You Have to Compensate Me!

After the Third Hokage finished speaking, he waved a hand and left. The plan had been disrupted because of Hiko. Now, the Third Hokage had to redraw the training plans for Hiko, Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru—especially Hiko!

The Third Hokage believed that with proper training, Hiko would become one of Konoha's pillars within a few years. He believed Hiko could do it.

It was just that some of the plans he had made before needed to be revised or discarded.

"Follow Uchiha Hiko. Don't let anyone disturb him, not even members of the Uchiha Clan."

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

The Third Hokage left, but the Anbu remained behind. From this day on, Hiko would essentially become one of their key targets for surveillance, with even more attention than the others received.

Hiko had awakened the Sharingan before he was Six Years Old. The Third Hokage had no choice but to take this seriously. If this news got out, it would certainly cause an uproar. The Uchiha Clan had actually produced such a monster.

At Six Years Old, even Uchiha Madara, the Uchiha Clan member known as the Asura of Slaughter, had failed to awaken the Sharingan. Yet Hiko had done it.

"Uchiha Hiko!!!"

As soon as the Third Hokage left, Tsunade's arm gradually began to recover. She puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction, glared at Hiko, and shouted, "I treated you as a friend, yet you hid yourself so deeply!!!"

"Exactly!! You even had us watch you train. Were you trying to secretly widen the gap in strength between us!!!"

Jiraiya, his face flushed red and covered in wounds, joined in as well.

Of the three, Jiraiya had suffered the most serious injuries. His face was covered in tiny cuts. They were not severe, but even the slightest movement made him grimace in pain. It would take several days for him to recover.

Orochimaru frowned and stared intently at Hiko, unable to believe that Hiko had already awakened the Sharingan!!!

Moreover, Hiko's combat awareness, Taijutsu, and flexible use of Ninjutsu had exceeded Orochimaru's expectations. It was difficult for Orochimaru, who had always been called a genius, to accept.

"Cough, cough!!"

Hiko really wanted to raise a hand and poke Tsunade's bun-like cheek, but he stopped himself. After coughing, he said helplessly, "I asked you long ago whether you wanted to train together, but every time, you shook your heads and refused. You can't blame me for that."

Hiko shrugged and spread his hands helplessly.

"..."

"..."

Tsunade and Jiraiya immediately lost their tempers. Hiko was right. Before every training session, he had specifically asked them, but neither Tsunade nor Jiraiya had ever cared. Now that they were jumping up to accuse Hiko, it really did not make sense.

You could not blame someone else for quietly improving their strength when you were the ones unwilling to train!!!

"I didn't expect you to have hidden yourself so deeply. But this is only the beginning, my captain."

This was only the second time Orochimaru had taken the initiative to speak to Hiko. The first had been when Hiko deliberately redirected the trouble toward Jiraiya.

"Captain..."

Tsunade and Jiraiya looked at each other, only then realizing the problem.

Other squads only had three people, but theirs had four!!

And the Third Hokage's actions were practically equivalent to selecting someone to serve as captain, someone to lead the squad in their daily missions. As the Third Hokage, he could not possibly take the squad everywhere himself at all times.

"Hmph!!! Old Man Third is really underhanded. He must have known Hiko's secret but refused to tell us!!"

"It hurts like hell!!"

Tsunade immediately became unhappy. Rubbing her arm, she asked, "Hiko, how did you come up with that? I've never seen any Taijutsu that counterattacks like that at a time like this."

While defending, he had not forgotten to give her a vicious blow. Tsunade had been in so much pain that she had thought her arm was ruined.

Hiko smiled faintly and explained, "There are many things that are easily overlooked in Taijutsu training and combat. I merely took a few steps in that direction. The elbows, head, and knees are all among the hardest parts of the human body. Since knees can deliver powerful blows, why can't the head and elbows?"

"When your fist attacks me, it either has to stop or strike my elbow. That gives me enough time to counterattack calmly, as long as I'm faster than you."

This method was a bit underhanded, but it was effective. Just look at Tsunade. That blow to her arm muscle had made it feel as if her whole arm was about to be crippled, and she had lost all sensation in it.

"It feels like cheating... No!! You have to compensate me!!! I want to eat Barbecue today!!!"

Tsunade propped her chin on her little hand and thought for a moment before suddenly shouting that she wanted compensation, looking as if she would make him regret it if he refused.

"Right!! Barbecue!!!"

"Mm."

Jiraiya was naturally the first to agree, but what left Hiko dumbfounded was that even Orochimaru nodded and gave a quiet assent, showing his agreement with Tsunade.

What the hell is wrong with this world...