"Eeeek!" Panting with exhaustion, Rin Nohara blushed and covered her eyes with her hands, though her fingers were wide apart, her small eyes filled with curiosity.
Makiya and Minato were both quite handsome, and seeing them nearly naked while soaking in the same hot water pool was an incredibly impactful scene for adolescent girls. The older girls looked at Minato, while the younger ones were more interested in Makiya.
Of course, there were also girls who enjoyed scenarios like 'older sister and younger brother' play or 'older man' tropes. A few Anbu members silently lifted their masks and wiped away nosebleeds.
Obito's face darkened, and he exploded with unprecedented speed, flickering in front of Rin Nohara to block her view.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood on a tree branch with a grim expression, his gaze sweeping over the three of them. "Can anyone tell me what exactly happened here?"
"Lord Hokage, let me explain..." Minato said hurriedly.
"Lord Hokage, we were just sparring..." Makiya added.
The two of them spoke back and forth, quickly clarifying the situation.
The crowd had various expressions; some were enlightened, some indifferent, and some thoughtful.
Others looked at Makiya with surprise, secretly amazed that the golden flames were the ninjutsu of this Uchiha boy.
Under the secret promotion of Danzo, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado, the credit for wiping out the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had been attributed to Might Dai and Shisui. Makiya's name had been deliberately ignored, so many civilian ninjas only realized Makiya's true strength today.
As Minato spoke, he secretly winked at Hiruzen.
'Lord Hokage, I have done what you ordered.'
Hiruzen was bewildered. 'What did I order?'
He suddenly remembered that he had indeed told Minato to come here to train. This child might have misunderstood something, leading to such a large commotion.
How exactly did the Anbu messenger describe it? Forget it, I'll just reassign him to guard the gate.
Regardless, the result was good; the relationship between Minato and Makiya had clearly improved significantly.
Oh well, let it be.
"This is ridiculous! Such a huge commotion, the whole village saw it. You two..." Hiruzen lectured them with a stern face. Seeing them lower their heads and accept their mistake humbly, his tone softened.
Afterward, Hiruzen dispersed the crowd and left the training ground himself.
Once everyone had left, Minato asked Kushina to go home and get a set of clean clothes. After changing, he followed Makiya's description to Makiya's house to retrieve clothes for him.
"Then we will take our leave," Minato said, putting his arm around Kushina.
"Alright, let's spar again when there's an opportunity."
As Makiya finished speaking, Minato and Kushina vanished.
After two Flying Raijin jumps, Minato and Kushina appeared in their home in Konoha.
"Well? Is he one of your clansmen?"
As soon as they returned home, Minato asked immediately.
He knew that Kushina had always been lonely deep down, longing to find her clansmen. However, her status as the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki meant she couldn't leave the village.
Having finally encountered someone who might be an Uzumaki, Minato was very concerned.
Kushina shook her head then nodded. "His hair isn't red, and his chakra doesn't give off that sense of familiarity. But his chakra capacity is exceptionally high—very high, even more than the clansmen I met when I was little. I can't quite judge."
"It's fine, there's still plenty of time. We can observe slowly." Minato gave a sunny smile and pulled Kushina close. "No matter what happens, I'll be with you. We'll search slowly together, and we'll eventually find them."
"Minato!" Kushina blinked her large eyes, her pupils misting over, deeply moved.
'Tch! I swear #$@&%*!' The Nine-Tails was fed a mouthful of dog food and cursed quite foully. But no matter how loud he was, Kushina couldn't hear him; the sturdy seal ensured the Nine-Tails couldn't affect the Jinchuriki at all.
After all, this was Kushina, who was an expert in sealing techniques. The Nine-Tails was firmly pinned to a molten fireball, unable to move. This treatment was worlds apart from its later situation in Naruto's stomach.
After Minato left, Makiya didn't put on his clothes immediately. Instead, he walked over to the lava that hadn't completely solidified yet.
"Fire Style: Vestment of the Remaining Sun."
Golden flames erupted from the acupuncture points all over his body, transforming into a great cloak draped over him.
He created a Shadow Clone to cast ninjutsu at himself. Ordinary ninja tools and spells were melted by the high temperature before they could even get close; it was impossible to approach him.
"Not bad. With this temperature and power, it's just barely enough to get by at the Kage level."
Makiya nodded in satisfaction, put on his clothes, and left the Forest of Death.
The terrain of Training Ground 44 had been completely altered. In the future Chunin Exams, many ninjas might stage tactical maneuvers on this unique terrain.
Days passed. Makiya immersed himself in training, enjoying the pleasure of self-improvement.
Information about the annihilation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist spread rapidly among underground brokers. The names of Makiya, Shisui, and Dai quickly spread throughout the ninja world.
Under the deliberate influence of certain people, Might Dai's role was magnified infinitely. The Eight Gates Released Formation came to the attention of the major ninja villages.
The other four Kages all sighed at Konoha's abundance of talent. After the White Fang left, there were the Sannin, and after the Sannin, Might Dai emerged. Truly worthy of a village founded by the God of Shinobi, its foundation was incredibly deep.
Konoha ended its confrontation with the Hidden Mist, and negotiations with the Hidden Sand Village were proceeding steadily.
However, the Hidden Stone and Hidden Cloud villages wouldn't allow Konoha to rest and recover. Although these two were fighting each other tooth and nail, they tacitly agreed to send troops into the Land of Fire simultaneously.
Konoha responded defensively, and the army set out once more, stationed at the borders.
Small-scale skirmishes continued to escalate, and the flames of war grew larger. Against this backdrop, Hiruzen Sarutobi found Makiya, hoping he would lead a team to the front lines.
Shisui had already rushed to the front. The name 'Shisui of the Body Flicker' rang out once again, even louder than before.
Makiya flatly refused. He had spent the last two months very pleasantly, obsessed with training. Every few days, he would exchange experiences with Navy Makiya and Soul Reaper Makiya in the mysterious space, while also looking after 'Egg' Makiya, savoring the feeling of slowly growing stronger.
He could also give pointers to his four subordinates, reaping admiration and gratitude.
Only an idiot would go to the front. Why doesn't Danzo go?
It wasn't yet time for the Battle of Kannabi Bridge. He would level up a bit more. Just in case some old man who should be dead crawls out from underground, he'd be able to put up a fight.
At the same time, Makiya pulled out a stack of documents and placed them before Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"What is this?" Hiruzen Sarutobi picked them up, and a few large characters caught his eye: "Regulations on the Management of Public Order and Security in Konoha Village"?
This was something Makiya had put together in his spare time, a draft combining his observations from his previous life and the management experience of the Seireitei.
Even as a draft, the detailed content shocked Hiruzen Sarutobi. His expression changed as he sat up straight to read carefully, his pipe unconsciously tapping against the desk.
'This kid Makiya always manages to come up with something new for me.'
Hiruzen sighed inwardly. He didn't know how Makiya's brain worked—so young yet acting so experienced. Why weren't the youngsters in the Sarutobi clan this outstanding?
'Sigh, what a pity he's an Uchiha...'
During his two months of law enforcement, Makiya discovered that the Police Force's actions were entirely based on their mood. Punishments were heavy or light depending on the individual. If a vendor committing an offense was a beautiful woman, they were often let off easily; if it was some unkempt middle-aged man, sorry, he'd be taking a trip to jail.
No wonder the Uchiha's reputation in Konoha was poor. Without clear rules for guidance and the Hokage's backing, no one could ever be satisfied.
Makiya originally wanted Fugaku to submit it, but Fugaku repeatedly declined, so Makiya had to do it himself.
"Hmm, you've done well, Makiya. Being able to write these things shows you're a good child who cares about Konoha and the village." Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and took a puff of his pipe. "The content is very rich. I need to study it carefully. You may head back for now."
"Understood, Lord Hokage."
Makiya left the Hokage's office. Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the documents in his hand and let out a long sigh. Since Makiya had produced results in the Police Force, he couldn't very well mention sending him to the front lines again.
Hiruzen knew that Fugaku Uchiha was using Makiya to express his dissatisfaction. Unless the war reached a critical moment, there was no reason for the Police Force to go to the front.
"Sigh, forget it. Let it be."
The war was going relatively smoothly. After a moment of hesitation, Hiruzen compromised.
That day, Danzo, Koharu Utatane, and Homura Mitokado stayed in the Hokage's office for a long time.
Three days later, the scale of the meeting expanded. All the clan heads and Konoha higher-ups attended and collectively passed the revised "Konoha Village Security Management Regulations," which was officially printed and implemented the following day.
Meanwhile, one of the three Sannin, the famous 'Yellow' Jiraiya, took some time to return to Konoha.
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