Hokage's Office
Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at the crystal ball before him, almost like a witch examining a magical artifact.
The translucent crystal ball flickered, displaying the scene from Class 1-A.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had two sons.
His eldest son had already joined the Anbu and become an excellent ninja.
But his second son, Asuma Sarutobi, was at an age where he rebelled against everything, constantly defying him, leaving Hiruzen feeling worn out.
He watched for a moment and couldn't help but smile.
Indeed, children were always like this.
But with competition, there would be pressure.
Because of his title as the Hokage's son, Asuma had a smooth life at the academy, but with Yukawa's arrival, perhaps his rebellious son might change.
"Qing," Sarutobi said, addressing a voice from the shadows, "I need Yukawa's full report from these past three days immediately."
"Understood."
A voice responded, which belonged to an Anbu ninja named Qing.
Sarutobi had high hopes for Yukawa.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone so far as to take him from Danzo Shimura's hands.
Now, he had even rekindled Asuma's fighting spirit—truly a two-in-one benefit.
"Lord Hokage."
Within three minutes, Qing appeared in front of him.
She wore a frog mask, with only her short hair visible.
Sarutobi took the document and began flipping through it. His brows furrowed.
As expected, Danzo Shimura hadn't completely given up, but fortunately, there were no major incidents.
Sarutobi continued reading, and a smile appeared on his face.
What a diligent child.
At that moment, there was a knock at the door.
"Come in."
Sarutobi set the document down casually.
"Hokage-sama."
The door opened, and a young man with blond hair walked in.
"Minato."
Sarutobi's eyes narrowed, and he asked solemnly, "What's the matter? Is there a problem with Kushina?"
Kushina Uzumaki was the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails.
The Nine Tails was the most powerful of the Nine-Tailed Beasts, capable of destroying the world.
A Jinchuriki was a person who had a Tailed Beast sealed within them, acting as the village's ultimate weapon.
However, the restless nature of the Tailed Beasts often caused the Jinchuriki to lose control.
Furthermore, enemy villages would try to capture them.
For example, not long ago, the Village Hidden in the Clouds had kidnapped Kushina.
If it weren't for Minato Namikaze, the village would likely have permanently lost the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.
"She ran out of the barrier again today."
Minato scratched his head awkwardly, smiling sheepishly, "The two Anbu ninjas assigned to protect her were sealed by her own sealing techniques."
"Minato, I know you and Kushina are close, but when it comes to the Nine-Tails, we can't let her act recklessly."
Sarutobi took a deep puff of his pipe and reminded him.
"I understand!"
Minato's expression grew serious.
"No need to be so tense."
Sarutobi shifted his tone, smiling, "You've learned the Flying Thunder God Technique, so I'm sure Kushina won't be kidnapped again."
The Flying Thunder God Technique was a space-time ninjutsu that allowed the user to teleport instantly to a marked location.
For example, by marking Kushina with the Flying Thunder God formula, Minato could instantly reach her no matter the distance.
There was no exaggeration in saying that, from now on, Minato would be the fastest man in the Ninja World.
"Is Jiraiya still in the village?"
Sarutobi suddenly asked, thinking of something.
"He is."
Minato replied, "He's been helping me develop new jutsu recently."
"New jutsu?"
Sarutobi raised an eyebrow, intrigued, "What kind of technique could you be developing with Jiraiya?"
"It's still a work in progress."
Minato smiled, "Once it's completed, I'll show it to you."
"I'll be looking forward to it."
Sarutobi shared a smile with him.
The Hokage's office suddenly felt much warmer.
Class 1-A
Yukawa twitched his mouth.
Why did ninjas still need to study math?
There's a saying: when pushed to the limit, people can do anything, but math? Not so much.
The question before him involved calculating the parabolic trajectory of a kunai.
He understood the theory, but in the face of Susanoo, would this really be useful?He couldn't exactly be like Danzo Shimura, poking people with kunai.
Suddenly, the classroom grew noisy.
Yukawa raised his head and saw a group of students heading out.
At the front were Kakashi Hatake and Obito Uchiha.
"Obito is challenging Kakashi again."
Shizune shook her head, "I've seen it so many times since the start of the school year."
"Who won?"
Yukawa casually asked.
"Kakashi, of course. He's the village's recognized genius."
Shizune said matter-of-factly.
Yukawa nodded slightly.
Even though he had only been here for three days, he had already sensed Kakashi's immense popularity.
Simply put, it was similar to how Sasuke Uchiha was in the original series.
Reading books is fine, but less time spent thinking about the Uchihas.
Yukawa glanced over.
In the brief moment when he and Shizune were talking, Obito had already lost, and Kakashi hadn't even had to lift a finger.
Obito coughed violently after using the Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu, his throat burning.
He was in pain but happy, as Rin Nohara was there to tend to him.
Her gentle care made him feel something more—perhaps she liked him.
Unfortunately, neither of them knew that fate had already set a price for their love.
Yukawa focused on his studies for his own survival.
He didn't want to end up optimized when Obito tried to create a new world.
After school, back at home, and after eating, Yukawa began his training with kunai and shuriken.
Unlike yesterday, today, there was Red Sun.
A week passed quickly.
Yukawa had fully integrated into the class and gotten to know every student.
Aside from the more famous side characters like Kakashi and Asuma Sarutobi, there was also a less prominent character—Mizuki.
In the original series, Mizuki was the ninja who attempted to manipulate Naruto into stealing the Forbidden Scroll.
His greatest contribution was providing Naruto with the Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Sunday Morning
Yukawa casually tossed a kunai, which accurately hit a wooden post.
Lines of text appeared in his vision.
He couldn't help but let out a breath of relief.
[E-Class Talent Entry: Ninja Tool Throwing (Acquired).]
[Trigger Condition: Shuriken and Kunai throwing at an entry-level.]
[Effect: Increases arm strength by 10%; guarantees a hit on stationary targets within 100 meters.]
[Note: Has a synthesis pathway; by adding seven types of ninja tools, it can synthesize a D-Class entry: Ninja Tool Mastery.]
Yukawa instinctively clenched his fist.
A surge of strength flowed through him—though it wasn't much, it was a tangible increase.
With just entry-level skills, he had already gained a 10% boost. Imagine if he mastered it—he'd have the strength of a strong arm.
Maybe he should try basketball. That's one hell of an elbow!
Yukawa shook off his wild thoughts.
He checked the new entry panel.
[E-Class Talent Entry: Seven Ninja Tools (Not Acquired).]
[Trigger Condition: Mastery of all seven ninja tools.]
[Current Progress: 10%.]
Though still an E-Class entry, the "Seven Ninja Tools" talent was much harder to acquire than "Ninja Tool Throwing."
Was it because he had to synthesize a D-Class entry?
The progress bar suggested that shuriken and kunai counted, but he needed to learn the other five ninja tools as well.
Yukawa picked up the scattered kunai and shuriken from the ground and turned to leave.
He had already gotten permission from Red Sun to take the day off, saying he needed to visit the orphanage.
However, in reality, he was heading to meet an undercover agent from the Village Hidden in the Clouds.