The Next Day.
Konoha Training Grounds.
Kakashi Hatake, having been pestered by Might Guy for what felt like an eternity, finally showed up as promised.
From a distance, he spotted two identical figures.
Green spandex suits, red headbands. One headband read "BURNING," the other read "YOUTH."
They were doing warm-up exercises with loud, rhythmic shouts.
"Yo, Kakashi! You're a little slow today!~" Might Guy saw Kakashi, his eyes flashing and his teeth sparkling.
But seeing the dark, oppressive aura surrounding Kakashi, Guy felt a heaviness in his heart.
It looks like life in the Anbu is only making Kakashi more depressed. Damn it! Lord Third wouldn't let me join the Anbu. If I could just be by Kakashi's side, maybe he wouldn't be like this.
"Senior Kakashi! Hurry up and warm up! I can't wait anymore!" Musashi's eyes shone with excitement as he did high-knees in place.
Looking at the two of them, Kakashi had a face full of black lines.
After experiencing the trauma of "failed mission, lost father" and "successful mission, lost best friend," his life had been plunged into darkness.
Guy, the guy who he originally thought had zero ninja talent, had gradually become a ray of light in his life.
After the Fourth Hokage died, the darkness deepened.
Deep down, that single ray of light became even more important to him.
If things had just stayed like that, it would have been fine.
Until Musashi Ryomiya showed up.
The one ray of light in his life turned into two.
And they were blindingly green.
Since then, the darkness was gone, sure, but the two high-beams were so bright he couldn't get any rest.
"Guy, how about you and Musashi race? His speed is getting very close to yours now." Kakashi was in no mood for this.
"Kakashi! Youth cannot speak such decadent words!"
"That's right! Senior Kakashi! You can summon Pakkun to be the judge."
Kakashi facepalmed helplessly.
Of course, he couldn't win against these two.
At Guy's request, he used the Summoning Jutsu to bring out Pakkun, his pug summon, to act as the referee for the three of them.
"Yosh! Are you ready? On your marks... START!"
Three trails of dust kicked up as they bolted!
Four years ago, Might Guy noticed that Musashi's training intensity had spiked dramatically. Worried that the boy was traumatized by the Nine-Tails attack, Guy decided to help him the same way he helped Kakashi—by dragging Kakashi along and forcing Musashi into "bonding activities."
Later, Guy realized that Musashi's training intensity never dropped, yet his body somehow handled it fine.
Instead, the relationship between the three of them grew closer. Guy always tried to drag Kakashi into a "joyful contest of Youth." (Kakashi: I am not joyful.)
Guy and Kakashi traded wins and losses, while Musashi firmly held the third-place spot.
But the gap was shrinking rapidly.
The three of them crossed the finish line like a gust of wind. Pakkun calmly announced the results.
"Guy first, Kakashi second, Musashi third."
"YES! Kakashi, you need to try harder next time!" Guy shouted excitedly.
"Don't talk to me about 'next time'," Kakashi panted.
Pakkun glanced at Musashi. "Musashi, not bad. The gap between you and them is getting smaller. Maybe soon you'll surpass Kakashi. You can touch my paw pads as encouragement. Want to?" He lifted his right paw, showing off the soft pink pads.
"Really? Don't mind if I do, Pakkun." Musashi stepped forward and actually squished Pakkun's paw pads.
"Indeed, very soft. Thanks for the encouragement."
Having his softness affirmed, Pakkun looked proud.
Then, he pulled a scroll from his vest. "About the matter Kakashi mentioned a while ago... the clan elders have discussed it. They decided to agree to your proposal." He unrolled the scroll.
"For 100,000 ryo a year, the Ninja Hound Clan can sign a short-term contract with you to provide basic services."
"You can terminate the contract at any time. But we will not participate in combat."
"If you have no issues, just press your handprint here."
Musashi nodded in agreement and pressed his handprint onto the contract scroll.
His time at the Academy was mostly over, and graduation wasn't far off. Once he became a Genin, he'd have to take on village missions.
By then, his time wouldn't be as free as it was now, and he might have to leave the village for missions.
That was why he had discussed this with Kakashi earlier—to sign a contract with his Ninja Hound Clan.
This way, when he was out on missions, he could leave a Ninja Hound at home. If danger struck his home, he could use the Reverse Summoning Jutsu to rush back instantly.
Or, if he encountered danger himself, he could potentially use it to escape.
Unlike weapon summoning (which requires prep) or the Heavenly Transfer Technique (which requires a tough body) or the Flying Raijin (which is insanely hard to learn), animal summoning contracts come with a built-in safety feature: the contract protects the summoner during spatial transport.
Truly a must-have for home travel.
Originally, he could have signed a full summoning contract with the Ninja Hounds.
But he didn't know if signing with one of the Three Great Sage Regions (Toads, Snakes, Slugs) was exclusive.
He wasn't ready to fully commit to the dogs yet. So, he negotiated a short-term contract with Kakashi and the clan: he provides funds for premium dog food, they provide services.
This way, if he ever got the chance to sign with the Sage Regions later, he wouldn't miss out.
Once the contract was signed, Kakashi showed a rare look of anticipation. "So, Musashi... where is the gift you promised me?"
"Prepared long ago, Senior Kakashi!" Musashi pulled a brand-new book from his chest pocket.
Kakashi snatched it eagerly.
"Kakashi, what gift did Musashi promise you?" Guy leaned his head in curiously.
SNAP! Kakashi slammed the book shut. The gloomy, murderous aura around him lightened visibly.
"Guy, this is the Gold Edition of the latest issue of Shinobi Playboy. It's not something you'd be interested in."
"I see. Kakashi, what's interesting about that kind of stuff? If you have time to read, you should be training! Only sweating profusely is worthy of beautiful Youth!"
"A guy like you wouldn't understand," Kakashi said, gently stroking the cover of the book.
"A few years ago, an author named 'Midnight Butcher' released a single-volume art book called A Little Story After the Rain. At first, readers just thought the publishing world had found a decent artist."
"But unexpectedly, a storm was brewing. Soon after, Shinobi Playboy burst onto the scene. Serialized stories like The Kind Jonin Teacher: Mukana, The Female Spy Lost in the Cloud Village, and The Widow of the Rain Village created a hurricane in the literary world."
"In the years that followed, The White-Hot Hell of the Flower Shadow and The Reluctant Lady of the Feudal Lord continued 'Midnight Butcher's' masterful streak."
"Stable updates, every chapter a masterpiece! Today, 'Midnight Butcher's' Shinobi Playboy splits the world with Make-Out Paradise, standing as equal rivals."
"Fans describe it like this: 'A cold blade entering the body, piercing the heart with pain; a withered flower drifting, keeping one awake all night.'"
"A masterpiece of this caliber... someone like you, Guy, would never understand."
"Musashi, pass on my thanks to Daiki as well. I like it very much."
Might Guy: (-_-)