A rumor quickly spread through the class about Tōshirō staying up late at night reading adult books. During the afternoon training session with shuriken, Tōshirō felt the odd stares from his classmates. When he tried to explain, the girls saw him approaching and quickly moved away, afraid of getting contaminated.
"Please let me explain..."
With his hands hovering aimlessly, Tōshirō felt frustrated and wanted to take revenge on whoever spread the rumor.
"Tōshirō, it's not a big deal..." Jiraiya said, patting his shoulder reassuringly.
Tōshirō's face turned dark with anger. As he seriously considered dealing with Jiraiya, a series of enthusiastic screams erupted from nearby.
"Wow, Orochimaru looks so cool."
In the center of a group of girls was a boy wearing a kimono, with a handsome face just slightly less attractive than Tōshirō. The target in front of him was covered with shuriken, and his aim looked impressive.
Orochimaru ignored the girls' cheers and continued throwing shuriken. His handsome, aloof demeanor and exceptional skills made him highly popular among the girls, while the boys displayed expressions of dissatisfaction.
"Orochimaru isn't that great. I could easily do the same if I wanted to," Jiraiya said with envy.
Jiraiya, who always wanted to impress the girls, threw his shuriken but missed completely, which made the girls laugh.
"Ha, Jiraiya the fool, how dare you challenge Orochimaru? You can't compare to him!"
Jiraiya, frustrated, started throwing shuriken wildly. To his surprise, all of them hit the target, making him feel proud.
"Wow, that's amazing."
Jiraiya enjoyed the girls' praise, but when he opened his eyes, he found everyone had moved on to someone else.
"What's going on here?" Jiraiya wondered, confused.
"You idiot, you hit the wrong target," Tōshirō said, pointing to the correct target.
"What!"
Jiraiya felt disheartened again, while Tōshirō continued to attract the girls with his shuriken skills.
Tōshirō modestly said, "It's not difficult if you have hands."
The teacher recording the scores was astonished by Tōshirō's skill.
Orochimaru watched Tōshirō calmly, with a hint of interest in his unique eyes.
Tsunade looked on with a touch of jealousy. She had been second only to Orochimaru in shuriken throwing, but now with Tōshirō's appearance, she found herself in third place.
Tōshirō wasn't trying to show off but wanted to maintain his usual level to avoid raising suspicions. He aimed to create an impression of being a genius so he could justify his future strength.
On the weekend, with the ninja school closed, the children were free from school. Tsunade went to visit her grandmother Mito.
"Grandma, are you here? I came to see you."
"Come in, come in."
The door was opened by a woman with striking red hair, a youthful face, and a bun hairstyle. Despite her age, she looked remarkably young, with no signs of aging.
"Why do you come to visit me so often?" Mito said, gently patting Tsunade's head.
"I love you, Grandma."
After her grandfather Hashirama passed away, Tsunade was sad for a long time, but Mito's continuous comfort helped her recover. As she grew older, she visited Mito regularly.
"Don't just stand outside, come in," Mito said with a smile, pointing to some snacks in the room. "If you're hungry, help yourself."
She didn't eat the snacks herself; they were for her frequently visiting granddaughter.
"Grandma Mito, tell me more about Grandpa Hashirama."
"Don't you get tired of these stories?"
"No, I could listen to them a hundred times."
As Mito spoke, Tsunade ate the snacks hungrily.
Mito joked, "Little Tsunade can really eat. I'm worried if your future husband will be able to feed you."
Tsunade smiled and replied, "I don't need anyone to take care of me; I'll take care of myself."
"Girls shouldn't say such things."
"Why?"
"You'll understand later."
Tsunade felt comfortable and warm in Mito's embrace and asked, "Grandma, do girls grow in that area as they get older?"
Mito was surprised but smiled and answered, "Yes, it will develop over time."
Tsunade looked worried and said, "But I don't want that part to grow too much; it will be heavy and affect my fighting. I want to be a great ninja like Grandpa."
Mito:...
In youth, I didn't realize that the chest is a treasure and wrongly valued combat over it.
Mito laughed and said, "That part is also influenced by genetics, not just by diet."
"Really?" Tsunade asked, wanting to confirm.
Mito reassured her, "Yes, diet is only a small part. Genetics are more important."
Tsunade thought for a moment, and it seemed to be true. Tall parents often have tall children. She smiled, feeling relieved, "Thank you, Grandma Mito. I feel better after hearing this. You and Mom are both small, so I'll definitely be small too."
When Mito heard this, her face immediately turned black.
(End of Chapter)
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