Hiruzen Sarutobi pursed his lips, suppressing the urge to complain, and once again lowered his gaze to the scroll in front of him.
Fugaku Uchiha.
The moment he saw this name, Hiruzen's face darkened.
Just yesterday—yes, yesterday—that brat beat up two villagers who were arguing and fighting.
Then, he used his fists to force them to hug each other and spend the entire afternoon acting like they were best friends.
After that, he even made the two of them write an 800-word promise letter, vowing to keep their hearts filled with love in the future.
Faced with such an incident, Hiruzen didn't even know what to say. He was utterly speechless.
To say Fugaku was wrong? Well, making people embrace love wasn't exactly a bad thing.
But to say he was right? It just felt... odd.
In the past, Fugaku Uchiha wasn't much different from the other Uchiha kids. He liked to keep a stiff expression and held the Uchiha clan's honor in the highest regard.
But now?
He didn't care about the clan's honor at all. Instead, he spent his days thinking about how to spread his own theory of "love," using his fists to advocate for the Uchiha to integrate into Konoha and become one big happy family.
His ideology had a strong "Will of Fire" vibe, but his actions...
Well, they were beyond description.
And as for Rii, there was even less to say.
The one thing these three people had in common was their deep value for their comrades.
Thinking of this, Hiruzen's face twisted in frustration.
These three were excellent—whether in strength or loyalty, they were top-tier choices. But their personalities were just too... eccentric.
All he could say was: an unconventional teacher had produced a group of bizarre prodigies.
Muttering under his breath, Hiruzen said to himself:
"In the future, if we find any promising young talent, we absolutely cannot let Rinjin get his hands on them.
Otherwise, the consequences would be unimaginable!"
While the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, silently made up his mind, on the other side of the village, Rinjin and Jiraiya were squatting in front of a blonde-haired kid, grinning and chattering away.
"Hey, blondie, be our witness!
Whoever finishes eating fifty skewers of octopus balls last has to hold up this book and shout three times, 'Sakumo Hatake is a sweetheart!'"
The blonde-haired kid glanced at the book in Rinjin's hand, titled Forbidden Love: Buddha Senju vs. Tajima Uchiha, and shook his head in disgust.
"No, I'm not going to be your witness. You're both idiots!
My ninja academy teacher said not to hang out with idiots!"
Hearing this, Jiraiya, who had been drooling over the octopus balls, let out a loud squawk.
"Blondie, who's your teacher?!"
"Ōzora Chūryū!" the blonde kid replied with wide, innocent eyes.
At this, Jiraiya and Rinjin exchanged a glance, a mischievous glint flashing in their eyes.
Almost instinctively, Rinjin's mind began to churn with devious ideas.
"Kid, Ōzora Chūryū is indeed a very powerful ninja. Both this idiot and I agree on that."
Hearing this, Jiraiya, though tempted to punch Rinjin, nodded in cooperation.
"But!"
Rinjin's tone suddenly shifted, his eyes gleaming as he stared at the blonde kid.
"I know a super powerful jutsu that can take him down in one second!"
"What jutsu?!" The blonde kid's curiosity was piqued.
Seeing this, Rinjin's lips curled into an evil smile as he chuckled softly:
"Watch closely. Ox—Dog—Dragon—Rat—Dog—Boar—Snake—Tiger."
With a final hand seal, three shadow clones appeared beside him.
But Rinjin didn't stop there. Clasping his hands together, he formed another seal, the sign of "Ram."
"Transformation Jutsu!"
With a low shout, a puff of smoke erupted, revealing four or five naked women, radiating the Will of D. They giggled as they threw themselves onto Jiraiya.
In an instant, the clueless Jiraiya spurted a fountain of nosebleed, his face flushed bright red.
Beside him, the blonde kid's face also turned beet red.
Seeing this, Rinjin immediately dispelled the Shadow Clone and Transformation Jutsu. Pointing at the red-faced blonde, he slapped his thigh and burst into laughter.
"Jiraiya, look at this kid blushing! He's clearly a little rascal at heart! He's definitely going to grow up to be Hokage!"
Embarrassed and still bleeding from his nose, Jiraiya wasn't listening anymore. With a roar, he punched Rinjin, sending him flying.
"You... you idiot Rinjin! How can you know such a ridiculous jutsu?!"
In the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi, watching the scene through his crystal ball, wiped his own nosebleed with a handkerchief and muttered in a feigned serious tone:
"Ridiculous... utterly ridiculous..."
As evening fell, Rinjin parted ways with Jiraiya after finishing their octopus balls and headed home. His smile gradually faded.
Three years had passed. It was time to pay a visit to his old buddy, Danzo Shimura.
With that thought, Rinjin stepped into a dark alley.
The world spun around him.
When he came to, Rinjin found himself in the dimly lit underground base of the Root organization.
Not far away, Danzo sat on a high stone chair, resting his chin on one hand while black tendrils writhed from the other.
Sensing the presence of an intruder, Danzo immediately raised his head, his gaze locking onto the shadow where Rinjin stood.
"Who goes there?!" he barked.
Before the echo of his voice faded, a soft chuckle rang out. Rinjin stepped out of the shadows and into the flickering candlelight.
Seeing this, Danzo's brows furrowed deeply. The black tendrils on his arm retracted instantly as he spoke in a low voice:
"Long time no see, Rinjin Sakuhō."
As his voice echoed, a dozen masked Root ninjas appeared, their mastery of the Body Flicker Technique allowing them to surround Rinjin in an instant.
Seeing this, Danzo quickly waved his hand, signaling the ninjas to leave.
These loyal Root operatives had taken years to train, and Danzo wasn't about to let Rinjin slaughter them for no reason.
At Danzo's gesture, the Root ninjas vanished without a trace, leaving no room for hesitation.
Seeing this, Rinjin spoke calmly:
"Danzo, my old friend, it's been three years. Isn't it about time you handed over the secret technique of Earth Grudge Fear?"
What?!
Danzo's heart skipped a beat.
By all logic, Rinjin shouldn't have known the name of the Earth Grudge Fear technique.
Previously, Danzo had tried to interrogate the captured Kakuzu, but the man had been tight-lipped, refusing to reveal a single word.
It was only after Danzo had one of his Yamanaka clan operatives delve into Kakuzu's mind that he managed to extract the information.
So, logically speaking, the only people who should know about Earth Grudge Fear were himself and the now-deceased Yamanaka operative.
Danzo's mind raced. He quickly decided: under no circumstances could he give Earth Grudge Fear to Rinjin.
He was already no match for this man. If Rinjin gained immortality on top of that, how would Danzo ever become the Eighth Hokage?
Not a chance!
"I don't know what you're talking about! You've got the wrong guy!" Danzo waved his hands frantically, shaking his head so hard it looked like it might fall off.
Seeing this, Rinjin squinted at Danzo, clicking his tongue in disdain.
"Come on, old man. Why are you pretending with me? I already saw the black threads coming out of your hand!"
Hearing this, Danzo's face turned as dark as the base around him. He glanced at Rinjin with a mix of fear and defiance, still stubbornly shaking his head.
Seeing this, Rinjin rolled his eyes in frustration. His fists clenched, joints cracking audibly.
"Don't make me get rough with you!"
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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