"Teacher Shindai, what happened to you?"
Inside the ninja hospital, Hinata looked at Shindai in shock, completely wrapped in bandages.
"Woah~ Waaah!"
Since only his two nostrils were visible, whatever Shindai tried to say was completely lost on Hinata.
Pakura and Hikaku Uchiha both rolled their eyes simultaneously, each taking turns translating for Shindai.
"Shindai said he doesn't know which bastard told Tsunade-sama where he was hiding in the Research Department."
"It's all Jiraiya-sama's fault. If it weren't for him, the Puppet wouldn't have been discovered, and Shindai wouldn't have ended up like this."
"They skipped the curses—Shindai is currently cursing Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru."
When Hinata heard from Hikaku that Shindai had even cursed Orochimaru, she asked puzzledly, "How is Lord Orochimaru involved in this?"
Pakura smirked, "He asked Lord Orochimaru to hold Tsunade back a bit, but instead of helping, Orochimaru handed Shindai over directly, saying if they fought inside the Research Department, Tsunade would destroy the entire place."
Hikaku added, "He also says that if it hadn't been for Orochimaru's snakes binding Shindai, he could've run away."
"Eh... Well, I guess you're okay..."
Hinata didn't quite know what to say anymore—she had already figured out exactly what Shindai had done.
The Puppet must've enraged Lady Tsunade so much because her teacher made a perfectly identical copy of her for Master Jiraiya, and then got beaten up for it.
Pakura and Hikaku complained, "You wanted to make a Puppet? Fine! But why did you have to make it look exactly like a real person? That's practically asking for it!"
"Waaah! Waaaah!"
"You really don't know how to quit while you're ahead; even lying in your hospital bed hasn't softened your tongue one bit."
"Waah! Waah!"
Hinata listened with complete confusion, asking curiously, "What did Teacher say?"
Hikaku replied disdainfully, "He said only an exact replica would make Master Jiraiya truly appreciate his craftsmanship."
Hinata was stunned. Just by hearing Shindai's 'woas' and 'waaahs,' Hikaku and Pakura somehow understood everything he was trying to say.
Pakura turned to Hinata and said, "By the way Hinata, there's something you probably don't know yet—Naruto and Master Jiraiya have left Konoha for training."
Hinata gasped in surprise, letting out an "Ah?"
Hikaku explained, "Actually, it makes sense. There has been a lot going on lately, especially regarding Sunagakure, but those issues have now been resolved. Next, we should be entering a long period of peace without any major conflicts. This period will be a great opportunity to improve our abilities.
"Staying in Konoha doesn't offer many opportunities—you'd just end up stuck in repetitive training, which isn't very efficient. Instead, training while traveling is actually the best approach."
Also, since Shindai was Minato Namikaze's teacher and now decided to properly train Naruto, with his nomadic personality, he wouldn't want to stay in Konoha to teach him.
Hinata lowered her head slightly disappointed.
They didn't even get a proper goodbye.
"Waaah~ waaaah~"
Hearing Shindai's whimpering, Hinata looked toward Pakura and Hikaku Uchiha questioningly.
"He actually spoke human language this time, saying absence makes the heart grow fonder. Naruto is improving, and you must improve as well. When the day comes for Naruto to return, surprise him with a stunning transformation!"
Upon hearing Pakura and Hikaku Uchiha's explanation of Shindai's whimper, Hinata's face lit up with a smile as she nodded firmly.
Shindai stayed in the hospital bed for a full week before getting discharged, needing crutches when leaving.
Within the training grounds, Shindai supervised Hinata's training while soaking up the sun, simultaneously taking notes with paper and pen.
Now Shindai had hit another roadblock because the puppets he created weren't intelligent enough.
In battles against enemies unaware of his puppet abilities, he might initially gain slight advantage. However, if the fight dragged on too long, it would become easy for opponents to analyze the puppets' movements and counter them accordingly.
Originally, Shindai thought that Orochimaru, who researched creations like Mecha-Naruto and Mecha-Nine-Tails, should have developed highly intelligent systems.
But currently, Orochimaru hadn't researched anything like that at all.
Shindai had cautiously suggested collaborating with Orochimaru to develop an intelligent system together, but Orochimaru had directly rejected the proposal without interest.
Therefore, Shindai could only rely on himself to figure it out.
However, regarding artificial intelligence, Shindai wasn't exactly sure where to begin. Now he faced two options: either persist in researching AI or adopt a coordinated defense approach among multiple puppets similar to combined puppet squads, compensating for weaknesses through quantity.
Leaning back against a tree trunk and gazing at the sky, Shindai groaned, "This is really giving me a headache."
"Shindai, there's something I'd like to discuss with you..."
A sudden voice from behind startled him badly.
Shindai immediately jumped up, startled to see it was Guy.
Shindai asked curiously, "Guy? Looking for Kakashi? I don't know where he is either."
Guy shook his head, "I'm not looking for Kakashi, I'm looking for you."
Shindai questioned puzzledly, "Looking for me? What for? I won't be participating in any sparring match with you!"
Shindai felt worried about becoming Guy's next target because once targeted by Guy, there would be no escape.
Guy said seriously, "Shindai, I'd like to ask you to become Neji's mentor!"
Shindai gave Guy a puzzled look, "Huh? Become Neji's mentor? Why me?"
Guy exhaled heavily. "I use the Strong Fist technique, while Neji uses the Gentle Fist. The Gentle Fist tradition of the Hyuga clan is already deeply established; honestly, there's little I can teach Neji.
And during the last Chunin Exams, after Neji saw Hinata use Rotation and even counter his own Rotation, he seemed to become obsessed. He's been trying to incorporate chakra properties into Rotation and has injured himself several times while doing so.
That's why I was hoping you, Shindai, could tutor Neji. If he can't overcome this obstacle, Neji may never reach his full potential."
Shindai knitted his brows slightly. "I don't have time, for one thing. From what you've said, Neji himself never expressed any interest in learning from me—it was just your assumption, right? We may be friends, but I'm sorry, Guy—I refuse. Besides, during the last Chunin Exams, he truly tried to kill Hinata. I'm not generous enough to take in someone who tried to murder my apprentice."
Guy exhaled heavily again. "Absolutely no room for negotiation?"
Shindai replied firmly, "There's no room for negotiation at all—because I genuinely don't have time. However, if he earns Hinata's forgiveness and she's willing to teach him, I won't object."
Guy wore a troubled expression. Getting Neji to actively seek Hinata's forgiveness would be extremely difficult.
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