Watanabe's Early Graduation

Footsteps could be heard outside the door.

Hiruzen looked up and saw a middle-aged man with half his face wrapped in bandages walking into the office.

Hiruzen casually set aside the report presented by Osaka Rukawa and asked the middle-aged man, "Danzo, how is the investigation into Amegakure going?"

"The situation is not good," Danzo said in a low voice.

"Amegakure's conflict with the Land of Iron has intensified recently. The two sides are like fire and water, and it's very likely to become the fuse that ignites the Second Great Ninja War."

Hiruzen frowned.

He would never forget how brutal the First Great Ninja War was years ago. Konoha was besieged by Sunagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure. There were countless casualties, and even the Second Hokage, Tobirama, died heroically.

If it weren't for the aid of the Land of Whirlpools, it was uncertain whether Konoha could have survived that catastrophe.

Although the First Great Ninja War ultimately ended with Konoha's victory, it was only a temporary victory. Hiruzen knew deep down that the Second Great Ninja War was brewing, and once it broke out, the storm would be even fiercer than the first.

"Hiruzen, we need to prepare in advance," Danzo said. "In my estimation, the Second Great Ninja War will definitely break out within a year at the shortest and three years at the longest. We shouldn't hold back students who can graduate from the Ninja Academy anymore. Let them gain experience in advance so they can be more useful when the war comes."

Hiruzen: "I will consider it."

Danzo wanted to say more but stopped. In his opinion, this was not something to consider at all!

Danzo felt that the students in the Ninja Academy were living too comfortably. Many students over ten years old had not yet graduated. Tsunade, in particular, possessed the strength of a special jonin but was still confined to her ivory tower. This was a serious waste of talent.

During the Warring States period, children from various ninja clans were forced onto the battlefield at the age of five or six. Why couldn't it be done now? The Ninja Academy system had significant problems.

Unfortunately, Danzo was not the Hokage. He could only offer suggestions. The person with the authority to change the Ninja Academy system was Hiruzen.

After a moment of silence, Danzo suddenly noticed the pile of reports on the desk and asked casually, "Who are the outstanding talents in the academy now?"

Root, which he led, needed to absorb fresh blood.

Hiruzen understood his meaning. "Take a look for yourself."

Danzo picked up an already opened report, the one Hiruzen had just been reading.

"This child named Watanabe is very good. Give him to me."

Soon, Danzo closed the report and stated bluntly.

Root was specifically responsible for handling Konoha's dirty and unsavory affairs, bearing burdens that others could not, and enduring what others could not. Such a position required people with strong willpower.

Hiruzen hesitated slightly.

He was well aware of the nature of Root's existence. Anyone who joined Root would be tainted and might even be brainwashed by Danzo into a numb machine without self-awareness.

He had originally planned for Watanabe to grow up normally, and even recruit him into the Anbu in the future. However, since Danzo had personally asked, he couldn't refuse Danzo for the sake of a single academy student.

"Alright. Being able to fight Tsunade for so long, Watanabe indeed has the qualification to graduate early."

Finally, Hiruzen agreed.

The wind howled and the night was dark. The hands of the clock on the wall pointed to three in the morning.

Watanabe was not asleep. He was staying up late, or more accurately, he was slacking off while staying up late.

[Staying up late: Health +4, Kidney function +3, Fatigue -6...]

[Being lazy: Chakra (Blood Essence) +5, +5, +5...]

"This all-nighter feels great!"

Watanabe was invigorated.

He felt full of energy, alive and kicking, with his chakra and Blood Essence growing simultaneously.

His status panel showed that his Blood Essence had reached 230, a tenfold increase in just half a day!

"If I don't have the opportunity to learn advanced ninjutsu in the future, specializing in taijutsu won't be bad either, especially with my vigorous Blood Essence."

Watanabe thought to himself, feeling he had the potential to become a taijutsu master.

Before long, it was five in the morning, and the sky was beginning to lighten.

Due to the effect of cause and effect reversal, the more Watanabe stayed up, the more energetic he became. His brain felt as if it had been soaked in peppermint oil, cool and clear from the inside out.

"No, I'm too energetic. This state is abnormal."

Watanabe worried that he might become overly stimulated and suffer sudden death. After thinking about it, he decided to take a short nap to keep his bodily functions in balance.

So he closed his eyes and counted sheep tediously, forcing himself to fall asleep.

[Sleeping: Energy -3, Fatigue +4, Sleepiness +5...]

It was better not to sleep. The moment he closed his eyes, Watanabe became increasingly drowsy and completely lost consciousness.

The sky turned a pale white in the east, and the first rays of dawn shone down.

The ninja academy was very lively in the early morning. Children flocked to school, greeting the rising sun, filling the inside and outside with noise and excitement.

"Good morning, Tsunade-chan!"

Jiraiya greeted Tsunade cheerfully.

Tsunade's eyebrows twitched twice, and she took a deep breath. "Get lost."

"You got it!"

Jiraiya was a shameless person. He didn't care about being met with a cold shoulder after a warm greeting and continued to greet the other girls in the class with a smile.

"Rei-chan, good morning."

"Genko-chan, good morning."

"..."

This guy is so annoying.

Every time Tsunade saw Jiraiya, she wanted to beat him up, but even if he got beaten, he wouldn't learn his lesson and would still be laughing.

Tsunade shifted her attention and looked towards the seat in the back corner.

Has Watanabe not arrived yet? Tsunade thought, feeling a bit nervous.

Yesterday's practical sparring match had undoubtedly injured Watanabe, and he had refused her medical ninjutsu treatment. Tsunade was both angry and helpless about it.

Angry or not, she had to take responsibility for Watanabe's injuries. Therefore, she brought many precious medicinal herbs to school today, intending to give them to Watanabe to consume.

If you don't want me to treat you, you won't refuse to take medicine yourself, right?

This was the first time Tsunade had given something to someone else, and the recipient was of the opposite gender. She couldn't help but feel nervous, unsure how to start the conversation later.

But to her surprise, Watanabe still hadn't arrived by the time the first class bell rang.

"He's late?"

"Watanabe never seemed to be late before."

Tsunade felt inexplicably uneasy. Did I injure him too badly yesterday? Is he bedridden?

The first class was Ninjutsu Theory. Tsunade was distracted the entire time, often glancing unintentionally at the empty seat in the corner, desperately wanting to see that familiar figure appear.

If Watanabe was truly unable to come to school because she had injured him, she would bear the responsibility.

Three consecutive classes passed, and Watanabe never showed up.

Tsunade felt increasingly guilty and uneasy.

The last class was Osaka Rukawa's Taijutsu lesson. As soon as school ended, Tsunade caught up with him. "Teacher, did Watanabe ask for leave? He didn't come this morning."

Osaka Rukawa smiled with relief. "Watanabe didn't ask for leave. He's graduating early."

Tsunade froze.

"Graduating early?"

"Him??"