Obito paused for a moment and then nodded, "Mm, you're right, Rin."
Although it was specially bought for Nohara Rin, under such circumstances, it definitely couldn't be given to her alone. Either everyone shared it, or no one got any, otherwise it would be too strange.
"It's quite impressive, Obito, you're actually this considerate," Nohara Rin said, covering her mouth in surprise. Obito's preparation truly exceeded her expectations.
Obito had always been known for being careless, but not only was he on time this time, he even prepared snacks.
"People always make progress." Obito puffed out his chest. Whatever the case, receiving praise from Nohara Rin felt nice.
With that, Obito distributed the snacks to everyone.
Watching everyone munch on the snacks meticulously prepared for Nohara Rin, Obito felt an inexplicable melancholy in his heart.
"The taste is really good, Obito, you've got a knack for picking snacks." Yuhi Kurenai praised.
Obito felt as if an arrow had pierced his heart. Of course they were good—after all, he picked them specifically for Nohara Rin.
"What do you all think would be a good present for Kakashi?" Nohara Rin brought up the main topic of their gathering.
"For Kakashi, I think a practical gift would be good," Yuhi Kurenai suggested after some thought.
Yuhi Kurenai figured Kakashi was a practical person, and he would prefer a useful gift over something romantic.
"That does seem right. When it was my birthday, Kakashi gave me a cultivation elixir," Might Guy pondered carefully and found that Yuhi Kurenai was right—Kakashi rarely did anything flashy.
"How about we all go find the best tempura, and then give it to Kakashi together? That's practically useful, right? After all, you can't survive without eating," Obito said earnestly, as if completely rational and devoid of personal feelings.
Nohara Rin gave Obito a helpless look.
"Obito, don't joke around, Kakashi doesn't even like tempura," Nohara Rin retorted.
Kakashi only eats tempura made by Teacher Mokgetsu.
"I just wanted Kakashi to realize the deliciousness of tempura, but I guess we should drop it. Teacher Mokgetsu's tempura is already unbeatable, there can't be anything better," Obito explained as a form of retaliation.
He mentioned it off-the-cuff for spite, not expecting it to be taken seriously.
However, if it did get recognized, Obito would still be very happy because he thought Kakashi's facial expression would be just like his was earlier.
After some discussion, Yuhi Kurenai's suggestion was approved—to give Kakashi a more practical gift.
After the meeting adjourned, Obito didn't leave with Nohara Rin; instead, he caught up with Might Guy.
Even he couldn't continue to cling to Nohara Rin given these happenings.
"Guy, how's your recovery going lately?" Obito asked.
Might Guy showed a smile and then flexed his arm muscles, "Just like youthful energy that's always on the rise!"
"That puts my mind at ease. Without you, Kakashi seems a bit lonely," Obito deliberately said.
"This is the bond between me and my companion." Might Guy gave a thumbs-up and laughed heartily.
"I've heard Kakashi say he'd really like to spar with you when you've activated the Eight Gates and Breath of Rock Chakra Mode," Obito continued, pretending to be serious.
"After all, I'm really strong in that state, and my friend wants to challenge the stronger me," Might Guy directly believed it.
"But he'll have to be disappointed. I can't let him experience my peak fighting power. For now, I can only use the Fifth Gate and Breath of Rock Chakra Mode; I can't open the Sixth Gate," Might Guy sighed.
The Sixth Gate was forcibly opened by Might Guy only when his life was in danger. For regular sparring, there was no way he'd force open higher gates, otherwise, how could he continue cultivation if it left him bedridden for two months?
"I'm sure Kakashi will understand," Obito couldn't help but smile.
He could already envision Kakashi getting beat up by Might Guy. With the Eight Gates and Breath of Rock Chakra Mode, even opening just five gates was something Kakashi couldn't overcome at the moment.
"To meet my friend's expectations, I'll work even harder on my cultivation, striving to let him experience the power of the Sixth Gate and Breath of Rock Chakra Mode as soon as possible," Might Guy said, clenching his fist and filled with fighting spirit.
"Exactly, that's the spirit," Obito gave Might Guy a thumbs-up.
...
In Konoha, a faint sigh was heard from within a secret underground laboratory.
"Failed again. Is this direction wrong?" Hiruko frowned at the experimental data.
"Ninja talent should reside in the body; why can't I seize ninja talent from within the body?"
Due to dissatisfaction with his own talent, Hiruko had been secretly conducting experiments to develop a Ninjutsu that could enhance ninja talent.
Hiruko didn't want to remain ordinary; he also wanted to become as formidable as the Sannin who shook the Ninja World.
Even though they were classmates, Orochimaru and Jiraiya had already become the fearsome Sannin, while he remained a small, unknown Jonin in Konoha. Hiruko was truly unwilling.
"Damn it, at this rate, when will I ever succeed? Even a child like Hatake Kakashi is now at my rank!" Hiruko's mindset collapsed thinking about Kakashi, who became a Jonin at ten years old.
The rise of juniors like Namikaze Minato and Habu Mokgetsu only made Hiruko a bit anxious, but Kakashi truly broke his defenses.
"A ten-year-old Jonin, breaking the record for the earliest Jonin promotion in Konoha."
"I must speed up. If I complete the development only after I start aging, it will be meaningless." Hiruko decided not to prioritize caution anymore and opted for more aggressive actions.
No matter how talented a ninja is, they weaken with age. He aimed to complete the Ninjutsu development while he was still young.
Subsequently, Hiruko increased the frequency of his abductions and conducted extensive human experiments to explore possibilities.
As the experiments progressed, Hiruko came upon a new inspiration.
"Since seizing talent is so difficult, why not aim for fusion and let individuals merge," Hiruko began experimenting with fusion as a goal.
It seemed this truly was the right path; Hiruko made rapid progress with Fusion Ninjutsu and soon completed an experiment fusing with a Summoning Beast, endowing an ordinary person with power surpassing a Chunin's, though the body became somewhat monstrous.
"I did it; this is undoubtedly an unprecedented great Ninjutsu!" Elated by the breakthrough, Hiruko was ecstatic.
He believed the Chimera Jutsu he had developed could definitely count as an S-level Ninjutsu, one of the top-tier even among S-level rank.
Next, Hiruko started focusing on human-to-human fusion.
He wasn't about to fuse himself with a Summoning Beast; Hiruko still wanted to remain human.
Furthermore, Hiruko thought Summoning Beasts lacked the potential humans had; after all, no top-tier powerhouse relied solely on Summoning Beasts.
As the human fusion experiments proceeded, Hiruko discovered something delightfully surprising: fusion could retain many traits of the fused individuals, including their Kekkei Genkai.
"This path is right. If I master all the Kekkei Genkai, who could possibly defeat me?" Hiruko had already envisioned the path to becoming the strongest.
Perhaps due to Konoha's martial law during wartime, or maybe Hiruko's actions were overly aggressive, his anomalies got noticed, and his human experiments were discovered by ninja investigators.
But Hiruko wasn't a fool. While conducting human experiments, he had already devised an escape plan.
Though not as powerful as his Sannin friends, his strength couldn't be stopped by ordinary ninjas. Ultimately, Hiruko fled Konoha with his Chimera Jutsu, becoming a traitorous ninja wanted by Konoha.