"Oh, come ON! Why?!" Yuto's eye twitched violently as the ridiculous options hovered in front of him like a bad joke. This was supposed to be a heartwarming reunion with his beloved teacher, but no the universe just had to slap him with this nonsense.
[CHOOSE.]
[1. Unbuckle your belt and show your dear teacher exactly where you've grown.]
[2. Use the "Gender Reversal Jutsu" and inform her you're now a woman.]
[3. Drop to one knee and propose to her on the spot.]
Yuto's soul left his body for a solid three seconds.
He and Nonō had a perfectly wholesome student teacher relationship, thank you very much! She'd bandaged his scraped knees, scolded him for skipping training, and even tucked him in when he fell asleep studying. She was family. And now this stupid system wanted to turn their reunion into some kind of bizarre romantic comedy?!
"Yuto? Are you feeling alright?" Nonō tilted her head, her glasses glinting with motherly concern.
"A curse?" Kushina, currently residing inside Yuto, was quicker on the uptake.
"Yeah. 'Mom', try not to laugh at me later." Yuto took a deep breath, then dropped to one knee in front of Nonō.
"?"
Then, with all the grace of a man walking to his execution, he dropped to one knee.
Nonō blinked. "Yuto, did you drop something"
"WILL YOU MARRY ME, NONŌ-SENSEI?!"
Silence.
Absolute, deafening silence.
Somewhere in the distance, a seagull squawked, as if nature itself was judging him.
"Huh?!"
Nonō froze as if struck by lightning, stumbling back two steps in shock.
Just then, Karin and her mother arrived, their eyes nearly popping out of their skulls at the scene before them.
He said it. He actually said it.
Yuto's soul was crumbling. He wanted to cry, but no tears would come.
What he was doing right now felt like proposing to his own mother a mix of sheer embarrassment and the crushing guilt of crossing some unspoken moral line. It was double torture!
But little did he know, the real torture was yet to come.
[Option completed.]
[Congratulations! You have obtained: Moral Enhancement jutsu and Heart Of Gold! (Grants resistance to moral corruption) ]
'W-what the' Yuto's lips trembled as he read the reward notification. 'Heart of gold?! And Moral Enhancement What the hell am I supposed to do with this?!'
His already shattered psyche took another devastating hit.
"Y-Yuto… did you just… propose to me?" Nonō finally managed to speak, her voice shaky.
"Don't mind it," Yuto muttered, not daring to meet her eyes. "Please pretend it never happened, sensei."
"O-Oh, of course." Nonō blinked, her cheeks faintly pink as she added in a whisper, "I do think it's a bit too soon for that, though."
"…Sensei, what did you say?" Yuto didn't catch the last part.
"I said, that was a very inappropriate joke, Yuto kun." Nonō quickly regained her composure, her expression softening into her usual gentle smile. "You've become quite the mischievous student, haven't you?"
"My apologies." Yuto didn't even try to explain himself he just bowed his head.
"You're forgiven." Nonō reached out and patted his head affectionately. "Now, aren't you going to introduce me to your friends?"
"I'm Uzumaki Rina, and this is my daughter, Karin." Rina stepped forward gracefully, bowing. "Thanks to Yuto sama's help, we were able to escape the hell that was the 'Hidden Grass Village."
"Survivors of Kushina's clan? I didn't know any remained." Nonō's eyes widened slightly in surprise before she quickly corrected herself. "Ah, forgive my rudeness. This isn't the place for such talk. Yuto kun, Rina san, Karin chan please, follow me."
As they walked through the village, Yuto noted how everyone greeted Nonō like she was the town's favorite auntie. Fishermen waved, kids grinned, and even the stray cats trotted over for head pats.
"Seems like Wave Country suits you far better than Konoha ever did, sensei," Yuto remarked.
Nonō chuckled. "It's nothing special. I just help where I can."
Their destination was a cozy, slightly worn house cluttered with medical scrolls, herbs, and framed photos including one of a much younger Yuto and Kabuto covered in mud, mid argument.
Yuto spotted the photo on the bed side table and asked. "Does that guy visit often?"
"You should call him Kabuto nii san," Nonō chided gently. "He's under Orochimaru's watch. How could he visit frequently?"
"Guess he's not doing too hot under Orochimaru, then." Yuto shrugged. "Probably spends every day worrying about becoming a lab specimen."
Nonō didn't reply, only sighing softly.
Kabuto had ended up working for Orochimaru because of her. Back when Danzo had ordered them to kill each other, it was only thanks to Yuto's quick intervention that they avoided tragedy.
But before they could even celebrate, Orochimaru had shown up. To protect his useless teacher,Kabuto had no choice but to become the snake's subordinate.
"Uh… that was a joke." Seeing his teacher's downcast expression, Yuto scratched his head awkwardly. "He's got a good head on his shoulders, doubt he'll get dissected."
"That's your idea of comforting someone?!" Kushina groaned internally.
"Want to give it a shot, 'Mom'?" Yuto shot back.
Kushina huffed. "Just tell Nonō that Orochimaru isn't that cruel he'll at least leave the body intact."*
'Bravo! Truly, the wisdom of a mother!'
Yuto mentally gave her a thumbs-down before turning to Karin and Rina. "You two should stay with my teacher for now. That's alright?"
"Of course. We're grateful for your concern, lord Yuto," Rina replied warmly.
"Will you visit us often, Lord Yuto?" Karin asked shyly.
"First of all, stop calling me 'Lord' I'm younger than you!" Yuto rolled his eyes. "Second, I won't be visiting I'll just be coming home."
"Yuto" Nonō's eyes softened with emotion.
She remembered this kid had once told her that wherever she was, that was his home. Even after all these years, he still remembered.
"Though this home's got some nasty neighbors that need dealing with first."
Yuto's gaze shifted to the window, where a towering building loomed in the distance. A gaudy golden sign read "Gato Overseas Trading Company."
"Sensei, those dockworkers and fishermen, you organized them, didn't you?"
"Yes." Nonō didn't deny it. "I wanted to help them reclaim their hard earned wages, but I didn't expect Gato to hire such powerful shinobi. Among them are the infamous Demon of the Mist, Zabuza Momochi, Black Lightning Raiga Kurosuki, Iwagakure's Star Maruyama..."
"Wow. That's quite the lineup." Yuto smirked. "Must've cost him a fortune."
"He'd rather spend that much hiring elite shinobi than pay his workers?" Karin blurted out, shocked.
"That's the arrogance of rulers for you." Yuto's smile turned cold. "It's not about the money, it's about crushing anyone who dares challenge his authority. Scum like that deserves to die."
Land Of Wave wasn't ruled by a hidden village or a daimiyo; it was controlled by a shipping and fishing merchant group, with Gato at the top. In other words, Gato was the ruler.
And now, the workers Nonō had organized were rebelling. To Gato, that wasn't just about money it was a direct threat to his power.
"Yuto, I know you've grown stronger," Nonō said worriedly. "You even infiltrated Kusagakure alone before graduating. But Zabuza and the others are not like those second rate Kusagakure shinobi. Don't be reckless."
"Who said anything about fighting them alone?" Yuto's deadpan stare didn't waver.
"Then you mean…?"
"If Gato's playing dirty, we can call in reinforcements too. I already sent Maemi to deliver a message before coming here. They should be arriving soon."
Yuto grinned, confidence oozing from every pore.