"What are you laughing at?"
"Huh? Me? Laughing? No, you must've seen wrong."
Kazuyama quickly suppressed his grin, but the three in front of him weren't buying it. Their eyes widened as they stared him down.
"You totally laughed! And it was such a creepy laugh too!"
"Hmph! Seriously, how does someone like you end up with such an adorable student? God, life really isn't fair."
Yahiko suddenly thought of Yugito—such a cute little girl, stuck with this guy as her teacher. It was just too much.
Kazuyama's mouth twitched, and his hands instinctively formed the Tiger Seal.
The moment Yahiko saw it, his hair stood on end. He instantly went on high alert, nervous Kazuyama might try something weird.
Right then, Yugito's irritated voice rang out from outside.
"Can someone help me already? Are you trying to work me to death?!"
"You jerk teacher! Get out here and cook! I want barbecue!"
Kazuyama dropped the Tiger Seal and shot Yahiko a sharp glare before getting up and heading out. As a proper teacher, it was time to cook. Honestly, he just didn't trust Yahiko and the others not to poison him with their cooking.
Seeing Kazuyama leave, Yahiko and the others were momentarily stunned. They heard what Yugito said—did that guy really know how to cook?
Seriously? Over the years, their meals had mostly been grilled meat and rice balls. No one in their squad could cook—it was just too difficult.
With Yugito back, all nine members of the squad stepped outside.
In the center of the camp lay a pile of prey—rabbits, deer, and... three large birds?
"Yugito, I get the rabbits and deer, but what's with these three birds?"
Kazuyama looked at the owls, their necks twisted, and his mouth twitched again.
It wasn't that he was grossed out—after watching The Walking Dead, he knew these Scottish round-faced chickens were technically edible.
"I saw them and figured, why not?"
"I've been craving wings. Even if it's owl, the taste should be close enough."
Yugito licked her lips as she eyed the owls. Back in the Land of Birds, she'd eaten grilled chicken wings all the time. She was absolutely obsessed with them.
"Wait, you brought all this back by yourself?"
"This forest is full of wildlife, but the animals are super cautious. How'd you pull it off?"
"And you're just a kid?"
Akaashi was the first to speak, full of disbelief. As the team's main hunter, he usually handled all the food supply.
He knew how tough it was to hunt in this forest—even he had to work hard for it.
But Yugito had only been gone a short while and brought back all this?
Yugito puffed out her chest proudly.
"It's just hunting. What's the big deal?"
"If I wasn't feeling lazy today, I would've brought back bear paw."
Kazuyama was speechless. He grabbed her by the back of the collar and tossed her aside.
Others might not know, but he sure did—as a Jinchūriki, once you formed a pact with your Tailed Beast, you could tap into its powers. Like Chōmei's wings.
And with Matatabi inside her, Yugito had enhanced agility and an insanely sharp sense of smell. Hunting like that? It was child's play.
"All right, so you're the cook?"
"Judging by the look of you, I doubt you can make anything edible."
"Go sit down. Yugito, get my spices ready."
Yugito's eyes lit up instantly, and she eagerly started preparing the seasonings for Kazuyama.
Her response left Yahiko and the others stunned. Was he... actually serious?
"Is there a river nearby?"
"There is! I saw one while hunting."
"Take me there. You—Akaashi, right? Come along. I'll need a hand with all this."
Kazuyama was ready to start cleaning the rabbits, deer, and yes, the Scottish round-faced chickens.
But he needed a river to do it properly—couldn't have blood and guts all over camp.
Soon, Kazuyama set off with Yugito and Akaashi in tow, leaving the others speechless.
"Yahiko, he really might know how to cook..."
"Yeah. Maybe tonight's dinner will actually be good. At the very least, it'll be better than Akaashi's usual stuff."
"No doubt. That flavorless meat we've been eating? Ugh."
Listening to their friends, Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan exchanged glances. Each saw the same shock in the others' eyes.
After all, being strong as a ninja was one thing. But cooking... that was a whole different level.
Kazuyama had just shown them what it meant to be a real all-rounder.
By the time the aroma of grilled meat started drifting through the air, Yahiko and the others were completely convinced.
[Ding! Host has impressed Yahiko's group through the power of food, displaying your strength. Reward: Recipe book.]
Kazuyama, still grilling, froze.
As the recipe data flooded into his mind, his mouth twitched so violently it practically left afterimages.
His system was getting more and more ridiculous. What kind of reward was this?
The "draw a circle and curse someone" reward was weird enough, but now a cookbook?
The wait for food felt endless. It was just barbecue, but to Yahiko and the others, it may as well have been a lifetime.
"All right, it's ready. Dig in..."
"Hey, hey, hey! That deer leg's mine! And the rabbit leg too!"
Before Kazuyama could even react, nine people rushed him at once.
Even Konan joined in, the squad tearing into the food like a pack of starving wolves.
Yugito was shocked.
"Hey! My wings! Move it!"
"...Let go of my meat!"
Soon, Kazuyama and Yugito were pulled into the fray too.
Unbeknownst to them, two figures stood silently on the branches of a nearby tree.
Crimson Sharingan eyes locked onto the scene below, watching every movement in camp.
"That's Kazuyama..."
"What's he doing here...?"
It was Muren Uchiha. Beside him stood Zetsu.
"No idea... but it looks like he knows them pretty well..."
"That red-haired one... he's the one with the Rinnegan..."
"He's your target..."
...
(100 Chapters Ahead)
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