Time flows like water, the years pass swiftly.
Spring turns to autumn, flowers bloom and wither.
Before one knows it, two years have already passed.
The time is now May of the 62nd year of Konoha.
At this time, there are still six years left until the Fourth Shinobi World War depicted in the original story.
On the moon.
Shishou sat cross-legged on a wooden lotus platform on the lunar surface, continuously absorbing the natural energy around him.
After two years of dedicated training, Shishou had successfully mastered Sage Jutsu and could now activate his own Sage Mode.
However, because he had only recently mastered Sage Jutsu, entering Sage Mode still required a significant amount of time. Unlike Senju Hashirama, he couldn't enter Sage Mode instantly.
Therefore, he needed to continue training until he could use Sage energy at will and achieve instant Sage Mode activation.
Before long, Shishou opened his eyes and stood up from the lotus platform.
"It's about time for today. I should head back."
Then, Shishou disappeared from the spot, reappearing at his home in Konoha.
After washing up,
Shishou shrank his body slightly and put on the thick coat of the Aburame Clan.
Over the past two years, Shishou's height had grown to about 1.6 meters, making him significantly taller than Ino and Hinata.
Wearing a mask and sunglasses, completely covering himself, Shishou stepped outside and headed towards the ninja academy.
Training in Sage Jutsu required a peaceful mindset, so Shishou spent most of his time in Konoha Village, peacefully attending school.
To prevent Tsunade and Shizune from discovering his identity as a student, he chose to cover his face like Kakashi.
Yes, except for Kushina, Tsunade, Shizune, and others believed Shishou was just an alias.
They had no idea their man was still attending school.
Even Mikoto only knew he was from the Aburame Clan.
Although Shishou, as a time-traveling adult, didn't see a problem with being exposed, he wanted to spare Tsunade and Shizune any embarrassment due to his young physical age. He had to keep it hidden.
Otherwise, with Tsunade's temper, if she knew his true age, she might feel so embarrassed that she'd immediately cut ties with him or run away again...
That was something Shishou didn't want to see.
And since the Aburame Clan dressed in such a mysterious manner, others found Shishou's behavior quite normal, thinking it was only natural!
Shino's father, Aburame Shibi, even thought Shishou had finally wised up and truly become a proper member of the Aburame Clan...
"Shishou!"
A girl's voice called from behind. Shishou didn't turn around and continued walking.
Soon, a soft body pressed against his back, and a pair of small hands wrapped around his neck from behind.
"If you ignore me, I'll strangle you."
Yamanaka Ino hung on Shishou's back, her legs wrapped around his waist, teasing him with a smile.
Shishou let Ino hang on him and laughed:
"You should get down. Your dad came to see my uncle last night, saying he plans to have you be my child bride."
"In a few years, we'll be married, and you'll have to give him seventeen or eighteen grandchildren."
Due to the constant warfare, marriage ages in the ninja world were quite young, with many getting married at fifteen or sixteen.
Hearing this, Ino's face turned red, and she started shaking Shishou's neck.
"You're just making stuff up! My dad came home late the day before yesterday because he was drinking and got scolded by my mom all night. He didn't have time to see your uncle."
"By the way, my mom wants you to come over for dinner tonight."
Thinking of Yamanaka Naho's cooking, Shishou smiled and nodded.
Due to Shishou's attributes, Yamanaka Naho often had Ino invite him over for dinner.
"Shishou, Ino."
Soon, they met Hinata waiting by the roadside.
Ino jumped off Shishou's back, took Hinata's hand, and walked to the ninja academy together.
Entering the classroom, Shishou saw the cold and aloof Sasuke sitting there.
"Hmph!"
Seeing Shishou walk in, Sasuke snorted and turned his head away.
Because of Shishou's presence, Sasuke was always second best, which frustrated him.
Seeing Sasuke's expression, Shishou smiled and took a seat at the back.
Sasuke's strength had actually improved a lot compared to the original story, but Shishou had to keep beating him to ensure he could graduate early and become an ordinary genin.
This made Sasuke quite resentful!
Seeing Shishou sit down, Ino and Hinata immediately occupied the seats on either side of him, making the other boys and girls around them envious.
The boys envied Shishou, while the girls envied Ino and Hinata.
"Geez, Shishou is really popular," said Kiba Inuzuka, watching Ino and Hinata guard Shishou like two gatekeepers, with a look of envy.
"Woof!" Akamaru, perched on Kiba's head, barked in agreement.
Shino, sitting next to Kiba, nodded in agreement but went unnoticed by most.
Shikamaru, lying on his desk, yawned, scratched his head, and said:
"What's there to be envious about? More women means more trouble."
"When Ino and Hinata start fighting over Shishou, he'll have a headache."
"Both are precious to him, so let's see how he handles that."
Shikamaru's words balanced the feelings of the boys around, even making them a bit gleeful at the potential trouble for Shishou.
Shishou simply smiled and didn't say anything.
Hinata and Ino exchanged worried glances.
When the class bell rang, Naruto, the perpetual latecomer, rushed into the classroom and took an empty seat.
Then, Iruka entered the classroom, placing a stack of papers on the lectern.
"Today we'll have a written test!"
Hearing this, the classroom was filled with groans.
"Iruka-sensei, we just had a test yesterday!"
Naruto was the first to protest.
He didn't mind sparring, but written tests were his least favorite!
"Ahem!"
Iruka cleared his throat and said to the class, "Yesterday's test papers were all stolen, and we haven't found the culprit yet. So, we need to take another test today."
After speaking, Iruka glanced at Naruto.
Given Naruto's history of pranks, he was a prime suspect.
If the Third Hokage hadn't personally vouched that Naruto was home training yesterday, Iruka would have suspected him.
Due to Kushina's request, Naruto's training was now supervised by a Jonin appointed by Tsunade.
And Naruto, fearful of Tsunade's brain-smacking discipline, trained diligently to avoid her wrath.
"Iruka-sensei, it wasn't me! Why are you looking at me like that?" Naruto mumbled uncomfortably and quickly sat down.
After Naruto settled, Iruka began distributing the test papers.
Shishou finished his paper quickly and was the first to hand it in, ready to wander around the school grounds.
"Iruka-sensei, I'm going for a walk around the campus."
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