One year later... Kano was dressing up in her room, picking out which little dress to wear today from her wardrobe.
She applied a bit of light makeup and struck a cute pose in front of the mirror.
"I'm so cute~"
Kano came to the dining table. Her mother, Yoshino, had already prepared breakfast, and Shikamaru and Shikaku were already eating.
"Kano, come eat quickly. I made your favorite bacon today."
Over the past year, her mother had always been very gentle with Kano, giving her plenty of pocket money and buying her many beautiful clothes and shoes. Kano had also learned how to dress up and apply makeup.
She was even cautious during training, for fear of leaving any scars.
Although she was still young, she was already very cute even without makeup.
"Oh my, it's been a year since Kano became so cute. I really love my daughter more and more every day. I can't bear the thought of her getting married off~"
Her mother naturally adored her beautiful daughter, while her father, Shikaku, felt that strength was more useful than such superficiality.
"Kano, as a ninja, becoming strong is more important than dressing up beautifully. Your mother also had great strength when she was young."
"What a drag. Because of you, so many boys have been disturbing my rest."
Over the past year, Shikamaru had also seen firsthand how much his "idiot" younger sister had changed.
"You two, look at the time! Finish eating and get out to work and school!"
As soon as Yoshino roared, the Shikamaru father-son duo fell silent and sped up their eating.
Turning her head, Yoshino revealed a gentle smile.
"Kano, no need to rush, eat slowly. There's plenty of time. A lady should eat like this, chewing carefully and swallowing slowly. Don't be like those two idiots, stuffing their faces as if they've never eaten before."
Shikamaru rolled his eyes. Didn't you just tell us to eat quickly? This double standard is way too obvious!
But he and his father, Shikaku, didn't dare say anything more. After all, Nara Yoshino was the one who called the shots at home.
Kano looked at the countdown; today was the final day! As long as today passed, she would be able to obtain a powerful Forbidden Jutsu!
What Forbidden Jutsu would it be? Just thinking about it made her a little excited~
After Kano arrived at the Ninja Academy, she instantly attracted the gazes of all the boys. A beautiful person is always the center of attention wherever they go.
This actually made things a bit difficult for Iruka. Although Kano had stopped sleeping in class and started listening properly, with her dressing up like this every day, the boys in the class couldn't focus on the lessons.
But he couldn't lecture Kano for it. She had finally started studying; if he scolded her and she stopped learning again, it would be bad.
Anyway, graduation was coming up soon, so he just let her be.
"Kano-chan, did something happen today? Why are you so happy?"
Ino came over to say hello. After spending a year together, they had become best friends who talked about everything. Moreover, Ino discovered that Kano really had no interest in Sasuke, but instead peeked at Naruto from time to time.
Ino's fondness for Kano, who wasn't a love rival, was through the roof!
Kano also liked Ino very much. Ino smelled lovely, like the fragrance of flowers from a flower shop. Furthermore, Ino took great care of Kano, and Kano had become somewhat dependent on her.
Kano even thought about simply pushing Shikamaru out and joining the Ino–Shika–Chō squad herself.
"Hahaha, I'll be able to obtain an incredibly powerful ninjutsu today!"
"Wow, really? What kind of ninjutsu is it?"
"Hehe, I'll tell you a secret: it's a Forbidden Jutsu!"
Ino pretended to be surprised and covered her mouth. She knew Kano's grades were terrible, on par with Naruto's. But not wanting to spoil her friend's fun, she played along.
"Is it really that amazing?"
Kano could also see that Ino didn't believe her, so she stood on her tiptoes and whispered in Ino's ear:
"I'll tell you a secret: I'm actually super strong! I only look weak because I'm pretending. I'm only telling you because you're my best friend. If you ever need help in the future, just come to me. I'm very powerful."
"Mm-hmm, I actually have something I need help with right now. I'm planning to have a gathering tonight and I'm short a model. Since Kano-chan is so cute, let's play dress-up together tonight. We haven't played in a long time."
"You... I'm not going." Kano's face turned red as she remembered the feeling of being handled like a dress-up doll. "If you don't believe me, I'll demonstrate my ninjutsu for you in a few days, and then you'll know I'm not lying. But, I can only show you, and you can't tell anyone else."
"Mm-hmm, I promise I won't tell anyone."
"Fine, I see you still don't believe me. How about I show you tomorrow?"
"Let's wait until after the exam. The graduation exam is coming up soon, and we can relax for a few days after it's over. I'll also show you our family's Secret Technique."
"Then it's a promise."
"Yeah."
Ino found the little secret between them very interesting, especially since it was a secret with such a fun friend like Kano.
In the afternoon, the mission countdown finally ended, and she finally obtained the Forbidden Jutsu she had been longing for.
[Mission Completed. Rewards: Random Forbidden Jutsu x1, Clear-Sighted Spirit Pill x1]
When Kano got home, she hid in her room and locked the door.
Without even changing her clothes, her white-stockinged feet intertwined as she sat cross-legged, looking at the two items that had appeared in her hands.
One was in the shape of a scroll, and the other looked very much like a sugar pill.
"System, what is this sugar pill for?"
[It can correct vision and make the host's eyesight better. Feel free to eat it; it's not poisonous (^～^)]
Kano didn't suspect anything. Back when she used to overwork herself at night, her vision had been somewhat affected, so this medicine was just right.
But the main point was this Forbidden Jutsu scroll!
I'll get it as long as I open it, right?
"Flying Thunder God, Flying Thunder God, Flying Thunder God!"
Kano's heart pounded with excitement. No matter which Forbidden Jutsu it was, it would be an incredibly powerful existence. Even if she didn't pull the Flying Thunder God, it would still be acceptable.
But with Kano's luck, pulling the Flying Thunder God shouldn't be a problem!
As the scroll slowly unfurled, the power sealed within surged into Kano's body, and the name of a Forbidden Jutsu gradually surfaced in her mind.
Edo Tensei!
Holy crap! The jackpot! This is amazing! This is the ninjutsu that caused a whole Ninja World War!
Kano was overjoyed for a moment, but then she realized there was a problem.
It seemed she couldn't use the Edo Tensei. She didn't have the ability to go grave robbing right now, nor did she have the ability to kidnap people to use as sacrifices for the Edo Tensei.
Plus, she had promised to demonstrate it for Ino. This was great; she couldn't exactly take Ino to dig up graves, could she?
Kano sat on the tatami mat, rubbing her white-stockinged feet, trying hard to think of what to do.
Suddenly, she remembered the ninjutsu fusion scroll she had received from the beginner mission.
"Should I... fuse the Edo Tensei? This thing is pretty sinister; using it in the Konoha Village would definitely cause problems."
Without hesitation, Kano opened her wardrobe and rummaged through a pile of dresses to find that scroll.
"I remember it's for fusing two ninjutsu. One will be the Edo Tensei, but what should I choose for the other one?" Rubbing her chin, she recalled the ninjutsu she had mastered. "Shadow Imitation Technique or Shadow Binding Technique?"
Both were quite good. Although the Shadow Imitation Technique was more advanced, the Shadow Binding Technique consumed less Chakra.
"It's decided! I'll use the Shadow Imitation Technique! I wonder what kind of ninjutsu will be created by fusing these two!"