The green-skinned watermelon head, such a classic look. It was so clear, and everyone knew each other. Uchiha Kai and the others immediately smiled and walked up to greet them.
With a small mustache, Might Duy waved at everyone with his son, Might Guy, laughing. He mentioned that he'd been training with his son nearby and, after noticing some commotion here, they came to check it out together.
At the same time, nine-year-old Might Guy also greeted Minato's team. They were classmates and had already graduated, but Guy's instructor wasn't very skilled in taijutsu, so he usually trained with his dad.
When he saw the battle marks left on the training ground by Kakashi and Obito's fight, Might Guy looked amazed and a little disappointed.
"You guys are improving again. We all graduated, so why are you two so awesome?"
Kakashi was a "genius from the start," but even Obito was so strong now. It made Might Guy, who had always been at the bottom of their class, feel frustrated.
However, being Might Guy, he quickly cheered up, fired up with determination, and said, "As expected of my best friend and rival, you guys are amazing! I'll work even harder and catch up to both of you."
Kakashi, as usual, remained proud and arrogantly snorted, acting like he didn't care about Guy.
Obito, on the other hand, got fired up by Might Guy's enthusiasm, laughing and saying he'd keep working hard so that Guy wouldn't surpass him.
For a moment, the atmosphere became quite intense, making everyone smile.
But when you think about it, looking at their achievements, these three young kids were the strongest in their class.
In the original story, each of them had amazing feats. They were the strongest trio, sandwiched between the legendary Senju Hashirama, Uchiha Madara, and the future Naruto and Sasuke, both of whom were also powerhouses.
Even though their destinies were different and their goals and willpower diverged, they would still stand at the peak of their time.
Of course, that's all part of the original history.
As for now, with Uchiha Kai constantly stirring the wings of the butterfly, who knows what will happen in the future?
Then, Uchiha Kai smiled and said to Might Duy, "Duy-san, you look quite well. You haven't been neglecting your diet lately, have you?"
Hearing this, Might Duy immediately showed a serious expression and thanked Uchiha Kai, "Thank you for your concern, Lord Kai. Thanks to you and the Uchiha clan, our family has been living much better lately. We no longer have to scrimp on food. I really appreciate it!"
As he spoke, he bowed seriously to Uchiha Kai. Uchiha Kai quickly stopped him, saying there was no need for such formalities, as he had only provided help within his means.
Yes, Uchiha Kai had helped Might Duy and his son, and this had happened not long ago.
Might Duy, unlike his son Might Guy, did not have top-tier talent in taijutsu. Instead, his ability was just above average.
Combined with his almost nonexistent talent for ninjutsu, he had been at the bottom of the class since childhood, with no signs of a breakthrough.
Even as he grew older, he could only remain a Genin, never able to rise higher.
Even though he possessed the forbidden technique, the Eight Gates, his fighting strength without pushing himself to the limit was limited.
And since the Chūnin Exams were comprehensive and lasted a long time, Might Duy, relying on the Eight Gates as his trump card, would often burn out after one burst, leaving him exhausted for several days.
This prevented him from ever passing the Chūnin Exams.
Unable to rise in rank, Might Duy, as an Eternal Genin, could only take on low-paying, low-level missions. Training in taijutsu required a lot of food and medicinal support, but his earnings were barely enough to cover his needs.
Thus, a vicious cycle formed.
Of course, if Might Duy had spent all his money on improving his own strength, he would have been able to grow stronger.
However, Might Duy had a son, Might Guy, and he was very aware that his son's talent in taijutsu far surpassed his own.
The rest is easy to guess. Might Duy spent almost all of his earnings on his son, giving him the best food and medicine, while he himself ate the worst and collected herbs from the wild.
Life was incredibly hard, and he was often mocked as Eternal Genin.
Under the traditional ninja system, Might Duy's life would have likely ended up this way, at most shining once with all his effort before fading away.
But then, after Uchiha Kai had dealt with the Uchiha clan and prepared to hold a press conference, Might Duy's life took a turn for the better.
The Uchiha clan spent a large sum to release numerous low-level missions, and finally, Might Duy had an opportunity to earn a good amount of money.
On this basis, Uchiha Kai, knowing how powerful Might Duy could become when fully unleashed, directly arranged for the Uchiha clan to hire Might Duy on a long-term basis, making him a professional fighter for the Konoha Gaming Company, with a high salary.
Although the Uchiha clan didn't understand why Uchiha Kai would spend so much money hiring Eternal Genin of Konoha, especially one who was purely a taijutsu specialist, they were determined to follow Uchiha Kai's orders without question.
Thus, Might Duy's life changed completely.
The Uchiha clan was quite generous to their own, and the high-paying job along with the special medication subsidies from Uchiha Kai meant that Might Duy no longer had to worry about the costs of training in taijutsu.
The job as a professional fighter didn't require him to stand guard every day. He only needed to patrol occasionally and go on field assignments when needed.
This meant that, most of the time, Might Duy could train taijutsu with his son, and his physical condition visibly improved.
The worn-down, middle-aged aura Might Duy once had was now replaced with the energy reminiscent of his son's future self.
All these benefits and care weren't hidden from Might Duy. The Uchiha clan told him everything about how Uchiha Kai had looked after him, which is why he showed such deep gratitude and bowed to Uchiha Kai when they met.
Of course, for Uchiha Kai, this was just a small favor. When he saw Might Duy while recruiting many people to build the venue for a conference, he was reminded of the legendary father of the "Guy" and casually ordered special treatment for Might Guy.
When someone has power and wealth, and has reached a certain level, changing another person's fate is really easy.
However, Uchiha Kai wouldn't boast about this. He understood that he was just using his connections and a little bit of luck.
Without these things, he would still be the ordinary person from the Uchiha clan.
Therefore, Uchiha Kai always treated others without arrogance.
For instance, right now, Uchiha Kai was talking to Might Duy as a friend, which made the smile on Might Duy's face never fade, and he felt deeply moved.
After all, in Might Duy's eyes, Uchiha Kai was an unreachable figure. Even though Uchiha Kai had just become a jonin, his special status within the Uchiha clan allowed him to look down on nearly everyone in Konoha.
It was the difference brought by this identity that made Might Duy even more moved. He almost wanted to pledge his loyalty to Uchiha Kai right there and then, willing to risk his life for him.
Meanwhile, seeing Might Duy's passionate and excited attitude, Minato Namikaze also nodded deeply in agreement. He expressed that what Might Duy-san said was correct.
Kai was indeed such an outstanding person. Being able to meet him and become his close friend was the luckiest and greatest honor of Minato Namikaze's life.
Well, who knows how many layers of filters Uchiha Kai had in his best friend's eyes.
**********
Support me on my patreon and read upto 15 early chapters.
patreon.com/PirateKing24