Chapter 175: After All, I'm No Demon Either
"Naruto! Get up!"
Jiraiya stood at Naruto's door, pounding on it loudly.
The door, unable to withstand the weight, let out a painful groan.
Just as he was about to kick the door, it opened.
"Naru... Hinata?"
Jiraiya froze for a moment, glancing around to make sure he hadn't come to the wrong place.
A young man and woman, alone together in a room.
His eyes immediately stung, as if he had just eaten a large lemon.
"Lord Jiraiya."
"I came over to make breakfast for Naruto-kun," Hinata said, feeling a bit embarrassed.
She knew Naruto was an orphan and that Jiraiyawas his teacher.
This was practically like meeting the parents.
She lowered her head, her index fingers twiddling together, not daring to look him in the eye.
It was actually quite improper to visit like this before their relationship was official.
Jiraiya's lips twitched.
He naturally didn't care about rules or propriety.
But... damn it!
When he was thirteen, why didn't any pretty girls come to his house to cook?
And so well-behaved, and so... well-endowed.
He only had a violent, flat-chested girl chasing him around to beat him up.
Heh, it's nothing special!
Jiraiya gave a couple of dry laughs and asked, "Since you're cooking, can I stay for breakfast?"
Hinata looked up and said hurriedly, "Of course you can!"
With that, she stepped aside.
Jiraiya entered the living room.
Come to think of it, the last time he was here was... well, the last time.
At that time, his teacher, Hiruzen Sarutobi, was still alive.
He scanned the surroundings; perhaps because of Hinata, he felt it was cleaner than he remembered.
At the same time, he caught a faint floral scent.
Following the scent, he saw the white bellflowers on the table.
Covered in fresh dew drops, they must have been recently bought.
He really knows how to live.
Jiraiya sighed with emotion.
He thought of Minato, who was a mess in matters of the heart, just like himself.
"I thought Naruto-kun seemed to like bellflowers, so I bought a bouquet when I passed by the Yamanaka Flower Shop," Hinata explained.
Seeing him notice the bellflowers, Hinataexplained.
In truth, Naruto didn't have any particular fondness for flowers.
But as for Hinata, she would buy whatever she thought he liked.
More importantly, she had learned the flower language of white bellflowers from Ino.
Sincere, regretless love.
"You bought them?"
Jiraiya started feeling sour again.
Dammit!
He had only ever received Tsunade's fists.
No, that wasn't right.
He had actually received blown kisses, fine wine, and personal items from many beautiful women.
But that was under the premise that he had paid for them.
Without paying...
"Who is Jiraiya of the Sannin?"
"Don't know him."
So realistic.
"How can that brat let a girl pay for flowers?"
Jiraiya widened his eyes and said, "I need to teach him a lesson."
"It's... it's fine."
Hinata waved her hands hurriedly and said, "It's just a small amount of money, it's okay."
"..."
Jiraiya took another critical hit.
Right, how could the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Clan be short on money?
He thought of Tsunade.
Comparisons are odious.
The Ninja World's number one indebted lady.
He worked hard on missions and earned royalties, yet he still couldn't pay off Tsunade's gambling debts; it was truly ridiculous.
Fortunately, since she became Hokage, she had hardly gambled at all.
If he had known, he should have called her back sooner.
"Where's Naruto? Is he still not up?"
Jiraiya scanned the room, and seeing no one, he couldn't help but ask.
"Yes, he wakes up at eight o'clock sharp every day."
Hinata smiled, took out a glass, poured some hot water, and said, "Please sit for a moment, I'll go to the kitchen."
Jiraiya felt the warmth from the glass.
This is nice.
He finally had a normal student's wife.
The previous one was Kushina, nicknamed the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero.
She was like a carbon copy of Tsunade.
He fell silent for a moment, admitting to himself that he was indeed a bit envious of Naruto.
Maybe I'm just getting old.
It's time to let the young people go out and make their way.
Naruto's strength had long since surpassed his own.
Jiraiya took a sip of water.
Naruto yawned as he opened his door.
He had played too late with the vixen yesterday.
He almost stayed up all night.
He had noticed when Jiraiya knocked earlier, but he still slept for a few more minutes.
In his past life, he always felt that sleeping right before getting up in the morning was the best.
He looked at Jiraiya with some confusion; wasn't he supposed to be preparing for the Chunin Exams?
"What are you doing here?"
"Naturally, I have business."
Jiraiya composed himself, not wanting to let Narutosee that he was envious.
Otherwise, where would he hide his face?
"Tsunade asked me to handle Root."
"..."
Naruto's mind immediately went to the gutter.
Then he realized he was referring to Danzo's Root.
"What does that have to do with me?"
"I'm taking you to see the world."
Jiraiya looked up at him and asked, "I remember you said you wanted to be Hokage back at the Ninja Academy?"
And that essay on the Will of Fire back then had left a deep impression on him.
Plus, he felt that among the new generation, Naruto was indeed the most suitable.
"No, no, no."
Naruto shook his head hurriedly. Hokage? Not even a dog would want that job!
Just look at Tsunade now; she's treated worse than livestock—sleeping later than a dog, waking up earlier than a rooster, and eating less than a pig.
"I was young and naive back then. I was just joking."
"???"
Jiraiya's hand holding the glass trembled; he felt like administering some divine justice.
He calmed his emotions; his student's wife was still in the kitchen, he couldn't let his inner ape show.
"If you don't want to be Hokage, then what do you want to do?"
"Whatever I feel like doing, of course."
Naruto glanced at the kitchen, shrugged, and said.
Just not being the Hokage.
Jiraiya was speechless.
Why do you sound like an old man about to retire?
At thirteen years old...
If you aren't young and aggressive, can you even call yourself a youth?
Naruto noticed his expression.
It seems he hasn't studied the White Lotus Sectdoctrines enough.
Why are you always obsessing over that Hokageposition?
Your vision is too narrow.
"Your strength is more than enough for the Chunin Exams, so continue studying with me this month."
Jiraiya appealed to his reason and emotions, "The situation with Root is complex, and you can learn a lot. As a Ninja, you need knowledge in all aspects; just knowing how to fight isn't enough."
"I suppose I could."
Naruto was also quite interested in the mysterious Root.
Although, knowing Danzo's personality, most of what he left behind was probably doctored.
"But I told Shikamaru and the others yesterday that I'd meet them this morning."
"I see."
Reminded by him, Jiraiya remembered that his new teammates were Choji and Ino.
No matter how strong Naruto was, according to Konoha tradition, he still had to coordinate with his teammates.
"Then go in the afternoon."
Jiraiya was in no hurry.
Because he also knew that uncovering Danzo's secrets was almost impossible.
What he wanted to do was change Root itself.
Besides, after studying the White Lotus Sectdoctrines, he had some ideas he wanted to try out.
That was the real reason he was bringing Narutoalong.
Seeing that they were finished talking, Hinatafinally brought out the ramen.
She gave a bowl to Jiraiya first.
"Thank you."
Jiraiya nodded with satisfaction.
Compared to Naruto, this student's wife was looking better and better to him.
He suddenly felt that he should view Naruto as Kushina and Hinata as Minato.
With their roles reversed, it felt somewhat familiar.
"Wow, this tastes great!"
Jiraiya's eyes lit up.
Minato and Kushina's cooking was also good.
But it was quite terrible back when they had just graduated from the Ninja Academy.
Especially Kushina's.
He hadn't expected Hinata to be so skilled at this age; it really wasn't easy.
"Thank you."
Hinata ate her noodles obediently.
Her personality was naturally quiet; if it were just her and Naruto, she would be more relaxed.
But with an outsider present, she was back to her usual self.
Naruto curled his lip.
Third wheel.
Fortunately, Jiraiya chose to leave as soon as he finished his noodles.
"I'll go wash the dishes."
Hinata picked up the dishes and reminded him, "Naruto-kun, remember to change your clothes."
"Okay."
Naruto noticed he was in his pajamas and went back to his room to change into his everyday clothes.
He went to the kitchen and hugged Hinata from behind.
He didn't do anything else.
"I'm heading out."
"Mm..."
Hinata was startled and let out a long breath of relief.
"By the way, Shikamaru said we're having BBQ for lunch, so I won't be back."
Naruto remembered this and went back to the kitchen to say it.
Hinata nodded.
Nine o'clock arrived.
Naruto arrived at Team 10's meeting spot.
"The new teammate is actually you?"
Ino asked in surprise.
Asuma had only said there would be a new member today without saying who, but she hadn't expected it to be Naruto.
"Then the Chunin Exams are in the bag."
She waved her hand, her eyes full of confidence.
Beside her, Shikamaru, with his hands behind his head, couldn't help but want to grumble.
What's that supposed to mean?
Looking down on me?
But then he thought it was too much trouble; once he started grumbling, Ino would likely nag incessantly, and back and forth it would go. It was too exhausting, so he simply ignored Ino's slight.
"It's me."
Naruto smiled.
They were all classmates and quite familiar with each other.
Though they hadn't interacted a great deal.
"Where's Senior Asuma? Why isn't he here?"
Naruto asked casually.
Come to think of it, he was technically Asuma's savior.
Without Hidan, there was a high probability he wouldn't die.
"He said to leave it to Shikamaru."
Choji answered.
Shikamaru sighed.
He hadn't quite understood the meaning before, but now he did.
Although Asuma was their leading Jonin, he didn't actually teach them much.
After all, the three of them all had their own family legacies.
Plus, Asuma knew in advance that it was Naruto, so he simply left it to him to handle.
"Did the teacher go to find Kurenai Yuhi-sensei again?"
Shikamaru snapped out of his thoughts and scratched his head.
He had originally been thinking about coming up with some tactics for the three of them.
Tactics, my ass.
Couldn't this guy just sweep through the Chunin Exams by himself while bringing Choji and Inoalong?
Must be nice.
He suddenly realized that the stronger one's power was, the easier it was to slack off.
But trying to get stronger was just such a huge pain.
"So, does Chunin Shikamaru have any instructions?"
Naruto looked at his changing expression and asked with a smile.
According to Konoha's system, Genin had the least authority.
Chunin and Jonin could order them around at will.
Shikamaru couldn't help but feel that this guy was being sarcastic.
He waved his hand dismissively and said, "Let's start by understanding each other's abilities."
"True," Ino nodded in agreement. "Choji and I know you're very strong, but we don't know the specifics, and you don't know our Ino–Shika–Chō special Ninjutsu either."
The only time she had seen Naruto fight was during the last Chunin Exams, in his battle against Gaara.
But as for Ninjutsu, he only seemed to have used that blue ball.
Then they had fallen into a genjutsu halfway through and hadn't seen anything else after that.
However, she had heard Sakura mention how incredibly powerful Naruto and Sasuke were.
"As for me, I mainly use Wind Release and Fire Release."
Naruto blinked and said, "And I know a little bit of Taijutsu."
Ino immediately gave him a look that said 'I know you're lying'.
You suppressed Gaara using only Taijutsu.
You call that a little bit?
"I didn't expect you to have already mastered two types of Chakra nature transformation."
Shikamaru was slightly surprised.
This meant that Naruto already had the qualifications of a Jonin.
Thinking about it, it made sense.
Otherwise, Asuma wouldn't be so relaxed.
He had heard many legends about Team 7.
All in all, the prospects were wonderful.
Ino and Choji also introduced their respective abilities.
Ino was a Perception and Medical Ninja, and she was also considered half an apprentice to Tsunade.
Her signature Ninjutsu was, naturally, the Mind Body Switch Jutsu.
And Choji's was the Expansion Jutsu series.
Well, Naruto actually really wanted to learn the Expansion Jutsu.
Getting bigger or smaller at will.
It would be very useful in certain situations.
"We've said about all there is to say."
Shikamaru clapped his hands to get the three of them's attention and said, "So, how about you two spar with each other next?"
"Huh?"
Ino instinctively looked at him. "We can't beat Naruto."
"I know."
A smile appeared on Shikamaru's face. "I want you to experience your teammate's strength."
If they weren't usually on such good terms, Inowould have suspected he was using this as an excuse for a personal grudge.
But what he said made sense.
"Then I'll go first."
Ino took a deep breath and said, "Without a teammate, the conditions for releasing my technique are quite harsh."
Naruto nodded and said, "I won't move."
He also wanted to see if her technique could control him.
"Okay."
Ino crossed her hands and shouted, "Mind Body Switch Jutsu!"
All the spiritual energy in her body surged out, transforming into an invisible straight line that rushed toward Naruto.
The next moment, her vision went black.
"What is this?"
Ino stared blankly at the super-sized fox in front of her.
It was lying on the ground, seemingly... drinking cola?
"Which brat is peeking at this old man?"
Kurama turned his head and saw Ino.
She seemed to be Naruto's classmate.
He extended a claw and gave a flick.
Ino was immediately sent flying out.
It's the Nine-Tailed.
She opened her eyes and immediately guessed the identity of that fox.
After all, for her, the successor of the Yamanakaclan, the fact that Naruto was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki was no secret.
She just hadn't expected her secret technique to be completely countered by a Jinchuriki.
But she wasn't particularly discouraged.
Tailed Beasts were naturally the natural enemies of ordinary Ninjas.
Naruto rubbed his chin.
Her secret technique actually shared some similarities with genjutsu.
That's why it didn't work.
"Choji, it's your turn."
Naruto looked at Choji on the other side with expectation in his eyes.
He suddenly remembered that he had the Mangekyo Sharingan; it should be possible to copy the Expansion Jutsu, right?
Merlin Genjutsu!
Without the three of them noticing, they entered a genjutsu.
However, nothing in the surroundings seemed to have changed.
Naruto opened his Mangekyo Sharingan.
Choji, as if he hadn't seen it, said, "Naruto, watch out! Expansion Jutsu!"
Because he understood Naruto's strength, he started with a powerful move.
His body rapidly grew taller.
He threw a punch.
The wind whistled.
The shadow formed by the massive fist completely enveloped Naruto.
"Not bad, not bad."
Naruto jumped back, and while avoiding the fist, he kicked off with both feet, landed on Choji's fist, and rushed up his arm toward him.
The Mangekyo Sharingan was observing his Chakra flow.
The Expansion Jutsu was a secret technique of the Akimichi clan, and its difficulty to learn far exceeded that of ordinary Ninjutsu.
Choji's left hand swatted at Naruto as if he were swatting a fly.
This time, he didn't dodge.
Naruto directly braced against his palm.
Choji's face showed his shock as he actually felt a strength greater than his own.
He withdrew his left hand, and his right hand swung down violently. The moment he shook off Naruto, he brought both palms together and slammed them against the ground.
Super Open Hand Slap!
With a boom,
the ground shook as clouds of dust billowed up.
"How was it?"
Ino asked while backing away.
"Not great."
Shikamaru shook his head and said, "It was completely useless; Choji is too slow."
Sure enough, Naruto shot out from the smoke.
Seeing this, Ino smiled and said, "What do you think our chances of passing the Chunin Examsare?"
"Probably one hundred percent."
Shikamaru couldn't help but sigh as he watched Choji being forced into such a clumsy state.
Naruto, participating in the Chunin Exams is basically cheating in itself... Land of Hot Springs.
"Big bro Kakuzu, I think killing them is a bit of a waste."
Uzumaki Menma had a look of regret on his face.
"How is it a waste?"
Kakuzu looked at the three people lying in front of him.
Originally, there were four.
One had been killed during the fight.
They were the famous Xuanyuan Group.
The five of them had a combined bounty of fifty million Ryo.
But one was missing.
"It's only forty million, after all."
Uzumaki Menma shook his head and said, "We should seek to maximize the profits."
"Maximize?"
Kakuzu didn't understand.
He and Uzumaki Menma had only been teamed up for two days, and he didn't know this teammate of his very well.
From his initial impression, he seemed relatively normal.
"Yes, maximize. Have you ever heard of idol singers?"
"Are you joking?"
Kakuzu frowned. "With just those few becoming idols?"
The Ninja World had stars, and naturally, it had idols too.
"Use Transformation Jutsu."
Uzumaki Menma smiled. "I've already thought of a group name: Back Street Girls."
"Can that really make money?"
Kakuzu expressed his doubt.
"Naturally. Leave it to me. If they can't earn forty million, I'll make up the difference for you."
Uzumaki Menma patted his chest, kicked the three unconscious people on the ground awake, and said, "I'll give you a chance: work for us."
The three of them nodded hurriedly.
They didn't want to die.
"Very good."
Uzumaki Menma gave them a look that said they were quick learners and said, "The first thing is to learn how to sing and dance."
"???"
The three of them were completely bewildered.
In all their lives, they had never heard such a request.
For ordinary people, learning to sing and dance would take a very long time.
But Ninjas were different.
Because they had Shadow Clones and genjutsu.
The former could gain multiple levels of proficiency, while the latter could slow down the perception of time.
Uzumaki Menma might not be able to do it, but Merlin's genjutsu could.
At worst, I'll just use the Flying Thunder God Technique to find the main body... Naruto finished his battle with Choji.
He had already more or less figured out the Expansion Jutsu.
He silently dispersed the genjutsu.
"So hungry!"
Choji's body shrunk back down.
The Expansion Jutsu belonged to the Yang nature transformation and consumed a lot of calories.
"Let's go and eat BBQ."
Shikamaru waved his hand and smiled.
Although he hadn't seen Naruto's true strength, he understood that his two teammates wouldn't fail the Chunin Exams just because he was absent.
"Yay!"
Choji's eyes lit up as he ran toward the BBQ shop.
"Hey, don't be in such a rush!"
Ino hurriedly shouted, but Choji was already just a silhouette in the distance.
They really do have a good relationship.
Naruto followed behind them.
Ino–Shika–Chō was considered the most classic team configuration.
The three families had always supported each other.
So, Hiruzen Sarutobi letting Asuma serve as their leading teacher was no coincidence.
[Congratulations to the host for achieving the 'After All, I'm No Demon' achievement. You have gained one normal card draw.]
Eh?
Naruto was stunned for a moment.