Mayuko Ringo remained silent for a moment.
"Okay."
Immediately, Mayuko Ringo found Biwa Juzo.
"Juzo."
"Mayuko-senpai, what's wrong?"
"Do you take disciples?"
Biwa Juzo hesitated for a moment.
"Mayuko-senpai, what do you mean by that?"
"It's about Ameyuri."
Mayuko Ringo explained, "Originally, I wanted Ameyuri to become a medical ninja like me. I've been guiding Ameyuri in that direction."
"But, the incident last time had a big impact on Ameyuri."
"Ameyuri doesn't want to study medicine anymore."
"She wants to become a combat ninja instead."
"I thought about it and realized that this might indeed be a better choice."
Biwa Juzo furrowed his brows.
"So, Mayuko-senpai, you want me to become Ameyuri's sensei?"
"Yes."
"But, Mayuko-senpai, I'm a failure."
The defeat of that day had a profound effect on Biwa Juzo.
The appearance of the Blue Rose Sword made Biwa Juzo's heart slightly clearer, but without defeating that Konoha Genin for revenge for even a day, Biwa Juzo would never truly dispel that nightmare.
Teaching and being a sensei are two different things.
Biwa Juzo teaches Uehara Soma Water Release, but never considers himself Uehara Soma's sensei.
Biwa Juzo believes he is not qualified.
"Those who understand wouldn't think it's your fault, Juzo."
Mayuko Ringo said, "Juzo, please."
"Okay."
Biwa Juzo nodded.
"I will do my best to train Ameyuri into a powerful ninja."
Mayuko Ringo smiled.
"Ameyuri, come here."
Ameyuri Ringo quickly ran to Biwa Juzo.
"Greetings, sensei."
"Ameyuri, have you ever thought about what type of combat ninja you want to become?"
"No, I just want to be as strong as possible."
Biwa Juzo said, "The stronger, the better, huh? Alright, there are two areas I excel in: one is Water Release, and the other is swordsmanship. Let me see your talent in Water Release first."
"Show me a Water Release Ninjutsu that you know."
Ameyuri Ringo nodded.
"Okay!"
With that, Ameyuri Ringo formed hand seals.
"Water Release, Water Clone Jutsu!"
"Besides this, do you know any other Water Release Ninjutsu?"
"I also know Hiding in Mist Jutsu."
For ninjas of the Hidden Mist Village, these two Ninjutsu are equivalent to Konoha's Three Basic Jutsu, which everyone must learn, except for a few who lack Water Release talent.
"I'll teach you a Water Release now. Listen carefully. After I finish explaining, I'll demonstrate, then you follow along with the hand seals, and I'll see how well you can do it."
"Okay."
Biwa Juzo began explaining the Water Release Water Prison Jutsu.
This is a very typical Water Release Ninjutsu.
It not only requires a certain amount of chakra but also demands chakra control.
Before long, Biwa Juzo finished his explanation.
He formed hand seals.
"Water Release, Water Prison Jutsu!"
Ameyuri Ringo stared intently, paying close attention.
That night's scene would forever be etched in Ameyuri Ringo's memory.
Her grandmother.
The top medical ninja of the Hidden Mist Village.
A distinguished figure in the Hidden Mist Village.
But she was attacked in her own village, in her own home.
If Biwa Juzo hadn't arrived just in time, she would have been killed by people from her own village.
All because they were searching for something from the Hyuga Clan of Konoha, the Byakugan.
Ameyuri Ringo loathed Kaguya Tai.
But she loathed even more the real culprit behind this, Konoha.
At the same time, Ameyuri Ringo felt a deep sense of powerlessness.
That's why Ameyuri Ringo wanted to become a combat ninja, to gain stronger abilities and become a formidable ninja.
"Do you understand now?"
"I understand."
"Then give it a try."
"Okay."
Ameyuri Ringo mimicked Biwa Juzo's hand seals.
She did it with some accuracy, just slightly slower.
"Water Release, Water Prison Jutsu!"
In the next moment, a small water bubble appeared in front of Ameyuri Ringo.
Ameyuri Ringo paused.
"I'm sorry, sensei."
Biwa Juzo waved his hand.
"It's alright, learning ninjutsu isn't something you master in one go. Take it slowly, practice a few more times."
However, as he said this, Biwa Juzo couldn't help but glance in the direction of Uehara Soma's forging room.
Recalling the image of Uehara Soma learning Water Release Ninjutsu.
However, Biwa Juzo also knew that such people were extremely rare.
Throughout the history of the Hidden Mist Village, there were probably only a few.
"Squeak!"
Uehara Soma pushed open the door and stepped out.
"Good morning, Juzo-senpai, Mayuko-senpai, Ameyuri."
Since he finished forging Nikkari Ao'e late, Uehara Soma simply rested in the forging room and it was now morning.
"What's going on?"
Mayuko Ringo said, "I asked Juzo to take Ameyuri as his disciple."
"Is that so?"
Uehara Soma looked at Biwa Juzo.
"Congratulations, Juzo-senpai."
This was something that didn't happen in the original plot.
To some extent, it was also influenced by the butterfly effect of his own appearance.
Then, Uehara Soma turned to Ameyuri Ringo.
"This is something worth celebrating. I just made a small long sword. Ameyuri, why don't you give it a try?"
Uehara Soma handed Nikkari Ao'e to Ameyuri Ringo.
Ameyuri Ringo looked at Nikkari Ao'e, her eyes gleaming slightly, showing signs of liking it, but she didn't immediately take it. Instead, she looked at Mayuko Ringo first.
Mayuko Ringo glanced at the small long sword, unable to discern the special features of Nikkari Ao'e, thinking it was just an ordinary ninjato.
Similar to the surgical knives Uehara Soma had given her.
So she smiled and nodded.
"Ameyuri, go ahead and take it."
Only then did Ameyuri Ringo happily accept it.
"Thank you, Soma-senpai."
"You're welcome."
Ameyuri Ringo gripped the hilt and drew it out.
A prompt sounded in Uehara Soma's mind.
["A contractee compatible with Nikkari Ao'e has appeared, (Yume Tsubakuro approval: Upper Mid, attribute compatibility: Mid), overall compatibility: Good, do you want to proceed with the contract?"]
"Only Good..."
Uehara Soma narrowed his eyes slightly.
"It's slightly lower than the compatibility with the Blue Rose Sword and Juzo-senpai."
"The approval level from Yume Tsubakuro is just Upper Mid. Does this mean that Yume Tsubakuro and Ameyuri Ringo are less similar than Eugeo and Juzo-senpai?"
Uehara Soma subconsciously glanced at Mayuko Ringo.
In the original plot, both Yume Tsubakuro and Ameyuri Ringo died young due to illness.
But the difference is that almost all of Yume Tsubakuro's relatives abandoned her.
Yet, Ameyuri Ringo has Mayuko Ringo, who is very good to her.
Additionally, Yume Tsubakuro was skilled in Kenjutsu.
Ameyuri Ringo uses Thunder Swords but is more proficient in Lightning Release.
Uehara Soma hesitated slightly.
The rewards obtained from guiding the contract are determined by the compatibility level chosen by the contractee of the Ninjato.
In the previous two contract guides, both were at the Excellent level.
The combination of the two allowed Uehara Soma to achieve a Perfect level Water Release talent.
"But, without guiding the contract, can I find someone more suitable for Nikkari Ao'e within the Hidden Mist Village?"
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