Minato's Loving Lunch

Looks like I need to study Medical Ninjutsu and see whether I have any talent for it.

For Tsunade to overlook the fact that he was male and take him as her student, his only hope was to possess extraordinary talent in Medical Ninjutsu.

To become a medical ninja, one first needed extremely precise Chakra control.

Li Yao had no problem in that regard. Whether in terms of precision and finesse or sheer volume and intensity, his Chakra control was perfect.

Second, it was also important whether he could condense Medical Chakra capable of bringing a dead fish back to life.

Someone online in his previous life had said that Medical Chakra was a special kind of Chakra formed by refining the life aspect of Yang Release from non-elemental Chakra.

The key was whether he could refine Yang Release Chakra.

Li Yao did not know whether he could do that either.

Lastly came a flexible mind and the ability to understand and absorb medical knowledge.

In that respect, Li Yao should have had a slight advantage as an undergraduate pharmaceutical student in his previous life.

However, this world was different now, and much medical knowledge needed to be updated and adapted.

In short, I need to be prepared to persist for a long time.

No matter what, I have to learn Medical Ninjutsu, and I have to succeed in becoming Tsunade's student.

Li Yao quietly encouraged himself. Becoming Tsunade's student was not just about learning the Yin Seal and Medical Ninjutsu; joining the Hokage's line of masters and disciples was equally crucial.

In Konoha, if one wanted to become Hokage—

The key was not whether one could gain the support of the villagers.

The key was whether one belonged to the Third Hokage's line of masters and disciples.

Looking at the Hokage after the Third Hokage, whether it was Tsunade, Kakashi, or Naruto, all of them came from the Third Hokage's lineage.

Even Danzo, the acting Hokage, could in some sense be considered part of the Third Hokage's faction.

So setting aside all other reasons, the fact was that the position of Hokage had never escaped the crucial influence of the Third Hokage's lineage.

If Li Yao wanted to compete for the position of Hokage, he had to become Tsunade's student. Otherwise, he could not compete with Minato.

Ding...

As the dismissal bell rang, the morning's first Chakra refinement class came to an end.

The quiet classroom instantly turned into a sea of excitement.

For restless five- and six-year-old brats, a Chakra refinement class where they could neither speak nor move was torturous.

The moment class ended, everyone eagerly stood up and interacted with others.

Only Li Yao remained immersed in the joy of refining Chakra.

After all, the exhilarating sense of power brought by the constant replenishment of Chakra within his body was simply too stimulating to stop, drawing him ever deeper into it.

Yao...!

Minato murmured inwardly, the corner of his eye fixed on his friend as his expression gradually turned colder.

The longer he observed, the more certain he became that something was wrong with his friend.

His friend's Chakra was still increasing rapidly.

That meant his friend was still refining Chakra. This refinement speed, far beyond ordinary people, was not something his friend had possessed before.

Moreover, refining Chakra was mentally draining.

After a typical class, one's concentration would begin to falter, and the speed of Chakra refinement would slow.

Even for him, after focusing on Chakra refinement for an entire class, his refinement speed would decline if he continued. It simply did not decline as much as it did for others.

But according to his senses, his friend's Chakra generation speed had not changed at all. It had maintained the same rate of increase from the very beginning.

Such powerful mental focus could not belong to his friend.

Who is it?

Or what exactly happened?

Minato pondered inwardly. Even now, he could not determine whether something had happened to his friend himself or whether someone else had taken control of him.

"Kimura Yao, stop. Chakra refinement class is over."

The ninja instructor came to Li Yao's side and reminded him with a frown, "Continuing to refine Chakra will harm your body and mind."

He understood that the child wanted to grow stronger because of what had happened to his parents.

But excessive mental exertion while refining Chakra would harm both body and mind. In severe cases, it could even cause permanent damage.

That would not be worth it.

Hearing someone call Kimura Yao's name, Li Yao opened his eyes. Only when he saw his classmates staring at him curiously and the stern-faced teacher looking at him did he realize that the first Chakra refinement class had ended.

Not wanting to appear too unusual, Li Yao immediately lowered his head and apologized to the ninja instructor. "Sorry, Sensei. It won't happen again."

"Don't rush. Reasonable effort is the fastest way to improve your strength." The teacher nodded, offered a few words of encouragement, then turned and walked away.

"Yes, Sensei!"

Li Yao nodded along and watched the teacher leave, inwardly letting out a sigh of relief.

He was still somewhat worried about interacting too much with others, especially adult ninja.

"Yao, you were much more focused on refining Chakra today than before." Minato still wore his gentle smile, his tone carrying casual curiosity as he subtly probed Li Yao.

Li Yao did not think much of it and casually smiled. "If I want to become Hokage, of course I need to work hard to become better."

Minato smiled in response. "Then I need to work even harder too."

"Together."

"Together."

The two smiled at each other, looking just like a pair of inseparable best friends.

The ten-minute break quickly passed. Minato did not probe Li Yao any further, and Li Yao was happy with that, sensing nothing amiss.

It could only be said that Minato's face full of sincere, gentle smiles made it far too easy for others to trust him.

The second class was the Will of Fire class. Everyone received a copy of the Will of Fire book, and the lesson was about the Will of Fire.

But by the end of the class, Li Yao felt more as though he had attended the Third Hokage's personal autobiography class.

That was because the Will of Fire book was filled entirely with the Third Hokage's deeds from childhood to adulthood.

In other words, the Will of Fire was explained through the Third Hokage's life story.

To a certain extent, the Will of Fire was the Third Hokage's will.

No wonder the Third Hokage was known in the original story as the strongest Hokage in Konoha.

Li Yao sighed inwardly. This was like directly putting his own will into material required for the college entrance exams. It would be impossible for people not to acknowledge his title as the strongest Hokage.

At the same time, it could subtly elevate the Third Hokage's prestige among Konoha's many ninja and civilians.

The Third Hokage truly deserved to be called the Hokage with the sharpest political mind.

This move... is good. I need to remember it.

Li Yao chuckled inwardly and decided that in the future, he too would write a Will of Fire book of his own, so that everyone in Konoha would inherit his Will of Fire.

After the Will of Fire class, the third class was Ninja Tools theory.

It mainly introduced the various Ninja Tools used in the ninja world, their applications, and the related tactics and techniques.

Today's lesson covered the Five Great Hidden Villages' use of kunai combined with elastic steel wire and springs to create kunai traps, as well as Explosive Tags arranged into related tactical formations.

It was taught in great detail, even taking factors such as the geography and climate of the Five Great Nations into account.

Li Yao approached it with even more seriousness than he had shown during his senior year of high school in his previous life, eagerly absorbing the knowledge the ninja instructor imparted from the podium.

After all, this knowledge might save his life in the future.

He could not afford to take it lightly.

Ninja Tools theory was relatively long. Once it ended, there were no more classes, and it was time for the lunch break.

Lunch break was spent at school rather than at home, much like most schools in his previous life.

They generally came to school in the morning and did not return home until classes ended in the afternoon.

"Yao, let's eat together."

Minato took out his large lunchbox, opened it, and invited his friend to have lunch with him.

"This... wouldn't that be inappropriate?" Li Yao put on a reserved act.

Only now did he realize that he seemed to be the only person in the class without a lunchbox. Everyone else had brought lunch.

It was not entirely his fault. These past few days, he had been caught up in the tension and panic of arriving in an unfamiliar world.

Moreover, he had never had the habit of preparing a lunchbox for himself in his previous life.

So when he came to class that morning, he had brought only himself.

"Let's eat together. I specifically brought enough for two." Minato smiled and handed Li Yao a pair of chopsticks.

Seeing the two pairs of chopsticks that had already been prepared inside the lunchbox, Li Yao instantly understood that Minato had genuinely prepared lunch for him in advance.

At that moment, the conversation of several girls in the class also confirmed that Li Yao was right.

"So that's why!"

"No wonder Minato has been bringing such a big lunchbox these past few days. It was for Yao."

"Minato is so gentle and so cool!"

The girls were captivated by Minato's charm, their eyes sparkling.

"It seems Minato started... bringing the big lunchbox then."

Someone noticed that Minato had begun bringing the lunchbox on the day news arrived that Kimura Yao's parents had died. Combined with the scene before them, they all understood why Minato had carried that large lunchbox these past few days.

It was to make sure that Kimura Yao would have food on a day like today, when he did not bring a lunchbox.

Why would Kimura Yao not bring one?

Because Kimura Yao, whose parents had both died and who had no other relatives to help him, surely would not prepare a lunchbox for himself.

At such a young age, Minato was already so thoughtful and attentive toward others. How could people not admire him?

"It's wonderful to have a friend like Minato!"

Someone looked at Li Yao with envy, clearly yearning for the friendship between Minato and Kimura Yao.

Hearing this, Li Yao understood everything and was deeply moved. He looked at Minato with sincere eyes and said heavily, his voice filled with heartfelt gratitude, "Thank you, Minato."

After speaking, Li Yao accepted the chopsticks in Minato's hand. Minato smiled and said, "We're friends, aren't we?"

Li Yao nodded firmly. "Yes, we're friends."

At the same time, Li Yao repeated firmly in his heart, Yes, we're friends. The ending of the future Nine-Tails' Rampage must never happen again. I swear, I absolutely won't let that traitor Obito succeed.

Minato's thoughtfulness had truly moved Li Yao. He was the kind of true friend to whom one could entrust one's back and one's life.

Li Yao cherished this friendship deeply.

He had to grow stronger and change everything.

"Eat."

Minato pushed the opened lunchbox between them. There was not the slightest abnormality in his expression, and his smile was as warm as ever.

Li Yao was immersed in his emotion and did not notice that the lunchbox contained sashimi sushi rice balls. He picked one up with his chopsticks and put it into his mouth.

In an instant, the fishy taste of raw fish, combined with the strong sour vinegar flavor, assaulted Li Yao's tongue and senses.

Or rather, it abruptly awakened the unpleasant memories from his previous life, when he hated sashimi and sour vinegar.

Li Yao immediately furrowed his brows slightly, his throat itching as he wanted to spit it out.

Fortunately, he held it in at the crucial moment and forcibly swallowed it.