Shinji took a deep breath.
"I propose one final ultimate showdown of youth before graduation."
"The ultimate showdown of youth!" Just hearing the name was enough to make Guy's blood boil. "Tell me more!"
Shinji pulled a sealed jar from his ninja tool pouch. The pills inside were a terrifying shade of dark red.
"I found these in Konoha's secret ninja-tool storehouse. They're specially made chili ration pills."
"Specially made... chili pills?"
"Apparently, they were invented by a ninja stationed at an outpost on the Land of Fire's border. They mixed twenty-three different kinds of chili peppers into ordinary ration pills. One pill contains as many calories as three bowls of ramen, and it's spicy enough to make a fully grown jōnin cry."
Guy stared at the jar of dark-red pills, his expression becoming extremely serious.
"What does the contest involve?"
"We both eat one chili ration pill at the same time, then do push-ups while standing on our hands." Shinji held the jar between them. "The first person to stop loses."
"And what happens to the loser?"
"They have to run two hundred laps around Konoha."
Blazing flames ignited in Guy's eyes.
"This is youth!!!"
The two found a flat, open space and stood facing each other.
Shinji poured out two chili ration pills and handed one to Guy.
"Ready?"
"I was born ready!"
"Three, two, one."
They stuffed the ration pills into their mouths at the same time.
Two seconds later, Guy's face turned the same colour as his green jumpsuit.
Two more seconds passed.
His face changed from green to red, then from red to purple.
"SO SPICY!!!"
Tears sprayed from Guy's eyes like waterfalls, but he clenched his teeth and stubbornly refused to spit out the pill.
"Handstands!" Shinji roared through his own tears.
The two planted their hands on the ground and kicked their bodies upside down.
"First push-up!"
They bent their arms at the same time, then pushed themselves back up.
"Sec... ond... one..."
Several villagers gradually gathered around them.
"What are they doing?"
"It looks like... they're eating chili peppers while doing handstand push-ups?"
"What kind of nonsense is that?"
"This is youth!!!" Guy's face was bright red, and his arms had begun to tremble slightly. "Fifty-three!"
"I... won't... lose either."
"..."
"Nine hundred and seven!"
"Nine hundred and eight!"
The spectators began counting for them spontaneously.
"Nine hundred and nine..."
"One thousand!!!"
They completed the final push-up at the same time before both collapsing from their handstands onto the ground.
"A... draw?" a young spectator asked quietly.
"No." Guy struggled back to his feet. "We both won! Youth has no draws—youth only has two winners!"
Shinji lay on the ground, feeling as though a hundred Fire Style techniques were exploding inside his mouth at once.
"Guy."
"Yeah?"
"The original told me to congratulate you on graduating."
Guy froze.
"He said that since he couldn't attend your graduation ceremony in person, he wanted to give you a youthful present at the very least."
Shinji climbed to his feet and pulled something from his ninja tool pouch.
It was a green... headband, with the word Youth painted across it in red.
"This... this is..." Guy's voice choked with emotion.
"Your graduation present."
"This is the colour of youth!!!"
Guy tied the strip of cloth around his forehead and struck a classic pose of youth.
The setting sun shone upon him as tears rolled down his cheeks, sparkling in the evening light.
After saying goodbye to Guy, Shinji found Obito and Rin near the ninja academy's training field.
Obito stood in front of a wooden post, throwing shuriken at the target fixed to it.
Clang.
The shuriken struck the edge of the post.
Refusing to accept it, Obito threw another.
This one missed by even more.
"Damn it! One more time!"
Rin stood nearby with the smile of someone who had long since grown accustomed to this.
"Obito, you're putting too much strength into your wrist. It would be better if you relaxed a little."
"I know. I just... haven't found the right feeling yet."
When Shinji appeared, he deliberately coughed twice.
Obito and Rin turned around at the same time.
"Shin-chan?" Obito froze. "Aren't you carrying out a mission?"
"I'm Nohara Shinji. The original sent me back to carry out a top-secret mission."
"What top-secret mission?" Obito was immediately interested.
Shinji looked around mysteriously before lowering his voice.
"To deliver your graduation presents."
Obito's expression changed from anticipation to disdain.
"You sent a shadow clone all the way back just to deliver presents? Don't you have anything better to do?"
"You don't want yours?"
"I never said that."
Shinji took a scroll from his ninja tool pouch and handed it to Obito.
Obito's eyes lit up. He eagerly opened it.
Inside was a series of little figures, each posing differently.
The title beside them read:
Uchiha Obito's Exclusive Graduation-Exam Victory Prayer Dance
"A prayer... dance?" Obito's expression stiffened.
"The original said he learned it from an extremely powerful shrine maiden. As long as you perform it once before the examination, your chances of passing will increase by three hundred percent."
"Three hundred percent?!"
"Of course, that only works if you perform it properly." Shinji pointed at the first little figure. "Look at this pose. It's called 'The Will of the Hokage.' Put both hands on your hips, raise your head toward the sky, and shout 'I'm going to become Hokage!' three times."
Obito's face turned bright red.
"I'm not doing something that embarrassing!"
"Then I'll have to take the present back." Shinji reached for the scroll. "The original said this scroll is only for someone brave enough to perform the dance."
"Wait!"
Obito gripped the scroll tightly. His expression repeatedly shifted between This is too embarrassing and What if it actually works?
"I'll accept it," he said through gritted teeth. "But not because I believe in it. I just... don't want Shin-chan's good intentions to go to waste."
"Understood." Shinji nodded. "The original said that if you answered like that, I should tell you something."
"What?"
"There's something else hidden inside the scroll."
Obito froze. He ran his fingers along the edge of the scroll and indeed discovered a hidden compartment.
He pulled out a sheet of paper.
Only one sentence was written on it:
It only becomes a secret technique once you fill the whole page.
"That guy..." Obito suddenly smiled for some reason.
Shinji turned toward Rin.
"Your turn."
He pulled out a palm-sized flowerpot. A tiny wooden sign had been placed inside it, bearing the words:
Water every day. Chocolate sticks will grow after three months.
Rin accepted the flowerpot and examined it carefully.
"This flowerpot is...?"
"The sign is meant to test your sincerity. If you really continue watering it for three months, then even if nothing grows, the original will bring back an entire box of chocolate sticks from the Daimyo's residence for you."
Rin hugged the flowerpot to her chest, unable to suppress the curve of her lips.
"Then I'll make sure to water it properly and ask him for my chocolate sticks in three months."