Hokage's office.
Sarutobi Hiruzen sat at his desk, gazing into the crystal ball before him. The translucent orb displayed a live feed of Class A, Grade 1.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had two sons. His eldest son had joined the Anbu and become a skilled ninja.
However, his second son, Asuma Sarutobi, was at a rebellious age, constantly disagreeing with him, which was a source of frustration for the Hokage.
Hiruzen watched the classroom scene for a while and chuckled.
He's still just a child, he thought. But competition can be a good thing. Because of his status as the Hokage's son, Asuma had faced little challenge in the academy.
Perhaps this interaction with Hanekawa would be a positive influence on his rebellious son.
Sarutobi Hiruzen called out. "I want all available information on Hanekawa from the past three days."
"Yes," a voice responded from the shadows. It was the Anbu operative, known for their speed and information gathering.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had high expectations for Hanekawa. That was why he had intervened to prevent Danzo from taking him into Root.
Now, Hanekawa had sparked a competitive spirit in Asuma, which he saw as a beneficial outcome.
"Hokage-sama."
In less than three minutes, the Anbu reappeared before him, holding a file. They wore a porcelain frog mask, typical of Anbu, with only their short hair visible.
Sarutobi Hiruzen took the file and began reviewing it, his brow furrowing slightly.
As he suspected, Danzo hadn't completely given up on Hanekawa. Thankfully, no serious incidents had occurred.
He continued reading, a smile returning to his face. 'He's a diligent child.'
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
"Enter," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, setting the file down.
"Hokage-sama."
The door opened, and a young man with blond hair entered.
"Minato," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, his expression becoming serious. "What brings you here? Is something wrong with Kushina?"
Kushina Uzumaki was the Nine-Tails' Jinchūriki. The tailed beasts possessed immense power, and the Nine-Tails was the strongest of them all.
A Jinchūriki was a ninja who had a tailed beast sealed within them, serving as a village's ultimate weapon. However, the tailed beast's chakra could be unstable and cause the Jinchūriki to lose control.
There was also the constant threat of enemy villages attempting to capture the Jinchūriki. Not long ago, the Hidden Cloud Village had attempted to kidnap Kushina.
Only Minato Namikaze's intervention had prevented Konoha from losing their Nine-Tails Jinchūriki.
"It's about Kushina. She escaped from the barrier again today," Minato Namikaze said with an apologetic smile. "She even used a sealing technique to trap the two Anbu guarding her."
"Minato, I understand your feelings for Kushina, but this concerns the Kyuubi. You can't let her continue to do this," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, taking a puff from his pipe.
"I understand," Minato Namikaze said, his expression turning serious.
"Don't be so tense," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, changing the subject with a smile. "Now that you've mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, I doubt Kushina will be kidnapped again."
The Flying Thunder God Technique was a space-time Ninjutsu that allowed instantaneous teleportation.
By placing a special seal marker, the user could instantly travel to its location. This technique made Minato incredibly fast.
"Is Jiraiya still in the village?" Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly asked.
"Yes," Minato explained. "Sensei has been helping me develop some new Ninjutsu recently."
"A new jutsu?" Sarutobi Hiruzen asked curiously. "What kind of jutsu are you and Jiraiya developing?"
"It's still a work in progress," Minato said with a smile. "I'll show you when it's finished."
"I'll be looking forward to it," Sarutobi Hiruzen said, smiling.
The Hokage's office filled with a lighter atmosphere.
______________
Class A, Grade 1.
Hanekawa's mouth twitched slightly. 'Why do we need to learn math to be ninjas?' he thought. 'There was a saying that when pushed to their limits, people could do anything except math.'
'The current problem was calculating the parabolic trajectory of a kunai. I understand the principle, but is this going to be useful against a Susanoo?' he wondered, referring to the powerful technique used by members of the Uchiha clan. 'I can't just throw kunai at someone like Danzo.'
Suddenly, there was a commotion in the classroom. Hanekawa looked up and saw a group of students leaving.
In the front were Hatake Kakashi and Uchiha Obito.
"Obito's challenging Kakashi again," Shizune said, shaking her head. "I've lost count of how many times I've seen this since we enrolled."
"Who wins?" Hanekawa asked casually.
"Kakashi, every time. He's considered a prodigy in the village," Shizune said matter-of-factly.
Hanekawa nodded slightly. Even in the short time he had been at the academy, he had noticed Kakashi's immense popularity. It was similar to Sasuke Uchiha's popularity in the original series.
Hanekawa glanced over at the sparring match. In the short time he had been talking to Shizune, Obito had already been defeated.
Kakashi hadn't even needed to use any complex techniques; he used a simple Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique, the heat of which caused Obito to cough violently.
Despite the discomfort, Obito seemed strangely happy, as Nohara Rin was tending to him.
'A gentle touch always gives people the illusion of affection,' Hanekawa thought. 'Unfortunately, they don't realize the price that fate often demands.'
(TN: Gentle girls are the worst.)
Determined to avoid a similar fate, Hanekawa continued his studies and training. He didn't want to be caught up in Obito's future plans.
After returning home from school and having dinner, Hanekawa began practicing with kunai and shuriken. Unlike the previous practice sessions, Kurenai joined him this time.
A week passed quickly. Hanekawa successfully integrated into the class and got to know his classmates.
Besides the well-known characters like Hatake Kakashi and Sarutobi Asuma, there was another, less prominent student: Mizuki. In the original story, Mizuki was the Ninja Academy instructor who tricked Naruto into stealing the Scroll of Seals.
______________
Sunday morning.
Hanekawa casually threw a kunai, hitting the wooden stake accurately. Several lines of text appeared in his vision.
______________
[E-level talent entry: Shurikenjutsu (acquired).]
[Trigger conditions: Shuriken and Kunai throwing reach entry level.]
[Effect: Increases arm strength by 10%; guarantees hitting stationary targets within 100 meters.]
[Note: There is a synthesis path. Adding the E-level entry shurikenjutsu can synthesize the D-level entry Ninja Tool Mastery.]
______________
Hanekawa clenched his fist. He felt a surge of power, albeit a small one. He had definitely become stronger.
'Just starting out, and it's already a 10% increase. Once I master this, will I have superhuman strength?' he thought. 'Maybe I should take up basketball; I'd have an iron elbow.'
Hanekawa shook off the irrelevant thoughts and focused on the new entry panel.
_______________
[E-level talent entry: Seven Ninja Tools (not obtained).]
[Trigger condition: Master seven ninja tools.]
[Current progress: 10%.]
_______________
Although both were E-level entries, "Seven Ninja Tools" was clearly more demanding than "Shurikenjutsu."
Is it because it's a component for synthesizing a D-level entry? he wondered.
The progress bar indicated that shuriken and kunai were already accounted for, meaning he needed to learn five more ninja tools.
Hanekawa gathered the kunai and shuriken scattered on the ground, turned, and headed out.
He had already informed Shinku that he would be visiting the orphanage. In reality, he was going to meet the Hidden Cloud Village contact.
==============
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