"You... mission... world..."
A four-year-old silver-haired toddler lay sideways on a tatami mat. Although still very young with chubby baby fat on his face, one could already tell how handsome he would grow up to be.
Yet at this moment, his brows were tightly furrowed in clear discomfort.
"Bro... Brother... Brother!"
It was his younger brother, Kakashi's voice.
Only then did the child on the mat open his eyes, a flicker of golden light flashing across his blue irises.
"Time for training." The workaholic younger brother stood by the bed, looking down at his older twin with deadpan eyes.
Hatake Qiyun let out a leisurely yawn.
The sky outside the window was just beginning to brighten, conservatively estimated to be no later than five o'clock.
"Ah... Kakashi, you go ahead." Qiyun rolled over and even reached out to pull his blanket tighter around himself.
Kakashi: ……
He rolled his eyes, having anticipated this outcome long ago.
Without a shred of mercy, he yanked the blanket off Qiyun. "Brother, you are not allowed to be lazy! Dad is coming home today!"
"Hmph." Qiyun reached out, grabbed Kakashi, dragged him right onto the bed, and wrapped him in a tight hug.
"Brother!" Kakashi struggled frantically, his fair little face turning beet red. "Let me go! Get up already!"
"Nope~" Qiyun leaned in close to his younger brother's cheek and said with a smile, "Not unless Kakashi calls me 'Nii-chan' first~"
Kakashi's eyes widened, his face turning an even deeper shade of red. "...No way!"
Facing an unreliable older brother, calling him *Anija* was already Kakashi's absolute limit, let alone *Nii-chan*, which carried a subtle hint of spoiled affection.
"Ehe~" Qiyun smiled mischievously. "Then I'm not letting go. You can forget about going to training today, Kakashi."
The silver-haired little rice dumpling in his arms immediately puffed up his cheeks, his deadpan eyes rounded in fury, and the faint sound of teeth grinding could be heard.
Kakashi couldn't understand why, even though they were twins, Qiyun's physical strength was so much greater than his—so great that he couldn't break free no matter what.
Had it been any other day, Kakashi would certainly not have compromised so easily, but today was different. Hatake Sakumo, the White Fang of Konoha and their father, was going to personally guide their training, and Kakashi refused to waste a single second.
So what if it meant calling him older brother? He... they were brothers, after all...
Kakashi lowered his head, his face burning red, and muttered in a voice no louder than a mosquito's, "Ni... Nii-chan..."
My little brother is so cute!
Qiyun's eyes lit up, and he pushed his luck. "Too soft! Say it again!"
"Don't push your luck, you bastard Anija!" Kakashi snapped, his fur standing on end.
"Kakashi? Is Qiyun still not up?" A Konoha Jonin known as the White Fang, Hatake Sakumo, pushed open the door and immediately spotted the two intertwined silver little rice dumplings on the bed. A hint of a smile flashed in the powerful Jonin's eyes.
His eldest son, Hatake Qiyun, took after his mother—especially those sky-blue eyes—while his younger son, Hatake Kakashi, took more after him, though the beauty mark at the corner of his mouth was inherited from his wife.
These twin boys with their different looks were the most precious treasures in his heart.
Mortified to be caught by their father acting all clingy with his older brother, Kakashi seized the moment when Qiyun's grip loosened and finally broke free from his older brother's embrace.
Kakashi yanked up the face mask hanging around his neck to cover his blushing cheeks.
"Father."
"You're back, Old Man." Qiyun's attitude was much more casual as he lazily climbed out of bed.
"Mm, I'm back." Sakumo opened his arms and hugged both boys.
"Father, I'm already grown up." Facing his father's embrace, Kakashi pressed against him for a brief second before instantly pulling away, saying with utmost solemnity.
"Kakashi, only real kids say they aren't kids anymore, you know," Qiyun teased with a wicked grin.
A tic mark popped up on Kakashi's forehead. This bastard of an older brother! Always tearing him down!
Qiyun pointed at his own face and kept firing away. "If you keep walking around with that stuck-up, trying-to-act-mature look, Kakashi, you're not going to be popular at the academy~"
Flesh can bear only so much. Kakashi grabbed Qiyun by the collar. "Who's acting stuck-up?!"
"Now, now, don't fight..." Sakumo looked helplessly at the two brothers.
"I'm not wrong. Aren't you the one looking forward to this the most? You clearly want friends, yet you act like you're too cool to talk to them..." Qiyun continued to expose him.
"Shut up, Anija!" Kakashi launched a flurry of heavy blows.
"Ow..." Qiyun clutched the massive bump Kakashi had knocked onto his head, insisting stubbornly, "It's just that Kakashi is too uptight!"
"Alright, alright. Even if you're right, Qiyun, some things shouldn't be said out loud. And Kakashi, you really should be more honest with yourself. You're still just a kid," Sakumo intervened hurriedly.
Crossing his arms, Kakashi muttered gloomily, "...I know."
"Don't worry, with me around, Kakashi will be totally fine," Qiyun patted his chest and guaranteed.
"Mm, because Qiyun is a good big brother," Sakumo said, gently patting Qiyun's head.
"Heh-heh, of course~" Praised, Qiyun proudly put his hands on his hips.
Beside them, Kakashi twitched the corner of his mouth, ultimately saying nothing.
...I'll just let the idiot older brother be smug for a little while.
After a whole morning of commotion, they finally got down to business.
Sakumo retrieved a box from a scroll.
What could it be?
Qiyun blinked.
When Sakumo opened the box, both Qiyun and Kakashi widened their eyes. Inside lay two exquisite swords.
Indeed, the blades gleamed with a cold, pristine light. The craftsmanship was stunning, and the pearwood hilts were extremely eye-catching. Most importantly, it was obvious that the two swords were a pair, each hilt embedded with a small purple and blue gemstone respectively.
"...Whoa." Qiyun was the first to recover, his eyes shining brightly. "These swords look amazing!"
He stared fixedly at the blades in the box. "What are their names?"
Kakashi snapped out of his daze as well, and upon hearing Qiyun's words, a row of black drop-down lines appeared on his head. He speechlessly nudged Qiyun's arm. "Stop referring to swords as 'she'."
"Qingfeng and Zidian." Sakumo smiled faintly, unable to resist reaching out to ruffle the hair of an excited Qiyun and a Kakashi who pretended not to care while actually being quite pleased.
My sons are so cute!
"Shall we practice swordsmanship?" the White Fang asked with a smile.
"Okay." Qiyun nodded. Though these blades couldn't compare to the weapons used by his sword-obsessed teammates in his past life, they were still quite decent.
"Of course," Kakashi replied solemnly. They were the sons of the White Fang, after all; naturally, they had to inherit his swordsmanship.
"Hahaha..." In high spirits, Sakumo ruffled his sons' hair a few more times before retracting his hands amidst Kakashi's condemning glare and Qiyun's noisy protests.
Hatake swordsmanship sounded profound, but under the guidance of a professional, getting started was actually quite simple. What followed was day after day of relentless training.
"9975, 9976, 9977... 9997, 9998, 9999!"
"Hah..." Qiyun shook the sweat off his hands and looked at Kakashi beside him.
Realizing that his older brother had already finished his target, Kakashi continued swinging his sword with trembling arms.
Watching him barely manage to complete today's training, Qiyun said, "Don't push yourself too hard, Kakashi."
"I'm not pushing myself." Kakashi's hands were shaking continuously.
To begin with, swinging a sword ten thousand times was simply too demanding for a four-year-old child. It had nothing to do with genius; it was purely a gap in physical constitution.
Kakashi pressed his lips together as he watched Qiyun run off to drink water as if nothing had happened. He acutely felt the gap between himself and his older brother. Seriously, why was this even happening? They were twins, so why was Qiyun's physical stamina so much higher than his?!
Kakashi felt utterly aggrieved. Wouldn't that mean... wouldn't he be left behind?!
If Qiyun knew what Kakashi was thinking, he would most likely shrug and give a helpless sigh because, after all... he wasn't an ordinary child to begin with.
Hatake Qiyun—his original name no longer mattered—was a transmigrator. As a rare spatial ability user, he had always been the one protected by his comrades in his past life; an offensive-type ability user had always been required to stick by his side. Even so, he had still fallen into a trap and perished under the encirclement of enemies.
Qiyun sighed, no longer dwelling on past events. He understood the principle that to the victor belong the spoils.
Qiyun closed his eyes. In the depths of his mind lay a progress bar known only to him.
[Herrscher of the Void: 1/100 (Awakening)]
Perhaps because he had transmigrated to another world and had to grow up all over again from an infant, Qiyun hadn't awakened his spatial ability. Instead, he had acquired a system that only he could see? Qiyun didn't even know what to call the thing; it had simply appeared quietly within his spiritual world, and the progress bar moved so slowly it was practically imperceptible.
Considering his past spatial ability, Qiyun assumed that the "Void" in Herrscher of the Void referred to space. However, the term "Herrscher" made him feel a bit uneasy. Though he wasn't quite sure why, he had a lingering feeling that it wasn't anything good.
Fortunately, the region where he resided in this world was relatively safe, so Qiyun wasn't in any great rush to become stronger. He had the luxury of taking his time.
Sakumo not only taught the two brothers the Hatake family's heirloom swordsmanship, but also instructed them in the method of extracting Chakra. Both Qiyun and Kakashi succeeded on the very first try after listening to Sakumo's explanation.
"Haha, this isn't all that hard, is it?" Qiyun laughed.
"Idiot Big Brother, there's nothing to be smug about. This is just the most basic stuff," Kakashi retorted.
"Mm-hmm~" Qiyun was already quite adept at ignoring Kakashi's verbal jabs.
Sakumo was deeply impressed by his two boys' talent. He took out a piece of Chakra paper to test their affinities, and the result, once again, was unexpectedly all-attributes.
"Tsk tsk, what do you know? We're actually pretty much geniuses, right, Kakashi?" Qiyun said excitedly. At least now he wouldn't have to worry about being the one who always needed protection!
"……Mm." Even beneath his mask, the corners of Kakashi's mouth ticked upward slightly.
Logically speaking, basic techniques like the Clone Technique, Body Replacement Technique, and Transformation Technique were supposed to be taught at the Ninja Academy, but since both children were so gifted, teaching them a little early wouldn't hurt.
So thought Sakumo as he taught Qiyun and Kakashi how to weave hand seals.
At this point, an obvious difference emerged between the brothers. Kakashi's hand seals were fast and steady, successfully replicating them after just a single look, while Qiyun's hand seals were agonizingly slow.
"Umm... what came next again?" Qiyun's fingers tangled together into a mess; it was impossible to tell what seals he was even trying to form.
"What on earth are you doing?" Kakashi looked speechlessly at Qiyun's chaotic hand seals.
"I don't get it," Qiyun admitted honestly, scratching his head. "Besides, hand seals are such a hassle."
In his previous life, his fingers hadn't been particularly nimble, let alone capable of executing so many complex hand signs. Even now, possessing the flexible body of a child, he still subconsciously rejected them.
"You still have to memorize them properly!" Kakashi emphasized. "We're ninja; how can we get by without knowing how to weave hand seals?"
"Ninja..." Qiyun muttered, his expression complicated. "I don't want to become any kind of ninja."
As a modern person, he didn't actually have much interest in being a ninja.
Qiyun knew very well that he wasn't strong enough yet to afford such willful thoughts, so his voice was extremely soft—so soft that even Kakashi, standing right beside him, couldn't clearly hear what he said.
"What is Anija muttering about? Hurry up and keep practicing," Kakashi said with a tone of exasperated high expectations.
Qiyun puffed out his cheeks and suddenly lunged forward, tackling Kakashi. "Aah, damn it! You're secretly super smug inside right now because you finally got a chance to lecture your big brother, aren't you, Kakashi?"
"What are you talking about?! I am not..." Kakashi averted his gaze, a blush creeping across his face beneath his mask.
In Kakashi's eyes, although his older brother understood a lot and was very smart, he could occasionally be quite unreliable. But that didn't matter; that was what brothers were for—to support one another. He would become Qiyun's steadfast backing.
Unlike the immature Kakashi, Sakumo had actually heard Qiyun's earlier murmur. The White Fang lowered his eyelids slightly. Of course he hoped the two boys would inherit his mantle—in fact, that was precisely what Kakashi wanted—but Qiyun, the older of the brothers, clearly had his own ideas.
Sakumo didn't feel disappointed; if anything, he felt a sense of anticipation.
While following in the footsteps of those who came before was fine, he also very much hoped that someone could forge an entirely new path.
Sakumo stepped forward and pressed his large palms down onto the tops of both boys' heads.
"Alright, alright. Even brothers have different things they excel at. Qiyun is clearly more talented in swordsmanship, while Kakashi is better suited for Ninjutsu. Isn't that great?"
Sakumo smiled. "That way, coordinating with each other in battle will be even smoother."
Qiyun touched his chin. "Oh-oh, I remember you graduate from the academy and then get assigned to squads, right? Is it like that?"
Upon receiving confirmation from Sakumo, he threw an arm around Kakashi's shoulders. "Then I'm definitely going to be in the same squad as Kakashi!"
Since they were twin brothers, naturally they had to stick together, Qiyun thought matter-of-factly.
Ever since he had reincarnated as a child, his mindset seemed to have been somewhat affected; he felt extremely prone to emotional fluctuations, just like a real child. But that was fine too—after all, he really was a child now, so being a little willful didn't matter at all.