Five million ryō, to be honest, really isn't a small amount.
You had to know, when Nonō took Kabuto and others to the Iwa battlefield to work part-time as combat medics, the entire trip, counting the journey, took about half a month, and they only earned around 200,000 ryō.
From this, it was clear just how much Tsunade could lose. When she said she was leaving the village to escape her debts, she really wasn't joking.
"Thank you very much. I'll use this money just as you suggested." Nonō bowed sincerely in gratitude. Since it was given as a donation, she thickened her skin and accepted it.
She didn't want to waste the ninja talents of some of these children, especially Kabuto, who had learned medical ninjutsu in such a short time.
With the matter settled, Ryouma had no intention of staying longer. He retrieved his raincoat from the overweight nun, put it on, and disappeared into the rain.
---
The next morning, Hidan woke up very early with great discipline. After finishing his morning routine, he stood in front of Ryouma's room door and began to pray.
"Jashin-sama, rest assured, I've already figured out why you wanted me to enter the Ninja Academy. I definitely won't let you down!"
That was a lie. He actually had no idea. What exactly was Jashin's goal? He had laid in bed all night trying to figure it out. In the end, it wasn't that he figured it out, it was just that morning came.
But hey, it was prayer. Of course he only said the good stuff. Who didn't exaggerate a little when reporting to their lord?
That was just human nature.
He geared up with the ninja tools Ryouma had helped him buy yesterday and arrived at the Ninja Academy right on time.
Kosuke led Hidan into the classroom. He felt that the kid seemed much calmer today, not as... uh... lively as he was yesterday.
That was a good thing. A calm mind is a necessary trait for an excellent genin.
"This is the new transfer student in our class," he introduced to the students. "Hidan, go ahead and introduce yourself."
Hidan nodded solemnly, then raised his right hand and said:
"My name is Hidan! I am the highest-ranking follower of the Jashin religion, able to speak with Jashin-sama Himself, a lover of death and one who is loved by death!"
The brief self-introduction was delivered with dramatic flair, accompanied by various poses, leaving the students below staring at him with puzzled expressions. This overly theatrical self-introduction instantly wiped away the positive impression Kosuke had just started to form.
"Alright, great intro. Don't introduce yourself like that again," Kosuke sighed helplessly, then continued.
"Go take the empty seat in the second row on the right, by the aisle."
"Aye aye~"
Once he left, the classroom immediately became lively. A group of boys and girls swarmed around Hidan's seat, peppering him with questions.
"What's your relationship with The Leaf's Gale?"
"Can you get me his autograph?"
"Do you think I have potential?"
"Can you…"
Now Hidan was finally experiencing what Ryouma must've felt when he kept pestering him over and over again. In his orphan life, he had rarely been surrounded by so many people talking to him. It was a bit overwhelming.
Just then, the black-haired boy sitting next to him noticed his discomfort, stood up suddenly, and pointed out the window, saying, "The teacher for this period is coming."
"What?"
"Quick, back to your seats."
In just a few seconds, the surrounding students all scrambled back to their seats. And sure enough, he wasn't lying, a middle-aged ninja wearing a flak jacket pushed open the door and entered the classroom.
"Whew~" Hidan let out a soft breath, then turned to the boy who had just helped him out. "Thanks. What's your name?"
"No need to thank me. My name is Itachi."
"Excellent. Jashin-sama will bless you."
"Uh, I think I'll pass on that."
Itachi didn't know who Jashin was, but judging by the name, he probably wasn't the kind of deity who offered protection.
---
"Oh my, getting along quite well, aren't they~" Ryouma sat in his personal rocking chair, using his Rikugan for the first time in a while to observe the happenings at the Academy.
Since Hidan was someone he had brought back, it was naturally his responsibility to watch over him, not only to keep him from being used by certain people, but also to make sure he didn't hurt any villagers in Konoha. For now, things looked pretty good. he seemed to be integrating just fine.
A messenger hawk flew across the sky, it was a notice summoning the jonin for a meeting.
"A meeting right after I get back, huh? You going?" Ryouma glanced at Shukaku, who was lounging on a cushion in the sun nearby.
Shukaku had its arms folded behind its head, legs crossed, and mumbled sleepily in response.
"I'm asleep…"
Ryouma had seen this scene many times but still couldn't understand why a tanuki like Shukaku slept in the exact same posture as a human.
Shouldn't it be curled up or lying flat?
"Well, alright… Wait, actually, I probably won't be back for a while."
Recalling Hiruzen's usual meeting habits, Ryouma guessed he wouldn't be returning for at least several hours.
"Anyway, take good care of the place."
Shukaku made a gurgling sound in his throat and waved his one tail in acknowledgment.
---
Back in the all-too-familiar meeting room, surrounded by the all-too-familiar crowd.
"I didn't expect to see you here too."
Hiashi, using his Byakugan like an auto-targeting system, immediately spotted Ryouma in the crowd and came over to greet him.
"Hiashi. Ryouma. Long time no see." Seeing Hiashi being so obviously friendly, Fugaku wasn't willing to be left out and also stepped in to join the conversation.
"Ahem~" Hiruzen cleared his throat as everyone had arrived, signaling the start of the meeting.
"First, I have some good news to share with everyone. On the battlefield in the Land of Hot Water, Konoha has completely defeated Kumo, securing our third major victory in this shinobi world war."
Most of the jonin already had some idea of this. After all, those still in Konoha at this stage were mostly clan heads or elders, and their information networks were pretty robust. Still, since the Hokage himself had now officially announced it, they all clapped and cheered appropriately, providing ample emotional support.
He smiled, pressed his hands down in a calming gesture, and continued happily:
"On the battlefield in the Land of Hot Water, Ryouma single-handedly captured two key figures from Kumo, the son of the Third Raikage, A, and the Two-Tails' jinchūriki. After that, he joined forces with Minato to pursue and capture the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki as well."
This part of the intel wasn't widely known. It was so explosive that it drew gasps from the heads of the smaller clans. After all, Kumo's jinchūriki were different from the others, they were said to be perfect hosts.
"In this battle against Kumo, we achieved a crushing victory! Now, as long as we continue to press on and defeat the Iwa, the final victory of this Great Ninja War will belong to us."
There was no doubt that Hiruzen was elated at this moment. With the successful capture of Kumo's top brass, the enemy had surrendered unusually early. As a result, Konoha's losses on the battlefield in the Land of Hot Water were minimal, preserving a significant portion of their combat strength. Now, only Iwa remained as an opponent. He felt that sending a few reinforcements would be enough to swiftly end the conflict in the Land of Grass.
It was the first time he had fought such a resource-rich war.
"The ninja forces from the Land of Hot Water will return victorious in two days. This time, Konoha must celebrate properly."
"There's one more thing, Kumo's peace delegation will also arrive in Konoha in two days."
Homura raised an eyebrow in surprise. "That fast?"
Under normal procedures, the speed at which Kumo dispatched its peace delegation was indeed unusually quick. But there was no helping it. After all, the next Raikage-in-waiting had been captured, so they had no heart to drag out negotiations, they had to act immediately.
Otherwise, by the time they finally arrived for talks, A's body and the sealing techniques used on the two jinchūriki might have already been thoroughly researched. So, Kumo's temporary highest authority, Dodai, made a decisive move the moment the intel reached them, he personally led a team of Kumo ninjas toward the Land of Fire.
Naturally, this small team moved faster than the thousands of ninjas led by Minato, but due to the longer distance, they ended up arriving in Konoha on the same day by coincidence.
With the briefing over, it was time to assign duties.
First, Konoha's various ninja clans needed to tighten their defenses, everyone knew Kumo had a reputation for abducting children. While logically they shouldn't dare provoke Konoha in its current state, reality often defies logic, so better safe than sorry.
Naturally, this task was handed to the Police Force.
Then came the matter of guarding the Kumo delegation. Due to a certain mysterious man's individual actions nearly ruining the previous peace talks with Kiri, Hiruzen had learned his lesson.
This time, he assigned both the Hyūga clan and ANBU to take shifts guarding the Konoha inn around the clock.
With everything distributed, everyone had their own jobs.
This, of course, included Ryouma. Because of his flawless performance during the Kiri negotiations, he was once again assigned the role of mood-setter and subtle pressure presence, a symbolic mascot during the talks.
"Mmm~" Just as Ryouma stepped out of the Hokage building, he couldn't help but stretch toward the setting sun.
That was exhausting. Just a few small things, and yet Hiruzen managed to talk for hours. How does he do it? Should I skip next time like Tsunade?
"Ryouma." A voice came from behind, it was Fugaku. "I heard you brought back a child from the Land of Hot Water."
"Yeah, his name is Hidan," Ryouma nodded.
It wasn't a secret. On the day he returned, he had walked around Konoha with Hidan, introducing him to many familiar faces. Anyone curious could easily find out who Hidan was.
"If you saw enough potential to bring him back to Konoha, he must be something special."
"He's alright. I just hope he doesn't grow up with a warped mindset." That was Ryouma's honest opinion.
"His mindset?" Fugaku hadn't expected Ryouma to be the gentle, nurturing type. That made him wonder, maybe he had been too harsh with Itachi.
"Don't underestimate the importance of psychological education."
Ryouma suddenly grew serious and began telling a story.
"I once saw a father who only cared about improving his eldest son's strength. Every day, he stuffed the boy's head with knowledge even adult ninjas might struggle to absorb, completely ignoring the fact that mentally, the boy was still just a child."
Fugaku's curiosity was piqued. He quickly asked, "And then what happened?"
Ryouma didn't keep him waiting and continued:
"That child did indeed become a powerful ninja, just like his father wanted. But his mental state grew extremely warped. Because he couldn't protect the loved ones he held dear, he ultimately chose to kill them himself, preemptively. In the end, he became a notorious missing-nin and died at the hands of those sent to hunt him down."
Fugaku furrowed his brows deeply, as if the father who was killed in the story was himself.
"Can psychological issues really make someone turn out that... that extreme?"
What he actually wanted to say was "that stupid," but he thought the word was too crude and settled on something softer.
"Absolutely." Ryouma affirmed it without hesitation.
---
The Ninja Academy let out early in the day, and by this time, a crowd had gathered outside the school gates.
"See you tomorrow~"
A few students, spotting their parents waiting to pick them up, waved goodbye to each other and left.
Seeing that Itachi didn't seem to be waiting for anyone, Hidan asked curiously, "No one coming to get you either?"
"Mm. My father is very busy, and I can go home on my own, so there's no need to trouble him." Itachi replied honestly.
"I see." Hidan put his hands behind his head in a lazy pose and walked alongside him out of the school.
As they reached the gate, Itachi suddenly looked a little awkward, he had just finished saying he didn't need to be picked up, only to see his father standing right there.
He quickly walked over and asked, "Father, what brings you here today?"
"What did I teach you about manners?" Fugaku said sternly. "This is Ryouma."
Hearing this, Itachi immediately bowed and apologized, "My apologies, just now I—"
Ryouma waved his hand and cut him off, indicating that it was nothing to worry about, he wasn't the type who cared about formalities. On the contrary, he felt like his earlier story had gone to waste. How could Fugaku still be so strict with his kid?
Hidan rushed over and bumped fists with Ryouma, then said excitedly, "I found a bunch of good candidates at school today that would be perfect for recruiting into the Cult of Jashin!"
Whack!
Ryouma smacked Hidan hard on the head. "How many times have I told you not to bother the villagers, your classmates are even more off-limits, you idiot!"
"Got it..."
Hidan crouched down holding his head. He wouldn't die, but it still hurt like hell.
Fugaku glanced at Hidan, then looked at his own son, Itachi. Suddenly, he felt like maybe his parenting style wasn't that harsh after all.