"My parents asked me to invite you to dinner tomorrow evening." Misaki said conversationally as we approached the gate leading into the Hyuga Compound. My parents weren't home again, giving us the whole house to study. We'd stayed at the kitchen table, but we could have gone anywhere in the house if we wanted to.

I furrowed my eyebrows as I looked at her. "Is this an invitation that it is impolite to accept or impolite to decline?" I asked. Despite the large amount of time I'd been spending at the Hyuga compound in recent months, I still wasn't the best at reading the Hyugas or understanding their intentions. But I'd found Misaki to be fairly straightforward. If you asked her plainly what she wanted or what she meant, she would tell you.

"It would be impolite to decline. They have already purchased additional food to prepare for you." Misaki said without a hint of offense. She knew I wasn't the best when it came to politicking and socializing.

"Then please tell your parents I would be grateful to attend dinner with them."

"Good. We will eat after we train."

"Um…" I started to say.

"We will focus on thrown weapons so you are presentable." Misaki said with a small smile, having understood I didn't want to sit at her parent's table covered in dirt and bruises.

"Great. I'm looking forward to it."

"As am I. Thank you for your help tonight, Shinto." Misaki said with a bow before she turned and entered the Hyuga Compound.

Normally, I would now head to the library or to a prearranged destination to study or train with Aika, but she'd told me earlier today that she was busy tonight. I could go straight home, but I had somewhere else in mind.

I walked into Konoha proper and scanned the creaking wooden signs hung over the various stores and stalls. Each was etched with vibrant paint to attract the eyes of potential customers. I was looking for one sign in particular. After a short while searching, I found a comparatively large shop with a large, rectangular sign hanging over the door. Stylized white and pink letters read, 'Yamanaka Flowers'. There was a smaller sign in the front window that read, 'Open'.

I pushed open the door and walked inside. White-petaled flowers with long green stems, lush red buds with thorns, a strange orange leaf with black coloring reminiscent of an eye – there were flowers and plants of all kinds in the shop, set on shelves and hanging from pots hooked into the ceiling.

"Welcome!" a tall lithe woman with acorn hair greeted with a bright smile on her face. "Welcome to Yamanaka Flowers, young man. Are your parents with you?"

"Um, no actually. They're both on a mission. I'm currently a student at the Academy and wanted to start a small garden with flowers I could use when I graduate. I'm getting pretty good with senbon and kunai, so I was looking for different kinds of poisons to coat them in. I was hoping you could either provide me with some flowers that would work how I wanted or direct me to somewhere else that could help me." I explained.

Since beginning my training with Misaki, I had improved substantially with thrown weapons. In addition, I'd been working with Aika on my chakra control whenever I had the chance. While my focus was mainly tree walking and water walking, I'd also been working with chakra strings. I now had enough control that I could create a string from each of my fingers and simultaneously make each string invisible.

Over the past couple of weeks, I'd been experimenting with using my strings to throw senbon and kunai and had made a surprising amount of progress. Initially, I'd more tried it just to see if it was possible than out of a desire to actually use chakra strings like this, but as time passed, I realized it was viable. I could throw five times as many projectiles at once with chakra strings than with my hands. At the moment, I wasn't able to hit the target regularly, but that would change with practice. If each of those projectiles was coated in poison, I would be that much more deadly.

Who knows? I may even be able to control a chakra string independent of the Shadow Imitation Technique and use it to strike people I had caught in my shadow without moving myself. One of the main downsides to the Shadow Imitation technique was you had to move every way you wanted your captured target to move. I could move the chakra strings just by manipulating my chakra, so I might be able to synergize them with my shadows. I would need to wait until I could actually use the Shadow Imitation Technique to test that though.

The woman behind the counter pursed her lips as she stared down at me. "We carry a number of flowers that would serve your purposes, but I will not sell them to a child without his guardian present. I also think you'd have better luck at a dedicated poison shop. The majority of our flowers serve more…mundane purposes."

"I poked my head in a few poison stores, but they only sell the poison itself, not the means to make it yourself. I'd rather grow my own poisons. I can come back with my parents later to buy them, but I'm mainly looking for three things." I held up three fingers, one after the other. "A poison that will kill rapidly. A paralytic that will keep the target alive but immobile. And a hallucinogenic that will mess with the target's senses." I wanted a lethal poison for obvious reasons. I wanted to be able to kill an opponent with a simple cut. I wanted the paralytic in case I needed to keep a target alive and was too hard pressed to use the Shadow Imitation Technique. The hallucinogenic was mostly for interrogation purposes, but it would also help in a fight or to keep a target alive.

The woman fixed me with a scrutinizing gaze, not saying anything for a moment. "I will see what I can do. Please return with your parents after one week."

I scratched the back of my head and looked away from her eyes, sheepish. "I don't know when they'll be back. It might be more than a week."

The woman's expressions softened. "Just come back any time after a week with your parents. There's no rush, sweetie."

I smiled up at her. "Thank you for your help."

"You're welcome, young man. I look forward to seeing you again."

I smiled at her and left.

I stuck my hands in my pockets as I began walking home. That visit wasn't a total bust, but I would be lying if I said I didn't wish it had gone better. Don't get me wrong, I completely understand her not wanting to sell poison to a little kid. I didn't resent her for that. I resented the fact I was a child in the first place. Being a kid sucked.

I took a deep breath to banish my frustration. I would legally be an adult when I became a genin. I just needed to wait a few years until graduation, then all these little inconveniences would be behind me.

X

School had gone as uneventfully as always. I'd half-paid attention to what Suzuki-sensei said while mostly reading the books Aika had given me. Then the class went out to the sparring ring where I beat all of my opponents that weren't Uchiha or Hyuga. I came close to beating one of the Uchiha kids though. I didn't remember his name, but he'd gotten cocky and nearly let me throw him out of the ring. Unfortunately, he'd recovered in time to knock me down and kick me out of the ring. Still, the near-win affirmed that I was making progress.

Training with Misaki was good for me. It was good for her too if her new rankings were anything to go by. Before we'd started training together, she'd been in the top ten, sometimes briefly breaking into the top five in our class for sparring. Now, she was firmly in the top five and regularly broke into the top three. The looks on the Uchiha kids' faces whenever she beat them were always hilarious. They made this look that was half shocked and half angry with their cheeks all scrunched up and their jaws hanging open.

Speaking of Misaki, I was eating dinner with her parents tonight. I still didn't know what to expect, but I assumed I wasn't about to be drawn and quartered. Misaki's mother had told me she wanted Misaki in the top ten for academics by the end of the year. The year ended in about two months, but Misaki was hovering around the twelfth of thirteenth seat. I was confident she'd be in the top ten by the end of the year.

That left the question of why I was invited over for dinner. Was it a 'thank you' dinner?

"Shinto, relax. You are too tense." Misaki said, a disapproving frown on her face as she watched me throw senbon at the target.

I sighed. "Sorry. Hang on a second." I took a deep breath and extended my chakra strings from my fingers.

Misaki hummed consideringly as she activated her byakugan, the veins around her eye bulging. While my strings were invisible to the naked eye, the byakugan could likely still see them as they were made of chakra. Or was it the sharingan that saw chakra?

"You've gotten better with your chakra strings. I couldn't see them." Misaki commented. It was safe to assume she could see them with the byakugan then. She said 'couldn't' not 'can't' after all.

"I've been practicing my chakra control with a Nara matriarch. My better control lets me do this." I said, reaching into my kunai pouch with my chakra strings and pulling out a kunai with each string.

I heard Misaki gasp as the kunai drifted into the air around me. With a flick of each of my fingers, I sent the kunai towards the target. I scored four out of ten hits.

I pursed my lips and huffed in frustration. "I'm still working on it."

When Misaki didn't say anything, I turned to look at her. Her lips were drawn into a thin line as she stared at the kunai.

"Misaki?"

She shook herself, as if pulled from her thoughts. "Do you have to throw the kunai or can you keep them attached to the string?"

I shrugged, sending out ten more chakra strings to pick up the fallen kunai. The kunai began to orbit my body as I puppetted them on the strings. "You can keep them attached to the string if you want, but you can't really make hand signs or punch effectively with your fingers all spread out like this. I've been practicing throwing them because I want to be able to weave ninjutsu in between volleys, but you could conceivably use them like an invisible rope dart if you wanted to."

"Can you teach me how to use chakra strings like that? With the byakugan, I could attack enemies behind me as well as those in front of me."

I nodded. "Sure. It might take you a while to get enough chakra control to maintain more than one, but I'm willing to work with you on it."

Misaki nodded, satisfied. "Thank you, Shinto." She frowned, and turned around. "The sun is setting. My parents will expect us for dinner soon."

I used my chakra strings to put all of my practice kunai back in my pouch and reset the targets. "I'm ready."

Misaki led the way away from the training ground towards the residential area of the Hyuga compound. The houses we passed were small – only one story with slim dimensions. I remembered the Hyuga clan were separated by main and branch families with the branch family being treated like servants of the main family. Since Misaki's family lived among such meager commendations, I assumed she was a branch member. It wasn't that the houses were poorly maintained or unsafe to live in, but they had a clear, 'I'm better than you so you get the smaller house' vibe to them.

"We are here." Misaki announced, pushing open the door to the house at the very end of the cobbled road. There was a planter filled with white-petalled flowers resting under the front window of the house. The walls were white. A spartan wooden patio broke up the monotonous white color. The Hyugas seemed to love white. I blamed their eyes.

"Mother, Father, we are here." Misaki announced as we passed through the threshold into the house.

Misaki's mother, she'd introduced herself as Mio when we'd first met, rounded a corner with a small, welcoming smile on her face. She wore a white kimono with violet patterns. She bowed shallowly and said, "It is good to see you again, Shinto. Please come in."

"Thank you, Hyuga-san." I said, bowing at the waist.

I followed Misaki's lead and made my way into the house. She led me past a small sitting room into a kitchen that joined into a small dining room. Misaki's father, I think Mio introduced him as Kiyoshi, was working at the stove, a steaming pot in front of him. There was a hall that led to three doors beyond the kitchen, but all were closed, and I felt it would be rude to go exploring someone's house when they'd just invited me for dinner, so I just sat down at the dining table next to Misaki.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" I asked, feeling very out of place.

Mio tutted as she joined us at the table. "There is no need for that, shinto. Relax and make yourself at home. The meal is already prepared."

Kiyoshi hefted the pot he was working with at the stove and carried it around the table, ladling a helping into each of four bowls set around the table. I didn't recognize the soup. It had a dark broth with vegetables and chunks of meat. When the soup was served, Kiyoshi set the pot back on the stove and sat down next to his wife, a seat which, incidentally, happened to be right next to me.

"So, Shinto Nara," Kiyoshi said, turning to look at me, leaving his soup untouched. "My daughter tells me the two of you have made substantial progress in your training."

I nodded. "I believe we have, Hyuga-san. Both Misaki and I have gone up in the class ratings thanks to each other's help."

Kiyoshi nodded, his expression and feelings otherwise unreadable. "Do you intend to continue the arrangement you have with my daughter?"

I was taken aback by the question. I'd thought Misaki's parents would approve of us working together given the clear progress we'd made, but this line of questioning was causing me to doubt that.

Carefully, I said, "I had hoped to. However, if Misaki does not wish to continue training together, then we'll stop. I won't hold any grudges or hurt feelings."

"I want to keep training with Shinto, Father." Misaki spoke up, a stern frown on her face as she narrowed her eyes at her father.

Mio clapped her hands together, an amused smile on her face. "That's that then. Let's move on to other topics. Shinto-san, Misaki tells me you are already able to water walk."

"Yes, Hyuga-san, I–"

"Oh, I think you can call me by my name, Shinto-san." Mio said warmly.

"Thank you, Mio-san. Please just call me Shinto. And yes, I am able to water walk. It took me a little while to become good at it, but I can confidently say I am now proficient with the technique."

"Hm, would you be willing to teach Misaki how to water walk?" Mio asked innocently, her eyes searching for something as she watched me closely.

"Of course. Misaki is my friend, and I've learned a lot from her. She won't need my help tutoring her soon, so we'll be able to work on chakra control together." I said.

"Wonderful!" Mio said, a bright smile on her face. She looked down at my untouched bowl and her smile turned into a small frown. "Please eat, Shinto. My husband makes delicious soup."

The conversation died down as everyone began eating. Mio was right, Kiyoshi made excellent soup. I still wasn't sure exactly what said soup was called, and was a little scared to ask if I was honest with myself, but it was good nonetheless.

As the meal progressed, we made small talk about the Academy and how Misaki and I got along with our classmates as well as our overall standings in the class. I was still on top academically, but overall I was ranked fourth behind two Uchiha and a Hyuga Mio told me was from the main branch. Misaki was ranked seventh. She'd stormed up in the rankings ever since we'd started training together. While my class ranking really didn't matter all that much to me, I wanted to be as strong as I could. I wanted to grow to be so powerful that other villages labeled me as a flee-on-sight threat. The fact that my working towards that goal put me high in the rankings in my Academy class was just an unintended side effect of working to pursue my goal.

When the topic changed to our training, Mio and Kiyoshi both grew very interested when my use of chakra strings was mentioned.

"You are able to throw kunai with your chakra strings?" Kiyoshi asked, leaning into the table in interest.

I nodded. "I've been working on using chakra strings for awhile, but I've only recently been able to throw them with any accuracy. I still need to improve, but I'm able to hit stationary and slowly moving targets now."

Mio was silent, her lips pulled into a thin line as she adopted a considering expression.

"Will you teach this to Misaki as well?" Kiyoshi asked, his hands steepled in front of him, his elbows resting atop the table.

"He has already agreed to help me, father." Misaki said, drawing some of his attention away from me, a fact I was grateful for.

Kiyoshi regarded his daughter for a moment then nodded sharply. "Good. I look forward to seeing your progress, Misaki."

Dinner wound down fairly quickly after that. We'd all finished out soup, so we gathered our dishes and cleaned them. Misaki and both her parents walked me to the Hyuga Compound's gate to see me off.

"Thank you for coming, Shinto." Mio said, bowing shallowly. "Please come again some time. I think we all enjoyed your company."

Kiyoshi stepped forward and looked me in the eye. "Thank you for helping my daughter to improve. I look forward to seeing how the two of you grow in the future."

I bowed at the waist and said, "Thank you for hosting me and for the meal. It was delicious." I looked past Mio and Kiyoshi to Misaki. "I'll see you at school tomorrow."

She nodded. "I will see you there, Shinto."

My goodbye's said, I turned and exited the Hyuga Compound, making my way home.