"Danzo, that Old Man, actually threatened me…"
Hyuga Arima's anger lasted only a second before his hands drooped, and his expression turned dejected: "But this threat can't be ignored…"
That's how it is when you don't have a backer; no matter which side you stand on, it's wrong.
Politically, the correct choice would be to join the Hokage's direct subordinates, but Danzo would resort to underhanded tricks… When the Hokage-sama schemes against his own people, he's a professional!
But if he were to switch to Root, putting aside that disgusting Tongue-Sealing Curse, just being noted in the Hokage's little black book would be enough to give him a headache.
His future seemed bleak…
"Logically speaking, obediently following the Third Hokage is the best choice," Hyuga Arima squatted on the steps, drawing circles, "He is in his prime right now, so he shouldn't rely too much on Danzo's Root, nor will he indulge him too much. Protecting me shouldn't be a problem."
"But do I really have to hide my Sharingan and my identity to join Anbu?"
He rubbed his face: "Wearing a mask all day, wouldn't this face be wasted? I could clearly rely on my looks to make a living, but I have to rely on talent? I can't be like Kakashi, wasting such a gift…"
"Even more troublesome is that Anbu identities are hidden, living in the shadows day and night. Not to mention whether I'll develop psychological issues over time, how will I implement my breakup plan?!"
Anbu work is unpredictable, and it's common for them to be outside the Village. How would he have time to date then? That's the real priority, isn't it?
"Since I can't join Anbu and I can't join Root, what should I do?"
Arima drew circles on the ground, cursing Danzo and the Third Hokage all over.
"No matter how I look at it, I can only detonate it."
"Fortune and misfortune are hard to predict…"
He suddenly stood up and smiled freely: "At worst, I'll be crippled, then I'll seek out Ōtsutsuki Ichiraku and become his disciple."
Transmigrating to the Naruto World, either you become strong enough to make Kaguya take maternity leave, or you follow Ichiraku and glitch the system. There's no third path.
…
"Arima, Kushina said you were injured two days ago?"
The next day, as soon as he sat down in the middle of the third row of the classroom, the blond boy Minato Namikaze leaned over.
"Are you okay?"
His expression was like a spring breeze, his image warm and sunny—no wonder he was the Fourth Hokage.
"Ah… it's nothing," Arima shrugged, "You know, when I throw a Shuriken, I don't stop until I nearly kill myself. This time, I just stabbed myself in the chest."
Minato Namikaze listened, and a bead of sweat the size of a bean rolled down his forehead.
"Arima, actually, you don't need to be so fixated on Shuriken. Your taijutsu is very good, and your strength is also strong enough."
He thought for a moment and said: "By leveraging your taijutsu advantage and practicing one or two ultimate techniques, you can become a Genin."
Hyuga Arima glanced at him: "Taijutsu is fine for dealing with others, but it's useless against you. You are just… too fast."
This 'fast' doesn't mean Minato Namikaze can learn Flying Thunder God now, but rather that his neural reflex speed is too quick, and his body's instinctive reactions far exceed his thought speed.
He wasn't fast because he learned Flying Thunder God; rather, Flying Thunder God maximized this talent of his.
"We are teammates, why would you deal with me?" Minato Namikaze smiled warmly, "Although I'm fast, my strength isn't great. We can complement each other."
"You two complement each other, what about me?!"
The fiery-haired girl burst in like a storm, and without a word, dragged Arima away from Minato.
"Arima, are you completely recovered?"
Kushina's charming smile made Hyuga Arima feel a slight trance… After becoming the Nine-Tailed Jinchuriki, she seemed to have not changed at all.
Hmm… not only had she not changed, but she had also regained her cheerful and generous demeanor from before the breakup, no longer showing that hesitant, anxious little look from that period.
"I'll be in charge of speed, Arima represents strength, and Kushina, you can handle restraint and defense. That would make a great team!" Minato clapped his hands.
Arima shot him a glance.
Leaving aside whether the three of them could possibly form a team, whether Kushina would even be able to leave the Village in the future was a problem.
However, Minato was right about one thing: Kushina's Sealing Technique was indeed suitable for restraint and defense.
And soon, he himself would become like this… Yes, slowly taking on the shape of a breakup target.
"Class starts!"
"This lesson is 'Konoha's Unique Ninja Theory.' Everyone, open your books."
The Chunin Teacher came to the front and began teaching as usual.
Hyuga Arima sat between Kushina and Minato, his mind wandering in sync with the class.
Currently, he had mastered Substitute Technique, Transformation Technique, and the Uzumaki Secret Technique, Adamantine Sealing Chains. Through continuous analysis, his understanding of them was still deepening…
But just as his thoughts drifted, a soft, gentle small hand suddenly reached out under the desk, skillfully grasping his hand.
Hyuga Arima's soul instantly returned to his body… Based on the touch and size of the hand, he could tell it wasn't Minato's… Thank goodness.
He secretly glanced at Kushina with the corner of his eye, but saw her sitting upright, looking straight ahead, appearing to listen attentively.
So, what was the situation now?
He had clearly broken up with her, but she seemed to have forgotten about it.
Was it because of what happened when the Nine-Tailed was sealed that gave her confidence?
At that time, Hyuga Arima was unconscious, so he naturally didn't hear Uzumaki Mito's instructions to the Third Hokage, and thus didn't know why Kushina wasn't conflicted at all.
Because they were already considered to have received approval!
"There are no signs of decline in my ocular power, which means this is fine."
Hyuga Arima relaxed, and gradually, his thoughts began to shift.
The girl's warm palm rubbed against his fingers, an indescribable intimacy and stimulation that made him involuntarily grasp her hands, playing with them carefully, unable to let go.
"Cough."
Suddenly, Minato let out a light cough.
Kushina's small hand instantly pulled back.
Arima glared at Minato in annoyance.
"Listen carefully, the teacher said we'll have our first practical sparring session this afternoon." Minato whispered a reminder.
Hyuga Arima nodded… What was bound to happen, happened.
"You are very lucky; today, during the school-wide combat practice, Hokage-sama will personally be present to observe."
The Chunin Teacher's words made the classroom noisy, with students whispering to each other.
"Those who perform exceptionally well can even apply for early graduation," he added.
This statement caused even more commotion.
"Teacher, what counts as exceptional performance?" a student couldn't help but ask.
The Chunin Teacher smiled: "You are only in your second year; don't think about those things yet. Not embarrassing yourselves in front of Hokage-sama is what you should be thinking about now."
"As for exceptional performance, if, and I mean if, you can successfully challenge a graduating class student, then that should count as exceptional performance," he added.
The eager young boys and girls immediately lost interest upon hearing this.
"The graduating class is four years older than us, how could we possibly succeed in challenging them?" someone complained, "It's clearly just making things difficult!"
The Chunin Teacher said meaningfully: "Genius is not limited by age."
Hyuga Arima looked up, his gaze drifting towards the window, where a single falling leaf drifted down.
He knew this was the Third Hokage's arrangement, an arrangement specifically for him alone.