"You've been fiddling with these messy things a lot lately. Have you been neglecting your training?"
Ruri glanced around the room, her tone seemingly dissatisfied.
In her view, Hakushi's peculiar research was just a waste of time.
"It's just a personal interest. I actually prefer doing research over training."
As he spoke, Hakushi picked up a small bag from the table and tossed it to Ruri.
Ruri caught it and frowned.
"What's in here?"
"It's something good, my specially made Soldier Rations Pill. They restore Chakra and stamina more efficiently than those on the market, and are easier to digest, so they won't burden the digestive system."
Soldier Rations Pills, known for restoring stamina and Chakra, were commonly consumed by ninjas on missions.
However, because of their bitter, unpleasant herbal taste, many avoided them unless absolutely necessary to solve stamina and Chakra deficiencies.
Moreover, they were hard to digest, and eating too many could lead to indigestion.
"Bragging."
Ruri snorted but still placed the bag of special Soldier Rations Pills into her ninja tool bag strapped to her leg.
"Why did you think of making Soldier Rations Pills?"
"Because you're itching to graduate from Ninja School, and you could use them."
Hakushi spoke with a knowing expression.
Ruri glanced at Hakushi without speaking.
After a pause, Hakushi continued to ask, "By the way, when do you plan to graduate?"
Ruri replied, "Although your guess makes sense, unfortunately, this time you're wrong."
"Wrong?"
Ruri's face broke into a faint smile as she said, "Yes, personally, I would love to graduate early, but the elders in the family are not keen on that. Graduating now means heading to the frontline battlefield, where the mortality rate for a fresh Genin is very high."
Hakushi understood and nodded, "I see, to protect geniuses, it's best to graduate naturally. There's no need to rush through the curriculum. This is a perfectly reasonable outcome."
Graduating from school meant saying goodbye to a stable life.
Normal graduation required a full six years at Ninja School.
Currently, Hakushi and Ruri were only third-year students, with several years left to solidify their growth before a typical graduation.
There were always prodigies at Ninja School who thought highly of themselves and chose to graduate early for the frontline battlefield.
Hakushi thought that Konoha's higher-ups should have set a rule forbidding children under ten from graduating early during wartime...
But then Hakushi knew he was being naive.
During the Warring States period, it was common for children as young as four or five to go to battle.
Even if the current Ninja Realm situation had improved, it was still common for children under ten to head to the front lines.
After graduating from Ninja School, they were considered qualified ninja and shouldn't be seen as mere children.
However, this could cause their values to skew, leading them down extreme paths.
"Ruri, could it be the family elders want you to graduate with Jonin-level strength?"
Hakushi suddenly realized something.
Already possessing Chunin-level strength at eight, Ruri could achieve Jonin-level prowess in a few years with hard work.
Of course, she might lack combat experience, but she wouldn't lack in ninja techniques and basic skills.
Ruri was nurtured with elite training from the Uchiha Race since childhood.
She was miles ahead of the average ninja from the starting line.
After graduation, experience could be slowly accumulated, but the lower limit of strength was crucial for fresh ninjas.
On the battlefield, the more power one had, the greater the chance of survival.
Ruri rolled her eyes upon hearing that from Hakushi.
Did he think Jonin-level skills were as common as cabbage on the streets?
The gap between Jonin and Chunin was larger than that between Chunin and Genin.
So-called Jonin were exceptional in one field or multiple fields.
Even with high aspirations, Ruri hesitated to claim she could master any field to a proficient level within a few years.
The Jonin assessment was far more challenging than the Chunin assessment.
After talking for a while at Hakushi's place, the two went to Ichiraku Ramen Shop at six in the evening to have ramen for dinner before parting ways.
◎
"Sorry, something came up on my end, so I'm a bit late."
In the dense forest behind the school, it was already dark by this time.
The one who had arranged to meet Hakushi here was Ayane.
Two years had passed, and she had grown from a first-year student to a third-year student, slightly taller than before.
Hearing the sound coming from behind, Ayane turned around slowly, her hands intertwined and positioned behind her back.
She wore a white outfit adorned with the Hyuga Clan's emblem, deep blue trousers on the lower half, her long black hair cascading down to her waist. Her pure white eyes were untainted, and the smile on her face exuded a sense of bright and innocent beauty.
"It's okay, I just got here, too. But I guess Hakushi-kun was delayed because of Ruri. Sometimes, I really envy her."
Although the Uchiha Race, in charge of Konoha's Security Team, has always been known for their swift and resolute style, giving off an arrogant and overbearing air of bullying, combined with their clan's excessive reverence for strength, which has offended many ninja races and civilians, at least their clan isn't as heartless and cold-blooded as the Hyuga Clan, treating their own clan members like enslaved captives.
It is precisely because of this that Ayane, though from a similarly prestigious family, greatly envies Ruri's free-spirited nature and life.
If only she were born into the Uchiha Race.
"Yeah, she lectured me again."
Hakushi scratched his head, slightly troubled.
"Don't say that. I believe it's precisely the sign of a good relationship between you two."
Ayane smiled. Although after that incident, she hadn't had contact with Hakushi openly, she knew everything about Hakushi in secret.
For example, his hidden strength had already reached Chunin Level.
That he had developed a very close relationship with the Uchiha genius, Ruri.
And was secretly conducting some experiments with unknown purposes.
His sense of belonging to the village was nearly zero, and he was considering leaving the village to become a Renegade Ninja in the near future.
And with their deepening exchange, Hakushi didn't hide these things from Ayane.
Hakushi believed that, since they were companions, they should be honest with each other.
At least disclose some parts of his plan and purpose to Ayane, to give her peace of mind.
"Mm." Hakushi knew that their time of private contact was limited, so he didn't want to entangle too much in these matters, heading straight to the point: "There's nothing going on with you, right?"
"No, after all, I'm just an insignificant member of the branch family. The Main Family wouldn't expend much energy to focus on someone like me."
A self-mocking statement that came out of Ayane's mouth turned calm.
In the two years that had passed, she had naturally become better at slightly controlling her fluctuations of anger.
Despite this, her pure white eyes still harbored a trace of sorrow and sighs.
Saying this, Ayane took out a small package from her Ninja Tool Bag, wrapped in a cloth strap, and placed it in Hakushi's hands.
"Thank you for your hard work."
Hakushi accepted the package, speaking softly.
"This is what I should do, but if it's just studying blood, it might not be enough, right?"
Ayane asked this question.
With the experiments becoming more regularized, Hakushi had started focusing on more substantial experiments.
Researching blood was a critical part.
These were Ayane's own blood samples, as well as those from other branch members of the Hyuga Clan.
They were precious materials carefully collected by Ayane.
Because both Ayane and Hakushi understood one thing, if they wanted to leave Konoha in the future, the Caged Bird Cursed Seal must be undone, restoring Ayane's freedom.
Otherwise, once Ayane's identity as a Renegade Ninja was confirmed, the Main Family would definitely use cursed techniques to kill her on the spot.
What Hakushi wanted to do was precisely the experiment concerning this aspect.
Undo the Hyuga Clan's Caged Bird Curse Seal, used to control the branch family, to restore Ayane's freedom.
Thinking carefully, with Hakushi's current abilities, it seemed like a whimsy.
It seemed he saw through Ayane's hidden concerns—after all, it was a matter concerning her life and death—and Hakushi understood Ayane's tension and unease.
"Blood is only one of the conditions for entry, but not something that must be used. The answer to unsealing the Caged Bird curse isn't in this."
Hakushi only planned to use the blood Ayane collected for some comparison, to obtain more accurate data and find a very small entry point.
If the secrets of the Hyuga Clan could be obtained merely by researching blood, it would be underestimating the bloodline ninja tribe with a long tradition.
"Moreover, with more materials, we can't get them with our current means, we'll have to take it slower in the future."
Hearing this from Hakushi, Ayane relaxed.
Collecting this blood had already exhausted her means; as for complete human materials, the thought by itself was an assured way to failure and capture.
"Time's almost up, let's part ways here. Staying any longer, we might be noticed."
Hakushi worried that the secret of his and Ayane's meeting might be revealed; if that happened, not only Ayane but he himself would be thoroughly scrutinized.
Such a development would undoubtedly be troublesome.