Chapter 24 The Uchiha Clan's Generosity Towards Friends
"You're so slow! Is this the standard of ninja training for the Uchiha clan?" Before Uchiha Touhuan and his companions could even speak, the Jonin from the Utatane clan blurted out. The
two civilian ninjas who had wanted to greet Uchiha Touhuan froze, unsure what to do. After all, both the Uchiha and Utatane clans were people they couldn't afford to offend, even though they were at least Special Jonin.
Uchiha Touhuan glanced at the speaker, smiled disdainfully, and ignored him. He then approached the two civilian ninjas with a warm smile, extending his hand.
"I am Uchiha Touhuan. It's an honor to work with you all on this mission."
The two civilian ninjas were somewhat flattered as they shook hands with Uchiha Touhuan. They hadn't expected the new Uchiha clan leader, a powerful figure already renowned from the Third Shinobi World War, to be so approachable.
"Nagai Seiichi, I hope Clan Chief Touhuan will take good care of us on this mission."
"Kuroki Ryuta, with you here, this mission will definitely be completed smoothly."
"Not at all, this mission requires everyone's sincere cooperation." Uchiha Touhuan said with a smile.
Then, Uchiha Touhuan, a Jonin of the Utatane clan, was annoyed that Uchiha Touhuan and his two companions had completely ignored them: "Didn't you hear what I said? You're so late, and you don't even have an apology?"
"I remember, it seems that it's not yet the agreed meeting time." Uchiha Touhuan turned around, his eyes turning cold.
Uchiha Inahisa and Uchiha Zaito behind him instantly activated their Sharingan, staring at each other.
"Moreover, didn't your elders teach you that you should have at least some respect for the strong?" The three tomoe in Uchiha Touhuan's eyes slowly rotated.
Inuzuka Kaze, Gekko Hayate, and Uzuki Yugao had originally intended to greet Uchiha Touhuan, but given the current situation, they could only remain on the sidelines. The other two Hyuga clan members stood with their arms crossed, coldly observing the scene.
"Alright, now that everyone's here, let's set off," Kakashi said, putting away his little Liu Bei and approaching the group.
"Since Captain Kakashi has spoken, let's go," Uchiha Touhuan said, deactivating his Sharingan and regaining his smile.
Although their first meeting wasn't exactly pleasant, the group, led by Kakashi, submitted their exit procedures at the village entrance.
This mission wasn't urgent, so they weren't in a rush.
According to intelligence, Orochimaru had recently appeared on the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rice Fields, so their destination was north of the village.
During their journey, Inuzuka Kaze's ninja dog, Sumeragi, kept approaching Uchiha Touhuan.
"Your nose is really sharp." Seeing this, Uchiha Touhuan smiled and took out a few pieces of raw meat from the sealing scroll, feeding them to Momo.
After eating, Momo barked contentedly twice and even licked Uchiha Touhuan's palm.
"Huh? It's strange that Momo is so friendly to someone from the Uchiha clan like you." Inuzuka Fu was also somewhat surprised. You see, although the Inuzuka clan and the Uchiha clan didn't have any conflicts in the village, the Inuzuka clan, where everyone kept dogs, and the Uchiha clan, where most summoning contracts were with ninja cats, didn't have a particularly friendly relationship.
"It's probably because I'm one of the few in the clan who hasn't signed a summoning contract with the ninja cat clan. Also, because my summoning beast is a ninja hawk, I always keep raw meat on me, so this little guy smelled it." Uchiha Touhuan laughed.
"I see." Inuzuka Fu also showed a hearty smile.
This little incident brought Inuzuka Fu and Uchiha Touhuan closer together. That's how the Inuzuka clan is; as long as you get along well with their dogs, they become exceptionally friendly. Seeing this, Hayate Gekko and Yugao Uzuki also came over to greet Uchiha Touhuan.
As time went by, everyone gradually became more familiar with each other. Even the two Hyuga ninjas, after Uchiha Touhuan took the initiative to break the ice, lowered their guard and chatted with everyone for a bit. Meanwhile, Utatane Itsuki and Mitokado Hayato, who hadn't gotten along well with Uchiha Touhuan from the beginning, were gradually isolated.
In the evening, the group arrived at Tanabata Town, located in the northern part of the Land of Fire.
"It's getting late, let's rest here for the night," Kakashi said.
With no objections, Kakashi led everyone to a small inn to get rooms. Just then, Uchiha Touhuan suddenly spoke up, "How can we rest well in a place like this?"
"Hmph, we're on a mission right now, it's not your place to be picky," Uchiha Touhuan scoffed, "If you're not happy, you can go back now."
Ignoring their sarcasm, Uchiha Touhuan said, "Since we've all ended up in the same team, I'll pay for today's expenses. Kakashi, as the team leader, you shouldn't have any objections, right?"
"Of course, no problem," Kakashi nodded.
"That's good." After saying this, Uchiha Touhuan headed towards the town center.
The others hesitated for a moment, especially the two civilian ninjas, but seeing Kakashi follow Uchiha Touhuan without hesitation, they followed as well, leaving Uchiha Touhuan and Mitokado Hayato standing there.
Uchiha Touhuan led everyone to the most luxurious hot spring inn in the city, booking a suite for each person. He then suggested finding a place to have a couple of drinks, which everyone readily agreed to.
They had assumed Uchiha Touhuan would at most treat them to a barbecue restaurant in the city, but to their surprise, he took them directly to the most luxurious restaurant in town.
It should be noted that such restaurants cater primarily to the nobles and wealthy merchants of the Land of Fire. Even Inuzuka Fu, who held a relatively high position in the Inuzuka clan, had never been to such a place. As for the two commoner ninjas, although they were already Jonin, they lived a very frugal life, saving money to upgrade their ninjutsu; such a place was simply unthinkable for them.
Therefore, everyone was naturally a little reserved after taking their seats.
At this moment, Uchiha Touhuan, seated at the head of the table, raised his glass first.
"Thank you all for giving me face. Since you're here, please relax. The Uchiha clan has always been generous to its friends," Uchiha Touhuan said with a smile.
"That's true!" Inuzuka Fu laughed and downed his drink in one gulp. "I accept you as a friend!"
After everyone had toasted, Kakashi finally spoke up, "Speaking of which, Touhuan, you're not an adult yet, are you? It's not good to break the three ninja prohibitions so early."
"Someone who's always glued to a pornographic book doesn't seem to have the right to say that," Uchiha Touhuan retorted irritably.
Everyone burst into laughter, and the atmosphere at the table became lively.
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(End of Chapter)