So Might Guy, Lee, and Uchiha Ryosuke began running laps around the outskirts of the Hidden Leaf Village.
They didn't run too fast—probably to accommodate young Lee.
As they ran, Guy shouted loudly:
"Burn bright, youth!"
His father had drilled that into him—shouting like this helped push endurance and unlock hidden potential.
He glanced back at Lee and Ryosuke.
"Come on, together now!"
"Burn bright, youth!"
Lee happily chimed in:
"Burn bright, youth!"
Ryosuke hesitated for a second, then shouted too:
"Burn bright, youth!"
Yeah, it felt a little cringe, but if it made him stronger, he'd scream it all day.
The three of them jogged along the village perimeter, shouting slogans.
Naturally, some villagers stopped to watch.
They were used to Guy doing this kind of stuff—it wasn't news anymore.
Guy's name was known across the village as the taijutsu weirdo. In their eyes, no matter how hard he worked, taijutsu just didn't stack up to ninjutsu.
Take the Uchiha, for example—the strongest Fire Style clan in the village. Their jutsu were devastating. No amount of punching could match that.
So seeing an Uchiha skipping fire-style and Sharingan training to run laps with Guy?
Yeah. That raised eyebrows.
"When did the Uchiha start raising weirdos like that?"
"Who knows."
"Maybe he got hit on the head."
"Any Uchiha just needs to train their Sharingan and fire techniques, and they're already elite material. Becoming a jōnin through taijutsu? That's nearly unheard of."
Honestly, none of them could name a single jōnin who got there on taijutsu alone.
Naturally, Ryosuke's antics caught the Uchiha Police's attention.
"This is disgraceful. What's gotten into Ryosuke lately?"
"He's even hanging out with that taijutsu meathead, Guy."
"Why? Only people with no ninjutsu talent train like that."
"Instead of focusing on his Sharingan and Fire Style, he's out here sweating with a drop-out? He's disgracing our clan."
"We need to report this to the clan head."
"What's the point? You think Fugaku can do anything about Ryosuke? He'll just let it go."
They all looked frustrated. Among the younger generation of Uchiha, Shisui, Itachi, and Ryosuke were the most well-known.
Of course, Shisui and Itachi were famous for being geniuses.
Ryosuke? He was famous inside the clan—because he was the Grand Elder's grandson.
Even if they didn't like him, they didn't dare lay a hand on him.
Meanwhile, strolling through the village, Kurenai's eyes widened.
Uchiha Ryosuke was actually training with her old classmate, Might Guy.
Guy had always been known for his relentless effort. People laughed at him, but not Kurenai. She'd always admired his determination—and pitied his lack of ninjutsu talent.
If he had even a little ninjutsu aptitude, he'd have become an amazing ninja by now.
But she never expected Ryosuke to be someone who could get along with Guy. He didn't look down on him like the others.
Her opinion of Ryosuke kept rising.
Courageous, humble, and none of the usual Uchiha arrogance.
Beside her, her mother looked over just in time to see the fan crest on Ryosuke's back.
"That's the Uchiha you've been talking about?"
"He doesn't seem arrogant at all."
Kurenai was speechless. Even her mom—who'd always disliked the Uchiha—was saying that.
Ryosuke really was something else.
Her mom noticed her reaction and chuckled.
"If you like that kid, I wouldn't object. But you'll need to sort things out with Asuma."
"That boy reminds me of your father. Started off hot-blooded, but eventually grew serious."
Kurenai blurted out, flustered:
"Mom, what are you even saying? When did I say I was getting with Ryosuke? We just know each other, okay?"
Sure, she didn't dislike him—but that didn't mean they were together. Even if he was miles better than Asuma. And eerily similar to her dad...
Her mom just smiled.
If Ryosuke was the one, she wouldn't interfere. Kurenai's happiness mattered more.
That was how she'd ended up with Kurenai's father, after all.
Even if Asuma was the Third Hokage's son, she wasn't about to force her daughter into anything.
Afternoon rolled around.
Guy, Lee, and Ryosuke finished their twenty laps around the village.
Ryosuke was feeling a bit wiped out.
As he stopped, the system chimed in:
『Your body feels extremely fatigued. Strength +1, Speed +1, Constitution +1.』
Just as he expected—stats increased. Though... only by 1 each.
When he got beat up? He'd gained +5 to each stat.
This whole long run felt like a waste of time.
Yup. The system was definitely built to make him take beatings.
Guy was encouraging Lee.
"Lee, you did great today. Your willpower is strong."
Lee, panting heavily, nodded.
"It's all thanks to you running beside me, Guy-sensei. I wouldn't have made it otherwise."
Then Ryosuke cut in.
"Hey Guy, how about another round of sparring? I don't feel satisfied yet."
Guy gave him a weird look. He remembered yesterday—Ryosuke had been wrecked, yet he was smiling the whole time.
"You mean like yesterday?"
"Yup."
No hesitation.
Guy hesitated. He really did beat Ryosuke up pretty bad yesterday.
Was the kid seriously trying to power up by getting beat?
Even with Uchiha meds, that kind of damage wasn't easy to recover from.
Ryosuke saw the hesitation and said firmly:
"Guy—youth fears nothing."
Hearing that, Guy's doubt vanished.
Why hesitate? Real training only worked when you gave it everything.
If Ryosuke wasn't scared, why should he be?
"Alright."
"Lee, stand back."
Lee immediately ran off to rest.
Ryosuke calmly activated his Sharingan.
Without it, he wouldn't even be able to see Guy's moves.
Guy saw him ready up and charged in, fist flying toward his gut.
Ryosuke blocked it—but the power stunned him. Same speed and strength as yesterday.
Guy upped the power.
And Ryosuke went flying again.