Konoha Drunkard

Shikamaru glanced at the scene next door. Although he wasn't very familiar with Sasuke, he still felt sorry for him. One girl was already troublesome enough, but this guy was surrounded by so many troubles at the same time.

"boring!"

After saying something in a low voice, the second male lead exploded into a cloud of smoke and disappeared. He was an avenger, after all; he didn't have time to get entangled with these girls. He hadn't even mastered the new ninjutsu he saw yesterday yet.

"Wow! Sasuke-kun is amazing, he can even use the Shadow Clone Technique!"

The girl really likes the second male lead, especially his pants-wearing look. He's even putting on a pretty good act. Watching him pretend to be all pantsy makes her heart almost jump out of her chest.

"Tch! What's so great about it? It's just a clone technique. I learned it a month ago too."

The savior saw the second male lead, dressed in shorts, pursed his lips, and said sarcastically in a low voice, "Just turn up the volume so that everyone in the classroom can hear you. Don't be too loud, or you'll get beaten up."

The number of times the Savior has been visited at home this year has broken Garp's record. This is mainly because Garp's parents and teachers dare not visit him, while the Savior's homeroom teacher, Iruka, is a bit of a hothead and has inherited his father's strong sense of responsibility. Even though the Savior is a second-generation fire-breed, he still has to visit his home when necessary, and he does so five times a week, with two days off. It's not that the Savior doesn't have Garp's domineering way of beating up his teacher, but he has never missed a class, been late, or left early.

Of course, these are minor issues. If someone is a super genius, skipping school every day wouldn't be a problem. The issue is that a savior and a genius are two parallel lines that will never meet. You're not a genius, so skipping classes all the time is unacceptable, especially when you encounter Iruka, a greenhorn fresh out of school. He runs from the Hokage's building to the savior's house, and the savior usually gets a beating from Kushina after Iruka leaves. Two months ago, during the clone technique test, the savior failed the clone technique test, and Iruka... In the name of Konoha's young talents, she ran off to complain to the parents. During that month, it wasn't just the savior who suffered; Minato also suffered along with her. Kushina's fiery temper was certainly unsuitable for teaching her slow-witted son, so the responsibility of teaching him fell to the ever-busy Minato. Minato managed to teach his son a clone technique for a whole month before he could learn it, and it was even similar to Shanks' Flying Thunder God Technique, with a two- or three-second delay after the hand seals were formed. Minato had given up hope on his son's talent.

"boom!"

"If you don't speak, no one will pretend to be mute for you! Don't you know your own limitations?"

The domineering Karin is back, slamming a punch into the Savior's head as she speaks menacingly.

"........."

The savior was lying on the ground with a big bump on his head and his eyes rolling around. Luckily, Karin didn't know any super strength techniques, otherwise that punch would have left him with almost no health.

"Alas... You reap what you sow."

Shikamaru slumped onto the table and sighed inwardly. He vowed never to have a girlfriend again; it was too terrifying.

...........

On the school playground, the second male student stood under a big tree, staring straight ahead, his hands forming a mudra.

"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Technique... cough cough cough!"

Then, Kuku exhaled a cloud of black smoke, accompanied by a series of coughs. This was the forty-third time he had been choked since last night.

"hateful!"

The second male lead clenched his fist and kicked the grass hard. The difficulty of this Fire Dragon Technique is second only to the easiest Great Fireball Technique. It's such an easy ninjutsu to learn, but he still can't learn it. Meanwhile, that man is said to have learned it after just one glance. How could there be such a big difference between brothers?

The gap was so large that he saw no hope of revenge. The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. When his mind became confused, he became anxious and his hands began to move like a tiger, so fast that only shadows could be seen. His hands moved faster and faster.

I feel it!

"Fire Release: Fire Dragon Technique!"

Wow! The kids around heard the second male lead's pants and, regardless of whether he could actually spit out a fire dragon, they gave him 99 points, keeping 1 point for themselves!

A ball of flame, as thick as a forearm, spewed from the second male lead's mouth, growing longer and longer until it formed a small fire dragon. It charged menacingly towards the large tree ahead, but after crashing into it, the fire dragon collapsed in frustration.

"This...this is a dragon?"

As the savior watched the tiny fire snake, resembling a caterpillar, being slain by the giant tree, he had an epiphany! It was clearly a fire snake, but the effect of the name change was truly remarkable. Looking at the astonished expressions of his companions, they were perhaps not so much shocked by the thin, snake-like fire dragon, but rather by the sheer power and majesty of the ninjutsu's name!

"...Although there is a difference in size, it is indeed a fire dragon technique in terms of form."

Shikamaru stroked his chin and said, "I have this ninjutsu at home. When Naruto asked me to find out what ninjutsu I could learn, I found it there. But this ninjutsu seems quite easy; Sasuke looks like he's struggling with it..."

Regardless of what the people around him thought, the second male lead was looking at his hands. He had finally succeeded. Although it was not quite as powerful as described on the scroll, at least he hadn't choked this time.

605. A loyal and righteous young man

"Why did this happen? I was just venting, so why did it work... That's it! My mind was filled with hatred just now. Maybe it was that hatred that calmed my mind, cleared my thoughts, and then I succeeded naturally!"

"Yes! That must be it!"

The second male lead clenched his fists tightly, his aura overwhelming; at that moment, he seemed like the king of the world...

"...What is this guy doing?"

The savior with beady eyes asked Shikamaru. Recently, he had noticed that Sasuke had become a bit neurotic. Ever since his great-uncle stopped taking him as a disciple, he was either muttering to himself all day or doing things that were hard for normal people to understand. For example, right now, if you're going to use ninjutsu, why are you closing your eyes and clenching your fists? And you look like you're enjoying it. Isn't that sick?

"Perhaps... he is contemplating life, which is a profound topic."

Shikamaru wasn't entirely sure. He was still young, and in this era, all the cool and collected guys were already quite old and had no interest in showing off in front of these kids; it would be beneath them. So even if Shikamaru was incredibly smart, he wouldn't realize that the second male lead was secretly putting on an act, and hadn't he noticed how many girls were starting to gather around him again?

"...Sigh! It's far from good enough."

Not far away, Shisui, wearing an Anbu mask, watched the second male lead's boastful antics from the shadows and sighed. He had witnessed the second male lead's actions. As Itachi's close friend, with Itachi going undercover, Shisui naturally had to check on his friend's younger brother frequently. Unable to appear openly, Shisui was relegated to a lowly position within the Anbu, having relinquished his Anbu squad leader position. Now, his daily task was simply to leisurely patrol the village, maintaining order. Of course, Koharu Utatane had undoubtedly played a part in this over the years. Although she couldn't command the Anbu, Sakumo Hatake still gave her that much face. And using a Kaleidoscope to patrol and maintain village order seemed quite effective... The crime rate had dropped considerably, since genjutsu had taken care of things before they even occurred.

Shisui shook his head, watching Sasuke's clumsy performance. He and Itachi were like teacher and friend; Shisui had taught Itachi many genjutsu and ninjutsu, or rather, shared his experience with him. After all, Itachi already knew many of these techniques, just not as easily. But Sasuke's performance was a stark contrast. Among these children, Sasuke might be considered a genius—after all, he'd already mastered the Fire Dragon Technique at only six or seven. However… without comparison, there's no harm done. Compared to his older brother, Sasuke looked like a product of Fugaku's drunken escapades, while Itachi was a meticulously crafted work of art. Sasuke couldn't even compare to the beautiful Ice Release technique of this year's graduating class…

"What? You want to go and teach him yourself?"

A hand patted Zhishui on the shoulder as the newcomer spoke.

"I am already dead."

Shisui was initially tempted. Many of his ninjutsu were taught to him by Sasuke's father, and he was also close friends with Sasuke's older brother. How could he bear to watch Sasuke practice so carelessly?

However, considering that he is still a dead man, he decided to let it go to avoid being exposed. All those problems arose because his kaleidoscope was exposed in the first place.

"Don't worry, this kid's talent is a tiny bit less than Itachi's, but there's a saying that goes, 'Even a piece of shit... ptooey! Gold will always shine one day. How can you see a rainbow without going through the storm? You should worry about yourself instead. Sister Xiaochun has told me many times that you've brought this girl back for so many years, and it's not right to just let her eat and drink for free in the transfer club. When your dad was your age, your mom seemed to blame you. Shouldn't you give this girl an explanation?"

Shanks raised an eyebrow at Shisui. He really hadn't expected Shisui to have such an embarrassing side. That girl and her father had saved him, and he'd gotten along well with her, so he'd brought her back to Konoha. Their relationship had been ambiguous for years, and even Koharu Utatane's desire to find a good wife for her grandson had been worn down by him. Yet Shisui remained stagnant. If he were a little more shameless, Koharu would probably be showing off her great-grandson to Hiruzen Sarutobi by now.

However, he wasn't thin-skinned. Xiaochun, who was in the dormitory, had a skin as thick as a city wall. She had spoken with the girl and paved the way for him. As long as he took the final step, he would be on a smooth road ahead!

But this guy has gone through dozens of pairs of sneakers, and he just won't kick that one kick. Even the middle-aged Koharu Utatane is getting so worked up her blood pressure. She's done everything she can, but Shisui just won't kick. She's at her wit's end and can only try to find someone to talk to him. Shisui has many friends in the village, but now that he's dead, he can't be too high-profile. The people she can find are limited to those who know he's still alive. First off, she's ruled out Hiruzen Sarutobi. Letting that old rascal talk to her precious grandson? That would be terrible!

Minato was a good choice; he was handsome, had a pleasant voice, and most importantly, didn't have the bad habits of Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya. However, when she went to the Hokage Building and saw that Minato and Riki were busy in the office without a moment's rest, she decided not to bother them.

The remaining person is Shanks. Although Shanks is usually unreliable, he is still trustworthy when it comes to getting things done. Didn't he handle Kakashi and Kurenai's matter? Although his methods were somewhat despicable, the result was still good. Don't leaders always look at the results, not the process?

So, Koharu went to Shanks' house early in the morning to wait for him, eating the breakfast her disciple had made and waiting for him to get up, her expression suggesting that if he couldn't resolve this matter today, she would stay at his house and make him take care of her in her old age.

"Well... Itachi is still in that organization, I really don't have the mind to think about this kind of thing."

Shisui said embarrassedly that he had planned to get married before the family incident, but now that this happened and his good brother Itachi was in danger in that organization, how could he get married in peace?

Shanks covered his head and looked up at the sky. Shisui's reason left him speechless. They were both good men of loyalty and righteousness! What reason did he have to persuade a good man of loyalty and righteousness? Moreover, Shisui was doing it for his precious disciple, so there was even less reason!

Looks like I'll have to take care of Xiaochun, who's switching dorms, in her old age.

606. Young people are still young people after all.

"You're still too young. Itachi is my precious disciple. Do you think I won't be sad that he went undercover? Look at me, I haven't been able to eat or sleep well these past few days, and I've lost weight. But it's no use, is it? Life still goes on. Although what you did is true to your brotherhood with Itachi, think about that young girl. She came to the village with you and has grown into a young woman. If Itachi had stayed in Akatsuki for ten years or so, it wouldn't have mattered to you as a man, but that young woman's prime years have been wasted by you. How can you face her like that?"

Shanks pointed at Shisui with great emotion, his eyes reddening. However, he hadn't applied wasabi before leaving home, so he couldn't squeeze out any tears. Nevertheless, it didn't hinder his acting skills; he perfectly portrayed an elder who was disappointed in his child.

The thought of his and Haruko's next few years of alone time being gone made him determined to resolve the situation, even if it meant going against his conscience. If Kishimoto, out of consideration for the taxes he'd paid, didn't let his precious disciple die, it would still be almost ten years before the Akatsuki disbanded—no way! Ten years might not be much for an old woman like Koharu Utatane… but that's still money…!

"But......"

"No buts! I've figured it out. You so-called second-generation rich kids never care about other people's feelings. Have you ever thought about them? She's still a young flower and she's with you. Do you want to wait until she withers before you take responsibility for her? Your grandfather... no! Your father wasn't that kind of person. How can you face his teachings?"

I wanted to mention Uchiha Kagami, but then I remembered that he was the one who started the chaos in the aristocratic circles... so I'll leave it at that. His father, Uchiha Haru, is a good example. Perhaps it was because of Koharu's good upbringing that he was devoted to his love from a young age, and thus didn't cause a sequel to the chaos in the aristocratic circles...

"But........"

"No buts! Men who only say 'buts' generally fall into two categories: one is those who only know how to find excuses to shirk responsibility, and the other is a super kaleidoscope! This kind of person is the most despicable. Your eyes are already a kaleidoscope, do you want to be a kaleidoscope yourself?"

But Xiaochun isn't here. Otherwise, seeing how hard he worked on his acting, he might even get a big red envelope after it's all done.

"...I think even if you want to give them an explanation, you should at least let me prepare first."

Zhi Shui's forehead is covered in N+1 hash marks. Can't you just let me say something?! Is it that hard to say something?!

"Tch! What's there to prepare? The so-called 'decisiveness when you should act'... Bah! A swift and decisive action is key! You have to be quick, ruthless, and accurate in this kind of thing! She's been with you for so many years, what do you need to prepare? Go to the Yamanaka family's house after get off work today and buy a bouquet of flowers, anything but chrysanthemums and lilies, then think of a bunch of romantic words, and you're all set. With your education level, you shouldn't have any problems, right? It's economical and won't waste your money. I heard her father is from the Land of Waves? Just have the clansmen from the Utatane clan kidnap him and bring him over. As for the betrothal gifts, your Grandma Koharu has already taken care of them. That old woman has been the logistics minister for so many years, who knows how many supplies she has in stock. Don't worry, she won't embarrass you."

Shanks beamed. With Shanks on the case, one man could do the work of two! Eloquence isn't important; in the end, it's all about acting skills. Young people are still young people after all!

Most importantly, I don't have to take care of that old hag, Xiaochun, anymore.

"...Will it work?"

Shisui asked him hesitantly, not because she didn't believe him, but because the method was too simple. She had heard that Captain Kakashi and Kurenai were already engaged, and the proposal scene could be made into a movie.

"Don't worry, I can't speak for other things, but in this area I'm number one and no one dares to say I'm number two. I've brought together so many families in Konoha that I can't even count them on two hands."

Shanks patted his chest and assured him that Shisui couldn't show his face right now, so they had to keep a low profile. But if they were too low-key, that old hag Koharu Utatane would definitely be unhappy. So they had to keep the scope within a low-profile range. As for the wedding banquet and such, everything would be kept simple, just a formality would suffice.

Kakashi's side is different. Not to mention his powerful father, the Hatake clan is also a prominent and wealthy family, so they can't be simplified just because they want to.

Shisui left thoughtfully, as he was heading to the next stop to stake out the area. The Ninja Academy was just the first stop; he needed to think carefully about his lines when he got back. He had completely forgotten about the second male lead.

"...What a weakling."

After Shisui left, Shanks looked at the second male lead in his pants on the playground, who was still breathing fire dragons on his pants. He shook his head and said, "Both are reincarnations of Shura, so why is Madara so awesome, while this second male lead has to rely on his father, the Six Paths Elder? Shanks really doesn't understand. In the original work, this second male lead always seemed to be awesome, thinking about dominating everything during the early stages of development. If it weren't for Kishimoto giving him a few plot armors, he probably would have died during the development process. He doesn't understand the survival strategy of being sneaky in the early stages and aggressive in the late stages. He just uses his 'pretentious escape technique' to attract aggro from the start."

This is also one of the reasons why Shanks is unwilling to get close to the second male lead. It may be innate; he just doesn't like the second male lead's personality. Of course, he doesn't particularly like the savior's personality either. But... what can he do? He's his niece's son. Even if he doesn't like him, he has to protect him, otherwise he really won't have any peace.

"Grandpa? What are you doing at school?"

Lazy Shikamaru wanted to go to the big tree to sunbathe and take a nap, but as soon as he lay down and before he even closed his eyes, he saw a figure standing in the tree. It was none other than his mother's father, who was always so bored.

"Ah, I had nothing better to do, so I came to the school to reminisce. It's the place where I worked for many years, after all. But look how hard that handsome Uchiha guy works. He's even breathing fire dragons during his lunch break. You lazybones, you just want to sunbathe."

Shanks vigorously rubbed his spiky ponytail; the hairstyle was truly ugly, and even after looking at it for decades, he still thought it was incredibly ugly.

"...Stop rubbing. It took me ten minutes to finish this morning. I've learned all the family's secret techniques that I can, and there's no point in forcing myself to learn the ones that I can't."

The lazybones wriggled his head out of his hand and said listlessly, always lacking motivation. But it seems that being born into the Nara clan is just like that... In the future, he will be just like his lazy father, waiting for his father to retire and take over the position of Grand Marshal, and then stay in the Hokage's office until he retires and passes the position to his son. The Nara clan's lifestyle is already fixed.

607. The savior's brain hasn't opened up yet.

Although the current Shikamaru is much more powerful than in the original story, possessing the Uzumaki clan's physique—thick skin and tough flesh—he can learn almost any clan secret technique, except for a few that his body hasn't yet reached the required developmental stage. He also doesn't have to worry about running out of chakra. With high intelligence and thick skin, if there weren't a savior, this would truly be the destiny of a chosen one. Unfortunately, he lacks just a cheat code and a bunch of special advantages.

However, none of this seems to be of any use. The Grand Marshal won't come to fight unless he needs to. Besides, he's used to maintain the operation of the Konoha system. He's known this since he was a child. Plus, he has a family tradition of laziness. It would be strange if he had any motivation.

“Starting tomorrow, come to my house at five o’clock every morning. I have to give you special treatment. How can the grandson of the Four Emperors Red Hair be just a bystander? Your grandpa has always been the center of attention since he was a child.”

Shanks stroked his chin and said to Shikamaru, "Are you kidding? How can the grandson of Shanks, one of the Four Emperors, be a white-collar mage? Besides, he was much stronger in the Fourth Shinobi World War than in the first three. If he plays a minor role too much, he'll really become a background character. He can't teach the Nara clan's secret techniques, but he'll be fine with taijutsu, right? The little lazybones also has the physique of the Uzumaki clan."

"Five o'clock???? Isn't that too early!"

Shikamaru sat bolt upright, glaring at Shanks and yelling, "He usually needs his mother to call him ten times or more before he gets up for school! Now he's being woken up at five every single day! I might as well kill him!"

"Back then, your grandpa was used to be beaten up by that bastard from the first generation every morning at five o'clock... ptooey! I mean, woken up to practice. It's a tradition."