
Today’s conversation had given Yakumo something to think about.
As he continued training in swordsmanship, his presence would inevitably become sharper and more conspicuous.
If he wanted to keep hiding his abilities and remain an inconspicuous nobody, he would have to find a way to deal with this problem.
After all, as his chakra reserves grew, concealing his strength would become increasingly difficult.
To anyone using sensory ninjutsu, an enormous chakra reserve would stand out like a lighthouse shining in the darkness.
“If only there were a ninjutsu technique that could conceal my presence…”
Yakumo sighed softly and resolved to be even more cautious about how he improved his abilities in the future.
Hearing his sigh, Yasuko’s eyes darted around.
A moment later, she seemed to reach a decision.
“As it happens, my family has a ninjutsu technique that can conceal your presence!
I’ll bring it out for you to practice tonight.”
“Why would your family have a technique like that?” Yakumo asked instead of immediately agreeing.
“A few years ago, Dad obtained a scroll from a Kirigakure assassin on the battlefield.
Once mastered, it can change your personal presence, appearance, chakra signature, and other things.”
“That doesn’t seem right.
How about I exchange one of my family’s secret techniques for it?
Water Bullet, in return for yours.”
“Wait, do you mean that technique Uncle Iori used to water the flowers?
Don’t tell me you don’t know…” Yasuko looked at him incredulously.
“That technique has practically no offensive power!
Its greatest use is watering flowers!”
Yakumo froze.
There had to be some kind of misunderstanding.
“Hahaha!
No way!
You really didn’t know?” The girl’s laughter rang out like silver bells, filling the space around them with a cheerful atmosphere.
“All right, all right!
Stop laughing!
I need some time to process this!”
But…
the notes clearly said the technique was powerful!
How had it become nothing more than a watering tool in his father’s hands?
Yakumo had tested Water Bullet’s power himself over the past few days.
It possessed enough impact to knock an adult off their feet.
Could it be that…
his father had never properly mastered it?
Yakumo was already looking forward to seeing Yasuko’s expression when she witnessed the true power of Water Bullet.
…
That afternoon, during the free-training period, Yakumo found a suitable spot and prepared to watch Kakashi practice swordsmanship.
Unexpectedly, Kakashi walked straight toward him.
This doesn’t look good.
“You’ve been watching me for four days.
Are you trying to learn swordsmanship?”
Kakashi asked the question bluntly.
Yakumo froze for a moment.
Wow.
Straight to the point, huh?
A chilling sense of danger filled the air.
It felt as though if Kakashi wasn’t satisfied with his answer, he would draw his sword and attack in the next instant.
Stealing another shinobi clan’s inherited techniques was a serious taboo in Konohagakure.
Yakumo absolutely could not admit to doing that—not even if someone beat him to death.
Behind him, Mori Yasuko unconsciously clenched her fists, seemingly preparing to intervene at a moment’s notice.
“That’s a serious accusation.
I haven’t been spying on your training.
I’ve just been reading,” Yakumo replied, raising the book on his lap for Kakashi to see.
“You’re lying.”
Kakashi’s gaze beneath his silver-white hair was utterly devoid of emotion, as though he were looking at a corpse.
Is he going to attack me?
Under that deathly stare, every explanation seemed utterly inadequate.
“I’ll teach you if you want to learn.”
Kakashi was as concise as ever.
However, his words caught Yakumo completely off guard.
“Why do you think I want to learn swordsmanship?”
“You want to become stronger.
This is an opportunity.”
Kakashi’s next words carried an unmistakable hint of deeper meaning.
Yakumo fell silent.
He hadn’t expected Kakashi to approach him voluntarily, much less that obtaining the Hatake clan’s swordsmanship would prove so easy.
I owe him for this kindness.
I’ll repay him someday!
At this point in his life, Kakashi was still an upright and principled young shinobi.
Much of that was due to the way his father, Sakumo Hatake, had raised him.
“Isn’t that swordsmanship supposed to be a secret technique?”
“Why do you want to teach me?”
Yakumo fired off question after question, his excitement steadily growing.
A secret technique was the core inheritance of a shinobi clan, the foundation of its strength.
Naturally, clans generally wouldn’t allow outsiders to learn such techniques.
“The Hatake style has several components: techniques, breathing, footwork, and a chakra mode.
The first three are just refined techniques.
They’re not particularly important.
The chakra mode is the real foundation.”
What Yakumo didn’t know was that by the time the White Fang had established his reputation, his combat style had already been thoroughly studied.
His techniques, footwork, and even breathing patterns were no longer much of a secret.
“Besides, isn’t it perfectly normal for classmates to help each other?”
“Then I’ll learn,” Yakumo answered without further hesitation.
Only two days remained before the weekly mission deadline.
No matter what, he couldn’t afford to pass up this opportunity.
Even if it meant accepting some risk, he was willing to gamble.
“Bring your sword and follow me.”
“I didn’t bring it.”
“Didn’t your swordsmanship instructor tell you that, to develop a proper feel for the blade, you should never be separated from your sword?”
Kakashi paused.
“Never mind.
I happen to have two.”
“I don’t have a teacher,” Yakumo explained.
A flicker of surprise appeared in Kakashi’s eyes.
He was astonished that Yakumo had developed such a solid foundation entirely through self-study.
“You must have been practicing swordsmanship for a long time, haven’t you?”
“How did you know?”
“Your hands…”
Yakumo opened his palms and looked at the calluses he’d developed over the past few days of training.
He silently nodded.
“Yeah.
It’s been a long time…”
His father had once told him that he was a once-in-a-century swordsmanship genius of the Hatake clan.
At that moment, Kakashi couldn’t help thinking that perhaps…
Yakumo’s talent wasn’t inferior to his own!
Unbelievable!
Yakumo had just lied through his teeth without even changing his expression!
Mori Yasuko slowly unclenched her fists and stared intently at the back of her childhood friend’s head, feeling as though she were meeting him for the first time.