With Kagami Uchiha, Uchiha Tianqi, Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, and Danzo, plus the support of the various clans, Konoha's position in the next generation would probably be very secure.
But thinking of Danzo gave Tobirama another headache. This student really suited his tastes. If he had to give him up just like that, he honestly couldn't bear to.
"Sigh, never mind. We'll talk about it when the time comes. Things will work themselves out."
Sarutobi had no idea that his teacher had already been thinking about the next Hokage. He asked, "What have you decided, Sensei?"
Hearing Monkey ask, Tobirama came back to himself.
"Monkey, since you put it that way, I'll trust you this once. Train him well. If he proves himself, there's no reason we can't give him a position of some standing."
Hearing his teacher say that, Sarutobi breathed a sigh of relief. Honestly, putting aside Tianqi's Uchiha identity, after spending so much time with him, he'd grown quite fond of the boy.
"Thank you, Sensei. I'll take my leave, then."
"Go ahead."
With that, Sarutobi Hiruzen left the Hokage's Office.
As for Tianqi, after getting a taste of success, he was eager to improve his strength. He stopped going to bed so early and instead spent several hours each night refining Chakra.
Four hours later, looking at the tiny increase in his Chakra, Tianqi slumped in disappointment. "This minuscule improvement barely looks like anything at all unless I check carefully. What a waste of time."
He couldn't help envying Tobirama Senju and Naruto. Those guys had ridiculous amounts of Chakra. They could use Ninjutsu as if Chakra were endless, releasing as much as they wanted. Looking at himself, the more he thought about it, the more frustrated he got.
"Ah, there's no point envying other people. Even if it's only a little more Chakra, it's still an improvement. I'll just build it up bit by bit. Once I have enough Points, I'll see whether the system Shop has anything that can increase my Chakra."
The next day, Tianqi kept their appointment and went to the place where he'd first met Sarutobi. Sitting on a rock, he picked up little stones and skipped them across the water as he waited.
Half an hour later, Sarutobi arrived as promised. This time, he didn't wait until the sun was high in the sky to show up.
As soon as he arrived, Sarutobi handed Tianqi the mission payment. Tianqi didn't even look at it before stuffing it into his pocket. He didn't care much about money; he only cared about strength.
Seeing Tianqi put the money away, Sarutobi began, "Tianqi, now that you've just finished a mission, we can spend some time training. Once you've fully reached Chunin level, we'll start taking B-Rank Missions. If things go well, we can even consider taking A-Rank Missions."
Sarutobi didn't know that Tianqi was already invincible among Chunin and could even challenge Jonin. Tianqi didn't explain; he really did need time to consolidate his skills.
"Big Brother Sarutobi, I want to learn the Shadow Clone Technique."
"Huh? Why did you suddenly want to learn that Ninjutsu?" Sarutobi looked puzzled. In his opinion, Shadow Clones weren't very useful. Apart from scouting and fooling enemies, they were usually more trouble than they were worth.
After all, they took Chakra away from the user, weakening them in the process. He might as well learn a more powerful Ninjutsu.
"It's like this," Tianqi began to explain. "There were too many opponents on my last mission, which made things difficult. If I had Shadow Clones, I could cut the time it takes me to complete a mission by at least half. I wouldn't have to run around looking for people."
After listening to Tianqi, Sarutobi thought it over. That did make sense. "All right. If you want to learn it, I'll teach you. This Ninjutsu is simple—there's only one seal." Sarutobi crossed the index and middle fingers of his left hand with the index and middle fingers of his right. "Shadow Clone Technique!"
Poof! An identical Sarutobi appeared. Watching such a miraculous sight, Tianqi asked, "Big Brother Sarutobi, doesn't it feel strange to see another person who looks exactly like you?"
Sarutobi looked baffled. "Why would it feel strange to see myself? It doesn't. It's just like looking in a mirror."
Hearing him say that, Tianqi gave it a try. "Shadow Clone Technique!" Poof! A limp-looking Tianqi appeared beside him, then vanished with another poof!
Seeing that, Sarutobi began to instruct him. "Tianqi, pay attention to how much Chakra you release. You split off too little this time."
"Shadow Clone Technique!" Poof! This time, a fat Tianqi appeared beside him, then vanished with another poof!
"That fat Tianqi is pretty cute, but you split off too much Chakra this time."
"Shadow Clone Technique!"
Poof! This time, Tianqi finally succeeded. Looking at someone with exactly the same face as his, he did feel as if he were looking in a mirror.
Sarutobi, standing beside him, was stunned. A genius! He'd succeeded in only three tries. This kid really did have a remarkable talent.
"Congratulations, Tianqi. You've learned the Shadow Clone Technique. But you still have to be careful with this Ninjutsu. You should only leave three or four clones at most. Any more, and your body won't be able to handle it."
"I understand." Poof! Tianqi dispelled the Shadow Clone, then said, "Big Brother Sarutobi, could you take a look at a new Ninjutsu I've been working on and tell me if it's any good?"
Tianqi didn't hide the Rasengan. He brought it out without hesitation. Minato would invent it later anyway, so he might as well reveal it early and claim it as his own original creation.
(Minato Namikaze: Tianqi, you're shameless! Copying my work is one thing, but you actually have the nerve to claim you invented it. Have you no shame?)
Hearing that Tianqi had created a Ninjutsu, Sarutobi grew interested. "What Ninjutsu? Come on, use it on me and let me see."
"Uh..." Hearing Sarutobi say that, Tianqi was speechless. Use it on you? I'm afraid if I hit you with a Rasengan, you'll drop dead on the spot.
"What are you thinking about? Come on, let me help you test your new Ninjutsu."
...Seeing that Sarutobi was even urging him on, Tianqi said, "How about I use it on that tree stump over there first? You can see what it does."
Hearing that Tianqi didn't want to use it on him and planned to test it on a tree stump instead, Sarutobi grew curious.
"Watch closely. Here I go. This Ninjutsu requires no Hand Seals; you just gather it in your palm. It's very convenient." Tianqi slowly extended one hand.
"Oh, a Ninjutsu with no Hand Seals? That means it can be used very quickly. In a fight, your opponent would have to make Hand Seals while you wouldn't, which would give you a big advantage. I just don't know how powerful it is."
A blue sphere of energy appeared in Tianqi's hand. Sarutobi inspected it closely. "So that's what it looks like. A little ball like that doesn't seem very impressive."
"Looks can be deceiving—and that goes for Ninjutsu, too. Watch closely, Big Brother Sarutobi." Without hesitation, Tianqi slammed the Rasengan into the tree stump.
Boom! A loud blast rang out. The entire stump disappeared, and a crater about two meters across opened in the ground.
Sarutobi stared at the sight, so shocked that he could've fit three eggs in his open mouth.
"Th-this... Th-this is so powerful! If that hit someone, they'd be dead on the spot! Holy crap, that's incredible, Tianqi! With power like this, it's definitely an A-Rank Ninjutsu. You really are a genius!"
Hearing Sarutobi praise him, Tianqi rubbed his nose sheepishly. After all, he hadn't invented it; he'd copied it, so he felt a little embarrassed.
To hide his embarrassment, Tianqi said, "This is only the basic form. Next, I'm planning to add different types of Chakra nature to it. If I succeed, its power will increase by several orders of magnitude. Then it won't just be an A-Rank Ninjutsu—it might even reach beyond S-Rank."
Hearing that it could become a Ninjutsu beyond S-Rank, Sarutobi Hiruzen was stunned once again. He thought to himself, That would put it in the realm of forbidden techniques. What makes a technique forbidden? It's one that ordinary people can't master, or that harms the user—in other words, a technique that's simply too powerful.
"Big Brother Sarutobi, do you want to learn it? I can teach you."
Hearing Tianqi say that, Sarutobi was tempted for a moment. But then he thought it over and shook his head. After all, it was Tianqi's original Ninjutsu, and he didn't feel right asking for it. Besides, he wasn't short on close-combat techniques. He had the Adamantine Staff, transformed from Enma, and that indestructible staff was more than a match for Tianqi's technique.
Seeing Sarutobi shake his head, Tianqi didn't push him. "I'm calling this technique Rasengan. Sounds good, right?"
Before you continue