[Note: The promised Mass Release on Patreon is done.]
Chapter 66 – You Guys Again?!
"Ugh, so expensive..."
As noon approached, Gen Kitagawa made his way toward the rendezvous point, grumbling under his breath the whole way.
He'd planned ahead—deciding to sharpen and tune up his blade before the mission—but the cost had turned out to be outrageous.
"This sword's practically a legend. Chakra-conducting materials aren't cheap, you know! No cutting corners!"
Remembering what the shopkeeper had said, Gen could only sigh. No matter how much money he had, it seemed impossible to hold onto it.
"Maybe I should open my own shop one day... call it Yorozuya or something?"
He ran a hand over the short blade at his back, then up through his white hair. "Actually… it kinda suits me."
Just then, a familiar voice called out to him.
"Hey! Gen?"
He looked up to see Naruto, Kiba, Shikamaru, and Chōji staring at him curiously.
Not far away, Sasuke stood surrounded by Sakura and Ino, both of whom were also glancing over with interest.
"Oh, it's you guys." Gen blinked, recognizing them immediately. "What, skipping class again?"
"…Idiot, we're out of school already!"
Naruto's face fell into an exaggerated pout, and Kiba muttered with a scowl: "Not that I don't want to ditch, but some jerk ruined it for everyone. Now Iruka-sensei's watching us like a hawk. It sucks!"
"Total drag," Shikamaru chimed in, too tired to hide it.
Chōji nodded along. "Yeah, can't even sneak out to grab a snack."
"Oh, really?" Gen raised a brow, though his eyes occasionally flicked over to Naruto.
Naruto, sensing something, suddenly looked around nervously. He was already starting to piece things together… and getting the sneaking suspicion that he'd been set up.
But he didn't dare say anything—he just gave a forced laugh. "Y-Yeah… that's right… hahaha…"
"Idiot," came Sasuke's voice from behind him.
"Damn you, you smug bastard!"
"Idiot."
"Hey, hey, hey," Gen cut in. "It's bad enough when you two do this at school. Do you really need to bring it out here too?"
The tension between Sasuke and Naruto was practically hardwired at this point. Even Shikamaru and the others looked exasperated.
Gen, though, found it amusing. "Keep that dynamic going, boys. Who knows? Maybe we'll even get that Legendary Kiss of the Century again."
Glancing at the time, he sighed. "Anyway, I've got stuff to do. You guys study hard. Don't flunk out before you even graduate."
He paused, then gave a parting smirk. "You never know—your own teammates might end up giving you a little push. Especially you, Naruto."
"You're the real jerk here!!" Naruto shouted, unable to hold back—but Gen had already turned and waved goodbye as he disappeared into the crowd.
"That was… Gen-senpai, wasn't it?"
At that moment, Sakura and Ino approached, even the usually timid Hinata tagging along. Sakura spoke up curiously.
"Yeah, that was him," Sasuke replied casually.
The girls looked surprised—especially Sakura. She hadn't expected Sasuke to answer so quickly… or so familiarly.
Did they know each other that well?
But wait… wasn't that the same senpai who supposedly hospitalized his entire team?
"…Weird. When did his hair turn white?"
Ino was curious too. She hadn't met Gen Kitagawa before, but honestly… he looked even better with white hair.
"He dyed it," Naruto chimed in, now much calmer. "Tried to get me to do it with him, too."
Watching Gen's back as he walked away, Naruto let out a small huff. "Also… is he heading out on a mission? He only just graduated. Seriously, I'm jealous…"
"Yeah, last time I saw him, he was training with two jōnin," Sasuke added, nodding. He already knew Gai and Kakashi were jōnin—and he understood exactly what that meant.
"I bet he'll be promoted to chūnin soon, if he hasn't already."
"Wait… you guys seriously don't know?" Shikamaru opened his drowsy eyes and looked at Naruto and Sasuke, puzzled.
"Aren't you two close with him?"
"Know what?"
Both boys looked confused, and the rest of the group leaned in, just as curious.
"No way… none of you know?" Shikamaru sighed, rubbing his head in disbelief before finally giving in.
"Come on—he is a chūnin already."
"What?!"
"Didn't he invite you guys out for dinner? That was the day he got promoted!"
"Nani?"
Everyone turned to Naruto and Sasuke, who both looked completely lost. They genuinely had no idea.
Sasuke's eyes flared with frustration—it lit a fire in him. Naruto, meanwhile, swallowed hard. A memory surfaced suddenly.
"Wait… didn't he say… he'd be my examiner?"
"No way—he was serious?!"
Elsewhere, Gen Kitagawa had just arrived at the village gates of Konoha, where he ran into Kakashi and Gai charging toward the same meeting point.
"This time, I won, my eternal rival—Kakashi!"
Arriving almost simultaneously, Gai flashed a wide grin and gave a bold thumbs-up.
"Yeah, yeah. You win," Kakashi muttered, barely looking up as he pulled out Icha Icha Paradise from his pouch.
Noticing Gen giving them a peculiar look, Kakashi cleared his throat. "Now that everyone's here, let's head out. Gen, since you've traveled to the Land of Hot Water with Jiraiya-sama before, do you have anything we should know?"
"Anything to mention?" Gen paused for a moment, thinking carefully, then replied in a dry tone:
"Kakashi-sensei, Gai-sensei… if we stop at a hot spring, can we go to one I'm actually allowed into?"
"......"
Kakashi's expression shifted into his infamous dead-fish eyes. Gai, meanwhile, just looked around, confused.
"Huh?"
Meanwhile, in the forests of the Land of Hot Water…
"Hmph. So this is the guy after my bounty?"
Uchiha Obito narrowed his eyes at Kakuzu below, displeasure written on his face. Black Zetsu, watching from the side, looked visibly irritated.
"It's him. But he's one of our most capable operatives—very efficient. Don't do anything reckless."
"Relax. I'm not that dumb," Obito muttered. Still, he looked down with interest. "I know how valuable he is to Akatsuki right now. But more than that… he's fearless. Willing to do anything for a reward. People like that are… fascinating."
"You're thinking…"
Black Zetsu hesitated but couldn't help asking: "Bring him over to our side?"
Though Obito had aligned with Nagato, both knew it wasn't a bond of trust. Konan especially made no effort to hide her suspicion of him.
Obito had long been planning a tighter grip on Akatsuki. Itachi was one piece. Kisame had been handpicked.
And he wanted more like them.
"Exactly. Outwardly, they'll follow Nagato. But when it counts, I need them to follow me."
"That's true. Itachi plays his own game, and Kisame's just one man…"
Black Zetsu nodded. But before he could go on, his white half suddenly piped up.
"Oh, Obito? Your eyes looked really scary earlier—like, murderous scary."
"......"
"......"
Obito and Black Zetsu fell completely silent. Then, as if by mutual agreement, they ignored him entirely. Obito finally broke the silence.
"Get ready. Try to recruit Kakuzu. And that new kid—we'll test him too."
"Got it."
Black Zetsu nodded. But, of course, White Zetsu couldn't stay quiet.
"Oh! One more thing…"
"Think carefully before you speak. I won't promise not to kill you."
"Okay, okay! No need to get scary—I just sensed someone coming."
"Who?"
"Old acquaintances of yours."
White Zetsu paused dramatically, then chuckled.
"I recognized their chakra. One's Kakashi Hatake… the other is that kid who hurt you last time… and there's also some weirdo who looks like a kappa…"
Obito's face, hidden behind the mask, twisted.
"You've got to be kidding me…"
"Them again?!"