Hiruzen Sarutobi was stunned.
A little girl?
He breathed a sigh of relief.
The Nine-Tails hadn’t gone on a rampage, so the situation was still manageable.
However, he remained puzzled.
“A little girl? What happened? Why would Minato bring a child to meet Kushina?”
The ANBU operative replied, “It appears… that Jōnin Minato accepted the girl as his student and specifically brought her there to introduce them.”
Hiruzen was slightly surprised.
“Minato is still so young, yet he has already accepted a student?”
More importantly, Minato’s identity was rather sensitive.
Ever since Jiraiya had accepted him as a student, Minato had been considered part of the Hokage’s direct line of disciples.
He couldn’t choose his own student carelessly.
Only someone with a verifiable background, loyalty to Konoha, and sufficient talent would qualify.
However, now that Minato had already accepted her, Hiruzen couldn’t object without learning more.
He sighed.
“I originally intended to wait several more years until Minato was older before assigning him as a jōnin squad leader. I didn’t expect him to accept a student on his own.”
“Never mind. Investigate the girl’s background. I want to see all the information about her tomorrow.”
The ANBU operative respectfully replied, “Yes, Lord Third Hokage.”
Hiruzen waved a hand, worry visible in his eyes.
“You may leave. Most importantly, continue monitoring the Nine-Tails’ jinchūriki closely. Even if the Nine-Tails breaks free, we must minimize the casualties.”
The ANBU operative replied, “Yes.”
He then disappeared without hesitation.
Hiruzen clasped his hands behind his back and began pacing outside his residence.
The Second Shinobi World War was nearly over.
Konoha had achieved victory, and the village had finally regained peace and stability.
Hiruzen could only hope that the next great war wouldn’t begin anytime soon.
Most importantly, the new Nine-Tails jinchūriki needed to stabilize.
Once she did, Konoha would possess another powerful strategic asset…
Meanwhile, Rin reached the small forest and found Obito, which made him extremely excited.
The two trained together for a while.
Once they became tired, they lay beneath a tree and talked while catching their breath.
Rin remembered the name “Itachi,” which the young Uchiha girl had called out inside the notebook’s scenario, and curiously asked: The source of this chapter is novelping.com.
“Obito, is there anyone named Itachi in your clan?”
The young girl with the three-tomoe Sharingan had been instantly subdued by the powerful Masked Man, yet she had still cried, “Itachi, save me!” This suggested that Itachi must also have been extremely powerful.
If Rin could confirm Itachi’s identity, she might be able to understand at least some of what was happening.
However, confusion appeared in Obito’s eyes.
“Itachi? I’ve never heard that name before.”
After a brief pause, Obito said, “Clan Head Fugaku has been treating me much better recently. If you want to learn about the young man with tear troughs you mentioned before—and this person named Itachi—I can ask him.”
Rin smiled.
“This is very important to me, Obito. I’m counting on you.”
Rin suddenly realized that she had troubled both Kakashi and Obito while searching for information.
Fortunately, they were close friends.
Otherwise, asking so much of them would have been embarrassing.
Obito, however, firmly replied, “Since you asked me, Rin, I’ll remember. I won’t forget.”
Rin giggled.
“Obito, it’s already late. Let’s go home.”
Obito nodded.
“Rin, I’ll walk you home.”
Rin initially wanted to refuse, but since she knew it would make Obito happy, she replied, “All right.”
Thus, the two walked home together.
When Rin arrived home, she saw her parents sitting together and apparently discussing something.
She said, “Dad, Mom, I’m home.”
Their conversation immediately stopped.
Haruki Nohara walked over with a stern expression.
“Rin, tell me honestly. You’ve been returning home very late for the past several days. Who have you been spending time with?”
Rin looked confused.
“Obito, of course. Who else would it be?”
Haruki knew that Rin wouldn’t lie, so he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
“Oh, Obito. That’s good.”
However, he quickly became cautious again.
“Aside from Obito, you haven’t been spending time with some older blond boy, have you?”
A blond boy?
Rin immediately thought of Minato-sensei.
She said, “There was someone like that. I didn’t expect you to know about him, Father. When he has time, I’ll ask him to visit us properly.”
“There really is an older blond boy? And your relationship has already reached the point of a formal visit?”
Rin assumed that her father was talking about her apprenticeship.
Minato-sensei had become a jōnin at an exceptionally young age, so she proudly asked, “Father, aren’t you proud of your daughter?”
Haruki froze, and a gloomy aura seemed to gather around him.
Even Mrs.
Nohara, who had been sitting nearby, could no longer remain still.
She immediately stood, approached Rin, and sternly asked, “Rin, who is he?”
Rin smiled.
“My teacher’s full name is Minato Namikaze. Since I’ve become his student, he should naturally visit and formally introduce himself.”
The Nohara couple froze.
Haruki repeated, “Your teacher?”
Rin looked at him in confusion.
“Father, didn’t you know that I became Minato-sensei’s student? Minato-sensei is amazing. He’s already a jōnin despite being so young, and his girlfriend… is also very gentle.”
Rin told a small lie in the last sentence, although it wasn’t entirely false.
Kushina really had been very gentle with her.
Both of Rin’s parents simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief.
Rin was baffled and asked, “Dad, Mom, why are you reacting so strongly?”
Haruki gave his wife a slightly resentful look before awkwardly replying, “Haha, it’s nothing, Rin. We were only asking. It’s already late, so you should get some rest.”
Rin had experienced a great deal that day and felt exhausted, especially mentally.
She said, “Then I’ll return to my room. Good night.”
After saying that, Rin walked back to her bedroom.
Mrs.
Nohara watched Rin disappear and murmured, “So she wasn’t being deceived by some older blond boy. She merely became his student. He also has a girlfriend, so it should be safe.”
Haruki said, “It isn’t completely safe. We still need to be cautious of Obito Uchiha. In my opinion, Kakashi Hatake would make the best future son-in-law. I hope Rin develops a good relationship with him. If Lord Sakumo becomes Hokage, then wouldn’t we…”
Before Haruki could finish, Mrs.
Nohara pinched him.
“How old is Rin? What are you thinking? And don’t interfere with our daughter’s happiness! How many times have I told you that?”
Haruki finally came back to his senses and sighed.
“You’re right. We shouldn’t interfere too much. Rin might become a shinobi in the future, accept dangerous missions, or even be sent to the battlefield.”
“Who knows what might happen one day? Perhaps it’s better if she lives without leaving any regrets.”
As a result, Mrs.
Nohara pinched her husband again.
“Stop talking as though something terrible is destined to happen to Rin. Our daughter will be perfectly fine. She’ll live a long and happy life.”