“So the Chunin Exams actually started with this generation.
Makes sense, with seed candidates on the level of the Sannin, there’s simply no better time for it!”
Tatsukaze pondered slightly: “So, what’s your real purpose for coming here?”
Hiruzen’s eyes widened.
“How did you know I had another purpose?”
“Bullshit!
Even though you aren’t swamped with work, the village wouldn’t just dispatch someone of your status to deliver a simple message.” Tatsukaze scoffed.
“Spit it out, otherwise I’m not going to bother with you anymore.
I’m a very busy man!”
Hiruzen stared with wide eyes.
No matter how he looked at it, this guy lazily slouched in an armchair with a ‘reading material’ in hand didn’t look busy in the slightest.
“Alright, but let me make this clear beforehand: this is Lord Second’s suggestion.
I’m merely the messenger, so don’t get mad at me.”
Hiruzen took a deep breath and spoke calmly.
“Lord Second considered that Konoha’s new generation doesn’t have enough powerhouses to form a sufficient deterrent against other villages.
Therefore, he suggested forming a squad consisting of my disciples, Orochimaru and Jiraiya, alongside your disciple, Tsunade.”
“Of course, the public justification would be that their teacher is the same person, so—”
But before Hiruzen could finish his sentence, Tatsukaze suddenly leaped up and cursed loudly.
“Are you fucking kidding me?!
Is that old geezer Tobirama trying to steal my disciple?!
No!
Not even if I die!”
“Lord Second only made this suggestion out of consideration for the village’s bigger picture.” Hiruzen said urgently, “After all, if we can’t present absolute strength to deter the other villages, things will get very troublesome.”
“Then let me ask you, who exactly would be considered the teacher of these three?” Tatsukaze demanded, his expression turning downright nasty.
Hiruzen’s face stiffened slightly, but he ultimately replied, “It would be me.”
“In other words, I’ve painstakingly imparted everything I have to Tsunade, but in the end, the title of her Master goes to you, is that right?!” Tatsukaze suppressed his inner fury and growled in a low voice.
In a mere instant, the surrounding air completely froze.
The killing intent surged violently, chilling to the bone.
Stared down by Tatsukaze’s tiger-like glare, Hiruzen felt as if he were a helpless little frog targeted by a highly venomous cobra, shivering all over.
Hiruzen’s expression changed drastically.
Under this murderous aura, his heart actually trembled a little, and his blood pumped inexplicably faster.
He hurriedly shouted:
“Tatsukaze, calm down!
Lord Second only made a suggestion, it’s not an order!
No one is trying to snatch your disciple away from you!”
“Whoever dares to try, I’ll fucking slaughter them!”
The chilling killing intent radiating from him boiled like a raging tidal wave, rolling and surging to form an invisible, terrifying pressure field that struck fear into anyone who saw it.
Fury filled Tatsukaze’s chest; the flames of anger burned fiercely within him, constantly accumulating and expanding.
It made his entire body’s blood boil, as if he were going to spontaneously combust from the inside out.
“Hiruzen, don’t force me to kill someone!”
That single, ice-cold sentence made Hiruzen feel as if he had plunged into a bottomless abyss.
‘As expected, this is his absolute taboo,’ Hiruzen thought to himself.
Originally, he supported putting Tsunade under his name, not just for the sake of the village, but also out of his own selfish desires.
He was completely unwilling to accept his loss to Tatsukaze back then!
‘It was just a momentary slip-up, I just couldn’t bear to strike hard, I just…’
How could he possibly be willing to accept it!
Even Hiruzen Sarutobi was not without his selfish motives!
‘No wonder Lord Second cautioned me so heavily before I left and specifically sent me to deliver the message.
If he had just dispatched an ordinary ninja, would they have been instantly murdered by an enraged Tatsukaze?’
Hiruzen’s heart skipped a beat.
If Tatsukaze really murdered Lord Second’s messenger, there would be absolutely no coming back from it.
“Don’t be so tense, no one would dare force you.
After all, you’re the man who single-handedly annihilated the Daimyo’s guardian samurai,” Hiruzen forced a relaxed smile.
“Relax.
If you don’t agree with this proposal, there’s another way.”
Taking a deep breath, a trace of reluctance flashed across Hiruzen’s face.
“If you refuse to let Tsunade be placed under my name, then we will place Orochimaru and Jiraiya under your name instead.”
Hearing this, Tatsukaze’s killing intent involuntarily dissipated slightly.
Regardless of anything else, Hiruzen was someone completely devoted to Konoha.
Tatsukaze was ready to commit murder just at the thought of losing Tsunade, yet here was Hiruzen, giving up two of his own disciples while still putting on a brave smile.
“It’s perfect, actually.
Didn’t you say your disciples would be invincible within the same rank and capable of defeating higher-ranked opponents?
Giving these two to you works out well; the more talents, the better.”
Hiruzen didn’t even know how he managed to say those words.
His heart felt as if it were bleeding, but he maintained his forced smile, patting Tatsukaze on the shoulder.
“As long as they form a squad, it’s fine.
It doesn’t matter whose name they technically fall under.”
Seeing his painfully forced smile, it was obvious how much it hurt him inside.
Tatsukaze remained silent, a slight shift appearing in his eyes.
‘However, I can’t accept Jiraiya and Orochimaru. Visit g.com for the full chapter.
The System won’t even allow me to take in anyone other than female students anyway, and besides—’
Tatsukaze looked up, staring straight into Hiruzen’s eyes, making Hiruzen subconsciously avert his gaze.
“Hiruzen, doesn’t it break your heart doing this?”
“How could it?
From how Tsunade turned out, it’s obvious you have a real knack for teaching.
Why would I…
why would I…”
As he spoke, he couldn’t continue anymore, merely lowering his head.
Hiruzen was a man who deeply valued emotional bonds.
The weight of the master-disciple relationship was immense in his heart—so immense that even when Orochimaru defected in the future, he couldn’t bear to kill him.
But Konoha was even more important in Hiruzen’s heart!
‘Perhaps the Konoha in Hiruzen’s heart is just like the students in mine,’ Tatsukaze thought, before suddenly letting out a laugh.
“Hiruzen, let’s do this.”
“Hm?” Hiruzen looked up in surprise.
“Go back and tell Lord Second: what does a measly little Chunin Exam amount to?
Can’t he have a little faith in the quality of your teaching and mine?”
Tatsukaze snorted and held his head high.
“So what if a three-man squad becomes a two-man squad?
If we lack numbers, we’ll just make up for it with absolute quality!
If we make our students capable of fighting ten opponents each, wouldn’t we instantly have the numerical advantage?”
Hearing this, Hiruzen didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, but his body immediately relaxed.
“Sigh, you always have your twisted logic.”
Tatsukaze ignored Hiruzen.
Slapping his thigh, he chased after him with a displeased tone.
“Oh, right, Hiruzen, I’m giving you a mission.
Go back and heavily criticize that old geezer for me!
Why can’t he just give us some peace of mind?!
It’s so frustrating—does he think educating a student is easy?
Tell him to stop stirring up all this random bullshit day after day!”
Hiruzen shuddered violently at the thought.
Imagining Lord Second’s livid face, he said shakily, “Tatsukaze…
you expect me to say that to him?”
“When the master is troubled, the disciple labors; when the master is humiliated, the disciple dies.
Have you forgotten what I taught you before?”
Hearing this, Hiruzen burst into metaphorical tears.