Chapter 29: Guy's Approval
With Tenten leading the way, the two chatted as they walked, soon arriving outside the Konoha village gates.
Akiyama Makoto looked at his surroundings with curiosity. This was the first time he had left the village since his transmigration. Although he had seen the scenery outside the village in his simulations, those were, after all, just simulations. In reality, his movements were not restricted by a simulated environment.
Before they had even entered the training grounds, Tenten began to stretch her arms. "I'm warning you beforehand, my training is going to be very strict."
"Let's start with exercises that don't require chakra. I'll teach you some warm-up movements first, then some basic martial arts forms."
Tenten had entered her "good teacher and helpful friend" mode. She was very interested in teaching Makoto. As for whether she was doing this to thank him for his concern or to spend time alone with him, only she knew the answer.
"Then I'll be in your care, Teacher Tenten."
"Stop! Don't call me teacher. Just call me Tenten."
Hearing his form of address, Tenten quickly waved her hands in refusal.
Makoto was curious about the reason. Tenten then explained, "If Guy-sensei finds out I've taken on a student, he'll definitely train me twice as hard."
"I can't keep up with the two monsters on our team... oh, right, you haven't met Lee and Neji yet, have you?"
Tenten then introduced the two of them, explaining their fighting styles.
"You could probably aim for Lee's direction, but whatever you do, don't copy his and Guy-sensei's crazy antics. Just maintain your current physique and appearance."
Tenten patted Makoto's shoulder earnestly. He tilted his head and asked teasingly, "Of course. Is it because you like this style, Tenten?"
A hint of pink immediately appeared on Tenten's face, but this was no time to be shy. She clenched her fist, gestured in front of him, and said, "You dare to tease your teacher? It seems you really don't know how hard training is!"
"Follow me for warm-ups, and then we'll run ten... five kilometers!"
Afterward, under Tenten's guidance, Makoto began to train meticulously.
An hour later, the results he displayed surprised even Tenten. "I thought your body was very weak. It looks like you're in pretty good shape, huh?"
"Ever since that last incident, I've been training my body."
With Tenten, Makoto could always open up a little. "If I ever face that kind of situation again, I won't allow myself to be powerless to resist."
Tenten also seemed to remember that day. It was that chance encounter that had made them friends.
She couldn't help but blurt out, "I'll protect you from now on."
Makoto turned to look at her. After the exercise, Tenten's face was rosy and cute, which masked her unnatural expression. And this time, she didn't dodge his gaze. She gave him a thumbs-up and said, "Believe me, I'm a very strong ninja."
"Okay."
Makoto agreed almost without hesitation, not feeling any shame just because she was a girl. At least for now, the sentiment behind her promise was the most precious thing to him.
"But I have to get stronger too, so I don't hold you back when you're protecting me."
"Of course! Come on, I'll teach you the martial arts forms!"
Tenten's enthusiasm flared up again. Under the shade of a tree, she taught him every single movement, hand over hand.
While they were focused on their training, two people observing them came to stand together.
"Excuse me, is my student doing something wrong? If she has made a mistake, I will apologize to the Third Hokage on her behalf."
Might Guy had appeared silently behind Uzuki Yūgao, giving her a start. She placed her hand on the hilt of her sword, only relaxing when she turned and saw it was him.
"Good day, Lord Guy. I am a member of the Hokage's direct Anbu subordinate, under orders to observe Akiyama Makoto. This matter is unrelated to your student, Tenten."
"Oh? Akiyama Makoto? Is there something strange about him?" Guy asked with a puzzled and frank expression. This behavior seemed to fit his style, so Yūgao didn't think much of it.
"Not at all," she said. "Lord Hokage thinks very highly of him and wants to ensure he recovers his health."
"I see. That's a relief."
Guy grinned, then waved his hand and left with a Body Flicker, as if he had just been passing by and asking a casual question. But only he knew that he had been vetting Tenten's social companions, having followed her and Makoto the entire way. After all, judging by how happy she looked, it didn't seem like she thought of him as just an ordinary friend.
On Yūgao's end, after Guy had left, she actually took out the tulip from Makoto from her ninja tool pouch.
Contrary to what Makoto had expected, she had absolutely no intention of giving the tulip to the Hokage. She hadn't even reported his awakening of sensory talents. The reason for this was because Uzuki Yūgao had had a long dream.
In the dream, she and the last person who loved her had defected to the Sand Village, where they lived a peaceful and loving life together.
Every time she thought of the incredibly vivid details, Yūgao even began to suspect that her current reality was the actual dream. That when she woke up, Akiyama Makoto and their child, Akiyama Kaito, would be lying beside her.
This bizarre situation once made Yūgao suspect she was under some kind of mental-type genjutsu. But no matter how she observed Makoto, she could only conclude that he had nothing to do with it. She even felt that he was a fellow victim.
This tulip was proof that he was trying to find someone who could understand him, who could respond to him.
However, Yūgao could not respond to him.
She was not the person in the dream, after all. The Konoha Crush and the death of Gekkō Hayate had not happened. She couldn't even tell if those events were real or fake.
There were only two paths left before her.
One was to tell the Hokage everything and await an investigation from him or even Root. In that case, both Makoto and Gekkō Hayate could be implicated.
The second was to pretend none of it ever happened, to treat this tulip as proof that their shared dream was over, and from then on, the two would never contact each other again.
The old Yūgao would have undoubtedly chosen the first path without hesitation. She held a reverence for the Third Hokage, the man who had raised her, for which she would willingly die.
But now, she hesitated.
Everything in the dream told her that even if the Third Hokage was just and upright, as long as Danzō was involved, the future of her and her friends would no longer be in their own hands.
Thus, Yūgao was still hesitating.
Perhaps she herself didn't even realize that the more she hesitated, the further she moved from choosing the first path.
At this moment, Akiyama Makoto was still blissfully unaware of all this. He was completely immersed in the joy of training with Tenten. What could be more delightful than seeing a cute girl's smile every minute of every second?
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