Chapter 300: Sasuke and Naruto Caught Skipping Class
Kakashi stared into Haneda's eyes, hearing for the first time about the Tenseigan and the Rinnegan.
This was classified information, tied to the legends of the Sage of Six Paths and his brother—perhaps even more dangerous truths lay beneath it all.
No wonder Haneda had never shared these matters with him.
Kakashi began to feel a deep sense of inadequacy, one that took him back to Kannabi Bridge, Kikyo Mountain, and the Valley of the End.
He crouched down slightly, clutching his left eye in pain.
Suddenly, he felt a presence in another dimension—a desolate and empty space with almost no light, where it seemed a lone figure sat in solitude.
Haneda moved to cast a healing jutsu, but before he could act, Kakashi lifted his head and asked:
"Pain's eyes… are they the Rinnegan? Where did he get them?"
"Uchiha Madara," Haneda replied, naming one of the masterminds of the ninja world's chaos. But he deliberately left out any mention of Obito.
"I see… so that's how it is. The Akatsuki hides even deeper secrets, no wonder you've always paid close attention to Pain."
"It seems he too is being deceived. The real enemy you'll face in the future must be Uchiha Madara with the Rinnegan, right?"
"You could say that." Haneda nodded.
He refrained from revealing more secrets about the ninja world, not because he didn't trust Kakashi, but because the more one knew, the more burdensome it became.
Haneda wanted Kakashi to enjoy the peace Konoha currently offered, just as Obito rarely interfered with Haneda and Kakashi's daily lives.
"This time, you must bring me along, Haneda!" Kakashi demanded.
"No matter what happens on the moon, I can use the Flying Thunder God to get you out safely!"
"No, there's another way—Kamui!"
Kakashi's eyes took on a familiar, intense glow, and Haneda's expression flickered with surprise.
Without Itachi's interference using Tsukuyomi, Kakashi had managed to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan on his own!
After a moment of contemplation, Haneda said, "Fine, but you'll need to follow my commands."
Kakashi smirked slightly, his lips curving up: "Good. It's been a while since we've fought side by side."
"Now, let's go get Naruto back home."
…
In Konoha, at the Hatake clan's training grounds—a place once used by the famed White Fang—two boys lay sprawled out under a large tree, breathing heavily.
The area had been abandoned after the Third Shinobi War, with Haneda and Kakashi seldom visiting. Over time, it had fallen into disrepair, though the training equipment remained intact.
The yellow-haired boy, Naruto, turned to the sulking black-haired boy beside him, Sasuke.
"What do we do now, Sasuke? Your shadow clone is gone!"
"Like it's my fault, Naruto! If you hadn't insisted on climbing so high, I wouldn't have slipped up!"
"Sasukeeee~" Naruto stretched out his voice dramatically, grinning at Sasuke.
Sasuke scoffed, turning his head away. "It doesn't matter, we're caught anyway. We don't have the energy to run. Let's just accept our punishment when we get home, and apologize to the teacher tomorrow morning."
"Does this mean you forgive me, Sasuke?"
"Absolutely not, you idiot!"
Ignoring Naruto, Sasuke began mentally rehearsing how to explain things to his older brother and parents.
Suddenly, a flash of inspiration hit him. Sasuke decided he could pin the blame on his brother Itachi and Haneda-ojisan.
After all, Itachi and Haneda were both legends at the academy, known as geniuses every teacher loved to praise.
If they had skipped class back then, surely he, Uchiha Sasuke, could do the same. He wasn't breaking rules—he was just following in their footsteps!
Pleased with this reasoning, Sasuke even fantasized about receiving early graduation like his brother.
But then he glanced at Naruto, who tilted his head curiously.
"What's wrong, Sasuke?"
Turning away, Sasuke muttered, "Naruto… if you had to give up a friend for something really important, what would you do?"
Naruto replied without hesitation, "I'd just go after them and bring them back. No way I'd let them go."
"Why are you even asking me this, Sasuke?"
"It's nothing," Sasuke replied with feigned indifference. Then, a hint of doubt crept into his voice. "But a fool could never catch up to a genius—unless they cheated somehow."
Before Naruto could respond, Sasuke noticed a figure standing in the tree above them.
"Itachi-niisan! What are you doing here?"
Itachi looked down, his voice calm and steady.
"Sasuke, you thought the academy was boring, so you decided to skip class with Naruto?"
Sasuke scrambled to his feet, face flushed. "No! That's not it, niisan! It was all Naruto's fault—I swear!"
Naruto shouted back indignantly, "Hey! You're the one who dragged me here, Sasuke! I told you we'd get caught!"
"Shut up!" Sasuke barked, silencing Naruto.
Itachi shook his head, a small smile forming on his lips. "You know the academy will report this to Haneda-ojisan, right? Both of you are going to get into trouble. Don't do this again, Sasuke."
"You're only making things harder for Naruto."
Sasuke tried to argue, "Niisan, I was helping Naruto train!"
Naruto chimed in, "Yeah! Sasuke even taught me how to climb trees. He was helping me practice, Itachi-nii!"
Looking at the two boys standing together, united in their guilt, Itachi sighed.
As a member of the Anbu, he had heard about the incident at the academy and even postponed a mission with Shisui to come find Sasuke. But clearly, his attempts at proper education weren't working.
At that moment, Haneda and Kakashi arrived on the scene.
Seeing them approach, both Naruto and Sasuke panicked, glancing toward Itachi as if he could save them.
Raising his hands in surrender, Itachi said, "You're on your own. Apologize sincerely and make up for it next time."
To everyone's surprise, neither Haneda nor Kakashi seemed angry. Instead, they looked completely at ease, casually chatting about dinner as they walked over.
Naruto quickly stepped forward, ready to apologize. "Haneda-ojisan, I—"
Haneda waved it off. "I know, I know. Tonight, I'll teach you a super-powerful jutsu."
"Next time, Sasuke's shadow clone won't get caught."
"???"
Naruto and Sasuke stared at him in confusion.
Naruto was baffled that Haneda wasn't scolding them but instead offering to teach a jutsu to help them avoid getting caught again.
Meanwhile, Sasuke was silently fuming—why was Haneda insulting his shadow clone technique? After all, Itachi had taught him!
Itachi tried to intervene. "Haneda-ojisan, isn't this a bit… inappropriate? Skipping class shouldn't be encouraged."
Haneda replied matter-of-factly, "Didn't you skip class? Didn't I skip class? Didn't Kakashi skip class? We've all done it! Who are we to judge these kids?"
"Besides, look at us now! You're a captain in the Anbu with a bright future. I'm the Fifth Hokage, the leader of Konoha. And Kakashi works under you!"
"True geniuses are different from ordinary students. They need unconventional teaching methods!"
"Tonight, I'll teach Naruto the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu. If he gets caught again, then I'll be mad!"
Itachi was left speechless, Naruto cheered excitedly, and Sasuke, not wanting to be left out, protested:
"Haneda-ojisan, if you're teaching Naruto, then you have to teach me something too!"
"Yeah!" Naruto chimed in. "You can't play favorites, Haneda-ojisan. You're the Hokage!"
Haneda grinned and waved his hand. "Fine. I'll teach you both. Naruto, you'll learn the Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu. Sasuke, you'll learn Chidori!"
"These are both A-rank techniques. Learn them, and your futures will be bright!"
The two boys beamed with excitement, but Haneda quickly added:
"Oh, and tomorrow's labor education class? Don't skip it. I'll be there personally!"
Hearing this, Naruto and Sasuke exchanged bitter looks.
They had already planned to skip it…
…