Chapter 4: Hidden test
Chapter 4: Children
(After 9 hours...)
'Oh! I slept well, and this is my first sleep without painkillers. It sure feels nice,' Kaida thought after waking up in the morning.
After waking up, Kaida went to do his daily activities and took a quick bath. When he came out of the bathroom, it was already time for breakfast, so he went to the ground floor for breakfast.
"Oh! Look, here comes the prince of Konoha. Wait, he's also just an orphan like us with no parents," came a voice from behind.
Hearing that, Kaida did feel embarrassed. Not because of what was said, but because there was a time when the real Kaida got angry after hearing such remarks. But technically, it wasn't him, so he decided to ignore it, recalling a useful quote from his previous life: "Silence is the best answer for fools."
Kaida just went to the breakfast table, took a hearty serving, and sat at a corner table. While eating, he heard it again.
"Oh ho, look! Now the prince is also a pig, hahaha!"
'What do you want me to do? Fight you? Can't you see I am already injured? Man, can't I even eat in peace,' he thought in his mind, sighing but still didn't say anything.
But the boy became increasingly angry and decided to push it further. He walked over to Kaida, shoved him, and said, "Hey, don't you know it's basic manners to reply when someone is speaking to you?"
'This is almost like the previous time,' Kaida thought. In his mind, releasing a chuckle from his mouth, being a high school student he was not new to bullying. In fact, in his previous world, things were much more severe, but one thing he knew is if you let things go too much, it will become much worse.
Just when he was going to speak, someone came between them.
"Suri, don't you remember the old man told you to stay away from Kaida?" a young girl almost the same age as Kaida, with complete black hair and eyes. If one doesn't know, they may even consider her from the Uchiha clan.
And yes, she was the reason this gorilla was so hell-bent on making my life miserable. She is the cutest girl I have seen so far in my life. This gorilla likes her, and since she is my "friend," he decided to take out his frustration on me.
'Why the hell does a seven-year-old boy even like someone? Shouldn't he be out playing with his friends at this age?' Kaida could only sigh.
Just when he was thinking about these things, that gorilla suddenly pushed Yomi onto the floor.
Before Kaida could think, he lifted the iron plate he was eating from and hit him on the head. Normally he would not go to such extreme measures, but the anger he felt when Suri pushed Yomi aside and she fell was unusually high. Like he REALLY was her friend, but now that the deed had been done, it was time to complete it.
Since a similar incident had happened before, where real Kaida had also tried to hit him but only managed one hit, Suri was fine after taking the blow and had beaten Kaida quite badly afterward. So this time, just as he was about to turn his head, Kaida thought, 'I am not going to repeat the same mistake twice,' and hit him on the head again at the same spot. This time, he was on the floor due to disorientation from the sudden impact.
Since Kaida was just four and he was seven, and even bigger than his peers, hand-to-hand confrontation was out of the question. So the only option to such a confrontation was to always be the first one to hit and never give them chance to give that hit back to you. Being a weak boy for all his life, Kaida knew this clearly.
After the second hit, he turned to Suri's "friends" cum lackeys who were on their way to save their boss. Kaida looked toward them, arranged his weapon (the plate), and again hit the head of Suri, but at a different spot, since he didn't want to kill him—after all, he was just a seven-year-old orphan boy, there was no need to bear any resentment toward him.
Seeing the third attack, both of his lackeys stopped. With another bang, both of them turned their legs and ran in the opposite direction, calling the caretaker for help.
While seeing them leave, Kaida could finally release a sigh of relief. Then, remembering something, he moved toward Yomi.
(Kaida's perspective...)
"Are you all right, Yomi?" Kaida asked while bending a little, but Yomi didn't reply for quite some time, and then:
"You didn't have to fight for me. What would have happened if he had beaten you again like yesterday?" Yomi asked, puffing her cheeks while still sitting on the ground.
Kaida, too, sat on the ground and said, "So why did you jump in when he was trying to pick a fight with me then?"
"Because we are friends," Yomi answered in a hurried voice.
"Exactly. Since you are my friend, how can you think that I will sit still when someone bullies you?" Being a teen, it was almost too easy to win an argument against a five-year-old.
When the incident was happening, Hiroshi (the caretaker of the orphanage) was just sitting and watching the whole scene unfold. When Suri's friends went to call him, he acted like he was busy with something, and when they complained about Kaida to him, he went to Kaida and said, "Kaida, come to my office." Meanwhile, a nurse applied medicine to Suri's injuries and tied a bandage around his head. Since there was not even blood, there was no need to take him to the hospital.
Kaida just nodded and started to walk with the old man, but suddenly Yomi came in front of Hiroshi and said, "Uncle, it was not Kaida's fault. Suri started the fight and even pushed me. You can ask anyone present here. Please don't scold Kaida."
"Don't worry, I am not going to scold him, child. I have something important to discuss with him," the old man said while gently placing his hand on her head. Kaida smiled, seeing her trying to save him once again. At least now, he really had his first actual friend in both his lives.
After coming to his office, Hiroshi sat on his chair and said, "Kaida, I know I said I would train you to become a ninja, but becoming a ninja is not as simple as you think. After you become a ninja, you will be many times more powerful than any average civilian." Kaida just kept on looking toward him for more explanation.
"I have been watching this whole thing from the start, so that I can decide whether I should first teach you about morality and values or should we start with the physical training, and you excelled in the value department. You didn't react to provocation even when you had the means to. You decided to fight to save someone against all odds, though that anger could get a little management work, but nothing too big of a problem, so we are good to start with your main training."
Kaida just smiled back at him, even though his reason for not reacting was the opposite of what Hiroshi was thinking. The result was very good.
"So, uncle, can we start our training tomorrow?"
"Yes, come to the east section of the forest garden behind the orphanage at 5 a.m. tomorrow. And please go and tell your friend at the door that she doesn't have to worry about you," Hiroshi said with a smile.
***
A.N.: Add to the library so that you'll be notified as soon as I update the next chapter! I will update a chapter daily for 5 days a week and an extra chapter on Saturday and Sunday if your support is good. Also, please share your reviews about the chapter in the comments. Both positive and negative ones are appreciated.
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