A special thank you to all my patrons.
The List of My "Wandering Reader":
-Davis Nguyen
-Cain
-Jacob Mooe
-HADES
-Varun Madhu
-Gonzalo Sumalavia
-kevin Williams
-MIKE
-KD2001
-merp.
-Jose Carrillo
-Derek M
-DancingMonkey65
-Joseph
-Jose Sierra
-AR3S
You can read 30 chapters ahead of everyone on p@treon.
P@TREON - [email protected]/lessaservantofcosmos
(just replace the "@" with "a")
ps: Please support me on P@treon. I can really use your help!
—————————————————————
For the better part of the following month, Ryūsei remained in the Tanzaku Streets to train, and while he was at it, he took the opportunity to teach Karin some ninjutsu.
By a curious coincidence, Karin's chakra attributes were not only identical to Ryūsei's before his graduation but were also the same as Sakura's: Yin, Yang, Water, and Earth.
It was precisely for this reason that once a version of Karin akin to Tsunade was fully realized, she would undoubtedly become one of the legendary new Sannin, a prodigy whose potential was in no way inferior to Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke before they unlocked their extraordinary abilities and ascended to the level of Kage-tier powerhouses.
Although Sakura was exceptionally talented, when compared to Karin, who had direct blood ties to the Otsutsuki clan, there still existed a vast and significant gap.
Throughout these weeks, Ryūsei not only instructed Karin in his own Water Release ninjutsu but also, intent on helping her build up her physical health, frequently used the Transformation Jutsu to take her to various casinos scattered throughout the Tanzaku Streets, systematically fleecing them for money.
No longer having her chakra constantly drained by others and being squarely in the midst of her crucial growth phase, after more than half a month of this intensive replenishment and care, the numerous teeth marks that had once marred Karin's arms had completely vanished. Her skin had lost its sickly pallor, gaining a healthier tone, and her hair was no longer dry and brittle, instead becoming soft and vibrant.
Most importantly, her chakra reserves had finally swelled to a level that was fitting and worthy of her status as a true descendant of the renowned Uzumaki clan.
Although the gap remained considerable when measured against the monstrous reserves of Ryūsei and Naruto, it was certain that in just a few more years, her chakra would also be measured in those formidable units that defined the elite!
During this same period, and under the perfectly reasonable pretext of providing combat guidance, Ryūsei would daily create a shadow clone possessing chakra roughly equivalent to, or even slightly less than, Karin's own. This clone would then engage her in intense taijutsu sparring and completely unregulated, no-holds-barred duels.
Over the course of these more than two weeks, Ryūsei successfully managed to acquire from Karin through their close contact the Uzumaki clan's two most prized and unique abilities: Physical Energy Healing and the Sage Art: Kagura Mind's Eye.
Both of these unique abilities manifested within his perception as pulsating blue light orbs.
However, in Ryūsei's discerning eyes, these two abilities were much like Sakura's innate talent for exquisite chakra control—they weren't the coveted red tier, yet they were infinitely more practical and useful than a great many abilities that were.
Physical Energy Healing was remarkably versatile; it could not only be used to heal others but also to rejuvenate oneself. It was, for all intents and purposes, a slightly weakened version of the legendary Mitotic Regeneration technique that required no hand seals to activate.
Mind's Eye of the Kagura needed even less explanation—it was universally acknowledged as one of the absolute strongest sensory techniques in the entire shinobi world, boasting a truly staggering perception range that could extend for dozens of kilometers in every direction.
When he tallied these up alongside his already acquired Byakugan and the mysterious Red Eye, Ryūsei now proudly possessed three distinct and powerful sensory techniques.
He had comprehensive see-through perception, powerful long-distance vision, and incredible ultra-long-distance vision all covered!
In terms of pure sensory capability and awareness, Ryūsei was now, without a single doubt, ranked among the very strongest individuals in the entire ninja world.
————
August 6th, Year 60 of Konoha, 3:00 PM.
"Karin, I'm heading back first," Ryūsei announced, standing at the door of her room in a small apartment.
He offered a slight smile. "After I leave, make sure you don't neglect your training. Just wait a few more days, and I'll come back to pick you up and bring you to the village."
"Mhmm... I understand. Travel safely, Ryūsei-kun," Karin replied, nodding her head obediently, a hint of reluctance in her eyes.
Ryūsei reached out and gave her an affectionate head-pat, gently ruffling the girl's now soft and smooth red hair. With a final smile, he performed the Body Flicker Technique and vanished from sight in an instant.
This time, the journey was remarkably swift; it took him less than two hours to travel from the bustling streets of Tanzaku Quarter all the way back to the gates of Konoha.
After arriving home, Ryūsei noticed a small note left on the signboard hanging by his doorway. It was a message from Sakura.
As it turned out, the traumatic events of the Forest of Death had served as a harsh wake-up call for Sakura, making her acutely aware of her own weakness and vulnerability. In response, she had sought out her sensei, Hatake Kakashi, and earnestly asked him to teach her stronger ninjutsu. However, rather than taking her on as a personal student for intensive training, Kakashi had instead recommended her for an internship at the Konoha Hospital.
His condition was that once she had gained sufficient recognition and proven her worth there, he would personally apply for access to advanced medical ninjutsu scrolls and specialized training scrolls for offensive-type medical techniques on her behalf.
Consequently, for this entire period, Sakura had been diligently working as an intern at the Konoha Hospital, acting as a helper and assistant to the experienced medical-nin there.
Reading these messages, Ryūsei felt a genuine sense of happiness for Sakura and the new path she was on, but he also couldn't help shaking his head in quiet resignation at the situation.
His thoughts immediately turned to Naruto!
Without a doubt, it was almost certain that Naruto, with his characteristic persistence, had also pestered Kakashi to teach him new and powerful ninjutsu a month ago. Yet, Kakashi had unceremoniously pawned him off to a Special Jōnin—specifically, to Ebisu, who was also known as the tutor and sensei of Konohamaru.
The reason Kakashi gave was a simple lack of time to instruct Naruto himself. All of his focus and energy during this period was dedicated to personally tutoring Uchiha Sasuke. He was busy teaching Sasuke the advanced taijutsu techniques he had copied from Rock Lee using his Sharingan during the preliminaries, the dangerous technique of stimulating body cells with Lightning Release chakra to drastically enhance speed, and his own signature technique, the Lightning Release: Chidori.
He had casually pushed one of his students onto a Special Jōnin, seemingly indifferent to the fact that this particular teacher was known to openly dislike and disdain Naruto, while he himself poured all of his efforts and attention into training his other student.
Yes, this was the reality of the situation: Hatake Kakashi was just that blatantly biased.
Taking a broad view of the entire original story, from the original youth arc all the way through the Shippuden series, it seemed Kakashi only ever directly taught Naruto two things.
One was the basic chakra control exercise of climbing trees using his feet. The other was later assisting Yamato in helping Naruto develop the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken—and even that was only an unstable, half-complete version at the time.
Ryūsei truly could not comprehend it. Kakashi had already tested Naruto's chakra attributes and knew he had an affinity for Wind Release. The man himself had copied over a thousand ninjutsu with his Sharingan over the years. So even if Naruto couldn't learn his prized Chidori due to the chakra nature mismatch, was that any reason not to teach him even a single other Wind Release jutsu from his vast arsenal?
If Naruto had no personal relation to him whatsoever and had simply failed to earn his genuine affection or respect, then that neglect, while still unprofessional, might be somewhat understandable.
But the undeniable fact was that Kakashi was the student of the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato, and he knew full well that Naruto was the son of his beloved sensei and the holder of the Nine-Tails.
During the most difficult and lonely years of Naruto's childhood, Kakashi had never stepped in to help or offer guidance—though it could be argued that he himself was still trapped in his own dark, grief-stricken phase at the time.
But even later, when Naruto was officially his student and actively needed his guidance, Kakashi's efforts always seemed perfunctory, half-hearted, and disproportionately focused on Sasuke.
This was, without a doubt, Kakashi's greatest and most glaring character flaw. Ryūsei even found himself speculating with a degree of malice: Could it be that, deep down and much like Uchiha Obito, Kakashi also secretly blamed the man hailed as the fastest shinobi in the world for his perceived failure, for always arriving a moment too late at the most critical of moments?
It was also largely because of this significant flaw that Kakashi, despite being the teacher with the most screen time and narrative focus, could never truly surpass Jiraiya in the hearts of fans in terms of mentorship, nor could he even eclipse the role of the teacher with the least screen time, Iruka Umino, who offered Naruto the unconditional love and belief he desperately needed.
Fortunately, during this specific timeframe, the legendary Sannin Jiraiya had already returned to the village. Otherwise, Naruto, still laboring under the debilitating effects of the Five Elements Seal that Orochimaru had placed on him, might not even have been able to defeat someone like Choji Akimichi in the upcoming official matches.
After all, techniques like the Human Boulder and the Multi-Size Technique, when executed properly, still packed a considerable and powerful punch.
Thinking ahead to his own carefully laid plans, Ryūsei felt a surge of intense anticipation for the events that were about to unfold tomorrow.
The long era of Hiruzen Sarutobi was finally, inevitably, drawing to a close. Soon, it would be the dawn of Tsunade's era—and that, Ryūsei knew with certainty, would also be the stage upon which he himself would truly come into his own.
The Next Day, 10:00 AM.
Inside his bathroom, Ryūsei was carefully putting the final touches on his appearance, ensuring every detail was perfect.
His attire was, as always, his tried-and-true signature outfit: a long black trench coat over a simple white inner shirt, matched with black pants and sturdy black shoes. He then pulled on his trademark gloves, each embedded with protective metal plates, and securely fastened his well-stocked ninja tool pouch around his thigh.
After carefully inserting his special cosmetic lenses to conceal the distinctive appearance of his eyes, Ryūsei reached into his spatial backpack and retrieved two key items: a long, flowing black cloak and a plain, featureless white mask.
Then, with practiced ease and using only one hand, he swiftly formed the necessary seal. "Shadow Clone Technique!"
With a loud 'poof', a thick cloud of white smoke erupted, momentarily filling the entire bathroom.
A moment later, Ryūsei emerged from the dissipating smoke and walked out of the bathroom. Without any further delay, he left his home and set off at a brisk pace, heading directly for the enormous circular plaza that stood as a central landmark in Konoha, its vast area designed to hold massive crowds.
Along the way, Ryūsei passed a long procession of ornate carriages and a veritable sea of unfamiliar faces—daimyos, nobles, and wealthy merchants from across the land—all streaming towards the same destination: the arena. The air was filled with a palpable sense of excitement and festivity.
High up in the sky, brilliant, five-colored fireworks continuously blossomed against the blue, their loud reports echoing through the village, adding to the celebratory atmosphere.
In what felt like no time at all, Ryūsei arrived at the outer perimeter of the bustling plaza.
After verifying his identity and status as a participant at the designated contestants' entrance, he was waved through and stepped inside the preparation area.
He saw that many of the other finalists had already arrived. Hinata and Ino were there, standing together.
"Ryūsei! Over here, over here…!" Ino called out enthusiastically the moment she spotted his arrival, immediately waving her hand to get his attention.
Ryūsei had barely even begun to raise his own hand to offer a response when he suddenly felt a distinct and unmistakable chill run down his spine.
What incredibly strong hostile intent! he thought, inwardly startled.
His sharp eyes, using just his peripheral vision, instantly flicked towards the direction of the densely packed spectator stands. He knew this feeling was not an illusion; it was a very real and targeted sensation.
This was the result of a highly advanced application of Yin Release chakra, skillfully used to project and convey intense emotion directly onto him, a clear and intimidating warning.
Ryūsei didn't need to waste time guessing to know that the source of this technique was undoubtedly Ino's father, the leader of the Yamanaka clan and the 'Boar' of this generation's renowned Ino-Shika-Cho trio—Inoichi Yamanaka.
This situation was different from the original story. Here, all three members of Team 10 had passed the preliminary elimination matches. Therefore, it was a certainty that all three of their fathers—the current heads of the Yamanaka, Nara, and Akimichi clans—would be present in the stands, watching intently to support their children and assess their performance.
The sudden realization that he was potentially under the direct and simultaneous scrutiny of two powerful and influential clan heads made Ryūsei immediately straighten his posture and adopt a more serious and formal demeanor. He decided against responding to Ino with his usual level of casual warmth. Instead, he simply offered her a polite, acknowledging nod from across the room and then deliberately walked over to stand beside Nara Shikamaru, who was leaning against a wall with his typical look of lazy boredom.
"You feeling the pressure already?" Shikamaru's voice, laced with his characteristic dry amusement, reached Ryūsei's ears as he approached.
Ryūsei glanced sideways at Shikamaru, a faint, almost imperceptible smirk playing on the corners of his lips. "Whether I'm feeling pressure or not is irrelevant," he replied coolly. "What I do know is that in a little while, your pressure is definitely going to be immense."
"Hey, hey now... come on, you're not actually that petty, are you?" Shikamaru's lazy smile instantly froze on his face, replaced by a look of mild alarm. He quickly tried to backpedal. "Look, my old man is right up there in the stands watching. Once our match starts, could you maybe... not make me lose too embarrassingly? A little dignity, that's all I ask."
"Too late for negotiations," Ryūsei said, his smirk widening into a full-fledged grin that didn't quite reach his eyes. "My generosity is notoriously as small as the eye of a needle. So, my dear Shikamaru, you'd better start preparing yourself mentally to turn from a clever 'Deer' into a helpless 'Boar' out there!"