In the blink of an eye, more than a year had passed, and Uzumaki Rin was now five years old.
Although he had mastered the Strength of a Hundred Seal in just two months, he still stayed at Tsunade's house for over a year. Since the Second Great Ninja War had ended, Tsunade had nothing to do, so she took him along everywhere—sometimes even dragging him along to gamble.
(It's worth mentioning that because of Rin's presence, after Nawaki's death, Tsunade redirected her affection for her younger brother onto him. Dan had come to see Tsunade many times during that period, but Rin had always managed to disrupt things. Eventually, Dan died on the battlefield, and Tsunade didn't seem particularly affected.)
As for why she didn't let Rin leave, her reason was simple—this human-shaped pillow was too comfortable. Holding him while sleeping made her feel at ease. The worst part was that Kushina would sometimes come over to fight Tsunade for the right to "possess" him. It was truly miserable.
So over the past year, Rin hadn't learned much in terms of regular ninjutsu, but he had picked up quite a bit of medical ninjutsu and sealing techniques. The only offensive technique he truly mastered was the Rasengan. Of course, if the Strength of a Hundred Seal's monstrous strength counted, then that made two.
But today, he was finally free.
Because he had turned five.
It was time to enroll in the Ninja Academy.
Under the escort of the two "queens," Tsunade and Kushina, Uzumaki Rin swaggered toward the academy gates like a boss, walking with an exaggerated, arrogant gait.
At this moment, he couldn't have looked more overbearing—he practically wanted to strut sideways.
After all, with Tsunade and Kushina backing him in Konoha, forget a mere academy—even the Hokage's office wasn't off-limits if he felt like causing trouble.
"Rin, don't be so arrogant. Be careful or someone might beat you up," Tsunade said, rubbing her forehead as she saw his expression of "this place is mine now."
"Tch… these brats want to beat me? I can take on eight of them by myself," Rin said disdainfully, completely ignoring the angry glares from the surrounding children.
Just as Tsunade was about to lecture him, she suddenly noticed someone standing nearby with a child.
"Rin, see that boy? His name is Kakashi Hatake. If you want to dominate the academy, you'll have to defeat him first," Tsunade said with a smile.
Even without her introduction, Rin had already noticed Kakashi—and his father, Sakumo Hatake.
Based on his memories, if Kakashi was enrolling now, that meant he was five years old this year—same as him. By the end of the year, Kakashi would apply for graduation, setting the record as the youngest graduate at age five. The following year, he would become a Chunin. And the year after that, when Kakashi was seven, his father—the White Fang—would commit suicide.
Bang!
"Ow!"
While Rin was thinking, Tsunade smacked him on the head, making him wince.
"What are you spacing out for? Greet them," Tsunade scolded.
"Hello, Uncle White Fang," Rin said, holding his head as he greeted Sakumo Hatake.
"…"
The three adults fell silent.
Bang!
"Why did you hit me again? I already greeted him!"
"You should call him Uncle Sakumo, not Uncle White Fang!"
"…You didn't tell me that."
Seeing Tsunade scolding Rin, Sakumo Hatake wiped a drop of cold sweat from his forehead and quickly stepped in.
"Princess Tsunade, it's fine however Rin addresses me. Please don't scold him."
After that, Sakumo introduced Kakashi and had him greet everyone. The adults began chatting among themselves, with Kushina occasionally joining in.
Meanwhile, Rin and Kakashi stared at each other.
The Hatake family had strict upbringing, so although Kakashi was clearly irritated by Rin's stare, he didn't say anything.
"You're Kakashi Hatake—the so-called super genius?" Rin finally spoke.
Kakashi raised an eyebrow but remained silent, clearly a bit proud.
But the next moment, his expression froze.
"But geniuses like you? I can take on eight of you alone. So from now on, you can call yourself a genius—but I'm the super genius. Got it?" Rin said smugly.
"I challenge you to a duel," Kakashi snapped. Despite his composure, he was still just a child.
"I won't fight you," Rin replied indifferently.
"You're scared. Coward," Kakashi sneered.
"I'm afraid I'll beat you so badly you won't be able to take care of yourself. When I go all out, even I'm scared of myself," Rin said, gazing up at a 45-degree angle.
Their conversation left Tsunade, Kushina, and Sakumo completely speechless.
Soon, a teacher from the academy came out. Rin and the still-fuming Kakashi entered the school, waiting to be assigned to classes.
"Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, Kakashi Hatake, Obito Uchiha, Rin Nohara, Izumo Kamizuki, Kotetsu Hagane, Genma Shiranui, Ebisu, Uzumaki Rin… Students whose names have been called, gather here," a Chunin instructor announced after reading from a scroll.
Looking at the group of children—future key figures of Konoha, the gate-guard duo, and even a future major antagonist—Rin found it all extremely amusing.
He even decided that tomorrow, he would bring a camera to record all their embarrassing childhood moments.
When they grew up and became Konoha's pillars, he could pull out those photos. At that time, he probably wouldn't have to pay for barbecue ever again—just one meal from each of them could last him over a week.
"Uzumaki Rin and Uchiha Obito, are you here? Hurry up and gather!" the Chunin instructor called out again, interrupting his thoughts.
"I'm here," Rin replied, quickly running over.
But as soon as he joined the group, the other children began whispering while looking at him.
"Red hair… that's weird."
"He's so small. He looks like he's only two or three. Is he really starting school already?"
"Did he not grow properly? Why is he so tiny?"
"Being sent to school this young… how pitiful."
"Does he have some kind of illness? Better stay away from him."
Hearing their whispers, Rin's face darkened.
It was true—he was shorter than everyone else, looking like he was barely three or four.
But it wasn't his fault!
Ever since fusing with the long-lived tree, his cellular activity had become absurdly high. While ordinary people lost about 100,000 cells a day, he only lost ten.
This meant his lifespan would be incredibly long—but his growth would also be extremely slow. While others matured in their teens, he might take decades.
The difference was enormous.
No, this won't do. Tonight, I have to find Tsunade and get her to speed up her research on controlling cell division. Otherwise, at this rate, everyone else will grow old while I'm still a kid.
But right now, Rin had something more important to do—
He needed to make everyone fear him.
Otherwise, the nickname "shorty" would stick with him forever.
"Shut up, all of you. Say one more word, and don't blame me for losing my temper."
With that, he gathered all his chakra into his right foot and stomped down with explosive force.
Boom!!!
A violent tremor spread instantly.
Everyone around him lost their balance and fell.
Cracks like a spiderweb spread outward from where his foot struck, fracturing the ground across a radius of more than ten meters.
[ New Book Please Send Power Stones And Add To Collection]