The cleaning lasted for nearly two hours.
When Naruto carried the last trash bag to the trash can downstairs of the apartment building and returned to the room, the entire place looked brand new.
The floor was polished until it reflected light, the table was clean, the windowsill was empty and the bedding on the bed was folded neatly.
Naruto cleaned out the refrigerator. Almost all the food inside had expired. He also dug out all the expired cup noodle stock from the cabinets and, along with the milk that was about to expire, bagged it all up and took it downstairs.
The new rule Naruto set for himself was simple: from today on, he would no longer eat this junk food. If he was going to eat, he would eat proper food high in protein and calories, and slowly make up for the nutrition he had missed out on as a child.
When Naruto was busy working up a sweat in his apartment, inside the Hokage Office.
Hiruzen had his pipe in his mouth, squinting as he watched the crystal ball in front of him. The image reflected in the crystal ball was Naruto's apartment.
He was kneeling on the floor, using a rag to vigorously scrub a stubborn stain, stopping every few rubs to change angles and see if there were any marks left, only moving on to the next area after confirming it was gone.
Standing in front of Hiruzen was Kakashi, who had just finished his mission report and hadn't left yet.
"It seems that, as you said, after this mission to the Land of Waves, Naruto has grown."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
Kakashi slightly lowered his head. "Naruto experienced the battle against Zabuza and the ninja with the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai, and especially after Sasuke was seriously injured, he unleashed Nine-Tails Chakra. Since then, he has become much more composed."
"During this mission, he also told me personally that he is determined to become the Hokage."
Upon hearing the last sentence, a smile appeared at the corners of Hiruzen's lips.
He watched Naruto in the crystal ball finish scrubbing the last patch of floor, stand up to thump his lower back, and then head out carrying the trash bag.
"Alright, I understand. Kakashi, thank you for your hard work. You should go back and rest too." Hiruzen waved his hand.
"Yes, Hokage-sama, you should rest early as well."
Kakashi bowed slightly and turned to walk out of the Hokage Office.
Hiruzen didn't turn off the crystal ball, but continued to watch Naruto return after dumping the trash, wash his hands, and then sit cross-legged on the bed with the freshly changed sheets, closing his eyes to begin meditation.
"Naruto... it seems you have also started to grow. Grow up quickly, and become a ninja like your father." Hiruzen murmured to himself, watching Naruto in the crystal ball.
He tapped the ash out of his pipe, refilled it with a pinch of tobacco, and was about to take another puff.
"Hokage-sama."
At this moment, a voice came from outside the door.
It was an Anbu.
Hiruzen's hand moved slightly, and the image on the crystal ball switched to blurry water ripples, rendering it impossible to see anything else.
He put the pipe back into his mouth and leaned back against the chair. "Come in."
The door was pushed open, and an Anbu wearing a cat mask walked in, knelt on one knee in front of the desk, and presented a scroll tied with a red ribbon with both hands.
"Hokage-sama, this is the list for the Chunin Exams sent by the various nations."
Hiruzen nodded slightly. "I understand. Thank you for your hard work, you may go."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
The Anbu exited the office and the door closed again.
Hiruzen placed the scroll on the table, used his finger to flick open the wax seal, and slowly unrolled the scroll.
The scroll was densely packed with the list of Genin from various ninja villages participating in this Chunin Exams: Sunagakure, Amegakure, Kusagakure, Takigakure...
He read down line by line, his gaze pausing briefly on a few names.
...
On the other side, in Naruto's apartment.
Naruto, who had just finished showering and changed into clean clothes, sat cross-legged on the bed. He closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking into the dense knowledge of Fuinjutsu in his mind.
He flipped page by page through the Fuinjutsu system that Kushina had left him, as if consulting materials in a library, sorting out the principles, structures, applicable scenarios, and limitations of each technique one by one.
The Adamantine Sealing Chains were primarily a suppression-type seal aimed at Tailed Beasts and Chakra entities.
The Four Symbols Seal was suitable for strengthening existing sealing structures.
The Fire Sealing Method was a Fuinjutsu specifically targeting Fire Release.
There were also some small-scale barrier jutsu suitable for short-term spatial isolation.
As he flipped through the pages, Naruto's gaze rested on a Fuinjutsu that was unassuming but highly practical.
Sensory Suppression Barrier!
The principle of this jutsu was very simple: build a layer of Chakra barrier within a designated space to isolate everything inside from any external sensory jutsu probes.
Whether it was the Byakugan, the Sharingan, or Telescope Technique, as long as the barrier remained intact, the outside world could not detect what was happening inside.
Maintaining the barrier required continuous consumption of Chakra. The larger the area, the faster the consumption. If maintained only within a small area for personal training, the Chakra consumption was not particularly large.
Naruto carefully read the structure of the Sensory Suppression Barrier and the essentials of casting it from beginning to end twice. He then combined it with the underlying principles of Fuinjutsu left behind by Kushina to make some deductions and supplements, before organizing and archiving the entire plan in his mind.
This Fuinjutsu was the thing he needed most urgently at the moment. With it, he could disappear for a period of time right under Hiruzen's nose, secretly conducting training without worrying about being caught by the Telescope Technique.
However, he couldn't use it at home. If his presence suddenly disappeared from his room, even a fool could guess that something was wrong.
He had to find a place outside where no one would pay attention, use a Shadow Clone as a decoy at home, and go out to train with his real body. But he didn't have a suitable training location yet.
He happened to be on break for these two days with no missions, so he couldn't run around aimlessly. It would be best to take the opportunity to observe the surroundings of Konoha for a suitable location the next time he went on a mission.