Hearing the female ninja's words, Tatsuma looked at her with a trace of confusion. He had never seen this woman before and had no idea who she was. Why would a total stranger want to have a private chat?
This wasn't his previous world, where if someone caught your eye, you could just muster up the courage to go over and ask for their contact info. Besides, even by the standards of his past life, the age gap was a bit much. Tatsuma was only nine, while this woman looked to be in her thirties.
However, a realization quickly struck him. This female ninja was likely the one Hyuga Mitsuru had mentioned—the woman who had always loved Hyuga Miyako.
With that thought in mind, Tatsuma walked over. He offered a respectful bow and asked, "How can I help you, ma'am?"
"You can call me Aunt Natsuko. I suppose I'm... Chinto's family."
Natsuko rose and led the way into the house. Tatsuma followed her into a tea room, where she began the slow, deliberate process of boiling water and preparing tea. Having lived in this world for several years now, Tatsuma had rarely experienced such a slow-paced life. After the grueling months on the battlefield, he actually found it difficult to adjust to such leisure.
After a long silence, Natsuko watched Tatsuma take a sip of tea before she spoke softly. "Chinto has become a member of the Main House now, but in his heart, he is more miserable than anyone. There are... unkind voices in the clan. They say he must be secretly gloating over Miyako's death because now he won't be branded with the Caged Bird Seal. Do you know what that is?"
Tatsuma nodded. Seeing that he understood, Natsuko nodded back, sparing herself the explanation.
"That child lost his father and his uncle—who loved him just as much—only to be criticized for 'gloating' over his fortune. In the eyes of the Branch House, the status of the Main House might be lofty; perhaps if they were in his shoes, they truly would be happy. But for Chinto, he has simply moved from one cage to another."
She poured more tea. "The so-called Main House must keep themselves close to the Clan Head and the heir; they too must be ready to sacrifice everything for the clan at a moment's notice. The Branch House, branded with the Caged Bird, protects the Main House. The Main House, free of the brand, protects the Clan Head. And the Clan Head, surrounded on all sides by protectors... is he not just a bird in a cage as well?"
As an outsider, Tatsuma didn't know how to respond. He sat there awkwardly, sipping his tea. Even the most upright judge finds it hard to settle family disputes, let alone a passerby like him.
Natsuko seemed to realize she had strayed into unrelated topics. She refilled Tatsuma's cup and said, "I'm very grateful for your suggestion today. Perhaps by leaving this compound, Chinto can find a moment of peace. If you're willing, please... be a friend to him."
"I will," Tatsuma nodded. He held his teacup, still feeling a bit out of place. He felt exactly like a primary schooler whose classmate's mother had cornered him to say, "My child is a bit introverted; could you please play with him more?"
Natsuko noticed his discomfort and realized something. She added, "Chinto is now eligible to learn all the various Taijutsu of the Hyuga clan. If you happen to learn something while training with him, do not feel restricted. The Hyuga value tradition, but we are not so overbearing as to forbid others from using the principles of the Gentle Fist."
Tatsuma's spirit practically surged at those words. He finally understood why both Hyuga Mitsuru and Hiruzen Sarutobi had put so much emphasis on him visiting the Hyuga compound.
Checking on Chinto was just the pretense. The real goal was for the Hyuga clan to give him a "pass"—a formal permission to learn and use the Eight Trigrams Gentle Fist.
While the style reached its true peak only when combined with the Byakugan, Tatsuma's deep study of Medical Ninjutsu under Tsunade gave him an intimate knowledge of the human tenketsu system. He might not be able to perform the pin-point strikes of a Byakugan-user in the heat of battle, but the techniques of the Gentle Fist would perfectly complement his half-baked Tai Chi.
By making this statement on behalf of the clan, Natsuko was hinting that when Chinto trained with Tatsuma, Chinto would effectively be teaching him the style. For the Hyuga, this was a way to repay their debt of gratitude. For Tatsuma, it was a massive gain. And since he lacked the Byakugan, his use of the style wouldn't threaten the Hyuga's status as the masters of the art.
"Thank you," Tatsuma said solemnly.
Natsuko nodded, admiring how quickly the boy grasped the clan's intent. "I will be teaching Chinto more of the Gentle Fist techniques. I hope that during your sessions, you can help him master them faster. I won't keep you any longer; Chinto will find you tomorrow."
"Then I'll take my leave. Thank you, Aunt Natsuko."
As he left the compound, Tatsuma reflected on the harvest of this trip. Although the Hyuga weren't "hurting" themselves by letting him learn, it was still a major decision—they were breaking a long-standing precedent.
He suspected this wasn't just the Hyuga's idea; the Third Hokage likely had a hand in it.
Is this compensation? The thought occurred to him. He was Tsunade's disciple, but it was a known fact that he wouldn't be able to inherit much of her specific power set. Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Tatsuma himself all knew this; there was no reason Hiruzen wouldn't know it too.
If Tatsuma were to grow into a powerhouse, it would be a massive boon for Tsunade's reputation and the village's strength. As Tsunade's teacher, Hiruzen likely stepped in to secure some benefits for his "grand-student."
Tatsuma hoped his theory was right. He still had so much to learn, and he would take all the "compensation" he could get.
Returning to the Third Training Ground, he found Minato and Nawaki still at it. Might Duy was absent today—likely on a mission or spending time with his child's mother.
Tatsuma informed them that Chinto would be joining their training. Minato, with his "little sun" personality, welcomed the idea immediately. Nawaki, upon hearing a Hyuga was coming, started shouting about wanting to see who the most "youthful and hot-blooded" Taijutsu expert truly was.
The next afternoon, Chinto arrived at the training ground, his face still slightly swollen. Looking at Tatsuma (who had beaten him into tears), the warmly smiling Minato, and the curious Nawaki, he swallowed his pride and bowed.
"Please... let me train with you! Tatsuma! Minato, and Nawaki-senpai!"
"Welcome aboard!" Minato gave him an encouraging thumbs-up.
Nawaki, however, produced a carefully prepared gift. "Chinto! Change into this specialized training suit! Let's strive for youth together!"
"Huh?!"
Chinto stared at the green jumpsuit in Nawaki's hands with pure horror. No one told him that training here required wearing something so hideous and embarrassing! And wait... Tatsuma and Minato weren't wearing them!
Minato started to smooth things over, but Tatsuma held him back. He was genuinely curious to see what Chinto would choose. Resolve was a vital quality for a ninja, after all.
Chinto looked at the jumpsuit and felt like he'd rather be back in the Hyuga compound. If he were an Uchiha, his eyes probably would have manifested two tomoe from the sheer mental stress.
But after a brief internal struggle, he took the suit and changed. If he was determined to get stronger at any cost, then a bit of embarrassment was a price he could pay!
"Nice! You're brimming with the aura of youth!"
Nawaki flashed his white teeth and gave a thumbs-up. "Alright! To warm up, fifty laps around the training ground! If you can't make it, it's a thousand weighted squats!"
"Yes, Nawaki-senpai!" Chinto lowered his head and began to run.
Minato looked at Tatsuma, who nodded. "As expected of you, Minato—always so passionate and diligent. Let's see who finishes their fifty laps first!"
"You're on!"
Two blurs—one yellow, one white—shot past the running Nawaki and Chinto. Despite the head start, the two younger boys were lapped repeatedly. By the time they were halfway through their "warm-up," Tatsuma and Minato had already moved on to live combat practice.
Watching the two of them seamlessly weave Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and shurikenjutsu together, Chinto found his motivation. He wanted to catch up. He wanted to stand on the battlefield and reclaim the glory of his father and uncle.
As the days passed, the "Training Camp" at Training Ground 3 gained a reputation. Uchiha Tenfu arrived under the guise of "seeking revenge" for his previous losses, only to quietly join the group after several defeats. Then came the Ino-Shika-Cho trio—or rather, they were dragged there by their parents.
Just like the training sessions before graduation, their parents refused to let other kids "grind" while their own children sat at home "lying flat." For the trio, it was just a change of scenery to be lazy.
Then came Tsume Inuzuka and her dog, then a certain bug-user looking for new species... By the end of the break, nearly half the class had joined the camp.
"What incredible cohesion. They are the type of people who make everyone around them better."
As the school break drew to a close, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally found a gap in his schedule to visit the grounds. He had intended to test Tatsuma and Minato's progress and teach them the Bringer-of-Darkness, but he stopped when he saw the unity of the group.
Behind him, the Sannin watched with satisfied smiles. Jiraiya, who had just returned to the village, felt the exhaustion of his travels lift slightly at the sight.
Hiruzen turned back. It wasn't the right time to show himself; he'd wait until school started again to find a private moment with the two. He looked at his three students.
"You three should get some rest, too. The mission to head deep into the Land of Rain and investigate Iwa's movements will be difficult. Danzo has been far too aggressive, and he's already drawn the ire of the Rain. Stay sharp. Your safety is the priority; request backup immediately if needed."
"But wouldn't that drive Hanzo to total fury?" Orochimaru asked, concerned.
Based on Jiraiya's intel, Iwa had already sent over a thousand ninjas into the Land of Rain. If a clash occurred, Konoha's reinforcement would have to be equally massive. To have such large-scale armies marching and fighting in his territory... Hanzo wouldn't just send formal protests and warnings anymore.
Hiruzen sighed. "To deter the Land of Earth, we may have to risk offending the Land of Rain. Besides, if Hanzo enters the war, he might help us push back Iwa—or at least discourage them from a full invasion."
"I understand, Sensei," Orochimaru nodded.
Hiruzen waved them off. "Of course, avoiding a conflict is best. if you can collect enough evidence without being discovered, we can simply hand it to the Rain and let Hanzo do the rest of the dirty work."
Orochimaru nodded again, his mind already calculating the most efficient way to execute the mission with the least amount of Konoha blood spilled.