A small alarm bell rang in Senju Makoto's mind, giving him an ominous premonition.
Sure enough, in the next second, Senju Hashirama's chatterbox opened completely, like a bursting dam, overflowing and unstoppable.
From the twilight glow tinting the maple trees in the courtyard to the cold moonlight climbing onto the eaves, Senju Hashirama spoke with high spirits. He occasionally slapped his thigh and laughed heartily, making the teacups rattle. Other times, he would look up and sigh, his gaze drifting out the window as if he could see a certain black, spiky-haired silhouette through the darkness. No matter how he phrased it, the subject was always Uchiha Madara...
Senju Makoto maintained a stiff, smiling mask, nodding occasionally and squeezing out words like "Mm," "I see," and "That's amazing."
However, his eyes had long since glazed over, his thoughts drifting far beyond the clouds. I chose this teacher myself; I can't regret it even through the tears...
Just as Senju Makoto felt his ears were growing calluses from the name "Madara" and his soul was about to leave his body to play chess with the gods, Senju Hashirama suddenly slammed the table.
"Right! Makoto!" Hashirama's eyes widened, as if he had just remembered something. "I was so busy telling you about the history of the village that I almost forgot the main business!"
Senju Makoto rubbed his numb ears. "Teacher, what business?"
Do you have any business other than pining for Uchiha Madara? He kept that thought to himself.
A smile appeared on Senju Hashirama's face—the kind of "kind and gentle" smile characteristic of elders, but which actually looked a bit naive.
"I've already arranged it for you. Tomorrow, you go to the Ninja Academy to attend classes. Spend a year with people your age, learn the basic knowledge properly, and build a solid foundation."
"..."
The smile on Senju Makoto's face shattered. The... Ninja... Academy? Back to school?
He had finally struggled his way to graduation in his previous life, and now he had to go back into the furnace after transmigrating? Even if it was only for a year, he was ten thousand percent unwilling. With that time, wouldn't it be better to travel around and see the sights of the Ninja World?
"Teacher, I think I actually..." Senju Makoto tried to struggle.
"Just go and try it first!" Senju Hashirama saw his resistance and waved a hand, speaking gently. "If you don't like it, we can talk again."
"It's great to have more contact with people your own age and make friends. In this class of yours, there are many excellent young people from various clans! The young clan head of the Sarutobi Clan, the young clan head of the Shimura Clan, the genius of the Uchiha Clan... they are all there."
As he finished, Hashirama's gaze drifted away again, his voice thick with nostalgia—enough to wring water from it.
"Sigh, you guys have such great conditions now. If it were back in my day, if I could have gone to school, gone home, and trained together with Madara... how wonderful that would have been!"
Hearing this, Senju Makoto's brow twitched slightly, and his mind instantly became active.
Is it Sarutobi Hiruzen and Shimura Danzo... and the others?
"Yes, exactly them!" Senju Hashirama nodded quickly, seeing that he seemed interested. "They are all very decent young men!"
Senju Makoto rubbed his chin and fell silent for a few seconds.
The youth of the future Konoha Council "F4"? Going to "get to know" them now... seemed like it wasn't without its benefits. At the very least, observing the teenage versions of the "Scapegoat-Kage" and the "God of Shinobi's Successor" up close should be quite interesting. He could even do something to disrupt the original plot—that sounded like fun.
At this thought, the resistance in Makoto's heart quietly diminished by half.
"Alright, teacher," he nodded. "I'll go."
"That's the spirit!" Senju Hashirama beamed and patted his chest hard. "Don't worry, school life is very interesting! If anyone dares to bully you, come back and tell me!"
As he spoke, his eyes lit up again. "Come, come, before the sun rises... uh, no, while it's still early, let me tell you about the scene when Madara and I officially met to negotiate as clan heads for the first time. That was truly..."
Senju Makoto: "..."
His vision went dark. He put on that "I'm listening seriously, please continue" face again, but his heart was already dead and numb. If he kept listening, he felt he could recite the history of their bromance backward.
Early the next morning, Senju Makoto walked through the streets of Konoha with light dark circles under his eyes, yawning repeatedly.
Senju Hashirama had insisted on dragging him into conversation from dusk until the sky turned white before leaving with lingering interest. Although ninety-nine percent of the content was nonsense, after a night of "heart-to-heart" talk, his bond with the First Hokage had visibly deepened.
It's time to be a bit more arrogant... he thought.
The Ninja Academy building was still very simple, giving off a clean vibe of something recently built. When Senju Makoto slowly wandered to the classroom door, it was already full of people; he was clearly late.
The middle-aged man on the podium looked up. His features were somewhat similar to the old monkey of the future, just thinner and with sharper eyes.
This was Sarutobi Sasuke—the father of Hiruzen. He was currently the Vice Principal of the Ninja Academy and the main teacher for the sixth grade. He was a man of significant standing.
"Come in," Sarutobi Sasuke beckoned him, his tone flat. "New student, introduce yourself."
Yesterday, the two brothers, Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama, had successively greeted him regarding this youth.
Senju Makoto stepped into the classroom, his gaze casually sweeping over the students.
The entire class fell silent instantly. Dozens of gazes fell on him—some curious, some scrutinizing, some envious, and some defiant.
He walked to the center of the podium, stood still, and introduced himself in a flat tone: "Senju Makoto."
He paused, then added a sentence: "My teacher is the God of Shinobi, the First Hokage—Senju Hashirama!"
"..."
The class went dead quiet. Even Sarutobi Sasuke rubbed his forehead and sighed in his heart. As expected, he's a troublemaker. Bringing up the First Lord's name right away... he's going to be hard to teach...
He felt he could already see the bleak future of his teaching career for the next year. He only needed one more year before he could be transferred to a new position...
Damn it!
Senju Makoto ignored the reactions and continued scanning the room. His gaze landed precisely on the Academy "F6"—Sarutobi Hiruzen, Shimura Danzo, Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, Akimichi Torifu, and Uchiha Kagami. They were all green-faced teenagers.
His gaze lingered on Uchiha Kagami for a few extra seconds. He couldn't help but curl his lip slightly; this kid looked exactly like Uchiha Shisui, with a naive face that looked very easy to fool.
Senju Makoto's looks were already outstanding, and coupled with his status as the only disciple of the First Hokage, he instantly gained a wave of favor.
Low-voiced discussions immediately broke out among the students: "So that's the disciple of the First Lord... he's so handsome!"