Naruto SI: Kaito Red Lightnin (Kaito)

Naruto SI: Kaito Red Lightnin Chapter 164

Hana nodded before lowering her voice. "So you really were the one who rescued the Yuki Clan," she whispered, looking at Kaito in awe.

Kaito sighed heavily and slammed his head against the table.

Izumi's eyes widened. "So it's true, then?"

Hotaru let out a sigh before nodding. "Yeah… it's true."

Itachi finally spoke, his voice calm but serious. "Please keep it to yourselves, Hana, Izumi. If word got out, it could lead to war."

Both girls nodded seriously, understanding the weight of the situation.

After a brief moment of silence, Kaito lifted his head up and immediately changed the subject.

"Soooo, I heard both of you are training under Lady Tsunade?"

Izumi perked up and nodded. "Yep! We're learning medical ninjutsu under Lady Tsunade, but it's not just us—there are a few others, too."

Hotaru quietly ate her food, while Hana took a bite of grilled meat before adding, "Yeah, it's really hard… but I don't think I'll become a full-fledged medical nin. I'm going to be a vet!"

Kaito raised an eyebrow. "A vet?" kaito but honestly, he didn't remember much about what she did in the original timeline.

Hana grinned. "Yup! I love animals way more than people. Plus, the Inuzuka Clan could use a skilled vet for their ninken, ya know!"

Kaito chuckled. "Makes sense."

…

Kaito yawned lazily as he strolled down the streets of Konoha with Hotaru, the two of them walking away from the Uzumaki residence.

As they walked, Hotaru pulled out a small container from her bag, opening it to reveal a neatly packed serving of takoyaki. She grinned and held it out toward Kaito.

"Wanna try some, Kai-kun? I made them for you."

Kaito smiled, appreciating the gesture. "Thanks, Hotaru-chan." He grabbed a skewer and popped one into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully.

After a moment, he hummed in approval. "It's really good—just like the ones Mom makes, ya know."

Hotaru giggled, pleased by the compliment. "It took me a lot of tries to get them just right." She took one for herself, biting into it with a happy hum.

The two of them chatted lightly as they made their way through the bustling streets toward the academy.

As they walked, Kaito's sharp eyes spotted Kakashi ahead, walking alongside Kahyo.

Hotaru pointed toward them. "Hey, isn't that Kakashi-sempai?"

Kaito nodded and called out, "Yo! Kakashi, Kahyo-san!" He and Hotaru quickened their pace to catch up.

Kakashi and Kahyo stopped, turning back to see the two approaching.

Kakashi gave them a lazy wave. "Yo, Kaito, Hotaru."

Kahyo greeted them with a polite nod. "Good morning, Kaito-san, Hotaru-san."

Hotaru smiled. "It's been a while, Kakashi-sempai, Kahyo-san."

Kaito grinned, slipping his hands into his pockets. "So, where are you two headed?" He and Hotaru naturally fell into step with them.

Kakashi tilted his head slightly. "Are you both heading to the Hokage Tower?"

Kaito shook his head. "Nah, we're on our way to the academy. Our class got assigned to take Naruto's class on a training exercise."

Kakashi gave a small nod. "Ah, the new training program Lady Tsunade mentioned."

"Yeah," Kaito confirmed before leaning in closer to Kakashi, making sure Hotaru and Kahyo couldn't hear. He smirked slightly. "So… how's it going with you and Kahyo-san?"

Kakashi turned to him with a deadpan stare. "Don't you have anything else to talk about?"

Kaito shrugged. "Hey, Mom asked me to ask you. Plus, I'm curious. How have things been? Me and Tenzo did interrupt you both, ya know." He snickered.

Kakashi sighed, clearly choosing to ignore him.

Not letting up, Kaito nudged Kakashi in the ribs. "Come on, tell me. You can't just ignore me, ya know." He grinned widely.

Kahyo, noticing their whispering, looked at them curiously. "Huh? What's wrong, Kakashi-kun?"

Kaito turned to her with a mischievous grin. "Oh, I was just asking Kakashi if—"

Before he could finish, Kakashi swiftly clamped a hand over Kaito's mouth, grabbed him in a chokehold, and laughed nervously. "It's nothing! He was just asking me for a spar, that's all."

As Kakashi kept Kaito in a headlock, he scratched his head sheepishly and whispered, "Hey, stop. Please don't say anything, Kaito. I'll tell you later, okay?"

Kaito nodded, and Kakashi immediately let him go.

Straightening up, Kaito chuckled. "Yep, just pestering Kakashi for a spar, that's all."

Hotaru narrowed her eyes, clearly not buying it.

Before she could press further, they reached the Hokage Tower, where they eventually parted ways with Kakashi and Kahyo.

As soon as they were out of earshot, Hotaru turned to Kaito. "Okay, spill. What was that all about with Kakashi-sempai, Kai-kun?"

Kaito smirked. "Oh, that? I was just asking how things were going between him and Kahyo-san."

Hotaru's eyes widened in excitement. "Ohhh! And? What did he say?" She leaned in eagerly, eyes shining with anticipation for some juicy gossip.

Kaito shrugged. "Dunno. He said he'd tell me later."

As they walked up to the academy entrance, they spotted Itachi standing under a tree with Izumi and Hana, waiting for them.

Kaito raised a hand in greeting. "Yo, guys! Hope we didn't keep you waiting." He waved as they walked over.

Hana smirked, arms crossed. "Well, well, look who finally decided to show up. The lovebirds, huh? What took you two so long?" She teased.

Kaito faltered mid-step, nearly stumbling. "W-what?!"

Hotaru's face turned red at Hana's teasing, but she quickly regained her composure. "Good morning, Hana, Izumi, Itachi-kun. Hope we didn't keep you waiting too long."

Itachi gave them a small smile. "Good morning to you too, Hotaru, Kaito."

Izumi smiled as well. "No worries, we just got here a few minutes ago."

Hana scoffed. "Speak for yourself. I've been waiting for over thirty minutes."

Kaito scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that. I kinda woke up late, ya know. Hotaru had to wake me up."

Hana's grin widened mischievously. "Ohhh, so you were sleeping together before even getting married? Man, you two are fast."

Hotaru's face turned crimson as she stammered, "W-what?! We never—Hana!"

The comment also made Izumi blush, her eyes darting between Kaito and Hotaru with surprise.

Itachi simply raised an eyebrow at Kaito, waiting for an explanation.

Kaito let out a sigh, shooting Hana a deadpan look before facepalming. "No, I was working late last night and overslept. Mom didn't know I had a mission today, so she let me sleep in. When Hotaru showed up, she had to wake me up. That's it."

As he finished speaking, he thought to himself, 'What the fish is wrong with kids these days? Already knowing about that kinda stuff…'

Of course, Kaito didn't count himself—he was already a teenager when he died and reincarnated.

Izumi, now recovered from her embarrassment, looked at Kaito. "Huh? Where's your bag? Did you forget to bring it? It's a three-day mission."

Kaito blinked, then patted his pouch. "Oh, that? I have it sealed in here."

Itachi nodded. "Kaito never brings a bag on missions. He always has everything sealed."

Hana sighed wistfully. "That sounds way better than lugging around a backpack."

Itachi, ever the practical one, added, "It's convenient, but it's also risky. If your sealing scroll gets damaged, you'll lose all your supplies, which isn't ideal on a dangerous mission."

Kaito smirked. "Well, that sounds like a skill issue, ya know."

Before anyone could respond, a chunin rushed up to them, slightly out of breath. "There you guys are! I've been looking for you everywhere!"

Kaito looked at the chunin who had approached them. He was of average height and build, with black hair tied in a ponytail, dark eyes, and a scar running across the bridge of his nose. He wore the standard Konoha shinobi outfit—forehead protector, sandals, and flak jacket. His sleeves were rolled up about a quarter of the way.

Kaito blinked, his thoughts pausing for a moment. 'Huh? Wait a second… is that Iruka?'

Seeing one of the most iconic people from Naruto's story in person felt a little surreal. Kaito had always had a favorable opinion of Iruka. At first, the guy had been like most of the village—seeing Naruto as nothing more than the embodiment of the Nine-Tails. But over time, he'd grown to genuinely care about him, eventually treating him like a younger brother.

Iruka, still catching his breath, straightened up. "We're assembling the students. Please follow me."

As the group started walking, Kaito stepped up beside him. "Hey, what's your name? I'm Kaito Uzumaki."

Iruka looked a little taken aback. "Umm… I'm Umino Iruka, Kaito-sama."

Kaito raised an eyebrow. "Huh? You don't have to call me 'sama,' ya know. I'm younger than you." Then, after a beat, he added, "So, you're Naruto's teacher?"

Iruka looked a bit uncomfortable, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, I am."

Noticing his hesitation, Kaito offered a reassuring smile. "I hope he's not causing you too much trouble."

Iruka quickly shook his head. "No, not at all. He's actually one of our top students."

Kaito nodded in approval. "Well, thanks for teaching him without any bias, Umino-san." Then, letting the conversation settle, he slowed his pace, falling back slightly to walk alongside Itachi.

As he did, a thought crossed his mind. 'Naruto might not form the same close bond with Iruka this time around… things are already so different.'

Just then, Itachi coughed lightly into his hand.

Kaito immediately turned toward him, narrowing his eyes. "Hey, you okay?"

Itachi gave a small nod. "Yeah, I'm fine."

Kaito's eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you sure?"

Itachi gave him a weird look. "Yeah… why are you acting all strange?"

Kaito thought to himself, 'Could this be an early symptom of his illness? I need to get him checked by Tsunade.'

He shook his head. "No, it's nothing."

Reaching into his pouch, he pulled out a tri-pronged kunai and handed it to Itachi. "You're in charge of Naruto's team, right? Keep this with you. If you run into any trouble, just call me, ya know."

Itachi looked at the kunai, recognizing its significance. His expression turned serious as he nodded and pocketed it. "Yeah. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on Naruto-kun."

Before long, they arrived at the academy training grounds, where the students stood in their designated teams.

The principal of the academy spotted them and stepped forward. "These will be your instructors for today's training exercise."

Kaito scanned the crowd and made his way toward one of the teams, where Hinata and Shikamaru stood alongside a pink-haired girl.

Seeing Sakura, Kaito sighed internally. 'Hope she isn't as bad as in the anime…'

He had hated the original timeline's Sakura with a passion and had made sure to warn Naruto to stay far away from pink-haired girls—going as far as threatening to stop training him if he didn't.

Kushina and Naruto had given him weird looks for it, but Kaito had no regrets.

As he stopped in front of the three students, Shikamaru let out a sigh, his usual lazy expression in place. "Troublesome… it's this guy."

Hinata, who stood at the front, blushed slightly upon seeing Kaito and shyly waved. "G-Good morning, Kaito-sempai."

Kaito grinned and waved back. "Hey there, Hina-chan. You too, Shika. Been a while, huh?"

Hinata gave a small nod, and Shikamaru shrugged. "Well, you haven't visited in a while."

Kaito rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, sorry about that. I've been busy, ya know. How's Yoshino-san doing?"

Shikamaru sighed. "She's fine, I guess. But she's been nagging a lot."

Kaito chuckled, a sweatdrop forming on the back of his head. 'Man, Sensei wouldn't need a DNA test to prove you're his kid, he acts just like sensei'

His attention turned toward the principal, who was explaining the training exercise. The students would be heading to a nearby mountain to locate a hidden scroll.

Sakura, who had been watching Kaito interact with Shikamaru and Hinata, furrowed her brows in confusion. She leaned toward them and asked, "You both know him?"

Shikamaru sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Troublesome… My father used to be his Jonin squad leader when they were Genin."

Hinata nodded, her voice soft but clear. "My sister was also part of his team… and he's Naruto-kun's older brother."

Sakura's eyes widened in shock. "Wait, he's Kaito Uzumaki? The son of the Fourth Hokage?"

She turned to Shikamaru, brows furrowed in confusion. "But why did you say he used to be in a squad under your father? Isn't he still a Genin? He's not that much older than us, right?"

Shikamaru gave her a lazy glance. "Nope. That's because his entire team was promoted to Chunin… when they were nine."

Sakura's jaw nearly dropped. "They were promoted at nine?! That's just a year older than us!"

Hinata hesitated before adding, "A-Ano… Kaito-sempai and my sister are thirteen. Also… he was promoted to Jonin last year. According to my father, he's one of the youngest ever to reach that rank."

Shikamaru sighed again. "And that's not all. I heard from my father that he's also the official candidate for the position of Sixth Hokage when Lady Tsunade retires."

Sakura's eyes widened even further, her brain struggling to process the information.

Meanwhile, Kaito—having overheard every word—felt his eye twitch. 'why are they talking about me like I'm some kind of legend, ya know?!'

Later that evening, they all sat around the campfire, having just finished eating dinner.

Kaito had spent some time earlier showing them how to catch and cook fish, as well as how to properly make a fire. It had been a productive day, but it wasn't without its challenges.

Earlier, they had been attacked by the Chunin team assigned to test them. Kaito had held back, letting Shikamaru, Hinata, and Sakura handle the fight on their own.

To put it nicely, things hadn't gone great.

Shikamaru and Hinata had done well enough—Shikamaru using his strategy to control the fight while Hinata supported him with her Byakugan and gentle fist techniques. But Sakura… well, subpar was the nicest way Kaito could put it.

He had completely forgotten just how bad Sakura was in the original timeline. It wasn't until she started training under Tsunade that she even became decent, eventually reaching a level that could be considered low Kage tier.

And that was the truth.

Sakura was never as strong as Naruto or Sasuke. Even in the Boruto era, thinking otherwise was just dumb. At best, she was a high Kage-level shinobi—maybe on par with Tsunade.

People who seriously thought Sakura was equal to Naruto and Sasuke had to be brain-dead. Naruto and Sasuke weren't just regular shinobi—they were the literal reincarnations of Ashura and Indra and had needed chakra amps from the Sage of Six Paths just to reach their level. But somehow, people thought Sakura, with average talent and a good work ethic, could reach that same level? Yeah, right.

The same logic applied to the ridiculous claims about War Arc Kakashi being on par with Minato or Hokage Kakashi being stronger than Hashirama.

Like, what?

Kakashi literally needed a chakra amp from Kurama just to keep up with Obito in the war. Sure, Kakashi was holding back during the first part of their fight due to his mental state—but so was Obito. If Obito had truly wanted to, he could have killed Kakashi right then and there.

And let's not forget—back in the Chunin Exams, Kakashi was shaking just from being in Orochimaru's presence. Then, during the Kage Summit, he openly admitted that MS Sasuke was stronger than him. This was the same Sasuke who had just surpassed Orochimaru by the end of that arc. Yet somehow, in just a few months, people think Kakashi magically became stronger than Itachi?

Not a chance.

Minato was already stronger than MS Itachi and, at the very least, on par—or outright stronger—than Edo Itachi in his base form, without even considering KCM. There's just no way Hokage Kakashi, after years of slacking off, had somehow surpassed Hashirama.

Maybe—maybe—he reached Minato's level. But higher than that? No way.

Kaito sighed, glancing at the three sitting around the fire with him.

Clearing his throat, he asked, "So, who's taking the first shift for night watch?"

Hinata shyly raised her hand. "A-Ano… I can."

Shikamaru sighed. "Troublesome… I'll take the second shift then."

Kaito nodded. "Alright, that means Sakura's on the last shift."

Sakura gave a small nod.

"Well then, get to bed. I'll wake you up for your shifts."

Hinata hesitated. "A-Ano… aren't you going to sleep, Kaito-sempai?"

Kaito shook his head. "Nah, I'll stay awake with all of you to keep us safe."

Hinata looked concerned. "B-But won't you be tired?"

Shikamaru, who was already stretching, chimed in. "Yeah, you need rest too, you know."

Kaito waved him off. "I can go a week without sleep if I need to, so don't worry about me, ya know. Now get going. I'll wake you up for your shifts."

Shikamaru and Sakura didn't argue further, heading off to their tents. The girls shared one, while Kaito and Shikamaru shared another, leaving Kaito and Hinata alone by the fire.

Kaito poked at the fire with a stick before casually asking, "So, how's everything at the academy, Hina-chan?"

Hinata fiddled with her fingers. "I-It's… well, um…"

They chatted for a while, with Kaito mostly asking about her training and Hinata occasionally asking about his missions.

Then, suddenly—

Kaito's head snapped up, his senses tingling.

He had felt it. Someone was watching them.

Hinata flinched at his sudden movement. "A-Ano… Kaito-sempai? What's wrong?"

Kaito's eyes narrowed as he turned toward the direction of the presence, scanning the dark forest. He couldn't see anything, but something was there.

Without hesitation, he closed his eyes and entered his imperfect Sage Mode.

His senses expanded instantly. He could feel everything—Naruto, Itachi, Hotaru, Hana, and Izumi, all with their respective groups.

But nothing else.

Hinata's worried voice broke his focus. "A-Ano… what's wrong?"

Kaito opened his eyes, looking at the exact spot where he had sensed the presence before it vanished. "It's nothing, Hinata. Just a rabbit, that's all."

But in his mind, he wasn't convinced.

'I know there was someone watching us. Maybe Zetsu? No… if it was Zetsu, I would've sensed him in Sage Mode.'

His gaze flickered back to Hinata, a new thought creeping into his mind.

'Could it have been him?'

His eyes narrowed as he looked up at the moon, deep in thought.

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