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Maybe I saw it wrong.
Yuhi Shinku didn't dwell on it. Instead, he patted his daughter's head affectionately.
Yuhi Kurenai's performance had been typical for a beginner. Thinking of this, he glanced at Yuichi Yuuki, who was standing still, lost in thought.
"Not bad, but don't get too cocky. What you did was just average," Yuhi Shinku coughed lightly, shamelessly downplaying Yuuki's performance. "When I first learned ninjutsu, I mastered it just as quickly as you."
Yuichi Yuuki looked at him with disdain. "Uncle Shinku, I'm not four or five years old anymore! You can't trick me!" He was six this year, after all.
Yuhi Shinku: "..."
I forgot how much this kid knows.
The next day.
Yuichi Yuuki was slumped over his desk, bored. Beside him, Yuhi Shinku was reading a book on assassination techniques with great interest.
"Kurenai, what are you reading?" Yuichi asked lazily while lying on the desk.
"Huh?" Kurenai turned to him, puzzled. "Isn't this something ninjas need to learn?"
She handed him the book and pointed to a passage. "Look at this."
"The mission of a ninja requires stealth and secrecy, utilizing various methods such as poisoning, ambush, stealth, and disguise to complete the mission."
"You can learn a lot from this."
Yuichi Yuuki looked at the spot Kurenai pointed to and saw the passage. However, he shook his head in disagreement. He had his own understanding.
The truly powerful in the ninja world were beings beyond ordinary limits. People who could destroy entire nations by themselves. Why would they need to rely on poisoning and sneak attacks?
Yuichi Yuuki, confident in his own abilities thanks to his secret advantage, spoke up. "Why go through all that trouble?"
"If no one sees you doing the mission, doesn't that mean it was a perfect stealth mission?"
Kurenai, confused, asked, "But how can you stop people from seeing you during a mission?"
"Simple—kill them all."
"Kill everyone protecting the target, and no one will be left to witness your mission."
Yuichi Yuuki's words carried a hint of coldness, but in this ninja world, his logic didn't seem out of place. It was just the harsh reality of their line of work.
At that moment, Hatake Kakashi walked into the classroom and overheard Yuichi's words. He sneered, "You're not a ninja, you're just reckless."
"Come on, Fifty-Fifty, don't be so serious!" Yuichi smiled, draping an arm over Kakashi's shoulder.
Kakashi immediately shrugged off Yuichi's arm. "I don't have time for you."
Only Kakashi knew how embarrassed he had been after Yuichi's trap the day before. He still hadn't forgotten how he was tricked into believing the Hokage himself was looking for him.
Yuichi Yuuki didn't take Kakashi's attitude to heart. He figured it was normal for a kid to hold a grudge after being tricked.
"Fifty-Fifty, I did that for your own good!" Yuichi said, feigning concern.
Kakashi frowned, his instincts telling him to be wary.
Yuichi, seeing this, sighed dramatically. "Your awareness is way too low. I managed to trick you right in front of the teacher yesterday. If you keep this up, someone will sell you out one day and you'll even help them count the money!"
As he spoke, Yuichi grabbed the assassination technique book from the confused Kurenai, pointing to the passage she had shown him earlier.
"Look, Fifty-Fifty! It says right here: a ninja must use any means necessary to complete their mission."
"In the future, someone might trick you like I did. If you don't raise your awareness, it'll cost you your life!"
Kakashi, though reluctant to admit it, found some logic in Yuichi's words. He nodded.
Yuichi smirked and continued, "See? What I did yesterday was just a small trick, but in the real world, falling for something like that could kill you. So, am I not helping you by making you more aware?"
Realization hit Kakashi, and though he was still annoyed, he muttered, "Fine. But if you try it again, I'll make sure you regret it."
Yuichi chuckled inwardly. You can't beat me, little brother.
As Kakashi took his seat, Yuichi made a small victory gesture towards Kurenai, who smiled sweetly. After being together for so long, she had come to understand Yuichi's antics.
Class hadn't started yet, so Yuichi poked Kakashi in the back, feeling his spine through his shirt.
"What?" Kakashi asked, turning around impatiently.
"Kuuuxi, can't you show me your real face?" Yuichi asked, teasingly.
"Get lost."
Kakashi turned away, ignoring him. Yuichi continued to poke at his back.
"Kuuuxi, if you don't turn around, I'm going to poke your spine!"
At that, Kakashi turned around sharply. "I'm not showing you!"
Yuichi shook his head. "No, I just wanted to ask if you wanted to skip class and go train again later."
Kakashi hesitated. He did want to skip class, but after being lectured by the teacher the day before, he wasn't so sure.
Seeing his indecision, Yuichi slumped over his desk dramatically. "We already know all this stuff. It's a waste of time sitting here. Training is way more useful."
Kakashi nodded in agreement.
"But won't the teacher be mad?" Kurenai asked nervously. "You guys skipped class yesterday too. If you do it again..."
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