Under Konoha’s Shadow

Chapter 36: Hot Pot

Half an hour later, all the classmates had arrived. Komiya Yuki was immediately pulled aside by Senju Miyuki. After being brainwashed with some idea, she actually agreed to let Miyuki live there.

Now, Yuki was talking with Yamamoto Nami. After a short while, Yamamoto Shuichi was sent out to do something.

Ryusei asked with confusion, "Mom, where did Dad go?"

Nami shot Ryusei a fierce glare. "I told him to go and invite Yuki's parents."

Ryusei asked with doubt, "Yuki, are your parents back?"

Yuki immediately thought of being kissed outside the gate, and her face instantly turned red. She just nodded vigorously without speaking.

Seeing the blushing Yuki, Nami couldn't help but show a motherly smile again. Something else must have happened between these two.

"Ryusei, where do these go?" Inuzuka Rō called out, walking in with a large stack of books, followed by Hiruzen, Kagami, and Natsuki.

Ryusei led them into a bedroom and pointed at a desk. "Just put them there."

The group placed the books on the desk. Hiruzen looked at the books that were already there and asked, "Where did these books come from?"

Ryusei, who was flipping through the books they had brought, replied, "These are records of the ninja world that I borrowed from the Senju clan. I have to return them in a month. I plan to copy them in a few days."

Inuzuka Rō asked with doubt, "Didn't you say yesterday that we'd meet at your house? Why the change today?"

Ryusei said helplessly, "My parents came back yesterday, so it's not appropriate to have it at my house anymore. I decided to buy a house to be our secret base from now on."

Hiruzen was excited. "That's great! I've always wanted a secret base! Can I have a room here?"

Ryusei nodded. "Except for the rooms with names on the doors, you can all pick one."

Rō and Hiruzen excitedly ran off to choose their rooms. Kagami and Natsuki stayed with Ryusei, looking at the materials on Kekkei Genkai.

Kagami closed a book and said, "Currently, Kekkei Genkai can be roughly divided into two categories. One is a Kekkei Genkai inherent to the body's organs, such as the Sharingan, the Byakugan, and the Shikotsumyaku. The other is formed by the fusion of two or more chakra natures, such as the Hokage-sama's Wood Style and the Yuki clan's Ice Style."

Natsuki nodded. "That's right. For now, we are mainly researching the second type of Kekkei Genkai. If we succeed, we will have two Kekkei Genkai."

Ryusei also nodded. "Correct. The second type of Kekkei Genkai seems more like a kind of secret technique. Once you know the principle, you might be able to learn it. But it can also be inherited, which might significantly alter our physical constitution in the future."

Suddenly, there was a commotion outside. The three exchanged glances, put away the books, and went out. They met Rō and Hiruzen coming down from upstairs.

Outside, they saw that Hashirama, Madara, Tobirama, and Mito—the four great leaders—had already arrived. The four of them, along with Yamamoto Shuichi, were sitting in the left pavilion. Yamashita Eeko, Yuki's parents, Yamamoto Nami, and Senju Miyuki were sitting in the right pavilion. The other classmates were gathered around tables on the lawn, staring at the pot in the middle of each table. The pot had a chimney in the center, inside which charcoal was burning. The surrounding water basin was divided into two parts by a metal plate. One half was a red, oily soup, and the other was a white broth. The soup in both sections was constantly boiling.

Everyone was a bit curious, unsure what kind of dish this was, and for a moment, no one dared to start.

Liu Maoxing pointed at the pot on the table. "This is a hot pot. The red soup has chili peppers in it, and the white soup doesn't." He then pointed to a nearby table. "That table has all the washed and cut vegetables. When you want to eat, just put the vegetables into the pot to cook. Put them in whichever side you like. If you feel the flavor isn't enough, there are condiments on another table. You can mix your own dipping sauce in a bowl."

After Liu Maoxing finished speaking, everyone was still hesitant. Ryusei said to the four beside him, "You guys follow me later. Do whatever I do." The four nodded in agreement.

Ryusei ran to the condiment area, took a bowl, mixed five portions of dipping sauce, and placed them on a tray. He then went to the vegetable table, took a lot of food, and called the other four to carry everything over to Hashirama's table.

Arriving at their table, he first set up the dipping sauce bowls for everyone. Then he put the vegetables into the pot and said, "Teacher, you can eat once the food is cooked." He then ran to the lawn, found a table, and started preparing his own.

Seeing Ryusei's actions, the other students understood what to do and all scrambled to get their own food and condiments.

Hashirama tasted a mouthful of the cooked food and couldn't help but praise, "This hot pot tastes great! Especially this red pot, the spiciness is so satisfying."

"Indeed," Mito also praised. "I've never encountered such a novel way of eating. And the white soup tastes so fresh! What is it made of?"

"It should be mushrooms," Tobirama said, scooping some mushrooms out of the pot with a ladle.

"Madara, you ate all my meat!" Hashirama said, looking at the pieces of meat in Madara's bowl.

"Then just put more in," Madara said, eating his meat without even looking up.

Watching the two of them fight over meat, Yamamoto Shuichi could only nibble on some vegetables.

At the students' tables, Yamanaka Seisen looked at the gobbling Akimichi Torifu and said, "Torifu, it's so hot, eat slower."

Torifu swallowed a piece of meat. "This is so delicious! And you can eat whatever you want! It's so comfortable! I'm going to eat like this at home from now on."

"Yeah, and it's so convenient," Nara Shikamei said to Nara Shikagen. "Brother Shikagen, our family can also promote this kind of food. That way, we won't have to stir-fry."

"It's not that simple," Nara Shikagen said, pointing at the hot pot. "The soup base was probably simmered for at least a few hours. This is more troublesome than ordinary cooking."

Nara Shikamei nodded. "Then forget it. In the future, if I want to eat this, I'll just go to Torifu's house."

Yamanaka Seisen's face darkened. "You Naras are so lazy."

Nara Shikamei defended himself, "It's not laziness, we just hate trouble."

Seisen's face darkened several more shades as she muttered, "Is there a difference?"

Komiya Yuki was putting food into Ryusei's bowl. The nearby Hiruzen and the others saw this and felt that even the hot pot wasn't so fragrant anymore.

However, Ryusei wasn't as comfortable as the others thought, because Komiya Yuta was staring at him the whole time.

Ryusei asked Yuki, "When did your parents get back?"

Yuki blushed and said, "They've been back for a few days."

Ryusei glanced at Yuta's sharp gaze and asked with some hesitation, "Did he see what happened at the gate that day?"

Yuki nodded her head furiously, her face red. Hiruzen winked and asked, "What happened at the gate that day?"

Ryusei shot Hiruzen a glare. "Just eat your hot pot."

The other boys exchanged glances and chuckled knowingly.

After the meal, the students all left with full bellies. Akimichi Torifu, in particular, could barely walk.

The four great leaders were still drinking tea in the pavilion. Komiya Yuta and Yamamoto Shuichi were touring the house, while Yamamoto Nami, Komiya Ayako, and Komiya Yuki were cleaning up the kitchen.

Ryusei went over to the four leaders and asked, "Teacher Hashirama, how did you fuse your Wood Style back then?"

Hashirama thought for a moment and shook his head. "I don't know. It just fused naturally."

Tobirama asked, "Why? Ryusei, are you thinking of fusing a Kekkei Genkai?"

Ryusei replied, "Yes. I feel that Kekkei Genkai like Ice Style and Wood Style are just a special kind of ninjutsu. It should be possible to learn them."

Tobirama pondered for a long time. "You're not wrong to say that, but no one has yet figured out how Kekkei Genkai are fused. And our Konoha has very little information on this type of Kekkei Genkai. The Hidden Mist Village, on the other hand, has a lot."

Madara said coldly, "Then let's go and steal it back."

Hashirama objected, "No, Madara. That will only cause a war. But Ryusei, why are you asking this question?"

Ryusei said, "Because I've discovered that almost all the famous masters in the ninja world are Kekkei Genkai users. Especially Teacher Hashirama, the God of Shinobi, and Teacher Madara, the Asura of the Ninja World. If I want to be the strongest in the ninja world, I should also have my own Kekkei Genkai."

"That's not necessarily true," Mito countered. "Our Uzumaki clan doesn't have a Kekkei Genkai, but we are still among the top masters in the ninja world."

Ryusei retorted, "No, I believe your physical constitution itself is a type of Kekkei Genkai."