Chapter 9 - Chapter 9: Lifelong Companions, Witnessed by Brothers

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What a worthwhile trip this was.

Heshu returned to the classroom and was immediately swarmed with concern.

"Heshu, are you okay?"

"Did that Uchiha Juri bastard bully you?"

Sarutobi Aoki's fury was palpable, practically steaming from his ears. If Heshu nodded, he'd likely charge out and smash Juri's face into paste.

Uh-oh.

This kid seemed a little… extreme.

Heshu's mind raced, a plan forming. He let his eyes sparkle with fragmented light, shaking his head with a look of pure, starry-eyed admiration. "Of course not! And I was with Shisui-kun. He'd protect me."

Bravo, me. Heshu mentally applauded his own genius. This would pit Aoki against Shisui. Then, he'd just have to play the innocent and defend Shisui. Boom. More Favorability.

Just as predicted, Sarutobi Aoki's anger exploded.

Damn it!

He was supposed to be the hero! How dare Uchiha Shisui steal his moment!

Aoki fought to control himself. When Shisui returned to the classroom with Juri in tow, Aoki's glare locked onto him. His eyes, wide as dinner plates, burned with rage and scorn.

"…?"

Shisui blinked, utterly bewildered.

The first day of classes ended without further incident.

Back home, Heshu found Takenouchi packing.

"Uncle, are you going out?"

Heshu stood in the doorway of Takenouchi's room, watching as the man stuffed kunai and soldier pills into a bag.

Takenouchi turned. Seeing the child who barely reached the doorknob, guilt flashed in his eyes. He crouched, placing a large hand on Heshu's head. "Heshu, Uncle might be gone for a while. You'll have to look after yourself. I've left all the money in the coin jar by your bed. Don't scrimp. Buy whatever you want."

He didn't want to leave so soon. But war had erupted without warning. His only goal was to survive and come back. He couldn't let this child become an orphan again.

Heshu knew the Great War wasn't over. Even if Takenouchi didn't say it, his haste told the story. Heshu looked up, his expression serious. "Come back quickly, Uncle."

"Mm."

Takenouchi nodded. His figure leaped from the window and vanished into the night.

Watching him go, Heshu let out a soft sigh.

People weren't grass or trees. How could they feel nothing? Besides, Takenouchi had been nothing but kind to him. There was nothing a child like him could do now. He could only silently pray for Takenouchi's safe return.

Hiss.

Little Green slithered along the dry, gnarled branches outside the wall and onto Heshu's shoulder.

The next morning, with no one to walk him, Heshu set off for school alone.

He never expected Uchiha Juri to show up with a pack of Uchiha street punks, blocking his only route to school.

In a deserted alley, Juri stood at the front. Behind him loomed a group of older boys. Compared to Heshu's current short stature, they were practically giants.

Juri looked down at Heshu with pure contempt, as if staring at an insect on the ground.

Heshu raised a brow.

No Madara's power, but all of Madara's attitude. That was the tragedy of Uchiha Juri and every other Uchiha cannon fodder.

Besides, he hadn't flinched in front of Juri's own ancestor. What were a bunch of wannabe tough guys to him?

"You're good at ambushes, aren't you?" Juri sneered. "Show me your ambush now!"

Clearly, Juri was rewriting yesterday's humiliation as a "sneak attack" to salvage his shattered pride.

Heshu didn't bother arguing. "What do you want?"

Don't make me late.

He didn't need a tardy mark on the second day.

"What do we want?" Juri let out a crazed laugh. "An eye for an eye! Blood for blood!"

Right in front of Heshu, he licked the corner of his mouth.

Heshu shuddered, a wave of disgust washing over him.

Confirmed. Uchiha Juri was a terminal chuunibyou case. Even Sasuke at his worst wasn't this cringe.

"Isn't this… too much?" A voice from the back finally spoke up. One of the Uchiha frowned, looking uncomfortable. "She's just a little girl. This is low."

"I think so too."

"I can't do it."

Whispers spread through Juri's posse.

Juri's face darkened. "What are you all here for?!" he snarled. "To get revenge, or to fawn over Tsukimi Heshu?!"

Pathetic! He seethed internally. These guys have never seen a real woman! It's just a slightly pretty face! And they're already this useless!

Not him. Uchiha Juri was no simp. He wasn't a man swayed by mere looks!

Hah!

A cold, mocking smirk twisted his lips.

"Get her!" he barked at the group behind him.

Swish!

A black-clad figure dropped between Heshu and Juri.

This time, it wasn't Shisui.

It was—

Kakashi Hatake!

Heshu's eyes lit up. He hadn't expected Kakashi to intervene.

"An… ANBU?!"

The boys behind Juri scattered like startled birds, fleeing in every direction.

In a blink, Juri stood alone.

"Those traitors!" He gritted his teeth, staring at the masked figure. His bravado wavered. He was just a rookie academy student. Facing an ANBU operative? Yeah, he was scared.

Kakashi didn't speak. He just stood there, silent. But his presence was a drawn blade—sharp, cold, and dangerous.

The outcome was predictable. Juri fled once more, eyes red with fury. Heshu wondered if a few more humiliations like this would actually trigger his Sharingan.

Heshu quickly refocused on Kakashi. Before the man could turn, Heshu adjusted his expression.

"Mister… thank you…" Heshu stepped forward, a small, pale hand clutching the hem of Kakashi's flak jacket.

Kakashi looked down at the hand but said nothing. He tried to step back, but the tiny grip tightened.

"Mister, I'm scared. Can you walk me to school?" Heshu bit his lip, his large blue eyes glistening. Afraid of rejection, he quickly added, "I… I'll buy you lunch!"

Heh.

Strike first, then lay the groundwork for future contact.

Piece of cake.

With this, how could he not win Kakashi over?

Give me those points, Kakashi!

[Ding! Strategy Target Kakashi Hatake's Favorability: 20!]

[Ding! Strategy Target Kakashi Hatake's Favorability: 15!]

[Ding! Strategy Target Kakashi Hatake's Favorability: 10!]

…

Heshu froze.

Listening to the cascade of notifications, he felt himself cracking in the wind.

What went wrong?

What kind of freak is Kakashi?!

"Mister, I'll… I'll walk by myself! Don't trouble you!" Heshu stammered, scrambling to salvage the situation. He couldn't get a read on this masked, broody weirdo. His mind was in turmoil, a frantic inner soundtrack of "What is he thinking?!"

Swish!

A gust of wind brushed Heshu's cheek. The alley was empty save for him.

Kakashi Hatake was gone.

But within the range of his Six Eyes, Heshu knew. He was still there. Still fulfilling his ANBU duty.

Watching. Monitoring. Until the month was up.

[Ding! Strategy Target Kakashi Hatake's Favorability: 15!]

[Ding! Strategy Target Kakashi Hatake's Favorability: 20!]

[Ding! Strategy Target Kakashi Hatake's Favorability: 25!]

The points climbed back to where they started.

Heshu was numb.

Of course. A man who covered one eye and wore a mask his whole life was no ordinary man.

Kakashi's mind is a maze. Don't try to solve it. You'll only drive yourself crazy.

Heshu stepped into the classroom with one minute to spare.

"Heshu-kun, did you have breakfast?"

"Heshu-kun, have mine!"

"Mine's better!"

"You're lying! Mine tastes way better!"

His butt had just made contact with the chair when a horde of tiny humans descended, holding out elaborate bento boxes.

Faced with their expectant stares and the tempting aromas, Heshu reluctantly accepted their offerings.

"I don't want to disappoint anyone," he sighed, feigning helplessness. "So I'll have to take them all."

"Heshu is so kind!"

The surrounding kids immediately sighed in admiration.

A spiky-haired boy in the back row watched this scene, a strange glint in his eye.

The bell rang, and everyone reluctantly returned to their seats.

After greeting the class, Sato didn't continue with the book. Instead, he began teaching them chakra control.

With his god's-eye view, Heshu understood Sato's motive.

Starting chakra control on the second day was rushed for most students.

But connect it to the renewed war, the shortage of frontline shinobi… Sato's goal was obvious.

Get them battlefield-ready. Fast.

No wonder he'd never seen this batch of kids in the original story. They probably all died in the war.

Heshu lowered his gaze, secretly popping a sweet into his mouth.

If he didn't want to be seen, no one would see him.

"Wow! Awesome!"

"Chakra!"

Unlike the visibly troubled Sato, the kids below buzzed with excitement.

Sato wrote the chakra control method meticulously on the board. He even performed a demonstration.

Here, the gap between clan kids and civilians widened.

Clan kids had already been guided at home. They had their chakra.

The civilian kids listened with rapt curiosity.

Heshu's chakra came with the Six Eyes package. He'd never manually refined it. The skill itself had dumped a massive load into his system.

He knew he had a lot. He didn't know how much.

The System answered his unspoken question. "You cannot increase your chakra through personal training. You can only absorb the chakra inherent in the skills the System rewards you with."

So, total System dependency. No other path.

It meant the quest for Favorability couldn't stop.

Stop, and it was a dead end.

Unless he became strong enough that no one could touch him.

"Alright, the steps are clear. Everyone, try it now!" Sato instructed from the podium.

While his classmates focused, Heshu continued mentally. "What's my current chakra level?"

The System tallied the chakra attached to all his acquired skills. "Currently, Six Eyes and Limitless each carry the standard chakra of a Genin. Combined with the chakra from Hie Hie no Mi, Hadō #63: Sōkatsui, Cursed Technique: Blue, Teleportation, etc., your total chakra is equivalent to a Jōnin."

"Chakra from skills like Six Eyes, Limitless, and Hie Hie no Mi will grow as your physical body ages."

So, powerful skills could grow. Ordinary ones couldn't.

Nice.

We're taking off.

Heshu felt a small thrill. He opened his eyes. Aside from a few kids with notable last names, the rest of the class still had their eyes closed, concentrating.

"Huh?"

Sato, as the teacher, knew the clan-civilian divide. Seeing Heshu's open eyes, he was shocked.

Had she succeeded already?

That fast?

This is genius-level!

The class dissolved into cheers from some, dejected sighs from others.

Sato offered words of encouragement, then announced, "Next, we begin physical conditioning!"

The kids didn't care that "physical conditioning" sounded exhausting. They just knew they were escaping the classroom for the playground!

Sato's packed schedule was another sign. The higher-ups were desperate for bodies on the front lines.

The playground was a sun-scorched expanse. A few lonely trees offered the only patches of shade.

They lined up by height. Heshu, of course, ended up in the front row.

He wasn't happy about it.

Damn it!

Here he was, biologically male, standing in line with all the girls. Some of the taller girls were even behind him.

A sudden, primal fear gripped Heshu.

"System. Tell me I won't be stuck at 150 or 160 centimeters."

His mental voice was borderline hysterical.

The average height for girls here was around 150cm. He was panicking.

The System's silence made it worse.

"There are things like… Height-Increasing Potions in the lottery, right?" he pleaded.

Please, universe!

He'd rather be a 185cm muscle-bound crossdresser in a qipao than a 150cm loli in the same dress!

Height—a man's dignity!

Internally, the System noted its own oversight, mildly impressed that the host of its "Alluring Conquest System" remembered his original gender. It answered, slightly off-topic, "The system's skill pool includes a Gender Swap Potion."

"That's good! That's good!" Heshu blurted, relief washing over him before his brain caught up.

Wait.

Gender Swap Potion?

What kind of cursed item is that?!

"NO!" Heshu mentally vetoed, strict. "I want Height-Increasing, NOT Gender-Swapping! And I am NOT changing genders!"

The System said nothing.

Humans, it mused, always spoke in absolutes.

They always came back around to the "This is actually good" law.

Heshu's expression turned solemn, his gaze serious. He made a solemn vow, right there on the training ground: For all eternity, I shall never be parted from my brother!

Seeing Heshu's intense, focused stare, Instructor Sato unconsciously straightened his own spine. His next command boomed across the field, louder and more forceful than before.

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