Chapter 405: Flew Away
After Obito became the Fifth Hokage, Masahiko felt like days dragged on like years.
Who could understand the pain of having a huge wave of points but being unable to allocate them?
Obito became Hokage on January 8th, while Kushina's due date was March 8th. The full two-month gap in between made Masahiko very uncomfortable.
Konoha Village, however, remained bustling.
After changing the Hokage, they changed the elders; after changing the elders, they changed the Anbu. But these events had completely deviated from the original story, offering not a single Witness Point to be gained. Masahiko caused a little trouble here and there, brushed up his presence, and quickly lost interest.
Fortunately, there was still the brat Naruto to discipline.
With the exam to advance from second to third grade approaching, and stimulated and encouraged by Obito becoming the Fifth Hokage at age 22, Naruto hoped Masahiko would train him even more strictly. The general idea was, "Great Ancestor, please don't pity me."
Since the child had the drive to improve, Masahiko had no reason to refuse. He gave Naruto a fierce round of pre-exam crash training, thoroughly enjoying himself.
Occasionally, Masahiko would even feel inspired and recite a couple of lines: What cures boredom? Only Naruto!
Thus, Naruto spent nearly two months in deep waters and scorching fire.
...
March 1st, Konoha Year 56, Konoha Ninja Academy, Naruto's classroom.
"Senior, you are here today to...?" Iruka asked respectfully.
"Don't be nervous. I'm just here to meet Naruto's classmates." Masahiko turned with a smile, facing the children in the classroom, revealing a spring-breeze-like smile: "Hello, children. I am Masahiko Uzumaki, 124 years old this year. You can call me Great Ancestor."
"...Great Ancestor," scattered responses echoed.
"It seems some of you don't know me. That's fine, I don't mind." Pausing for a moment, Masahiko continued: "Anyway, those who don't even know me probably won't amount to much."
Many children's faces instantly turned odd, and some started whispering among themselves.
Shikamaru buried his head under his desk and muttered to Choji beside him: "Just as troublesome as Dad said."
Choji chewed his potato chips and nodded in agreement.
"Choji Akimichi!" Masahiko suddenly shouted.
Choji's chubby face quivered. He desperately swallowed the chips in his mouth and stood up in a panic: "Here!"
Masahiko smiled: "Slow down, don't choke. Are the chips tasty?"
Choji hesitated for a moment, looking at Shikamaru next to him for help.
Shikamaru stood up, looking helpless: "Great Ancestor, Choji thinks the chips are tasty. Also, our fathers often praise you in front of us, so we all know you."
The smile on Masahiko's face grew wider: "Sit down. You have a bright future. But remember one phrase: what you hear is false, what you see is true. The evaluations of me you got from your parents might not be entirely true."
Shikamaru looked thoughtful: "Understood!"
"Good boy. I'll go visit your house later. It's been a long time since I saw Shikaku, I miss him quite a bit."
"He couldn't have heard that, could he?" Shikamaru muttered softly again, "Troublesome..."
Masahiko took two steps back: "Now you all should be able to remember me. Call me 'Great Ancestor' when we meet in the future. Did you hear me clearly?"
...
Many children in Naruto's class could be called 'walking Witness Points'. It was worth Masahiko specifically introducing himself to leave an impression, making it convenient to 'mooch a little' in the future.
As for the subsequent 'Advancement Exam', Masahiko wasn't very interested.
He could tell at a glance who was stronger and who was weaker among these children. It was also very difficult for children with insufficient combat experience to have 'careful calculation' or a 'comeback from behind'. Before every match started, Masahiko could instantly see the outcome, and even roughly see where the winning side had the advantage. It was truly boring.
As for Naruto, he had indeed made great progress recently, and even briefly gained the upper hand in his match against Sasuke, but ultimately lost to the 'Great Fireball Jutsu'... Right now, he hadn't mastered any ninjutsu other than the Basic Three Jutsu, as Masahiko hadn't taught him yet.
Compared to the combat matches, the written exam was actually more interesting. Naruto's monkey-like scratching of his ears and cheeks, along with some 'cheating' behaviors in the classroom, kept a smile on Masahiko's face.
"Cheating on exams... reminds Great Ancestor of those youthful years in his past life."
There was another, even more interesting thing.
During the written exam, Hinata secretly glanced at Naruto seven or eight times, and at Toneri over a dozen times. The expression on her face was so cute that Masahiko wanted to go over and pinch her little cheeks.
Masahiko figured she had recalled Naruto's previous comment about 'Toneri using his eyes to cheat' and intended to confirm it. It definitely wasn't because she was conflicted about anything else...
"If Hinata really falls in love with Naruto like in the original story, will she fall into the dilemma of: 'Should I choose the one who likes me, or the one I like?'"
...
The 'Advancement Exam' lasted for a whole morning. During the lunch break, Masahiko requested a one-month leave of absence for Naruto from Iruka.
Naruto was originally depressed about losing to Sasuke again, but upon hearing that he didn't have to go to school, the brat immediately cheered up: "Hey! Great Ancestor, teach me how to spit fire this month!"
Masahiko smiled: "Then you have to eat cat first."
Naruto was stunned for a long while: "I mean that kind of fireball Sasuke used. I can learn it too, right?"
"You haven't even learned how to walk properly, and you want to learn how to run? I might as well just teach you how to fly!"
Naruto acted like he didn't hear what he couldn't understand: "Hey! Great Ancestor, teach me how to spit fireballs!"
Masahiko also acted like he didn't hear.
Naruto made a fuss all the way back, only quieting down when he followed Masahiko home.
Minato and Tsunade flanked Kushina, escorting her out of the house. Behind them followed Kimimaro's trio, carrying heavy backpacks.
"Eh? Kimimaro, Big Sister... Brother Haku, Karin, why are you guys here?"
"We're going on a spontaneous trip." Masahiko's face was full of smiles. With a wave of his hand, he released the flying ship: "Minions! Board the ship!"
...
Hokage Office.
After Obito became Hokage, his days passed plainly, constantly dealing with trivial matters. The only thing that could be called a major event was the 'Nine-Tails Jinchuriki Kushina Uzumaki giving birth'.
For this reason, Obito started setting up defenses very early on. With Hiruzen's help, he had already coordinated the major and minor clans of Konoha. Now, Konoha Village's defensive strength had improved by at least two levels compared to before, especially the area around Kushina's house, which could be called an inescapable net.
At this moment, Obito was holding the 'Konoha Defense Map', using his not-so-bright brain to consider if there were any loopholes.
"With these, plus Master... there definitely won't be any problems, right?"
An Anbu suddenly flickered into appearance: "Lord Hokage, Senior Masahiko flew away with Lady Kushina."
Obito was stunned for a moment: "Flew away? Sensei's wife is about to have a baby, where are they flying to?"
Looking up at the Anbu in front of him, Obito suddenly realized: "Kakashi, it's you? Don't make trouble!"
"...Idiot."
"...Bastard, what did you say? I am the Hokage! The Fifth Hokage!"
"Idiot!"
"Ah! Damn it!!"
The Hokage Office instantly exploded.
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