After hearing Seiryu's thoughts, Tsunade fell into silence.
Ever since returning to the village, Tsunade had used her spare time from work to carefully look into Seiryu. While almost all the village's ninja regarded him as the village's sun, Tsunade had noticed many things between the lines.
At the very least, Seiryu wasn't as upright and perfect as he appeared on the surface. But since the village was currently moving in a positive direction, Tsunade hadn't said much.
Now, with Seiryu suddenly proposing to do something for the Uzumaki clan, Tsunade couldn't help but wonder about his true intentions.
"After Kushina died, I haven't heard of any other Uzumaki survivors," Tsunade said.
"Is that so? I see," Seiryu nodded. "In that case, let's have that child, Naruto, act as the representative of the Uzumaki clan. Kakashi already told me that Naruto will become my student in the future, holding the identity of the Uzumaki clan's young heir."
"You plan to take Minato's son as your disciple?" Tsunade asked.
"That's right. Is there a problem?" Seiryu nodded. "Sasuke, Neji, and Naruto—these three are the most talented among the village's current generation."
"What are you really after? If it's just about accepting a student, there's no need to bring up the Uzumaki clan's name," Tsunade pressed.
"That's just one reason. More importantly, I plan to build a Konoha Hero Monument directly opposite the Hokage building. I want to carve the names and deeds of every ninja who sacrificed for the village since its founding. The Uzumaki clan, as our staunchest allies, deserve to have their deeds recorded as well. So, the village needs a representative of the Uzumaki clan as a witness," Seiryu explained. "Also, the village will issue a public announcement to the entire shinobi world, calling for all surviving Uzumaki descendants to come to Konoha, where they'll be offered unconditional protection."
"I doubt they'd trust the village anymore," Tsunade said, unable to hold back.
"Whether they trust us or not, I'll make the village's position clear. Rebuilding trust has to start somewhere," Seiryu replied. "It's a good thing for both sides, isn't it?"
"The village needs the strength of the Uzumaki clan, and the survivors can gain the village's protection."
"And if, in the future, they wish to rebuild Uzushio Village, the village will fully support them."
Tsunade stared at Seiryu for a while before finally saying, "I never expected you to take on such a thankless task."
Faced with Tsunade's teasing, Seiryu could only shrug, saying, "What can I do? These historical issues need to be resolved, and besides, I'm also cleaning up after your teacher!"
"Fine, I'll help with this. After all, Uzumaki blood runs in my veins too," Tsunade said.
…
Three days later, after Kakashi finished work, he brought Naruto to Seiryu's house. Sasuke and Neji had already arrived earlier.
After the formal disciple ceremony, Naruto officially became Seiryu's student.
"Teacher, what ninjutsu will you teach me?" Naruto asked eagerly as soon as the ceremony ended.
"What do you want to learn?" Seiryu asked with a smile.
"Can you teach me a jutsu that'll let me beat Sasuke?" Naruto replied.
Before Seiryu could answer, Sasuke snorted coldly from the side, saying, "No matter what ninjutsu the teacher teaches you, you'll never defeat me!"
"What did you say? Once I learn an awesome jutsu, I'll definitely beat you down!" Naruto shot back.
In the blink of an eye, the two were butting foreheads, glaring at each other.
Kakashi had already taught Naruto the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu. At a little over seven years old, Naruto could now summon over ten shadow clones—an overwhelming advantage among ninja academy kids. In his age group, no one could withstand his onslaught, except Sasuke. The Thunder Step technique Seiryu taught Sasuke allowed him to easily outmaneuver Naruto.
So, every time they sparred in class, Sasuke would run circles around Naruto's clones, leaving Naruto red-faced with frustration.
"Hey, calm down! We're at the teacher's house," Neji sighed heavily. Since becoming Seiryu's student, he'd become familiar with Naruto and Sasuke, but these younger playmates often left him feeling mentally exhausted—those two could argue several times a day.
Seiryu, chuckling, separated them and looked at Naruto. "You want to learn a jutsu that can beat Sasuke?"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah!" Naruto nodded eagerly, dangling by his collar.
"Of course I'll teach you powerful jutsu, but you can't neglect your family's techniques either," Seiryu said with a smile.
"My family's techniques?" Naruto blinked in confusion.
"Do you know what your Uzumaki surname and that swirl crest on your back represent?" Seiryu asked, setting Naruto down.
"My surname? And crest?" Naruto said, taking off his jacket to stare at the swirling symbol. Since childhood, every piece of clothing the Third Hokage gave him had this pattern. He'd thought it was just the old man's habit, but even when he moved in with Kakashi, any new clothes would be embroidered with the same mark.
"Exactly, your clan. The Uzumaki clan was once a super clan, no less than the Uchiha or Hyuga," Seiryu explained.
"So my dad was from the Uzumaki clan too?" Naruto asked.
"No, it was your mother. She was actually the princess of the Uzumaki clan," Seiryu said.
Hearing news about his parents, Naruto fell into a daze. Seiryu gently patted his head to bring him back.
"But I've never heard anything about the Uzumaki clan," Naruto said.
"That's natural. The Uzumaki clan was almost completely wiped out over twenty years ago," Seiryu explained. "Strictly speaking, you're now the clan leader."
"I'm the leader?" Naruto was so shocked by the barrage of revelations that he could hardly believe it.
"That's right. By shinobi custom, you and I are equals," Seiryu said with a smile. "But if you want to carry the title of clan leader, you've got a long way to go, kid."
"Naruto, the Uchiha and Hyuga are famous in the shinobi world for their eye techniques. Do you know what made the Uzumaki clan stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Senju, Uchiha, and Hyuga?" Seiryu patted Naruto's head.
Naruto shook his head, eyes full of confusion.
"Sealing jutsu," Seiryu said. "No one in the shinobi world surpasses the Uzumaki in sealing techniques."
"Sealing jutsu?" Naruto was baffled. Having skipped out on theory classes, he was practically a dunce on ninja theory and had no idea what sealing techniques were.
Seiryu smiled and fetched a kettle and a piece of special chakra storage scroll paper from the table. He quickly drew a sealing formula on it, and with a poof, the kettle vanished into thin air.
"Whoa, so cool!" Naruto exclaimed in awe.
"Want to learn? I'll teach you," Seiryu said, still smiling. Although his genjutsu skills were the worst in the clan, his talent in sealing jutsu was excellent.
The reason was simple: when Seiryu first encountered sealing jutsu, he realized that, compared to ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, sealing was a highly rigorous discipline—almost every formula could be explained mathematically.
The most basic duality seal's formula was essentially a quadratic function.
Thanks to his previous life's math education, Seiryu found sealing jutsu easy to learn.
However, looking at Naruto's goofy face, Seiryu doubted whether the kid could master it.
But regardless, he had to teach Naruto at least a few of the basics, since he intended for Naruto to carry the Uzumaki banner. If the clan leader couldn't use sealing jutsu, it'd be a joke.
At that moment, though, Naruto's chakra suddenly grew chaotic. Red, violent chakra erupted around him. Seiryu frowned, placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder, and suppressed the surge. "You two, step back!" he told Neji and Sasuke.
"Will Naruto be alright?" Sasuke asked, concerned.
"With me here, nothing will happen," Seiryu replied. Once Neji had dragged Sasuke to a safe distance, Seiryu activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, blending it with sage chakra, and sent his spiritual power into Naruto's seal space.
Inside, Seiryu looked around. In the vast, waterlogged space, a massive fox was locked behind gigantic bars, with a complicated sealing formula carved into the gate. Right now, Naruto stood before it, staring in fear at the beast.
Seiryu went over, patted Naruto's shoulder to snap him out of it, and then looked up at the Nine-Tails.
Upon seeing Seiryu, the Nine-Tails roared in rage, a gale buffeting the two.
"Mangekyō Sharingan! Uchiha! Damn you!"
"Don't scare your landlord, Kurama," Seiryu said, his eyes narrowing. A gold-tinged skeletal Susanoo appeared, shielding him and Naruto until the wind faded.
"What… what's that?" Naruto asked after recovering.
"The big guy living inside you. Today's your first meeting, right?" Seiryu smiled.
"He… he's the demon fox?" Naruto remembered the times he'd been called "the demon fox brat."
"Naruto, be polite to your friends," Seiryu said. "It's not a demon fox, just someone considered too dangerous and robbed of its freedom."
"Huh?" Naruto's eyes widened.
The Nine-Tails roared again from behind the seal.
"Why are you shouting so loud?" Seiryu asked. "Is it fun to scare kids?"
A claw extended through the bars, but stopped short, unable to reach them under the seal's restraint.
"Naruto, come say hi to your friend. If nothing goes wrong, it'll be with you your whole life," Seiryu said.
"Uh, okay." Naruto bowed with hands together. "Hello, big fox. I'm Naruto Uzumaki. Please take care of me from now on."
The Nine-Tails wasn't impressed, roaring again. "Friend? Who wants to be friends with you humans? All you ever want is the power of the Tailed Beasts!"
Naruto, startled by the outburst, looked at Seiryu in distress.
"Go rest for a bit. I'll have a talk with him," Seiryu said, sending Naruto's spirit out of the seal space. Then, looking into the Nine-Tails' eyes with his Mangekyō Sharingan, he said:
"Mangekyō Sharingan…" The Nine-Tails was wary. "What, trying to use genjutsu to force me to help that brat?"
"Sorry to disappoint you. My genjutsu is terrible—I can't control you without harming Naruto."
"Hmph!"
"But I could still beat you up in here with my ocular power. So, could you please get along with my student from now on, Kurama?"
Hearing his name, the Nine-Tails' pupils shrank. He thrashed against the gate, roaring, "How do you know that name?!"
"Can't tell you that," Seiryu smiled. "But I'll remind you: don't forget the words the Sage of Six Paths left for the Tailed Beasts."