Naruto: Starting with Creating a Genius Persona

As dawn breaks, the Flavor Masterpiece in the west of the village begins to unfold.

The shop owner, Fujiwara, was a capable middle-aged man. He was standing at the shop entrance with a ruddy complexion, directing several quick-witted employees to work busily.

"Hurry, hurry, hurry! Set the flagpole up firmly! A little higher on the left! Yes, just like that!" He looked up, his voice exceptionally loud.

Brand new congratulatory banners were erected, lined up neatly on both sides of the shop entrance, red with white lettering, fluttering in the wind. The first few banners read:

"Congratulations to Shinichi Higashino – winner of the Land of Fire's Number One Gourmet Food Contest!"

"Master Chef Title - A Commemorative Honor!"

"Master Chef of Taste - Honorary Culinary Master for Life!"

At the end of the flag formation was a string of slightly smaller flags that read: "Imperial Gift: Half Price for Full Items for Three Days".

"Not just our shop!" Boss Fujiwara waved his hand triumphantly, pointing to both sides of the street: "All the neighboring shops that have already spoken to me, hang up your congratulatory banners! And at both ends of this street, put up banners too! We want everyone who passes by to know that the champion came from our street, from our Aji no Takumi!"

Under his arrangement, the entire small commercial street was soon covered with flags, with a forest of flags at the storefronts, making a rustling sound when the wind blew, creating a festive and joyful atmosphere.

Passersby stopped to watch and discuss the scene, with many regular customers even smiling and congratulating the owner, Fujiwara.

Team 10 has not yet returned to the village after completing their mission, but Shinichi Higashino's name has once again swept through the streets and alleys of Konoha in another unexpected way.

That afternoon, Team 7, having completed yet another D-rank mission, happened to pass by this street, decorated with fluttering flags and lanterns, on their way back to the Hokage Building to hand in the mission.

"Wow, it's so lively!" Uchiha Obito was the first to be attracted by the array of flags and the bustling crowd. He looked around curiously, and his eyes quickly locked onto the tallest and largest congratulatory flags at the entrance of Aji no Takumi.

He squinted and slowly read aloud: "Omikami... Shinichi Higashino... The First Culinary Contest in the Land of Fire... Excellent..."

He stopped abruptly halfway through his reading, blinked, and looked utterly bewildered. He then turned sharply to Kakashi, who stood beside him with a cold expression: "Huh? Kakashi! How come this culinary master, Higashino Shinichi, who won the cooking competition, has the exact same name as that Shinichi guy?"

Kakashi didn't even bother to lift his eyelids, his hands in his pockets, and uttered two words: "Idiot."

"What did you say?! You bastard Kakashi!" Obito bristled like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, waving his fists.

"It should be the same person, Obito." Rin Nohara's gentle voice rang out just in time, easing the impending daily argument. She smiled at Obito and reminded him, "Have you forgotten? When Shinichi graduated early last year, didn't he hold a huge thank-you banquet at this restaurant, Aji no Takumi, and invite a lot of people? We came together at the time, and when the owner, Fujiwara, gave his speech, he proudly said that Shinichi was the best chef in their restaurant."

"Ah! Right!" Rin's reminder made Obito slap his forehead, suddenly realizing, but his face was immediately replaced by even stronger disbelief: "But...but that's cooking! The National Culinary Competition! Isn't Shinichi a ninja? He's already that strong, and he actually went to participate in the competition and won? A top-level chef?"

He stared at the fluttering flag, then at the bustling scene inside and outside the shop, opened his mouth, and finally choked out, "This is just too unfair!"

Minato Namikaze, listening to his disciples' conversation, maintained his signature warm smile. He glanced at the conspicuous congratulatory banners around him, then at the three students with varying expressions, and said with a smile:

"As expected of Shinichi! Not only has he made rapid progress in ninja way, but he has also reached such a level in cooking, winning the national championship."

He then clapped his hands and suggested, "Perfect timing! Our Class 7 hasn't had a proper meal together since it was formed. After we hand in our mission, this is a rare opportunity, so I'll treat you. Let's have a good meal at Wei Zhi Jiang and celebrate for Shinichi."

"Wow! That's great! Minato-sensei is the best!"

Obito Uchiha immediately raised both hands in agreement, his eyes shining as if he could already smell the delicious aroma.

"Really? Thank you, Minato-sensei!" Nohara Rin also smiled happily and thanked him politely.

Both of them reacted enthusiastically. However, amidst the cheerful atmosphere, Kakashi Hatake remained silent, standing in place with his hands in his pockets, his head slightly lowered, staring at the ground.

"Kakashi?" Minato Namikaze keenly noticed his disciple's unusual behavior and asked gently, "Shall we come together?"

Kakashi remained silent for a moment before slowly raising his head. His gaze swept over the excited Obito and Rin, finally meeting Minato's gentle blue eyes.

He quickly looked away, shook his head, and said in a somewhat somber voice:

"No, Minato-sensei, I still have some training plans to complete. You should go ahead."

"What's going on, Kakashi!" Obito Uchiha immediately complained, moving closer to him. "What a spoilsport! Why are you always thinking about training? There's no time when you can't train! Minato-sensei rarely treats us, and Shinichi winning the championship is a good thing, let's all have some fun together! Stop being so antisocial!"

Rin Nohara gently tugged at Obito's sleeve, signaling him not to get too excited, then looked at Kakashi with concern: "Kakashi, are you really not going? You work so hard every day, it's okay to relax a little once in a while."

Minato Namikaze looked at Kakashi quietly, a hint of worry flashing deep in his eyes.

Cultivation, cultivation, and more cultivation.

Ever since Kakashi suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Shinichi Higashino, and even the White Fang short sword, which symbolized the family's heritage and his father's glory, was broken, a significant change has occurred in this child.

Shinichi's sharp, incisive words may indeed have been like a potent medicine, piercing through some of the knots in Kakashi's heart that he had long used to numb himself with the supremacy of rules and trapped in the shadow of his father's death, forcing him to confront some issues that he had been avoiding.

However, the old obsession was forcibly pried open, and a new, more intense, yet more singular obsession swept through his entire mind like wildfire—to become stronger!

Become stronger at all costs!

Over the past month, Minato, as the Jonin instructor of Team 7, has witnessed everything.

Kakashi remains efficient and calm when carrying out missions, leaving no room for error. However, if he has even a minute of free time between missions, he will immediately immerse himself in various physical training, chakra control, or swordsmanship practice, like a wound-up, tireless machine.

It was a near-obsessive, self-punishing, frantic pursuit.

It was as if he wanted to use extreme physical exhaustion and rapid improvement in skills to fill the huge void in his heart that had been carved open by Shinichi's words and the sound of the broken sword—a void called weakness and confusion.