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"So, what do you want to ask?"
Looking at Scar's appearance, Yuichi Yuuki thought for a moment, then said, "I want someone else to sign the contract with your Fire Crow Clan, and I want to ask about that."
Scar seemed unimpressed and said, "You can sign if you want."
"The scroll is in your hand, right? Why are you asking us?"
Yuichi Yuuki: "???"
"Are you guys really that casual?"
"Yeah, of course," Scar replied lazily. "The scroll's with you, so just do whatever you want. We're here to follow you into battle anyway."
"Alright, don't bother me anymore!"
Scar left with one last comment, "Just show the scroll to the Big Crow after the signing. I'm off to continue dancing!"
With that, he used the summoning technique and vanished.
After Scar disappeared, Yuichi Yuuki sat on the edge of his bed, deep in thought.
The Fire Crow Clan seemed to have a surprisingly lax attitude towards him. However, he didn't need to summon them at the moment since there was no urgent battle, and he couldn't yet learn their sage Mode.
Deciding to let Kurenai Yuhi sign the contract and deal with it later, Yuichi Yuuki got up and headed for the door.
When he came downstairs, Yuhi Shinku noticed and asked curiously, "Going somewhere?"
Yuichi Yuuki nodded. "I'm going to pick up Kurenai!"
Shinku frowned, as if wanting to say something, but before he could, Yuichi Yuuki had already dashed out the door.
"Take care of your spirit!" Shinku called out after him.
"Spirit? I'm perfectly fine!" Yuichi Yuuki shouted back, running toward the ninja academy.
Though he knew Shinku was referring to his frequent use of the shadow clone technique, he couldn't help but feel like there was an implied criticism—he just had no proof.
Yuichi Yuuki was fast. He arrived at the academy well before school ended.
"There's no one here." He peered inside. Surprisingly, there wasn't a gatekeeper, which struck him as odd.
The academy, located in the center of Konoha with many Chunin teachers, should have security. The absence of a gatekeeper could mean Konoha was going through a critical period.
Just as Yuichi was about to sneak in, a familiar voice called out behind him.
"You little rascal, skipping class again?"
Yuichi turned to see Uzumaki Kushina approaching with her arms crossed.
Seeing Yuichi's wary look, Kushina chuckled and reached out to ruffle his hair.
"I'm on leave," Yuichi protested, stepping back to avoid her hand. "Stop messing with my hair!"
"As your big sis, why can't I touch your head?"
The more Yuichi resisted, the more amused Kushina became.
Seeing her persistence, Yuichi turned and ran, shouting, "Stop calling yourself my sister!"
"If you keep messing with your hair, you'll never grow taller!"
"There are only two of us in the Uzumaki clan. If I'm not your sister, who am I?" Kushina teased as she jogged behind him. "Don't want to call me sister? You can always call me aunt."
Yuichi nearly tripped at the word "aunt."
"That's not happening!" he muttered under his breath.
Kushina was just out for a stroll when she spotted Yuichi loitering at the school gates and couldn't resist teasing him. She found his reactions amusing and thought to herself how fun it would be to have a child like him someday.
After a bit of playful chasing, Kushina grew impatient and sped up, quickly catching Yuichi by his collar and lifting him off the ground.
"Let me go!" Yuichi struggled, glaring angrily.
Kushina laughed and ruffled his hair again. "Your hair feels nice. That's the red hair of our Uzumaki clan!"
Yuichi glared even harder. "One day, I'll make a technique just for head-touching, and then you'll regret this!"
Not taking his threats seriously, Kushina finally set him down and clapped her hands. "Alright, alright. Let's go grab some ramen, my treat."
"Deal, sister!" Yuichi's mood immediately brightened.
He hadn't eaten since noon and was genuinely hungry now.
Seeing how quickly Yuichi's attitude changed, Kushina laughed. "You're so shameless."
Yuichi nodded seriously. "It's no big deal. Besides, what's a little head-patting when there's ramen on the line?"
Kushina laughed again and led the way to Ichiraku Ramen, a short walk away.
When they arrived, the shop was mostly empty due to the odd time between meals.
Teuchi, the ramen chef, smiled at them as they entered. "What'll it be, you two?"
"I'll take the usual," Yuichi said.
"And I'll have the same," added Kushina.
Teuchi got to work. "One pork bone ramen with extra naruto and one miso ramen, coming right up."
As Teuchi prepared the food, Kushina turned to Yuichi. "So, why weren't you in class?"
"I already told you, I took the afternoon off."
"But why were you at the school gate then?" Kushina asked, still confused.
"Are you serious?" Yuichi looked at her like she was slow. "I was picking up Kurenai."
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