I, Hikawa, Am the True God of Cooking

Chapter 42: I, Hikawa, Am the God of Cooking

"Hiruzen!"

In the middle of the night, a mournful roar suddenly echoed from Konoha's Root base.

Shimura Danzō woke up with a dark expression.

In his dream, the conversation of 'You'll regret this, I'll be Hokage, bang' had played out again.

He couldn't help but clench his fist.

Hokage!

He swore with tears in his eyes that he would definitely become Hokage!

Shimura Danzō took a breath, got up, and left.

Through the dim corridor, he arrived at a room.

He pushed the door half-open, stood at the entrance, and looked at Yamato sleeping soundly on the bed.

Of course, his code name now was Kō.

Yamato was the sole survivor of the Wood Release Experiment.

But it was worth noting that Orochimaru didn't know; he thought the experiment had failed and all test subjects had died.

Shimura Danzō had played the role of a sneaky opportunist, snatching Yamato for free and bringing him back to Root.

"At least I already have hope."

Shimura Danzō revealed an ugly smile.

As a student of the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, he had witnessed the invincible Wood Release of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju.

As long as Yamato grew strong, he could kill Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Once Sarutobi Hiruzen was dead, in the hour of Konoha's greatest crisis, he could become the Fourth Hokage and be the village's savior.

This plan was absolutely flawless!

But his ambition didn't stop there.

No matter how strong Yamato became, he was still an outsider.

Shimura Danzō wanted to transplant Hashirama Cells himself and gain Wood Release.

He had tried before, but Hashirama Cells were too invasive; they couldn't be transplanted.

Now that there was a successful case in Yamato, perhaps it was possible.

Shimura Danzō closed the door and turned to head to Root's office.

Waking up in the middle of the night, he had lost all sleepiness, so he might as well check on the progress of the Wood Release research.

The lights came on.

Shimura Danzō casually picked up a document from the desk, glanced at it, and his face turned extremely dark.

This document was from Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Two matters.

First, he was to compensate for the damage to the Hokage Office.

Second, Hikawa was already Tsunade's student, so he should stop his wishful thinking.

Shimura Danzō was so angry that his body went cold in the dead of night.

Not taking a disciple early, not taking one late, but specifically today—this was clearly targeting him.

"Hiruzen! You will regret this!"

Shimura Danzō roared to the heavens.

The news of Tsunade taking a disciple spread quickly.

With Sarutobi Hiruzen's deliberate indulgence, it spread throughout Konoha overnight.

Of course, it was limited to the major ninja clans and jōnin; ordinary villagers probably wouldn't know for another two days.

"What's wrong? Not happy?"

Hatake Sakumo opened the door and saw Hatake Kakashi standing by the window, radiating a gloomy aura.

It was the first time he had seen his son react like this.

He didn't need to guess the reason.

The one always called a genius had lost to Hikawa in the never-before-lost Hatake Swordsmanship.

He had gone straight from depression to a 'don't laugh' challenge.

"No."

Kakashi said stubbornly.

"I talked with the Hokage yesterday. Do you know where you lost?"

Hatake Sakumo thought for a moment, then asked.

"Where?"

Hatake Kakashi turned around, his expression blank, and asked.

"Proficiency."

Hatake Sakumo explained, "If your blade proficiency were equal, you could easily beat Hikawa."

"I'll go train now."

With that, Hatake Kakashi headed outside.

"Hey! Eat first!"

Hatake Kakashi quickly called out.

At the Sarutobi Clan compound.

Even though he didn't have school, Sarutobi Asuma still woke up early.

Losing to Hikawa had made him afraid to sleep in.

But before long, his motivation took a hit.

"What did you say?"

Sarutobi Asuma asked in shock. "Damn it! Why didn't you stop her?"

Tsunade wasn't just any Medical Ninja—she possessed terrifying strength.

If Hikawa learned the Yin Seal and Super Strength, just thinking about it made Sarutobi Asuma's scalp tingle.

An opponent maxed out in attack power and recovery—what the hell was he supposed to do?!

"Are you scared?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen asked with a smile.

"How could I be scared?!"

Sarutobi Asuma stiffened his neck and said, "The past is the past, the present is the present, the future is the future—I won't lose forever!"

"That's a good line."

Sarutobi Hiruzen coughed once and reminded him, "Tsunade is my student."

Sarutobi Asuma blinked, then his eyes lit up.

So what if it was Tsunade?

Her teacher was his dad!

In terms of seniority, that put him a step above Hikawa.

"I'll give you special training these two months."

Sarutobi Hiruzen said with a chuckle.

Finally, a chance to let Asuma feel the weight of a father's love!

Hikawa raised his hand and knocked on the door.

He didn't have a key to Tsunade's place.

The last time he'd walked right in, it was because she'd gotten drunk and forgotten to lock it.

After a moment, the door opened.

Tsunade wasn't wearing her usual sleeveless top and deep blue pants, but a white nightgown.

The nightgown was loose, but it still couldn't hide her full figure, looking all puffed up.

And Hikawa noticed she was only wearing the nightgown.

Because there were faint hints of highlights.

"This early?"

Tsunade yawned and asked.

"Not that early—it's almost nine."

Hikawa had come after training with Yuhi Kurenai for two hours.

The first reason was that he'd guessed Tsunade would sleep in.

The second was that Yuhi Kurenai had looked at him pitifully early in the morning and asked, "Are you going to see Tsunade-sama again?"

"I'll go change."

Tsunade paused, then said, "I want ramen."

After placing her order, she turned and went back to her room.

Hikawa withdrew his gaze, walked to the kitchen, and started boiling noodles.

A few minutes later, he returned to the living room carrying a bowl of ramen.

Tsunade had already changed back into her clothes, her beautiful blonde hair tied into twin tails, one on each side.

She picked up her chopsticks, slurped a mouthful of ramen, and her eyes lit up slightly as she said, "Your ramen isn't bad."

It was actually the effect of the E-Rank Entry 'Chef.'

Watching Tsunade wolf it down, Hikawa grew more and more suspicious that the effect of the next entry might be so delicious it'd make clothes burst off.

He had to admit, the anticipation was building.

This Humble One is the God of Cooking!

"Ah!"

Tsunade took a sip of the broth, set down the bowl, and let out a long sigh of relief.

Hikawa took the initiative to pick up the bowl and chopsticks and headed to the kitchen.

Tsunade watched his retreating figure, lost in thought.

What should she teach him today?

She'd taught Hikawa before, but it was only casual pointers—not real instruction.

"Teacher."

Hikawa finished washing the dishes and appeared before her.

"First, let me see your Chakra control."

Tsunade sat up straight, unusually serious.

Hikawa glanced around, picked up a glass of water, and Chakra surged out, causing the water to spin instantly.

In the original work, Chakra control was usually practiced by climbing trees or walking on water.

Hikawa was using the training method for the Rasengan.

Of course, a simplified version.

"Good."

Tsunade nodded in satisfaction.

What was most commendable about Hikawa was his rock-solid foundation—clearly the result of hard work.

In reality, it was because he came with the progress bar of the Lexicon System.

Once learned, never forgotten, only accumulated.

"Today, I'll teach you a basic Medical Ninjutsu: the Hemostatic Technique."

Tsunade picked up a fruit knife and looked at Hikawa.