"If one becomes too engrossed in it and can't pull themselves out, it will make them extreme, obsessive, and even completely fall into darkness..."
Naruto slurped his ramen, looking at Hiruzen Sarutobi with a half-understanding gaze.
"Does the Lord Third Hokage know anyone like that?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and nodded.
"Yes, and not just one, for example..."
"My most valued disciple..."
"Orochimaru."
Chapter 34: Hinata and Hanabi! The Bond Between Sisters! Please give monthly votes!!!
"Orochimaru?"
Naruto gulped down mouthfuls of ramen, asking indistinctly.
He seemed to have vaguely heard this name before.
He was once a very formidable Ninja, but now he has defected from Konoha Village.
Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and nodded.
"Orochimaru was once my most outstanding disciple. He had exceptional aptitude and talent, and was originally the most capable of inheriting my legacy. However..."
"Because of the passing of his parents, he began to indulge in the study of various dark forbidden Ninjutsu, even going so far as to conduct human experiments on living people, causing widespread outrage. I should have purged him and killed him with my own hands, but at the last moment, due to years of The relationship between master and apprentice , I became soft-hearted and couldn't bring myself to do it, allowing him to defect from the Village..."
"If it weren't for that, perhaps he could have become Hokage..."
Naruto had already finished a bowl of ramen, letting out a long, satisfied breath.
"Giving up on becoming Hokage for those forbidden Ninjutsu experiments?"
"How can there be such a guy..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head and said, "You think Hokage is your dream, but not everyone thinks that way..."
"For example, Orochimaru, for example, Sasuke..."
Naruto couldn't help but ask curiously, "Sasuke... what exactly happened to him?"
Hiruzen Sarutobi did not answer him.
"Naruto, you are still too young. It's better not to know some things for now."
"In short, you and Sasuke are rivals and friends, and that's fine, but in the future, you can't fight to the death like this anymore."
"...Oh, I understand."
"Mm."
After they finished dinner, Hiruzen Sarutobi looked around Naruto's room, and indeed, he still felt that it had changed a lot.
"Naruto, I heard you want to be in the top ten of your class?"
"Yes, that's my small goal!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled, "Having a goal is a good thing..."
"No wonder you're training so hard..."
"[Host has been detected to be full. Please begin evening training immediately. Tonight's special training is Divided Attention, simultaneously training Chakra Refining Technique and Transformation Technique!]"
Naruto also wanted to chat with Hiruzen Sarutobi for a while longer.
But it seemed impossible.
However... "Lord Third Hokage, I'm about to start training, do you want to watch!"
He really wanted someone to guide him.
Even if it was just watching him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and said, "What do you want to train?"
Naruto loudly said, "Continue the Divided Attention training!"
"I'm going to train Chakra Refining Technique and Transformation Technique at the same time!"
"Oh, right, my Transformation Technique is really powerful!"
"This is a super Ninjutsu I invented myself, Lord Third Hokage, do you want to try it?!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed drastically!
He nearly choked on his pipe!
He, of course, knew what Naruto's super Transformation Technique was... the Sexy Technique!
He didn't want to have a nosebleed in front of Naruto and the Anbu, making a fool of himself!
Did he still want his old face... "Cough, cough, Naruto, although I'd love to stay and train with you, as Hokage, I also have my own work to do..."
"Thank you for dinner."
"Oh, alright..."
Although Naruto was a little disappointed, he didn't try to keep him.
After all, that was the Hokage of Konoha Village.
Hiruzen Sarutobi went downstairs and soon heard continuous transformation sounds from upstairs... He let out a long breath, went outside, and looked at the moon, which was gradually growing larger again, his expression very complex.
"Sigh..."
Under the night sky, a long sigh... "Naruto!"
"Sasuke!"
At this moment, Sasuke's mind kept replaying the previous scenes.
If the Third Hokage hadn't arrived in time, who knows what the final outcome would have been...
"Damn it..."
Sasuke angrily punched the wall, a loud bang, and dirt crumbled down, dust flying.
"What am I doing..."
His lower back was still aching.
That was where Naruto's Leaf Whirlwind had kicked him.
"Naruto..."
"How strong are you now?"
Although Sasuke was scared of the outcome of that battle just now, he was also very anxious and resentful of Naruto's strength.
To be precise... it was his own weakness.
If this continued, let alone killing Uchiha Itachi, he would even be left behind by Naruto...
Sasuke clenched his fists and returned to the training room.
Bang—
Bang, bang, bang!
Ignoring the pain and fatigue in his body, he gritted his teeth and once again trained desperately!
...Meanwhile.
At the Hyuga Clan compound, the residence of Clan Head Hiashi.
Hinata also hadn't gone to sleep.
Her younger sister, Hyuga Hanabi, secretly snuck to the door, pushed it open a crack, and peered inside, seeing her older sister still training desperately...
Her young heart was deeply moved.
"Sister..."
During their previous sparring, Hyuga Hanabi's displayed strength even surpassed her older sister's.
This also led the Clan Head, her father Hyuga Hiashi, to choose Hanabi for focused training, even abandoning the idea of Hinata, his eldest daughter, as the Main House successor.
But in reality, Hanabi understood her older sister's gentleness and strength the most.
In that sparring match, her older sister didn't lose to her in strength...
But in kindness.
Her older sister had already seen her weakness, but hesitated at the last moment, couldn't bear to strike, which is why she ended up losing to her.
But whether such an outcome was good or bad... Hanabi herself wasn't sure.
She knew that although her older sister was diligent, with her kind and gentle nature, she didn't like fighting and also didn't want to become the successor of the Main House. She believed the Main House-Branch House system was a kind of restraint, a cage...
Especially after witnessing her father's attitude towards Hyuga Neji.
So... perhaps losing to her was also a choice for her older sister to break free from her own destiny.
However, now... she was working even harder than before.
Why was this?
"Is that Hanabi?"
Hinata sensed someone secretly watching, temporarily stopped her training, and asked, slightly out of breath.
Hanabi no longer concealed herself, pushed open the door, and walked in.
"Sister, why aren't you asleep yet?"
Hinata smiled gently.
"I want to train a little longer."
"What about you, Hanabi, why aren't you asleep?"
Hanabi shook her head: "I can't sleep."
"What's wrong?"
"Because, I can't figure it out..."
"What can't you figure out? Can you tell me?"
Hanabi looked at Hinata's sweat-soaked training clothes, asking with both concern and confusion.
"Sister, before, when Father forced you so strictly, you weren't happy training."
"Now, even though Father has almost given up on you, you've become much more diligent..."
"Why is this?"
Hinata was startled, looking at Hanabi's questioning gaze, and for a moment didn't know how to explain it to her.
She took out a towel and wiped the sweat from her face.
Then she patted the floor, inviting Hanabi to sit down with her.