Satoru's Sense of Urgency

These past few days, Satoru had been rather distracted during class.

"This feeling... it can't be wrong. There are always scoundrels trying to harm me!"

Satoru quietly retracted his Mage Eye, feeling a headache coming on.

The Mage Eye he used for reconnaissance hadn't reached a level where he could sense his surroundings.

This sweep of the classroom's vicinity yielded no discoveries.

Everyone seemed normal, but Satoru's intuition told him something was watching him from the shadows.

This feeling had surfaced shortly after he last met Tsunade.

"Is Tsunade tailing me? Or has she already contacted Orochimaru?"

Satoru was unsure. In terms of personal strength, it was only natural that neither of them would be detected if they were watching him.

But Tsunade probably wouldn't do something so trivial. This kind of approach felt more like something Orochimaru would do.

That guy knew so many bizarre jutsu; tailing someone would be incredibly simple.

However, at least he hadn't sensed this feeling at home.

This meant that whatever jutsu was being used to track him hadn't bypassed his father's awareness.

"I need to improve my strength as soon as possible... preferably with more trump cards!"

A sense of urgency welled up in Satoru's heart. Although Orochimaru was currently a good young man who cared about the village and his comrades, his insatiable thirst for knowledge made Satoru unwilling to bet on the other party's restraint.

Curiosity killed the cat, let alone a snake...

Right now, he had a few jutsu up his sleeve that outsiders didn't know about, which could serve as trump cards.

For example, Blink, Slow Fall, Mage Eye, and the recently mastered Flame Impact and Magic Suppression.

But apart from Blink, which could turn the tables, the others weren't quite at the level of trump cards.

Nono, sitting next to him, watched Satoru with curiosity as he alternated between frowning and looking thoughtful.

Nono felt a great deal of admiration and also a lot of curiosity for this classmate who was responsible for tutoring her.

Being so close, she had naturally noticed Satoru's unique qualities that set him apart from other children.

To her, Satoru was much more than just "the classmate with the best fundamentals," as the teacher had said.

She had skipped a grade, but she hadn't skipped to the fourth grade again, not because she hadn't mastered the knowledge taught in the third grade, but because she hadn't mastered all the knowledge recorded in Satoru's notebook.

Many of his analyses and application ideas for jutsu had opened her eyes.

Simply put, Nono, who was already more mature than children her age, believed that by staying close to Satoru, she could learn more.

Not just knowledge, but also Satoru's thinking and composure, which were far beyond his years.

This interesting classmate must be much more capable than he appeared.

Nawaki, a senior in the graduating class, had been coming to Satoru frequently to discuss things. Nawaki's older sister was none other than her idol, Tsunade!

Thinking this, Nono found Satoru's current demeanor even more intriguing.

Given his usual quiet yet confident demeanor, this was a side of Satoru she had never seen before.

"Hey, Satoru, are you troubled by something?"

Nono glanced around discreetly and asked in a low voice.

"Hmm?"

Satoru was slightly taken aback. Had Nono noticed his expression?

"It's nothing... I just feel like something might happen soon."

Seemingly unable to hold it in, Satoru disregarded any concerns about affecting his research progress and lightly grumbled:

"It must be Tsunade. Are all women with big chests so petty!"

"..."

A faint blush crept onto Nono's face. After Satoru's expressionless complaint, he suddenly remembered...

Girls seem to mature much earlier in certain aspects!

He added another thought to himself, then subtly glanced around. Forgetting for a moment about whether Orochimaru, who might be watching him, would see this, he quickly whispered to Nono:

"Ah, I mean Tsunade is petty... no, I mean cautious... prudent, yes, don't overthink it."

Then, Satoru watched with a darkened expression as the not-yet-7-year-old girl cautiously glanced at his chest... and her face turned even redder!

"Um... Satoru, do you know Tsunade?"

"Yeah, I met her once... she's Nawaki's older sister."

Satoru subtly wiped the sweat from his brow. The teacher was lecturing enthusiastically at the front of the classroom, seemingly oblivious to their quiet conversation.

Shikaku and the others who liked to stir up trouble were also listening attentively; the day's topic seemed to captivate them:

"I've personally witnessed Tsunade's Medical Ninjutsu... it's truly remarkable—"

Satoru suddenly thought that Nono would become an excellent medical ninja in the future, so he asked:

"Nono, would you like to learn Medical Ninjutsu? Perhaps I can introduce you to Lord Tsunade."

Satoru had never heard of any prominent family behind Nono's surname, Yakushi.

It felt similar to his own Mitokado family. Although his father, Mitokado Homura, held a high position, it was practically just the two of them day-to-day.

His mother had died on a mission when he was very young, which made his father become even more serious and rigid externally. Only when facing Satoru did he act like a normal father.

Nono's family didn't have many people left, just a surname and an old house, which was why she had started school so early.

Therefore, relying on herself, it would be nearly impossible for her to get close to a top-tier medical ninja like Tsunade before graduation.

Unless, after graduation, her leading Jonin discovered her medical talent and sent her to the medical unit for training, that would be it.

But now, with Satoru, who knew of her talent, present, things were different.

"I... I really do admire Lord Tsunade... and I want to help others!"

Nono was clearly startled. The young girl was excited but also a bit hesitant:

"But... but I heard that becoming a medical ninja requires special talent. I don't know if I have that kind of talent..."

"Don't worry, you definitely have talent. After class, I'll go get Nawaki. If he's unwilling to call Lord Tsunade over, I'll beat him until he agrees!"

Satoru chuckled softly and winked at Nono:

"Lord Tsunade loves gambling the most. You can learn from her, but don't pick up that bad habit!"

"It would be one thing if her gambling skills were good, but the problem is she loses every time she gambles and then gambles even more. She'll be called a 'cash cow' in the future!"

Hearing Satoru's evaluation of her idol, Nono couldn't help but be a little stunned.

But a Tsunade who was this down-to-earth... was also amazing!

"Then... I'll be counting on you, Satoru..."

Nono was happy, but also a little confused:

"Aren't you a cash cow now?"

"Snap!"

A piece of chalk flew over. Satoru instinctively reached out and caught it, but suddenly found the atmosphere eerily quiet.

"Satoru! I've tolerated you for a long time!"

From the podium, seeing Satoru blankly catch the chalk he'd thrown, the teacher's eye twitched:

"You answer this question!"

"..."

Satoru awkwardly got up, glanced at the blackboard, and quickly gave the answer. He then saw Choza, Shikaku, and Inoichi looking at him with expressions of disdain.

"You closeted pervert!"

They all whispered the insult in unison, causing Satoru's mouth to twitch.