Kitazawa and his group returned to Konoha at the start of the new week.
Since it was already time for the final exams, Sasuke and the others didn't need to rush back to the Academy for theory classes.
But Kitazawa wasn't sure yet whether Hiruzen and Kurenai's teams had finished their missions, so he told the students to go home and wait for further instructions.
Once they left, Konan appeared again.
On the way back to the village, because Kitazawa had to lead the squad, he hadn't had her fly him this time. She had just been following in the shadows the whole way.
"You've worked hard these past few days. Take a week off."
Kitazawa looked at her, thought for a moment, and said, "You can also go back to Akatsuki for a bit."
Once the Advanced Class finished their finals, summer vacation would begin.
Even though there'd still be special summer training, there would be fewer people, which meant he'd have more free time and temporarily wouldn't need Konan.
Plus, Konan had been flying him everywhere for a while now. It really was tiring.
"Thanks."
Konan was stunned for a second, then agreed.
"See you next time."
Kitazawa reached out and ruffled her hair, then turned and left.
Konan hadn't expected that little affectionate gesture. She stood where she was, staring at his back as he walked away, a bit dazed.
Kitazawa went home, but Kurenai still wasn't back.
That was normal though. When you were out on a mission, it was completely possible to be delayed for who knows how long.
Kitazawa thought for a bit, then headed to the Hokage's office.
As soon as he walked in, he saw Tsunade and Shizune both there.
They had taken off their shoes and were sitting cross-legged on the sofa.
"You're both training in Yang Release Chakra Mode?"
Kitazawa glanced left and right and asked.
"Kitazawa, when did you become like Tsunade-sama? You don't even knock anymore?"
Shizune stopped her training, nodded to him, then added a question.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Tsunade's face immediately stiffened. "What do you mean 'he's become like me'?"
"Tsunade-sama never knocks. I only skip knocking once in a while."
Kitazawa said solemnly, "So you really can't say I've 'become like' Tsunade-sama."
Shizune couldn't help laughing.
"…?"
Tsunade immediately raised her head to glare at Kitazawa.
Those beautiful eyes suddenly flashed with a dangerous light, as if she might swallow him whole the very next second.
"Hmph, since you two are such a loving teacher–student pair, you can be the one to teach her Yang Release Chakra Mode!"
Tsunade stood up, put on her shoes, and moved over to sit behind the Hokage's desk.
"Sure. I just happen to be free, so I can teach Shizune-senpai."
Kitazawa shook his head and said.
"Why do I feel like something's not quite right here…"
Shizune's lips twitched.
How did she suddenly become Kitazawa's student?
"Shizune-senpai."
Kitazawa walked over, sat down across from her, and asked, "How far have you gotten with Yang Release Chakra Mode?"
"I only started learning it today."
Shizune answered.
"Today?"
Kitazawa couldn't help chuckling. "Looks like our Tsunade-sensei—"
"I can hear you!"
Tsunade's voice came from the desk, full of warning.
"It's not Tsunade-sama's fault."
Shizune shook her head and explained, "Mainly I've had too much work before now, so I never had time to learn it."
"Alright then, let's start the lesson."
Kitazawa didn't ask why she was so busy. The answer was obvious.
Her natural talent in medical ninjutsu might not match Tsunade's, but she was still a genius among geniuses.
And with such a strong foundation, her learning speed for Yang Release Chakra Mode wasn't bad at all.
"Kitazawa, your teaching is better than Tsunade-sama's."
Shizune couldn't help sighing.
"If she hears you say that, she's going to get mad again."
Kitazawa said with a small laugh.
"I already heard it!"
Tsunade looked displeased, but her eyes rolled and she suddenly said, "I'm taking the afternoon off!"
"You can take the afternoon off, but you can't go to the casino."
Shizune immediately said.
"I never said I was going to the casino."
Tsunade replied with a straight face. "If you don't believe me, have Kitazawa tag along with me this afternoon."
Shizune subconsciously looked over at Kitazawa.
"Alright, I'll keep an eye on her for you."
Kitazawa said with an extremely serious expression.
"Make sure she absolutely does not go to the casino."
Shizune emphasized again.
"I understand."
Kitazawa nodded. "You can trust me, Shizune-senpai."
"Then you keep training. Kitazawa and I are going out to play!"
Tsunade couldn't wait any longer. She rushed over to them.
Before Shizune could respond, Tsunade grabbed Kitazawa and dragged him out the door.
"…?"
Shizune watched them go and faintly felt like the two of them had teamed up to trick her.
But knowing Kitazawa's personality, it didn't seem like he would lie to her.
"Tsunade-sensei."
Once they were outside, Kitazawa grabbed her hand and said, "As the Hokage, it doesn't look great if people see you this impatient."
"I'm not impatient."
Tsunade coughed lightly. "I'm just happy because I'm skipping work and going to the casino."
"When did you get back?"
She glanced at the hand he was holding and asked.
"I just got back."
Kitazawa checked the hallway, and when he was sure no one was around, he leaned in close to her ear.
"What are you doing?"
Tsunade reflexively looked around.
"I just got back and haven't even rested, and you immediately had me teach Shizune-senpai. I've been working so hard—shouldn't I get a little extra reward?"
Kitazawa blew softly on her pale neck and asked.
Tsunade's body trembled; her delicate collarbones and white skin quivered with the motion.
Kitazawa swallowed unconsciously.
"You want a reward for something that small?"
Tsunade glared at him, then turned her head and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Alright, don't waste time. Let's go to the casino."
She slipped her hand out of his and headed out, brows slightly curved, a smile on her face.
"Tsunade-sensei."
Kitazawa quickly caught up to her, his tone turning serious. "There's something I want to talk to you about."
"What is it?"
Tsunade looked at him, put away her smile, and asked.
"What do you think about the Caged Bird Seal?"
Kitazawa hesitated for a moment, then asked.
"Why are you suddenly asking about that?"
Tsunade was a little surprised and couldn't help asking back.
"It's because of Neji."
Kitazawa explained, "Neji hated the Hyuga main house and the Caged Bird because of what happened to his father."
"You're not thinking of forcing the Hyuga main house to abolish the Caged Bird Seal, are you?"
Tsunade's brows furrowed on instinct. "That's impossible."
She knew very well that the Caged Bird had long since become the main house's tool of control.
More importantly, because of the Caged Bird, the grudge between the Hyuga main house and branch house had piled up over a thousand years.
Once it was removed, no one could predict what the branch house would do.
"Tsunade-sensei, I understand your concerns."
Kitazawa smiled. "But I think you're overcomplicating the situation."
"What do you mean?"
Tsunade blinked, confused.
"In the end, the ninja world is ruled by strength."
Kitazawa looked straight at her as he spoke.
"Now you sound like my student."
Tsunade smiled at that.
"I am your student."
Kitazawa gave her a look. "Isn't there something a little off with your thinking here?"
"Of course strength can be used to maintain order, but I'm the Hokage now."
Tsunade pushed down the odd feeling in her chest and shifted the topic.
As Hokage, she had to consider the bigger picture.
There were so many ninja clans watching her. If she used brute force on the Hyuga, it would make the other clans nervous.
"What if Hiashi himself already wants to abolish the Caged Bird?"
Kitazawa thought for a bit and asked.
"He actually has that kind of idea?"
Tsunade was truly surprised.
As clan head and a member of the main family, Hyuga Hiashi was the biggest beneficiary of the Caged Bird Seal.
"Hanabi."
Kitazawa hinted.
"No wonder."
The moment Tsunade heard that name, she understood.
Hyuga Hanabi was already four, and Hiashi still hadn't placed a Caged Bird on her.
If he had designated her as main branch, then Hinata should have been given the Caged Bird instead—but she hadn't.
"This is a good opportunity."
Tsunade muttered, thoughtful.
If the Caged Bird were abolished, who would benefit most? Not the Hyuga branch family, but Konoha.
Because of the Caged Bird, Hyuga branch members only half-belonged to Konoha. They listened to orders, but only because the main house ordered them to.
Their lives were under the main house's control. Even when they followed Konoha's commands, it was still essentially the main house's will.
Even Danzo's Root wouldn't take a single Hyuga branch member.
Without the Caged Bird, the branch house would finally be able to truly swear loyalty to Konoha itself.
"But without the Caged Bird, how do we protect the Byakugan?"
Tsunade couldn't help asking as that thought surfaced.
"I've already made improvements to the Caged Bird."
Kitazawa took out a scroll.
Tsunade froze for a second, then opened it.
The Improved Caged Bird only had one function left: protecting the Byakugan.
Other than that, the original side effects were gone—most notably, the blind spot in the branch family's field of vision.
Normally, a Hyuga main family member's Byakugan had a perfect 360-degree view, but branch members were missing one degree.
In the original story, Kidomaru had exploited that flaw to push Neji into a corner.
"When did you start modifying the Caged Bird?"
After reading, Tsunade rolled her eyes at him. "I'm the Hokage, you know. How could you not tell me something this big?"
Anyone else would have suspected he was plotting something, maybe even preparing for rebellion.
"The Caged Bird is really hard to modify. I wasn't confident at first."
Kitazawa blinked and explained, "That's why I only came to you the moment I succeeded."
"That's…fair enough."
Tsunade handed the scroll back. "Go ahead and do it. You have my support."
"Mm."
Kitazawa nodded.
That was exactly what he needed—her attitude.
After all, she was the Hokage.
Once he became Hokage, then he could really do whatever he wanted.
At the casino, Tsunade immediately threw the Hyuga clan out of her mind and happily rushed for the gambling tables.
Kitazawa sat beside her and suddenly remembered a movie.
Or more accurately, he remembered it because of Naruto.
A movie called "The Lost Tower"—it was about Naruto meeting his father.
Basically, in the Land of Wind's Roran, there existed a condensed chakra entity called the Dragon Vein.
Naruto and the others traveled through time via the Dragon Vein and met Minato, who was on a mission in Roran.
In the end, father and son joined forces to defeat the villain of Roran, then sealed their memories and each returned to their own time.
Kitazawa wasn't particularly interested in going back to the past.
He knew very well that kind of time travel could easily cause problems.
He was very satisfied with his current life and didn't want to change anything.
But helping Naruto fulfill his wish once didn't sound bad.
On top of that, the Dragon Vein itself was extremely valuable.
To Kitazawa, the Dragon Vein was like a tailed beast without a will.
In other words, it could be turned into a "Dragon Vein Jinchuriki."
Even though his chakra already far surpassed most ninja, he was still a bit behind Hashirama.
With the Dragon Vein's chakra, he could learn even more advanced Wood Release.
He just didn't like sealing random things inside his own body.
His plan was to seal the Dragon Vein into one of his tools—his bow or his sword, for example.
Then in battle, he'd just draw from it as needed.
[Current Mission: Travel through time and help Naruto meet his father.]
[Mission Reward: Space-Time Ninjutsu Talent.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa's pupils shrank.
He wasn't surprised that a system quest had triggered.
There had been system quests tied to the previous movies too.
But this reward was wildly beyond his expectations.
His first reaction when he saw "Space-Time Ninjutsu Talent" was the Flying Thunder God.
The Flying Thunder God was undeniably one of the most useful jutsu.
It was what took Minato from elite jonin and pushed him up into terrifying Kage-level.
The Flying Thunder God was the ultimate Body Flicker.
Its effect was to place a special mark on a target ahead of time, then teleport instantly to that mark.
But it didn't just move the user themselves—its advanced uses let you transfer anything, even a Tailed Beast Bomb.
No exaggeration—any ninja who mastered the Flying Thunder God was practically invincible.
If you couldn't win, you could always run.
Across the entire ninja world, the only one who could barely keep up with Flying Thunder God was the Fourth Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode.
Kitazawa accepted the quest without hesitation.
Even if it didn't give him the jutsu outright, with a talent for space-time ninjutsu he could pretty much count on learning Flying Thunder God.
[Current Mission: Defeat Mukade and set history back on track.]
[Mission Reward: Supreme Ultimate Rasengan.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa blinked in surprise.
There was another system quest?
He only needed one glance to figure it out.
Mukade was the main villain of "The Lost Tower," basically the same kind of role as Satori from the Box of Bliss or Moryo from the Land of Demons.
As for the reward, Supreme Ultimate Rasengan—that came from Naruto and Minato.
At the end of the movie, the two of them combined their power into a Supreme Ultimate Rasengan and defeated Mukade.
The Supreme Ultimate Rasengan was more like a composite jutsu, a fusion of Yang-style Rasengan and Yin-style Rasengan.
It was extremely powerful and extremely difficult—an S-rank technique.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
Technically it took two people to use it, but he figured he could do it alone.
Yang-style Rasengan in one hand, Yin-style Rasengan in the other—put them together and that is the Supreme Ultimate Rasengan.
Seemed doable.
He looked back at the system panel.
There was still a note: "Set history back on track."
That obviously had to do with Mukade.
Mukade was a ninja from Sunagakure who defected, went to the Dragon Vein, and broke the seal, which caused the time travel.
You had to admit, movie villains really dreamed big.
If he had to set history straight, then he'd probably need to do the same thing as in the movie: defeat Mukade and have everyone return to their own time.
Fortunately, Kitazawa didn't want to stir up trouble either.
Causing a mess would drain the Dragon Vein and bring unknown side effects, which wasn't worth it.
He fell into thought.
Even if he wanted to complete the two quests right away, rushing wouldn't help.
Normally, "The Lost Tower" took place after Naruto graduated—that was still several years away.
But Kitazawa definitely didn't want to wait that long.
The key lay with Mukade.
Mukade was originally a Sand ninja. After defecting, he went to the Dragon Vein and unsealed it, which triggered the time travel.
So step one was figuring out where he was now.
By the time the sun was setting, Kitazawa and Tsunade left the casino.
The result was the same as usual—they hadn't won a single round all afternoon.
"Tsunade-sama! Kitazawa!"
A familiar voice rang out.
Kitazawa and Tsunade turned and saw Kurenai.
Behind her were Kaguya Kimimaro, Aburame Shino, and Haruno Sakura.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
The three students quickly greeted him.
"Did you three just come from the ca—"
Kurenai hadn't finished speaking before Tsunade cut her off.
"Don't tell Shizune about today."
Tsunade gave her a meaningful look.
"Got it."
Kurenai smiled.
"You three go home and rest."
Kitazawa turned to Sakura's group.
"Okay, Kitazawa-sensei."
The three of them headed off.
"Let's go home too."
Tsunade yawned. "I've been gambling all afternoon. I'm starving. I'll need to drink tonight to make up for it."
"I'll drink with you, Tsunade-sama."
Kurenai immediately said.
"Then we're not going home until we're drunk!"
Tsunade looked at her, visibly excited. "Kitazawa, go buy the booze!"
"…"
Kitazawa shook his head.
Two women who loved drinking—what a headache.
But also…kind of a complicated feeling.
His relationship with both of them was far from ordinary.
"You two go ahead."
Of course, he had to fulfill their request.
Night fell.
Tsunade and Kurenai drank the whole evening, and their bond looked closer than real sisters.
Kitazawa took Kurenai back home.
The next morning.
Kurenai still hadn't woken up.
Kitazawa placed the clam summoning scroll for Shin on the bedside, then headed to the Anbu headquarters.
Konan had gone back to Akatsuki, so she wasn't in his office.
Fortunately, hunting down Mukade wasn't something he needed her for.
Kitazawa thought it over and decided to leave that task to Asuma.
Itachi was already helping him investigate the Hyuga main family's elders—if he gave him another mission on top of that, it'd be pushing it.
Besides, Mukade was in Sunagakure. If Itachi went there, he couldn't keep investigating the Hyuga elders.
After briefing Asuma on the matter, Kitazawa headed to the mission archive room in the Hokage building.
Normally, once a mission was complete, the mission report would be filed in the archive.
What he wanted was the mission report from when Minato, Aburame Shibi, Akimichi Choza, and Hatake Kakashi went to Roran.
Because all Dragon Vein time travel happened within the same timeline.
Minato was dead now. That mission was a piece of history.
Kitazawa quickly found Minato's mission report.
He opened it and read.
At that time, Roran had been expanded into a massive puppet army by Mukade—also known as Anrokuzan—using the Dragon Vein's power.
Minato's mission was to stop him from threatening the interests of the Land of Fire and Konoha.
But there was no mention of Naruto's group in the report.
Because before leaving, Minato and the others had sealed their memories.
Still, Kitazawa had what he needed.
He now knew the exact location of the Dragon Vein.
He left the Hokage building and went to the Academy.
"Kitazawa-senpai."
Iruka was still in the office.
"Who hasn't come back yet?"
Kitazawa asked directly.
"Lord Third."
Iruka answered.
"Alright. When he gets back with his team, notify me. Have the Advanced Class students gather tomorrow morning at nine."
Kitazawa thought a moment. "And remember to compile the rankings for the practical exam."
"Understood, Kitazawa-senpai."
Iruka nodded.
"Mm. Thanks. See you next time."
Kitazawa wrapped things up and headed home.
Kurenai was already awake, standing in the yard, studying her new summon, Shin.
"How is it?"
Kitazawa walked over.
"As soon as it came out, it just ignored me."
Kurenai shook her head.
"That's normal."
Kitazawa thought for a bit. "Its previous master was the Second Mizukage, Hozuki Gengetsu."
"Then what do I do?"
Kurenai panicked a little. "Does that mean it doesn't recognize me as its master?"
"That's easy. Just beat it up."
Kitazawa smiled.
"This is not the time for jokes."
Kurenai elbowed him in the side. "Seriously, what do I do?"
"I'm not joking."
Kitazawa shook his head. "If it won't acknowledge you, it's because it doesn't recognize your strength."
"That…actually makes sense."
Kurenai blinked, then asked worriedly, "What if I break it?"
"Do this."
Kitazawa thought for a bit. "Show it what you can do."
"Let's go behind the house."
Kurenai walked up, grabbed Shin, and picked it up.
Once they were behind the house, Kurenai set Shin down.
She clenched her fist. "Watch this punch."
She finished speaking, then used monstrous strength and slammed her fist into the ground.
Boom!
The ground split open, rocks flying everywhere.
Shin's whole shell trembled.
"Shin."
Kurenai stepped in front of it. "If you don't speak, I'll punch your shell next."
"K-Kurenai-sama…"
A timid voice finally came from Shin.
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow. So it was a female clam.
"Not a bad method."
Kurenai beamed.
Kitazawa wasn't surprised.
Gengetsu had been dead for many years. Whatever loyalty Shin had for him had worn away.
Now that it had seen how strong Kurenai was, it gave in immediately.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
Kurenai suddenly walked over to stand in front of him, smiling sweetly.
"…?"
Kitazawa looked at her, puzzled.
"I've already learned the Self-Cursing Seal. What do I learn next?"
She finally got to the real reason she'd walked over.
Kitazawa lifted his hand and smacked her on the butt.
"What was that for?!"
Kurenai yelped and instinctively grabbed her rear.
"That's punishment for teasing me."
Kitazawa glanced at the faint ripple in her hips. "I'll teach you a new jutsu—Yin-Style Rasengan."
"Yin-Style Rasengan?"
Kurenai's attention instantly shifted. "How's it different from Wind-Style Rasengan?"
She'd already learned Wind-Style Rasengan so she could use the combined technique Hurricane Water Vortex with Kitazawa.
"Wind-Style Rasengan adds speed and cutting power on top of the standard Rasengan."
Kitazawa thought a moment. "Yin-Style Rasengan adds mental damage."
The reason he thought of teaching Kurenai Yin-Style Rasengan was the Supreme Ultimate Rasengan.
"Then teach me now!"
Kurenai's eyes lit up; she was full of anticipation.
"In a couple of days."
Kitazawa laughed. "I haven't learned it yet."
"…"
Kurenai was speechless.
She'd realized it.
He was going to improvise it on the spot—but the fact that he could modify the Rasengan and master Yin-Style Rasengan in just two days was insane.
The gap between them really was ridiculous.
Two days passed in a flash.
At nine in the morning, Kitazawa and Kurenai arrived at the Academy.
The last three students had returned safely with Hiruzen's team.
That meant the Advanced Class finals were drawing to a close.
"I'll announce the practical exam rankings first."
Kitazawa took the score sheet from Iruka, then walked in front of the class.
Sasuke and the others all stared at him.
Kitazawa smiled and started reading out the students who'd gotten full marks on the mission.
Besides Sasuke, Naruto, and Hinata, there were also Kurama Yakumo and Inuzuka Kiba.
During missions, there were too many variables. Anyone could end up with a perfect score.
"So many full marks?"
Kiba looked disappointed.
He'd thought that with perfect marks on the practical, he might get into the top three overall, maybe even first place.
Now it looked hopeless.
There were five perfect scores in total—and the other four all had better theory scores than him on average.
Sasuke, hearing this, immediately felt that he had it in the bag. His theory scores had always been third in the class.
Naruto, of course, had lower scores than him.
Hinata and Yakumo were more of a threat; they were usually only one or two places behind him.
But as long as he stayed third, his overall ranking would still be first.
"Next is the theory exam ranking."
Kitazawa smiled. "First place: Nara Shikamaru. Second place: Haruno Sakura."
No surprise there.
Sasuke's eyes darted slightly, a hint of nerves flashing through them.
"Sasuke-kun, third place is definitely you."
Sakura tried to comfort him.
"Third place: Hyuga Neji."
Kitazawa announced.
"Ah?"
Sakura froze, then quickly added, "It's okay, Sasuke-kun. Neji's practical exam ranking is lower than yours."
"Fourth place: Hyuga Hinata."
Kitazawa continued.
Sakura was left staring blankly.
Hinata's practical ranking was tied for first with Sasuke.
But her theory score was higher, which meant Sasuke's overall rank would be lower than hers.
Am I really a jinx?
Sakura started questioning her life choices.
"…"
Sasuke's mouth twitched.
He'd gotten a perfect mark on the practical and still lost overall first place.
Luckily, he was getting used to it, so he wasn't too upset.
"I'm…first place?"
Hinata finally processed the results and was quietly delighted.
She wasn't as obsessed with ranking as Sasuke, but getting first was still something to be happy about.
"Final overall ranking—first place: Hyuga Hinata."
Kitazawa read off the final list.
"Everyone's so amazing…"
Shion couldn't help sighing.
She was starting to doubt whether she could ever squeeze into the top eighteen.
"You get used to it."
Ino turned to look at her. "Just keep up."
"This concludes the final exams. Starting tomorrow, it's summer vacation. Have fun, everyone."
Kitazawa said with a smile. "Dismissed."
"Goodbye, Kitazawa-sensei!"
The Advanced Class chorused as they left.
Hiruzen, Kakashi, Master Chen and the rest also didn't stick around.
Kitazawa was about to go home with Kurenai when he saw Kimimaro walking toward him.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
Kimimaro hesitated. "My Shikotsumyaku has hit a bottleneck."
Ever since joining the Advanced Class, he'd been self-teaching Dance of the Larch.
But he still hadn't mastered it, which left him feeling anxious.
In truth, his pace wasn't slow.
Dance of the Larch was at least as difficult as an A-rank ninjutsu—it just looked slow compared to everyone else in the Advanced Class.
When he first joined, he could reliably stay in the top five. Now, he only cracked the top five when he got lucky.
[Current Mission: Help Kaguya Kimimaro master Dance of the Larch.]
[Mission Reward: 30% Shikotsumyaku.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa's lips twitched.
I'm happy you're giving me a quest, system, but how am I supposed to teach Dance of the Larch when I can't use it myself?
Unless you give me the reward first, so I awaken Shikotsumyaku…
He fell into thought.
He definitely had to accept. He was only 30% short of full Shikotsumyaku.
But how to help Kimimaro—that was the problem.
The reason Kimimaro was progressing slowly was that no one was teaching him. He'd been learning purely on his own.
Kitazawa's first idea was to use Edo Tensei to summon a Kaguya clan jonin to teach him.
But that would be hard to explain.
"Give me the jutsu scroll for Dance of the Larch."
Kitazawa thought for a moment.
He planned to study it himself and see if he could learn it.
Even if he couldn't, he could still teach Kimimaro.
His elemental affinity was already maxed, and he had multiple elements at expert level.
On top of that, his Shikotsumyaku was already at 70%.
If it came down to it, he'd just use Edo Tensei to summon a Kaguya jonin, learn the essentials himself, then pass them on to Kimimaro.
And since he'd awaken Shikotsumyaku too, he'd need to learn those techniques anyway.
In a sense, it was killing two birds with one stone.
Kimimaro froze for a moment.
He'd only asked out of desperation and hadn't expected Kitazawa to actually seem like he had a solution.
He quickly handed over the jutsu scroll.
"Head home for now."
Kitazawa put the scroll away.
"Okay."
Kimimaro suppressed his anticipation and left with Jugo.
Kitazawa and Kurenai went home.
Kurenai headed off to train Yin-Style Rasengan, while he opened the scroll Kimimaro had given him.
The effect of Dance of the Larch was to make dozens of bones protrude from the body at once, for both offense and defense.
The bones could also reflect impact, which was especially effective against taijutsu users.
How to put it?
It sounded simple, but learning it was troublesome.
On top of that, the jutsu scroll itself had another problem—there wasn't much content.
Kitazawa decided he might need to visit the Kaguya clan's old territory to see if he could find any training notes on Shikotsumyaku.
If nothing turned up, he'd just have to go grave-robbing again.
He suddenly let out a soft "huh."
The Kaguya clan had been wiped out by Kirigakure.
Logically, Kiri should have collected all information on Shikotsumyaku.
Kitazawa thought of Itachi.
He could have Itachi infiltrate Kiri and look for Shikotsumyaku data.
But that would have to wait until Itachi finished investigating the Hyuga elders.
Kitazawa put away the scroll, went outside, and trained with Kurenai. He focused on Wood Release: Wood Clone Technique.
Time jumped forward to the next day—the first day of summer vacation.
A lot of Advanced Class students still came to the Academy to train, including Shion, who'd originally planned to go back to the Land of Demons.
That worked out fine.
Kitazawa taught her a new chakra control training method.
She'd already basically mastered tree-climbing and water-walking, but for her, that was nowhere near enough.
The power inside her body was simply too great.
Kitazawa felt she needed at least "Proficient-level" chakra control.
In ninja terms, that was about on par with an average jonin.
The new method still used water-walking, but not on calm water anymore.
Kitazawa borrowed Samehada from Naruto.
He threw it into the Academy's artificial lake and had it writhe to a set rhythm, making the surface constantly surge.
Samehada was, after all, a special kind of fish. Letting it handle this was really putting it to good use.
A week later.
Inside Anbu headquarters, Kitazawa met Itachi.
"Kitazawa-sama."
Itachi handed over a scroll. "This is everything on Hyuga Teiji for the past month."
A month?
No wonder it took you so long, Kitazawa thought.
He took the scroll and opened it.
He quickly found what he was looking for.
At Hyuga clan meetings, Teiji and Hiashi had clashed multiple times because of Hanabi.
At the core, the question was whether or not to place the Caged Bird on her.
Hiashi's stated reason was that he wanted to choose the best heir between Hanabi and Hinata.
Kitazawa figured this was probably the same excuse he'd used in the original timeline.
But now it didn't sound very convincing.
In canon, Hinata had a timid personality and had even lost to Hanabi in a spar.
Hiashi's explanation worked then.
But now Hinata was too outstanding. Neither Teiji nor the other clan members believed Hanabi could surpass her.
So Hiashi was under enormous pressure.
Looking at it that way, Hanabi probably wouldn't be able to escape her fate this time like she had in the original.
Unless Tsunade and Kitazawa intervened.
It was really Kitazawa's fault in a way. If it weren't for him, Hinata wouldn't have overshadowed Hanabi so completely.
But in another sense, this situation actually made it easier to get Hiashi to accept the Improved Caged Bird.
"Good work, Itachi."
Kitazawa looked up. "But there's one more thing I need you to handle."
"Please, tell me."
Itachi's expression didn't change.
"I need information on Shikotsumyaku."
Kitazawa paused. "Kirigakure should have some stored."
"I understand. I'll head to Kiri tomorrow."
Itachi agreed without hesitation.
Shikotsumyaku was a kekkei genkai, so Kiri would definitely hide the info well.
But since Kiri no longer had any Shikotsumyaku users, it shouldn't be too well hidden.
With his Mangekyo Sharingan, infiltrating Kiri and getting the documents wouldn't be too hard.
"Thanks, Itachi."
Kitazawa nodded. "Go get some rest."
Itachi turned and left the office.
Kitazawa finished reading the scroll.
He closed it, thinking, and finally decided to go straight to Hiashi.
"Konan, I'm heading out for a bit. You don't have to come."
Kitazawa stood.
Konan appeared in front of him and nodded.
She'd returned to Konoha the day before, after spending a week with Akatsuki to take care of their two major businesses.
Kitazawa walked toward the Hyuga compound.
It was morning, so Hinata and Neji were both at the Academy training, but he ran into Hanabi.
At four years old, she was already practicing basic taijutsu—or more precisely, basic Gentle Fist.
Normally, you weren't supposed to enter the Academy until six, but big clans always had their children start early.
And some were even more extreme—like Itachi, who'd been taken to the battlefield to kill at age four.
"You've got four mistakes in that punch."
Kitazawa watched for a while, then spoke.
"Eh?"
Hanabi turned around on instinct, and when she saw it was him, she shouted happily, "Kitazawa-sensei!"
She'd heard Hinata talk about him often, and it was always his long list of achievements. Over time, she'd been deeply influenced.
"Where's your father?"
Kitazawa gently ruffled her hair.
"He's in the study."
Hanabi pointed toward it.
"I'll go talk to him."
Kitazawa took a few steps, then glanced back and saw Hanabi clutching his sleeve.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
Hanabi tilted her head. "What were the four mistakes?"
She was much more outgoing than Hinata.
"Make a fist and lift your hand."
Kitazawa smiled.
Hanabi obeyed at once.
"First, your arm's too low."
He poked her arm lightly. "Raise it three centimeters to the left."
Hanabi nodded and quickly adjusted.
"And here."
Kitazawa corrected the rest of her errors one by one.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei!"
Hanabi beamed. "I hope I can join the Advanced Class someday!"
"That's a sure thing."
Kitazawa nodded.
"Kitazawa-sensei. Father."
Hanabi suddenly noticed Hiashi coming out of the study and quickly called out.
"Hanabi, keep practicing. I need to talk to your father."
Kitazawa patted her head and walked toward Hiashi.
~~~
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