Early next morning, the sun clocked in on time.
On the roof, Saiki sat cross-legged facing the rising sun, maintaining his daily breathing exercises.
With every breath, warm currents were drawn into Saiki's body, circulating through his meridians and nourishing every cell before finally converging in the Qi Sea beneath his navel.
For three years, he had persisted every single day. If someone with the Byakugan were to look, they would discover a dense, high-quality mass of chakra accumulated in Saiki's Dantian, swirling like a thick mist.
Saiki himself didn't fully understand it. After he first refined chakra, he noticed a sensation like a small mouse scurrying through his pathways.
He tried to manipulate this energy and felt he could absorb a certain essence from the world. Day after day, this energy grew until it became a vast sea of mist within his core.
In truth, Saiki felt like he was practicing Immortal Cultivation, though he wasn't sure if this world had "Spiritual Qi" or "Lunar/Solar Essence"; he simply followed his instincts.
Whether the "Natural Energy" of the Shinobi world was the same as "Spiritual Qi," he couldn't say for sure.
The only thing Saiki knew was that no matter how many Ninjutsu he used, he only consumed his refined chakra.
This "Breath" he had cultivated for three years simply continued to grow within his Qi Sea—boundless, misty, and unending!
It felt like a continuous accumulation, waiting for the day when quantity would trigger a qualitative transformation.
Though he didn't know what benefits it would ultimately bring, Saiki spent half an hour every morning and before bed expanding this internal breath.
Whoosh!
Exhaling a long breath of turbid air, Saiki felt refreshed and invigorated.
He clenched his fists. His physical body didn't seem particularly strengthened, but the daily cultivation kept his mind sharp, so he didn't feel it was a waste of time.
With a light push, Saiki leaped off the roof. A drop of seven or eight meters was nothing to his toughened body; even ordinary Genin spent their days jumping around like that.
"Shizune, are you ready?"
Walking toward the kitchen, he found Shizune packing their lunches for the day.
Naturally, Saiki was the head chef of the household; Shizune merely acted as his assistant. His Flower Clones could eat, train, and even use the bathroom, which saved Saiki a massive amount of time.
"Mm, all set!"
Shizune walked out carrying one large and one small bento box. Saiki took them from her and gave her head a playful rub.
"Off to class, then. Don't want to be late."
"Mm!"
Shizune nodded obediently before asking, "Lady Tsunade has been gone for days. I wonder when she'll be back?"
After a moment's thought, Saiki replied, "Probably within the next day or two."
In the Hidden Leaf, there are two women you absolutely do not want to provoke.
One is the granddaughter of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. She is a legendary healer with a massive chest, a gambling addiction, and a streak of bad luck that ensures she loses every bet. That is Tsunade.
The other has a slightly lower social status but possesses a level of destructiveness and brutality that far exceeds Tsunade's. Known as the "Red Hot-Blooded Habanero," she is the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki: Kushina Uzumaki.
Today, just like any other day, the Hokage office was nearly demolished.
Only after a series of compromises was the building saved from certain destruction. Watching Kushina leave—walking like a literal monster, making the entire floor tremble with every step, her crimson hair fluttering like the tentacles of an octopus—the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
He had successfully stopped Kushina from leaving the village, but assigning her "toys" (a team) that could burn off her excess energy without putting the Jinchuriki at risk was a nightmare of a puzzle.
To solve this, Hiruzen had to sift through files to find new playmates for her.
He scanned the profiles of the upcoming graduates one by one. Finally, he pulled out three files.
Shizune: The niece of Tsunade's late boyfriend, Dan Kato. Her background was as clean as they come.
Genhai: A commoner whose family had lived in the Leaf since its founding. His father died on the Sand front during the Second War. No issues there.
Saiki Shiroya: A war orphan from the Rain front. He had passed Anbu surveillance and currently lived with Tsunade. Excellent talent.
The background was fine—Konoha took in countless war orphans every year, especially one personally brought back by Tsunade.
The only thing that irritated Hiruzen was Saiki's grades. Why the hell were his scores in "The Will of Fire" and "Shinobi Bonds"—the most important classes for a Leaf student—hovering right on the edge of failure?
If a student had great Ninjutsu talent but poor grades in general, that was understandable. There were precedents.
But this kid had perfect scores in "Advanced Mathematics," "Applied Parabolic Physics," and "Practical Chemistry." Hiruzen found it impossible to believe that a student who could master such difficult subjects couldn't pass "The Will of Fire," which only required rote memorization. This indicated a serious problem with the boy's ideology.
Out on the Academy training grounds, preparing for the combat exam, Saiki had no idea his "rebellion" had caught Hiruzen's eye.
He wanted to stay hidden, yet he couldn't bring himself to suck up to the system by acing "The Will of Fire." It felt like a childish, petty rebellion, much like how he hated political science classes in high school in his previous life.
Having read too many conspiracy theories in his past life—the decline of the Senju, the Uchiha massacre, and the greed for power shown by the Council—Saiki viewed Hiruzen and his peers as two-faced, dark-hearted old men.
Saiki was the type who couldn't even fake a smile for something he disliked. He was caught in a constant internal conflict between laying low and being his authentic, rebellious self.
Dammit, I've been reincarnated. If I can't stand them, I'll just avoid them! If push comes to shove, I'll just show my hand.
Of course, with a personality like that, he was never destined for "greatness." Fortunately, Saiki didn't care about power or fame; he just wanted to make money, live a good life, and stay out of Konoha's toxic nepotism.
In a sense, he was part of that nepotism, but he only felt he owed Tsunade—he owed Konoha nothing.
To avoid schemes, he had to get stronger. In the face of overwhelming power, petty tricks were useless.
Because of this, he had always kept a low profile. Aside from entertaining the young girls, he never did anything to draw attention. Even in combat trials, he suppressed his scores as much as possible.
Just as Hiruzen was debating whether Saiki was suitable to be Kushina's student, there was a knock on the door.
"Enter!"
A woman walked in. She had long blonde hair tied in a ponytail, a violet diamond mark on her forehead, and a stunningly beautiful face. Her massive breasts were barely contained by her dark green robe, which had the character for "Gamble" emblazoned on the back.
"Teacher Sarutobi."
"Tsunade? When did you get back?"
Hiruzen looked up, startled by her sudden appearance.
"Just walked through the gates. I came to report in."
There was no warmth between master and student. Tsunade responded coldly; she had long since lost faith in the village. If it weren't for Shizune and Saiki still being in school, she would have left ages ago.
Seeing her cold shoulder, Hiruzen didn't press it. "Did things go smoothly?"
"Mm, no problems."
"By the way, did you get any intel from that Sand Ninja you killed in the back mountains last night?"
Since she just "arrived," Hiruzen assumed she was the one who handled the intruder the night before.
Border frictions were intensifying daily, and he was buried under a mountain of paperwork. Between that and Kushina's tantrum, the incident had slipped his mind until he saw her.
"The back mountains? Killing a Sand Ninja?"
Though she didn't know the details, Tsunade immediately guessed it was Saiki's doing. The kid often trained late in those mountains.
She knew Saiki's personality well. She had watched him grow for three years; he was incredibly hardworking and possessed terrifying talent. If she wasn't serious, she wouldn't even be able to handle him herself at nineteen.
Yet at school, he was mediocre. He didn't have the "Genius" fame of Kakashi Hatake, who graduated at five and became a Chunin at six.
In Saiki, Tsunade saw one defining trait: playing it safe.
Living together had fostered genuine affection. Her brother and Dan Kato had both died in war, so she didn't blame Saiki for wanting to stay out of the spotlight.
Tsunade paused, then countered, "Oh, that. I was calling my little brat for dinner and gave the guy a slap. Didn't you guys get any intel from the body?"
Hiruzen didn't suspect a thing. "It's been handed over to the Anbu."
He looked back at the files on his desk. "What do you think about Shizune and Saiki Shiroya becoming Kushina's students? She's been pestering me every day lately..."
At the mention of Kushina, Hiruzen sighed helplessly.
Tsunade had planned to leave again, but she had rushed back specifically for the kids' graduation.
Hearing that Saiki and Shizune would be under Kushina—considering Saiki's calm, calculating nature versus Kushina's explosive, chaotic personality—a mischievous, wicked grin spread across Tsunade's face.
Saiki was always teasing her; she had been looking for a way to get back at him!
The thought of Saiki being tormented by Kushina filled her with joy.
"Ah, no problem at all!" Tsunade agreed instantly.
Since she was on board, Hiruzen asked one last thing: "That kid, Saiki Shiroya... he's reliable, right?"
Tsunade's face darkened. "He's the one I brought back. If you don't trust him, Teacher Sarutobi, feel free to pick someone else."
As he prepared for his combat exam, wondering which team he would end up on, Saiki had no idea his fate was already sealed. He was about to face the "Red Hot-Blooded Habanero of Konoha!"