The Little Pervert Arrives

"Are you saying I should start practicing Medical Ninjutsu ahead of time?"

Sakura's voice was a little excited.

"You could put it that way."

"Anyway, try practicing first."

"If you feel your strength increase after directing chakra into your arm, then you've got the basics."

Cangwu said helplessly.

Then he raised a hand and swatted away Sakura's mischievous little hand.

"Okay~"

"I definitely won't let you down, sensei~!"

Sakura said excitedly, then continued to tease Cangwu's ear with her long pink hair.

"Keep fooling around and you can walk by yourself."

"Your flat chest is pretty uncomfortable to sit against."

Sakura: "???"

Was that... really something a teacher should say?!

Damn it... I'm not flat!

I'm only thirteen!

I've got plenty of time to develop!

For some reason, Sakura thought of Haku.

That face, even cuter than hers...

This was bad. She couldn't beat Haku at anything now.

"Ow~"

Sakura nearly plopped down on the ground, letting out a pained groan. Her pretty face was flushed, but she didn't blame Cangwu.

Cangwu was speechless.

You little pervert!

If you don't have them, you don't have them. Why press yourself against me?

Trying to prove something?

Ask again in a few years!

Rubbing her backside, Sakura noticed Naruto and Sasuke were still working hard.

Cangwu's words suddenly came back to her.

Tsunade-sama is flat too...

"Okay!"

Sakura rubbed her hands together. Her chakra had nearly recovered, and now she was motivated, too.

If I can get guidance from Tsunade-sama... I'll definitely catch up with them!

Thud, thud, thud—

Meanwhile, after settling his mind and continuing to work hard, Naruto realized that controlling his chakra seemed to be getting easier and more natural.

The strange instances of his chakra getting disrupted were happening less often, too.

With the help of his army of shadow clones, the balloons kept getting burst by his unruly chakra.

Explosions rang out one after another.

Sasuke wasn't about to be outdone.

After succeeding once, he got the hang of it.

Gradually, he became faster at popping balloons than Naruto was on his own.

Even so, compared with Naruto's army of shadow clones, his progress seemed insignificant.

Naruto, on the other hand, had his unusual nature to thank. Otherwise, receiving the experience of so many shadow clones at once would have been more than he could handle.

Pop—

After Sakura succeeded once, popping the balloon again became much easier.

Unfortunately, she didn't have enough chakra to keep going.

Still, she had a little left to work with.

"Phew—"

After taking a deep breath, Sakura walked over to Cangwu with a beaming smile.

"Teacher Cangwu, could you help me out... Can you see if this is working?"

As she spoke, Sakura directed what little chakra she could still control into her right hand.

"Hah!"

With a sharp cry, she punched at him.

Cangwu caught her fist with one hand.

"Huh?"

Sakura's eyes instantly cleared.

"How... I feel like my arm got stronger..."

Tap—

"Ow~"

Sakura clutched her forehead.

"Don't use me as a test subject..."

"Try punching a tree or a rock instead." Cangwu rolled his eyes at the cheeky girl who was pushing her luck.

Sakura stuck out her tongue playfully.

Then she obediently focused on understanding the sensation from before.

Watching the three little ones work hard, Cangwu's lips curled into a faint smile.

The twelve young shinobi of Konoha were pretty funny, when you thought about it.

Ino's teammates were old friends—the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, plus trouble and a love of food.

Hinata's team consisted of a furry, a dog boy, and a bug boy.

Tenten's teammate was a hot-blooded guy... and another was the son of a guy who kept talking about fate and being a sacrificial decoy.

Sakura's team wasn't normal either... one was a show-off, and the other had grown up "eating Kotoamatsukami."

No wonder all those transmigrators started plotting as soon as they arrived.

"By the way, if you can pass the test in a week,"

"I'll apply for you to take the Chunin Ninja Exams after that."

"Chunin?!" x3

Cangwu's words had an immediate effect.

Cangwu kept walking without looking back.

Too much pressure would backfire. This was enough.

Push them any harder... and Sasuke would collapse soon.

Because... half an hour later,

a battered Naruto came over to Cangwu.

"Teacher Cangwu, I've finished training."

He had a smile on his face.

Cangwu shook his head and reached out to catch Naruto as he collapsed, unconscious.

"We're here," Tazuna said as he stepped forward.

"This boy... is he all right?"

"He's fine. He just used up too much chakra. He's a bit special, though, so he'll wake up after a nap."

"Just save him some lunch." Cangwu carried Naruto on his back.

Sakura, following behind, was nearly finished with the first part of her training, too.

Only Sasuke looked gloomy.

Naruto's progress had spurred him on, and he'd trained much faster.

But now he was starting to feel tired, too.

"Dad?"

"Who are these three?"

As soon as they entered, Tsunami came over at the sound of their voices.

She froze for a moment when she saw Team 7.

"Dad, are they the Konoha ninja you hired?"

Tazuna gave a slight nod.

"Tsunami, go get things ready. These kids are exhausted."

"Yes... Dad, you're being too reckless." Tsunami answered helplessly, then turned to prepare some bedding.

Tazuna sat on a bench. After Tsunami had taken the three little ones away, he asked in a low voice:

"Mr. Cangwu, those two ninja..."

"Go ahead and build the bridge. With Zabuza and Haku gone, the remaining riffraff won't be able to cause you any trouble." Cangwu smiled warmly.

"That's good." This time, Tazuna found Cangwu's smile reassuring.

After taking a deep breath, Tazuna said, "I'll go tell everyone right now. We'll get started!"

"Dad, you just got back. You're leaving again?" Tsunami only came out after the three little ones had lain down.

The moment she stepped outside, she saw her father heading out again, right after getting home.

"Hahaha, Tsunami, this is good news! Gato won't be able to sabotage our bridge project anymore!"

"Of course I have to tell everyone right away. We should finish the bridge as soon as possible. Inari... Haha, I'm counting on you to look after things at home!"

With that, Tazuna rushed out the door.

Seeing the old man's long-missing smile, Tsunami felt both helpless and amused.

"Sorry, my father's always been like this... Shall I make you some tea?"

A little while later, Tsunami knelt beside Cangwu, pouring him tea as she asked about their journey.

And so it went.

Once the three little ones had rested enough, they came out of their room and heard a young woman's laughter.

When they stepped outside, they saw Tsunami laughing so hard she was swaying.

"Are you up?"

"I'll heat up some food for you."

Tsunami smiled as she went to the kitchen.

Sakura sat down beside Cangwu, looking suspicious.

"Teacher Cangwu... What did you do?"

"Did I do something?" Cangwu countered.

"Teacher Cangwu, when are we starting training?" Sasuke asked, his expression cold.

He was about to succeed at the first part of his training, and he was running out of patience.

Grrr—

As he finished speaking, a delicious aroma drifted out of the kitchen.

Sasuke's stomach was the first to "protest."

"Hahaha~" Naruto immediately laughed at him.

"Let's eat first."

"You'll need your strength for training."