Tsunade and Rei's eyes naturally drifted toward the new arrival standing in the doorway.
Although Rei had seen this face countless times through screens in his previous life, this was his very first time seeing the man in the flesh since transmigrating into this world. Standing before him was Hiruzen Sarutobi. Because they were currently in the era of the Second Shinobi World War, the Third Hokage didn't look like the ancient, fragile old grandfather Rei remembered from the anime. He was a middle-aged man in his prime, wearing his formal white and red Hokage robes.
As for Rei's first impression of the legendary "God of Shinobi"?
Honestly... it wasn't great.
"Hey, old man," Tsunade snapped, her grip on Divine Dog White slacking just enough for the poor wolf to wriggle free and melt back into the shadows. She stood up, dusting off her clothes as she glared at Hiruzen with utter contempt. "What the hell are you doing here? I explicitly told you not to show your damn face in front of me!"
Hiruzen's brow furrowed, his face twitching slightly as he tried to maintain his majestic posture. "Tsunade... I am the Hokage. Put some respect on the title."
Tsunade let out a harsh, mocking scoff, crossing her arms over her chest. "Hmm. Your actions don't seem to reflect your position very well, do they?"
Hearing Tsunade's razor-sharp retort, Hiruzen's face instantly darkened.
He knew exactly what she was talking about. Right after the incident twenty days ago, Tsunade had aggressively demanded that Jiraiya face severe punishment, or at least a temporary suspension for recklessly launching himself through the air and driving a five-year-old child into a life-threatening coma. But Hiruzen, prioritizing the village's wartime military stability and his affection for his top pupil, had forcefully swept the entire matter under the rug and dismissed the charges. Tsunade was directly taunting his pathetic favoritism right now.
Under normal circumstances, if any other ninja in Konoha spoke to the Third Hokage with such blatant, disrespectful insolence, they would be thrown into a detention cell for insubordination.
The problem was... this was Tsunade.
She was the revered Princess of Konoha, the granddaughter of Hashirama Senju. More importantly, Lady Mito Uzumaki was still alive and well in the Senju compound! If Hiruzen dared to flex his power and punish Tsunade for talking back, He might be beaten black and blue and would be found dead with 6 kuni in his back, with a suicide note beside him.
Hiruzen let out a long, heavy puff of smoke from his pipe, forcing his dark expression to soften. "Alright... fine. It was my fault for how I handled that matter. But Tsunade, can we please talk like adults for two minutes?"
Tsunade rolled her eyes, her posture remaining totally cold. "What do you want to talk about? Say whatever you have to say quickly so you can leave."
"I just received word that a promising young man in our village awakened a brand-new bloodline ability," Hiruzen explained, turning his gaze away from Tsunade to look directly at Rei. "So I was naturally curious and came to check up on him. Is there something wrong with a Hokage visiting an injured child?"
Hiruzen crouched down slightly to bring himself to eye level with the young boy, putting on his best benevolent, grandfatherly smile. "Little Rei... can you tell me a little bit about your bloodline ability?"
Deep down, Hiruzen was running a cold calculation. Before deciding whether he needed to re-evaluate Jiraiya's punishment or adjust how he handled the boy, he needed to measure the exact strategic value of this newly awakened bloodline limit.
Before Rei could even open his mouth, Tsunade stepped directly in front of him, blocking Hiruzen's view.
"Rei, you don't have to tell him a damn thing!" Tsunade shouted angrily from the side. "This is the exact bastard who protected the idiot who hit you in the head from getting punished!"
"Tsunade! Rei! It's not like that at all!" Hiruzen pleaded, waving his hands in a flustered panic. "You have to understand, as Hokage, I have to consider many complicated factors! The matter is much more complex than you think—"
"Sister Tsunade, don't be like that," Rei interrupted softly, his childish voice cutting smoothly through the heavy tension in the room.
He stepped around Tsunade's side, looking at the Third Hokage with a calm, understanding, and totally innocent gaze.
"Mr. Hokage clearly has his own difficulties," Rei said, tilting his head with a shrug. "People are just like that, aren't they? When forced to choose between a loved one and a total stranger, a person will always prioritize their loved one. It's just human nature. You can't really blame him for protecting his student over an unknown civilian kid."
DEAD SILENCE.
The entire hospital room froze.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood there, his jaw slightly open, his pipe frozen halfway to his mouth. A deep, burning flush of intense embarrassment instantly spread from his neck all the way to his ears.
In a single, casually delivered sentence, a six-year-old child had completely stripped away all of Hiruzen's grand excuses, exposing his favoritism and laying it out raw on the hospital floor for everyone to see. "Complex village factors"? "Complicated matters"? No—it was just basic favoritism, and the kid knew it.
Hiruzen's mind raced in utter disbelief. Could a five-year-old child really say something like that on his own?! Did Tsunade teach him to say that to embarrass me?!
Hiruzen quickly darted his eyes toward Tsunade, but her expression was equally stunned. Her hazel eyes were wide, and her mouth was slightly agape as she stared down at Rei. She clearly hadn't coached him at all.
Hiruzen let out a long, defeated sigh, his view of the boy shifting entirely. The intelligence reports had mentioned that Rei was an exceptionally bright child, but it was clear now that normal standards couldn't be applied to him. This kid wasn't a normal five-year-old; he was a terrifyingly perceptive genius.
Well... Hiruzen thought, pulling himself together. At least talking to an intelligent person makes things easier. I can't treat him like a child anymore.
Hiruzen dropped his fake grandfatherly facade, his expression becoming serious and straightforward. "Alright then, Rei. Show me your technique first. We can decide on the culprit's proper punishment later."
The subtext behind Hiruzen's words was crystal clear: Show me your true value to Konoha, and I will decide how severely to punish Jiraiya based on what you bring to the table.
Rei caught the underlying meaning instantly. A faint, amused smirk twitched at the corner of his lips.
"Yeah, no problem," Rei replied casually, throwing his hands into his pockets. "I call it the Ten Shadows Technique. As the name suggests, it allows me to summon up to ten different shadow beasts, each possessing its own unique set of traits and abilities."
Rei raised his hand, beginning to list them off with nonchalant ease.
"First, there are the two twin dogs—Divine Dog White and Divine Dog Black. They have an incredible sense of smell and sharp instincts, making them amazing for reconnaissance and tracking. Next is Nue, a giant bird beast that allows me to fly through the sky. Then there's the Piercing Ox, which can travel across land at extreme speeds and deliver massive impact force."
Hiruzen listened intently, his eyes widening slightly with every word.
"Then there's a frog with a long tongue for utility, and a large snake that's great for stealth ambushes and restraining targets," Rei continued smoothly. "There's Max Elephant, which is heavy enough to crush defenses and can spray massive torrents of water. There's Escape Rabbit, which can spawn thousands of clones of itself to act as a perfect mass distraction during escapes. And then there's the Round Deer, which you already know can heal people."
Rei paused, flashing a sly grin. "And finally... there are two remaining shadow beasts designed purely for high-tier combat."
By the time Rei finished his explanation, Hiruzen's face had completely lit up with awe.
This bloodline wasn't just strong—it was an all-in-one, self-contained tactical unit! Reconnaissance, aerial flight, heavy transport, mass distraction, restraint, top-tier medical healing, and raw combat power! It covered every single basic role required of a shinobi squad inside a single individual!
"Little one..." Hiruzen said, his voice brimming with intense interest as he leaned forward. "Do you know just how strong your two combat-type shadows actually are?"
"I don't know," Rei replied lazily, cracking his neck. He looked up at the middle-aged Third Hokage with a playful, mischievous glint in his eyes. "Why don't we test them out right now? Hokage-sama can fight one of them himself to see how strong it is."
Hiruzen was stunned for a solid second, caught completely off guard by the sheer, absurd audacity of a five-year-old challenging the Third Hokage to a spar.
Then, a slow, highly amused smile spread across Hiruzen's face.
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