After finishing his final farewell, Jiraiya's figure had already vanished.
Yue took a moment to settle his emotions from parting with Jiraiya, then tried to calm down and continue his taijutsu training—though he was clearly distracted.
That afternoon, after lunch—
"Huh? Why didn't Lord Jiraiya come to train you today?" Rina asked when she noticed Yue seemed a little down.
"Jiraiya-sensei has gone traveling. He won't be coming back for a while."
"Then you have to train even harder! When Lord Jiraiya returns, you have to be stronger. You can't let him down."
Rina had already guessed why Yue's mood wasn't great. She also felt sad that Jiraiya had left—after all, they had relied on him a lot these days.
"Mm, I know. I'm going to train now. I'll definitely become a powerful ninja someday, don't worry."
"I believe in you!"
Truth be told, after Jiraiya left, the Third Hokage had a headache for quite a while. He kept thinking about who could continue teaching Yue. This child's uniqueness was a problem in itself.
He needed someone who could guide the boy's character, develop his potential, and—most importantly—keep him safe.
After a long consideration, the Third Hokage chose a member of the Hyūga Clan from the ANBU. After all, no one could teach Wood Release. But he'd heard the boy placed great importance on taijutsu training—and the Hyūga Clan's taijutsu was the strongest in Konoha. And their loyalty was unquestionable.
"Ueda, starting today, you are a jōnin. I have an important mission for you."
"Please instruct me, Lord Hokage."
"Starting tomorrow, you will protect and teach a boy named Yue. He is the last orphan of the Senju Clan, and the only inheritor of Wood Release. You should understand his importance."
After hearing this, Ueda fully understood the weight of this mission—and he was thrilled. To be entrusted by the Hokage with something this crucial was an immense honor.
"Yes, Lord Hokage. I will complete this mission. Even at the cost of my life, I will protect that young master."
A surviving Senju, plus the Wood Release—he fully deserved to be addressed as "young master" by Hyūga Ueda.
The Third Hokage nodded in satisfaction, filled with expectations for Yue's future.
"You are Young Master Yue?"
Ueda walked into Yue's courtyard, watching the boy train taijutsu with intense focus.
Judging by his appearance, this must be the one Jiraiya had mentioned—the one who would continue instructing him. And those pale eyes… Yue instantly knew he was a member of the Hyūga Clan.
Although Yue admired the Hyūga Clan's Gentle Fist and its so-called absolute defense, Rotation, he knew he had no chance of learning them. Gentle Fist targeted chakra points—he had no Byakugan. Rotation required chakra being expelled from every tenketsu—also impossible. And such clan-exclusive techniques wouldn't be taught to outsiders anyway.
"Hello, Young Master Yue. I am Hyūga Ueda. I've been assigned to guide your taijutsu."
"Hello, Ueda-sensei. You don't need to call me 'young master,' I'm not used to that."
"You belong to that clan. Calling you 'young master' is only proper—and my way of showing respect."
Yue twitched his lips. Of course he knew—the attention from Jiraiya and the Third Hokage wasn't just about his talent. Half of it was because he carried the Senju name. If you asked whether Minato got this treatment as a kid—obviously not.
Yue began training taijutsu under Ueda. The first thing Ueda wanted was to gauge his strength, so they sparred.
Without using ninjutsu, Yue was thoroughly overwhelmed.
It made him drop any trace of underestimating this "nobody." After all, the one who trained him previously was the legendary Jiraiya. The contrast was… humbling.
"Young Master Yue, I want to see your full capability. Don't hold back—use your strongest ninjutsu, including your kekkei genkai."
Ueda needed Yue's true profile before reporting to the Hokage.
"Then get ready, Ueda-sensei!"
After being effortlessly beaten earlier, Yue felt unwilling to accept it. He couldn't even touch Ueda. The difference in strength was huge. A mere 'side-character ninja' schooling him like this—he had to save some face.
"Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
A small wooden dragon burst out behind Yue, roaring as it lunged toward Ueda. Calm and agile, Ueda danced around it with ease—honestly, "Wood Worm Technique" seemed more accurate.
"Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall!"
Seeing his wooden dragon defeated, Yue quickly triggered his next jutsu, attempting to trap Ueda.
"Rotation."
Ueda spun, chakra bursting from his body, shattering the wooden cage.
"Wood Release: Wood Binding Hands!"
Several wooden tendrils shot toward Ueda—only to be neatly avoided or deflected.
After using three jutsu in a row—two of which were weakened versions of A-rank Wood Release—Yue's chakra was nearly drained. Sweat dripped from his forehead.
"That's enough, Young Master Yue. Today's spar ends here."
Ueda appeared behind him, gently patting his shoulder.
And so, Yue acknowledged Ueda's strength and began earnest taijutsu training.
He didn't expect Ueda to be this strict. Though he always thought he trained hard, Ueda's regimen was on a totally different level—weighted conditioning, strength training, close-combat drills… By the end of each day, he felt as though his body no longer belonged to him.
This level of intensity was actually Yue's request—he didn't want to be treated as a child. And Ueda respected that, training him seriously. Ueda also marveled at Yue's perseverance. Now he understood why the Hokage valued the boy so much—a hardworking child and a gifted one was a rare combination.
"Yue, today's the day you go to the Academy. You must study well and make some friends!"
Rina reminded him.
"Rina is right," Ueda added. "Young Master Yue should make a few good friends at the Academy."
"Got it…" Yue replied helplessly.
Truthfully, he didn't want to go to the Academy. There was nothing there for him to learn. Any jutsu he wanted to learn wouldn't be taught there anyway.
It was basically just going to play with children. At best, as Rina said, make a few friends. But he didn't expect much. None of the future famous ninjas were probably enrolled yet anyway.
Ueda accompanied him to the Academy to complete his admission paperwork, then left.
What greeted Yue was the entrance ceremony—the opening event. And just like that, he became a proud student of the Ninja Academy.
He sat in the classroom, propping up his chin, bored out of his mind. With all this time wasted, he could be at home practicing ninjutsu or taijutsu.
The children around him chattered excitedly, but Yue only felt anxiety. The Third Ninja World War was coming in about a year. He didn't know whether he'd be dragged into it.
His life plan was simple: survive. Survival was the only true path. He wanted to live happily in this world. Strength was the only guarantee. Becoming Hokage? No interest.
His life came first. He had another wish—if he became strong enough, he wanted to help Minato someday, so he wouldn't be sacrificed during the Nine-Tails Incident. Compared to the Third Hokage, a hypocritical politician, having a senior brother like Minato covering him would make life far more comfortable.
Even further ahead, he wanted to help Itachi someday—not for any special reason. Itachi was strong, loyal to Konoha, and would be a major pillar if Pain ever attacked the village. From Yue's perspective, that power was exactly what he needed beside him.
Of course, all of that depended on strength. Without power, everything was just empty fantasy.
"Hi, I'm Reiko. Nice to meet you."
A shy girl sitting beside him blushed a little as she greeted him.
"I'm Yue."
Yue replied flatly. He had no interest in making friends with these little kids. Given the mental age gap from his past life, he had no desire to socialize.
Seeing his indifference, Reiko sensibly stopped talking.
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