Teuchi understood Kakashi's look and wisely shut his mouth, but he couldn't calm down for a long time.
He had always watched Naruto's situation in the village since he was young. If this child really was the Fourth Hokage's son, then that was truly a hellish fate.
"Um, Big Brother Kakashi, Uncle Teuchi, you both know my dad, right? Where is he now?" Naruto lifted his head, eyes brimming with tears as if they could fall at any moment.
Teuchi took a deep breath. It seemed he'd gotten himself into big trouble. Whatever the truth behind Naruto's parentage, it wasn't something a simple ramen vendor in Konoha could get involved in.
"Naruto, I can't tell you your father's identity for now. But I can tell you this: your father was a great ninja," Kakashi said.
"I…" Naruto stared blankly at the two of them.
Kakashi patted Naruto's head and said, "I'm not letting you know your father's identity to protect you. Your father had many powerful, unimaginable enemies. You haven't even finished the ninja academy yet. We can't let you get dragged into the disputes of the previous generation."
"So, once I get stronger, you'll tell me who he is, right?" Naruto quickly pulled himself together, wiped away his tears, and asked.
"Yes," Kakashi nodded.
"You can't lie to me!" Naruto looked up at Kakashi.
Kakashi looked at the young but familiar face in front of him—so much like his teacher and his teacher's wife. For a moment, he was lost in thought.
"Hey! Big Brother Kakashi!" Naruto grumbled discontentedly.
"Alright, I promise you. Finish eating, then go home and pack your things. From now on, you'll live with me," Kakashi said.
"Yes!" Naruto shouted cheerfully, then finished his ramen at lightning speed.
"I'm done! Thank you for the meal!"
…
Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi watched this scene through his crystal ball and let out a slight sigh of relief.
Fortunately, Kakashi knew to be discreet and recognized that now was not the right time to reveal Naruto's identity.
...
On the other side.
Inside Uchiha Seiryu's study, after Fugaku dropped Sasuke off, he left. For a while, only Seiryu and Sasuke were left in the study.
After seeing Fugaku out, Seiryu busied himself writing at his desk, while Sasuke sat somewhat nervously in the study.
"Find a place to sit. Wait until I finish these things," Seiryu said without looking up.
It was clear that Fugaku had placed great emphasis on teaching Sasuke proper manners. Even though Seiryu spoke so casually, Sasuke still found a cushion and knelt in a formal position.
After a while, Seiryu finished writing the last character, then looked up and asked, "How many characters do you know?"
"My brother and mother taught me to read. I know most of them," Sasuke replied.
"That's good. Then I don't have to start from teaching you how to read," Seiryu said, handing Sasuke a booklet he had just written.
"Your task for today is to memorize the first three pages. I'll explain the meaning after you've memorized them."
Hearing this, Sasuke glanced down at what his new teacher had given him.
"'At the beginning of man, their nature is good'?" Sasuke opened the first page and read out the first line word by word.
For a child Sasuke's age, teaching him powerful jutsu would be pointless due to his lack of chakra. Instead, it was better to use this period to shape his values, so he wouldn't be poisoned by the ninja academy's training killing machines education, and so he could learn to think rationally about the world. At the very least, he shouldn't turn out like his older brother.
Sasuke didn't understand why his teacher was making him memorize texts instead of teaching him jutsu, but he still obediently started memorizing.
...
After eating ramen, Kakashi followed Naruto back to his tiny apartment, barely thirty square meters.
As soon as they entered, Naruto boisterously showed Kakashi his treasures—which included but were not limited to a cabinet full of instant noodles and expired milk in the fridge.
Kakashi casually picked up a carton of milk from the fridge. Just one look at the expiration date and his brows furrowed—it was three months expired.
"Naruto, didn't you notice anything wrong with the taste when you drank this?" Kakashi asked.
"Huh? Nope. It always tasted the same to me," Naruto said after a moment's confusion.
Upon hearing this, Kakashi more or less understood what was going on. He walked to the wardrobe not far from the fridge and opened it to find nothing but some worn-out clothes. He felt like slapping himself.
"Forget packing. I'll take you to buy new things tomorrow," Kakashi said with a sigh, seeing Naruto stuffing instant noodles into his bag one by one.
"At least let me bring my ramen! These are my treasures!" Naruto protested. He could leave other things, but these noodles had taken a long time to collect.
Then Kakashi noticed a red scarf in the corner of the wardrobe. He remembered his teacher's wife knitting one just like it when she was pregnant. He took it out, closed the wardrobe, grabbed Naruto by the collar, and headed out. "Kids can't eat so much ramen, or you'll never grow tall."
Naruto flailed his little arms and legs, but in front of Kakashi, he could only watch as his treasures slowly drifted away.
...
Sasuke was a smart kid. In less than an hour, he had memorized everything Seiryu had assigned.
Seiryu spot-checked a few lines and, seeing Sasuke had memorized them, began explaining the meaning.
Sasuke listened attentively, and time passed bit by bit.
"Alright, that's it for today." Seiryu finally set the book down after finishing the explanation. "It's getting late, go home and sleep."
"Um, sensei, aren't you going to teach me ninjutsu?" Sasuke asked quietly.
"Ninjutsu, huh?" Seiryu nodded. "Then come with me."