· Instead of replying to Kushina’s complaint, Hideki Sato reached down, pulled away the long body pillow acting as their border, and slid closer to her side.
Feeling Hideki’s sudden, overwhelming proximity, Kushina’s face flushed an instant, brilliant crimson, causing her voice to tremble slightly.
“Hideki, you absolute idiot!
What do you think you’re doing?” “The blanket is only so long, and I was freezing out here too,” Hideki explained smoothly.
“If we take the pillow out of the equation, the blanket covers both of us perfectly.
We’re brothers, remember?
Don’t overthink it.” As he spoke, Hideki casually wrapped an arm around her.
Catching the indignant look forming on her face as she opened her mouth to protest, he quickly beat her to the punch.
“You know how I am.
I can’t sleep unless I’m hugging a plushie or a pillow.
There’s nothing weird about it between brothers.
Let’s just get some sleep.” With that final defense, Hideki closed his eyes.
Staring at his utterly shameless, sleeping expression, Kushina forcefully suppressed the violent urge to kick him clean off the mattress and shut her eyes as well.
She had originally intended to discuss what kind of training Tsunade might put them through tomorrow, but any desire for conversation had completely evaporated.
The next morning, Hideki slowly opened his eyes, immediately groaning as he rubbed his throbbing lower back.
Had he known it would end like this, he would have gladly chosen the hard living room sofa over sharing a bed with her.
Who could have guessed that the future Jinchuriki possessed such an atrocious, violent sleeping posture?
Over the course of a single night, Kushina had kicked him clean out of bed multiple times, nearly fracturing his spine in the process.
Glancing over at the soundly sleeping redhead, Hideki shook his head and quietly slipped out of the room.
“Well, look at you three!
So incredibly punctual.
I was honestly wondering if someone would show up late.” Tsunade stood before the trio, a brilliant, radiant smile plastered across her face.
“Even if you smile like a blooming flower, Sensei, it doesn’t change the fact that you’re late,” Hideki countered, fixing her with a flat, deadpan stare.
“It is currently past noon.
Didn’t we explicitly agree to meet at ten in the morning?” Tsunade reached out, aggressively ruffling Hideki’s neatly brushed hair into a chaotic mess.
“Haha!
Don’t get bogged down by minor details, kiddo.
I fully intended to arrive early today, but the sealing jutsu deployed by my duvet was simply too powerful.
Besides, if you keep making that sour face at such a young age, you’re going to have a terrifyingly hard time finding a girlfriend in the future.” With that smooth defusion, Tsunade guided the three Genin into a dense section of the forest adjacent to the Hokage Monument.
“Alright, let’s put the idle chatter behind us.
Since the timeline has shifted anyway…
let’s eat first!” True to her word, Tsunade was the first to claim her designated bento box, popping the lid open.
Eyeing the immaculate arrangement of the dishes inside, she couldn’t help but let out a genuine gasp of admiration.
“Incredible.
To possess this level of culinary mastery at your age…
it looks like our cell’s logistics and catering won’t be lacking in the slightest.” Hideki grabbed his own bento and claimed a spot on the grass right beside her.
“That’s nice to hear, but I recall hearing that when a new cell is officially formed, the Jonin commander usually treats their students to a massive feast at a restaurant.” “Haha!
About that…” Tsunade cleared her throat, rubbing the back of her neck.
“My liquidity is experiencing a temporary period of stagnation.
Mark my words, the moment my luck turns around at the tables, I won’t just buy you a single meal—I’ll sponsor your catering for an entire week without an issue.” With that lofty promise, Tsunade buried her face in her food.
She hadn’t consumed a single bite since waking up, having rushed out the door the moment she finished brushing her teeth, and her stomach had been protesting for an hour.
Staring down at the flawless execution of the meal before her, Mikoto felt an intense wave of defeat crash over her shoulders.
To be thoroughly outperformed in the kitchen by a boy…
my metrics as a proper lady have been utterly decimated.
However, the moment she took her first bite, the sheer quality of the flavor completely consumed her senses, causing her to entirely forget her brief existential crisis.
After patting her stomach in absolute satisfaction, Tsunade turned her amber eyes toward the three students sitting in front of her.
“Alright, today we will begin with a foundational exercise: tree climbing.
But don’t misunderstand—this isn’t the mundane climbing you’re used to.
We will be utilizing chakra to defy gravity.” Demonstrating her point, Tsunade casually walked toward a massive tree.
As if an invisible adhesive connected the soles of her sandals to the bark, she glided effortlessly up the vertical trunk, coming to a halt upside down beneath the canopy.
Just as Tsunade prepared to receive the breathless, worshipful stares of her young disciples, she looked down only to find Kushina already casually strolling up an adjacent trunk.
“What a letdown,” Kushina scoffed, crossing her arms as she balanced perfectly on a high branch.
“I thought we were going to learn some top-tier secret technique.
This is just a baseline chakra control drill.
Forget climbing trees—I mastered surface walking on water months ago.” Staring at the smug, boasting grin on the redhead’s face, Tsunade shifted her gaze downward to Hideki and Mikoto.
“I can do it too,” Hideki offered simply.
“My father ensured I mastered this before graduation,” Mikoto added politely.
Tsunade dropped down from the canopy, landing gracefully in the center of the clearing before pinching the bridge of her nose in mounting exhaustion.
Sometimes, having students who were excessively capable was a distinct disadvantage; it entirely robbed a teacher of their rightful sense of professional fulfillment.
She had fully intended to watch the three of them plummet out of the branches a few times so she could swoop in like a legendary savior to deliver her sage wisdom.
“Fine.
Since you’ve all mastered the baseline, go practice your respective individual techniques.
Hideki, follow me.” Though entirely perplexed by the sudden separation, Kushina and Mikoto nodded and split off into separate clearings to refine their respective elemental styles.
“Mikoto carries the ancestral legacy of the Uchiha, and Kushina receives direct instruction regarding the Uzumaki secret arts,” Tsunade noted, turning her sharp gaze onto the relaxed boy standing before her.
“So tell me, Hideki…
what is it you actually wish to learn from me?” As she stated, Mikoto required zero baseline intervention from a outsider, and Kushina’s progression was monitored directly by the living matriarch, Mito Uzumaki.
That left only Hideki Sato—a boy devoid of any prestigious clan background, operating entirely without external resources save for his anomalous Charmander.
“Sensei, I want to master medical ninjutsu.” Staring at the absolute seriousness written across Hideki’s features, Tsunade couldn’t help but feel a spike of genuine curiosity.
“Medical ninjutsu?
Usually, kids your age are entirely obsessed with flashy, destructive techniques that can level a battlefield.
What could possibly drive you to seek out the medical corps?
Don’t tell me it’s simply because of my reputation.” Faced with the prompt, Hideki answered without a fraction of hesitation.
“My baseline motivation for mastering medical ninjutsu is simple: to preserve the lives of my comrades.
That way, if Kushina or Mikoto ever bleed on the battlefield, I can intervene immediately to pull them back from the edge.” Sensing the complete absence of falsehood in his eyes, Tsunade’s gaze softened significantly, a rare warmth gracing her expression.
To master an art solely to safeguard others…
that isn’t the calculated doctrine of a standard shinobi, but I certainly don’t hate it.
“Very well,” Tsunade said, bringing a firm hand down on his shoulder.
“Report to my estate tomorrow morning.
Medical ninjutsu is an incredibly dense, punishing discipline; you will need to master an immense library of professional theoretical knowledge before you even touch a patient.” “Academics happen to be the easiest metric of my existence,” Hideki replied smoothly, a faint smirk playing on his lips.
“Do you know why I maintained a perfect hundred percent score on every single exam throughout my academy years, Sensei?” Intrigued, Tsunade tilted her head.
“Why?” ( End of Chapter )