In truth, Natsuki had no idea that Shino had been watching over him this whole time.
During yesterday's outdoor training, Shino had already noticed Natsuki deliberately holding back. At first, he was puzzled—now, he finally understood.
And in his heart, he completely supported it.
His friend, Aburame Shino's friend, would not be taken away.
"All right, I'll teach you the core principles now," Natsuki said, "but I still have to cook, so you'll be training on your own for a while."
He then began explaining the basics of one-handed hand seals—what to focus on, what techniques helped. Shino listened intently, absorbing every word.
Once the lesson was done, Natsuki asked about his tastes, then went into the kitchen to start preparing dinner.
Shino watched Natsuki's back for a moment, then returned to his practice with renewed motivation.
He knew full well the value of one-handed seals, especially in a clutch situation.
Just like in the original timeline—when Sasuke and Haku had a standoff, and Haku launched an attack mid-stalemate with a single hand seal. Had Sasuke been any slower, he would've been seriously injured.
Though the Aburame clan specialized in insect techniques, they still practiced standard ninjutsu like the Three Basic Jutsu and Shadow Clone. One-handed seals had huge potential.
Before long, Natsuki had finished cooking and called Shino to the table.
The cuisine in the world of Naruto leaned toward traditional Japanese fare, with an emphasis on individual servings. Natsuki adapted to the local culture and split the dishes accordingly.
Shino, likely encountering Chinese food for the first time, raised his brows in surprise. He picked up a piece of meat and popped it into his mouth—and his entire expression changed.
"Natsuki, your cooking is amazing. This is delicious."
"Haha, it's just basic home-cooked food. Glad you like it."
Natsuki wasn't being modest—what he made really was standard fare. It's just that Japanese food culture was a bit... lacking. For someone like Shino who'd never had a different style of food, of course it tasted amazing.
After finishing dinner, Shino didn't linger. He stood up and got ready to leave.
"Want me to walk you home? It's already dark."
"No need. I'm safe. See you tomorrow," Shino replied and disappeared into the night.
Natsuki looked around, didn't see any sign of him, then closed the door, cleaned up the dishes, and entered the Gravity Training Room—time to work off that full stomach with some tree climbing and water walking.
Shino had just returned home, where his father, Aburame Shibi, was already waiting.
Seeing his son return safely, Shibi exhaled a quiet breath of relief. "Shino, why are you home so late today?"
"I had dinner at a friend's house," Shino replied honestly.
Shibi's sunglasses practically lit up. "Oh? You've already made a friend? And even had dinner at their house? Not bad at all!"
Clearly, he was very pleased that his usually reserved son had managed to make a friend.
"Dad... actually, I have something to discuss with you."
Shino then explained everything about Natsuki, from the dinner to the lesson and the context behind it, then waited quietly for his father's response.
Shibi looked thoughtful. "That friend of yours is a real genius. Not from a shinobi family, yet already developed one-handed seals on his own? That's incredible. And he seems like a good person—he'd rather sell the technique than take advantage of a friend. You're right to trust him. Here's what we'll do: offer him 100,000 ryō as payment for teaching you."
Shino was stunned. "A hundred thousand...?"
Shibi ruffled his hair with a chuckle. "A single B-rank mission earns between eighty to two hundred thousand. This is perfectly fair. What, you want to offer him a million instead? If you're worried it's not enough, just help your friend more in the future."
Shino nodded silently. Then his father stuffed a thick wad of cash into his hands—leaving him frozen in place.
He had originally planned to use his own allowance...
Shibi gave a warm smile. "I'm glad you made a friend, Shino. It makes me happy as your father. Money's not an issue—don't worry about it."
The next day at noon, Shino brought Natsuki to a dango shop and treated him to lunch. He also handed him the envelope full of money.
Natsuki let out an awkward laugh. "You could've waited until after you mastered it. No rush."
Shino quietly ate his dango. "Doesn't matter. I'll learn it soon."
Natsuki didn't refuse. He accepted the money and asked how Shino's training had gone. Not that he had to monitor Shino closely—this wasn't Naruto they were talking about. Shino was diligent and disciplined. If he had any problems, he would bring them up on his own.
And with his level of talent, once he grasped the basics, learning wasn't hard.
With 100,000 ryō now in his hands, Natsuki no longer had to worry about starving. He could finally start planning his training more seriously.
During the day, it would be class time. In his free hours, he'd review the school textbooks—especially the outdoor combat classes and practical subjects.
In the mornings and evenings, he'd train in the Gravity Training Room.
For now, he'd set the gravity to 2x. He was still a kid—overdoing the weights could stunt his growth, and that would defeat the whole purpose.
As for his training style, he followed the Kamesennin (Turtle Hermit) method: delivering milk, digging fields, mining, swimming—nothing too extreme, but comprehensive enough to work out his entire body. With proper meals and nutrients afterward, he would make solid progress during his student years.
As he got older, he'd gradually increase the gravity and intensity.
But that was for the future.
He also kept Master Roshi's words in mind: Train hard, eat well, sleep well, and study well.
Eating and sleeping especially—absolutely critical for a child's development.
Now that he had a stable food supply, Natsuki decided that aside from the first of each month, he would never train past midnight. Every night, he'd sleep on time. After all, he had to wake up early the next day to deliver milk.
This morning, under 2x gravity in the training room, Natsuki was carrying a heavy basket of milk and climbing a steep mountain path. He had no idea how far he'd walked—his legs were shaking, and his whole body was drenched in sweat.
He grit his teeth and pressed on.
He had intentionally set the milk route to be long and hard—climbing, wading through streams, navigating all sorts of terrain. Chakra was forbidden, making it even harder. It was brutal.
After what felt like forever, he finally delivered the milk to the target location.
Then he grabbed a glass and chugged it down—only to immediately gag and roll his eyes.
As expected, food produced inside the training room had no taste. If it had, he wouldn't have to worry about groceries. Not that he was complaining—this system of his was already incredible. Asking for more would just be greedy.
He finished training, took a hot shower, had a hearty breakfast, then rushed off to school.
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