The medical ninja training class did not follow the same vacation schedule as the Ninja Academy.
After lunch, Yakushi Nono went back to class.
Natsuki returned to the Konoha Orphanage and checked with Director Mayu to confirm that no Root ninja had shown up.
Only then did he finally relax.
Given Shimura Danzo’s personality, once he learned that Natsuki had defeated Minato Namikaze, he was bound to come knocking and try to drag him into Root.
Now that nothing had happened, there was only one explanation: Hiruzen Sarutobi had stopped him.
Thinking about it carefully, that made sense.
The current Hiruzen Sarutobi wasn’t yet the overly indulgent Third Hokage from the original story who let Danzo get away with far too much.
Of course, Danzo wouldn’t give up that easily.
There wasn’t much Natsuki could do about that.
All he could do was get stronger as quickly as possible.
He quickly settled on a training plan for the break.
Study practice questions in the morning, tree-climbing training in the afternoon.
The next day arrived.
After escorting Yakushi Nono to Konoha Hospital, Natsuki headed for the nearby training ground.
What surprised him, though, was that it wasn’t just Tsunade and Nawaki there.
There was also a girl he hadn’t expected.
She looked about the same age as him, with a slightly round face and bright red hair.
“Natsuki, let me introduce you.
This is Uzumaki Kushina,” Tsunade said on her own initiative.
“She’ll be transferring into your class next term.”
So it really is her, Natsuki thought.
The moment he saw that red hair, he had already guessed it was Uzumaki Kushina.
“H-Hi.
I’m Uzumaki Kushina,” Kushina said, sounding a little stiff.
At this point, she still wasn’t the fiery Red-Hot Habanero from later on.
Honestly, the only reason she even got that nickname in the first place was because she fought back in anger after being bullied by her classmates.
“I’m Natsuki.
Nice to meet you.”
Natsuki nodded.
“I brought wooden training weapons for you,” Tsunade said, crouching down as she opened a storage summoning scroll and took out a pile of practice gear.
Even though she was there and could heal Natsuki or Nawaki immediately if anything happened, avoiding injuries altogether was obviously better.
Natsuki glanced down instinctively.
He was standing close, and Tsunade wasn’t wearing her jonin flak jacket today, so he caught a glimpse of a pale curve of skin.
It still wasn’t anywhere near the overwhelming scale she had in the original story, but the signs were already there.
“Natsuki, please take care of me.”
Nawaki grinned as he formed the Seal of Opposition.
“Go easy on me, Nawaki-senpai.”
Natsuki took a wooden practice sword from Tsunade.
In the original story, Nawaki’s entire role could basically be summed up in one sentence: he got blown up by explosive tags at age twelve.
How talented he really was, and what jutsu he knew, were all basically unknown.
Both the Senju and Uzumaki clans were famous for massive chakra reserves.
Kushina watched the two of them, curiosity written all over her face.
She had only just arrived in Konoha and didn’t know much about Natsuki, but she knew a little about Nawaki.
She knew he was considered a genius among geniuses.
“Careful!”
Nawaki gave a warning, then instantly closed the distance.
He threw a punch that seemed to tear through the air.
The word Body Flicker flashed through Natsuki’s mind.
He didn’t have time to dodge, so he could only raise his sword and block with the flat of the blade.
Bang!
A huge force slammed into him.
Natsuki felt his right hand go numb around the hilt.
He glanced down and saw that the wooden practice sword had already cracked.
There was no time to think.
His right leg shot out like lightning toward Nawaki.
Nawaki reacted immediately, lifting his own right leg.
Their legs collided, and both of them shuddered.
Nawaki lost control of his footing and took a step back, surprise flashing across his face.
He had trained in taijutsu under Tsunade since childhood and had always believed that no one his age could surpass him in hand-to-hand combat.
But Natsuki’s Golden Right Leg had just made him lose out a little.
Still, that was all.
Nawaki rushed in again, his right fist carrying frightening power.
Reinforcement Magecraft!
A surge of chakra flowed into Natsuki’s legs.
His speed spiked in an instant, and he opened up the distance between them.
One-Sword Style: 36 Pound Phoenix!
Natsuki’s gaze sharpened, and his sword became a blur in his hands.
Nawaki instantly sensed danger.
He slammed to a stop and formed hand seals on the spot.
A wall of water rose in front of him.
In the next second, a visible blue sword wave crashed into the water wall.
Boom!
A violent explosion of sound erupted.
The water wall was blown open with a massive hole through the middle.
“What kind of sword technique is that?!”
Nawaki still felt a chill of fear lingering in his chest.
Luckily, he had used Water Release: Water Formation Wall in time.
If that slash had landed on him directly, it would have punched a bloody hole right through him.
Even Tsunade, watching from the side, showed clear shock.
The power displayed by One-Sword Style: 36 Pound Phoenix was already no weaker than an ordinary B-rank jutsu.
“S-So strong!”
Kushina blurted out.
“I call it One-Sword Style Swordsmanship,” Natsuki answered, catching his breath.
He didn’t have Zoro’s terrifying physical stamina, so the only way he could use 36 Pound Phoenix was by pumping chakra into it.
And that single slash had already burned through a third of his chakra.
There was no helping it.
He was still too young, and he didn’t have any special bloodline, so his chakra reserves were very limited.
“No wonder Minato lost to you,” Nawaki said with genuine amazement.
“With my chakra, I can still use one more sword technique.”
Natsuki tightened his grip on the sword and raised it vertically in front of him.
Seeing that, Nawaki’s expression turned serious.
He immediately formed hand seals and used the strongest Water Release jutsu he currently knew.
Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!
A massive water dragon roared as it surged forward.
Normally, Water Dragon Bullet required forty-four hand seals, but Nawaki’s version only used four.
That was because he had learned the improved version created by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama.
At that exact moment, a sharp whistling sound cut through the air.
One-Sword Style Iaijutsu: Lion’s Song!
Natsuki turned into a streak of sword-light and split the water dragon in half.
Water exploded everywhere.
Nawaki’s eyes widened.
That streak of light had weakened considerably, but it hadn’t vanished.
It was still coming straight at him.
At the critical moment, he raised both arms and crossed them in front of his body.
The light stopped abruptly, revealing Natsuki.
Nawaki felt a burst of pain in both arms.
But in the end, he had blocked the strike.
“I surrender,” Natsuki said without hesitation.
One reason was that he was already running low on chakra.
The other was that he had already used his two strongest sword techniques.
If the fight continued, he would definitely lose.
It was better to surrender now while he still held the upper hand and keep some dignity.
“You…”
Nawaki opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn’t know what to say.
He had won, technically, but it hadn’t been easy at all.
And Natsuki was still two years younger than him.
If they had been the same age—if Natsuki had more chakra and more refined swordsmanship—then the one losing would probably have been him.
“That’s some astonishing talent with the sword,” Tsunade said, unable to hide her praise.
At the same time, a new idea formed in her mind.
Natsuki would make an excellent teammate for Nawaki.
Looks like I should find a chance to talk to Orochimaru, she thought, and have him take Natsuki and Nawaki as his students.
Then, if Yakushi Nono were added too, they could form an almost perfect ninja squad.