Busy

Ruri left a Chunin behind to watch over the five children, then went to Sukiya for lunch.

Although Sukiya still had purchase limits on sushi, its newly introduced rice balls could be bought without limit. Ono made them personally, and even ordinary rice wrapped in seaweed had a distinctive flavor.

After enjoying a satisfying lunch, Ruri returned to the Takikage's office. Eight hundred laps was no small number. Completing them required not only the stamina to run eight hundred laps, but also enough determination to persist. Ruri had faith in Masashige, who had followed him all the way from the Land of Iron to the Land of Waterfalls, but by the time Masashige finished eight hundred laps, it would probably be night. Rather than wait around, Ruri might as well use the time to continue working.

Being the leader of a village was not only an honor, but also a responsibility. He could not be as carefree as Hashirama, who barely handled anything and simply handed all official duties to Tobirama. Nor did he know a ninjutsu like the Shadow Clone that could reduce his workload. He could only handle everything personally.

"I need to put steel production and brewing on the agenda once enrollment is over... I wonder if following brewing methods will let me make wine. The brewing techniques in this world are simply unbearable..." Ruri muttered. He really wanted to taste wine. This world's only drinks were sake and crudely made tea, neither of which tasted as sweet and refreshing as stream water. Ruri had been holding himself back for so many years that he was nearly dying from it.

Keep it up! Strive to draw Cola! Strive for drinks that bring happiness! Ruri set Cola as his short-term goal. Once the steel and brewing matters were handled, he would have to study what achievements he could complete. He needed not only to improve his strength, but also to promote the village's development.

"Come to think of it, establishing the Ninja Academy counts as major development for the village, right? Once the school is completed, I should receive a reward." Ruri had never been very clear about the village development missions, but the Ninja Academy was something beneficial to the village's long-term future. There would definitely be a reward, though it probably would not be as good as an achievement reward.

Ruri worked until the sky was completely dark before barely finishing all the official duties. Estimating that Masashige had nearly completed his eight hundred laps, he headed to the clearing.

"Lord Takikage." The Chunin standing guard ran over to report to Ruri. Only three children remained in the clearing. Two were still running, while one sat on the ground watching.

According to the Chunin's report, among those who had left, two children had been unable to persist after running more than five hundred laps and had been taken home by their parents. Another had left immediately after finishing. As for Yuna, who was sitting on the ground, she had run a hundred laps intermittently and even fainted once during that time. In the end, she gave up, but she had not left.

Other than Masashige, the only child still persisting was that thick-browed, big-eyed dead last. According to the Chunin, he had already run six hundred laps.

It was admirable for a child to possess such perseverance. Curious, Ruri used the system to look at his status panel, only to be startled.

[Name: Takayama Akito]

[Overall Strength: Below Average]

[Talent: Jonin]

[Attribute: Wind]

[Special Ability: None]

[Evaluation: Possesses decent taijutsu talent and perseverance, but has difficulty controlling his own chakra. He is an absolute ninjutsu idiot.]

Uh, Ruri felt that this panel looked strangely familiar. Weren't Guy and Rock Lee both like this?!

After thinking it over, he felt it was perfectly normal. There were quite a few hardworking taijutsu geniuses, but in an era where ninjutsu represented ninjas, they were not valued. Most people like them were labeled as lacking ninja talent. Even decades later, if Dai had not encountered the Eight Inner Gates by chance and opened all eight gates to severely injure Kirigakure's Seven Ninja Swordsmen, neither his son Guy nor Guy's disciple Rock Lee would have been valued.

"Lord Takikage, please, please make him stop!" While Ruri was thinking, a bearded middle-aged man dropped to his knees before him with a thud.

"Uncle Gento? He is your child, right? What happened?" Ruri remembered that this man was merely an ordinary Genin. His taijutsu was passable, and he knew only one ninjutsu. He was probably Akito's father.

"Akito clearly can't keep going, but he refuses to give up. He says he has to enter the Ninja Academy this year, or he'll be over seven next year..." Gento sighed. He had tried to persuade him countless times before. The Ninja Academy was not a place people as useless as them could enter, yet Akito had turned a deaf ear.

"Since he is still persisting, still running, even if he is running slowly, why not let him continue?" Ruri still admired Akito. He had excellent aptitude and tremendous perseverance. With proper training, he might well reach the level of an Elite Jonin. If Ruri could somehow get the Eight Inner Gates from Konoha, Akito would soar straight to the top!

"But..." Gento seemed to make up his mind. "But he has no talent for becoming a ninja at all! I know I'm a useless ninja. I shouldn't demand that Akito fulfill my expectations. I can't make a child fulfill an adult's wishes!"

Ruri understood. It seemed that Akito's efforts in the beginning had only been due to his father Gento's demands. Gento felt that he would remain a Genin for his entire life and wanted his son to surpass him. He had placed his hopes on his child, which was why Akito had persistently trained so hard. But things were clearly different now. A child who did not want to become a ninja would not have come this far simply for his father's expectations, much less continue striving after his father had already told him to stop.

Years of hard work had already turned Akito's father's expectations into his own. What he sought to achieve through effort was not merely to fulfill his father's hopes, but also to prove that his own abilities were no worse than anyone else's.

Ruri sat off to the side and talked with Gento. As an observer, he could see things more clearly than Gento, the father, could. Moreover, having seen Guy and Rock Lee's experiences in the original story, he knew what to do. In a sense, they were all the same kind of people. Hardworking geniuses should never be denied.

As they talked, Masashige finished his eight hundred laps. Even for him, eight hundred laps had pushed him to the limit. He was relying entirely on the conviction in his heart to keep going.

"Teacher, I didn't disgrace you!" Masashige panted as he ran to Ruri's side.

"Not bad. Come home with me." Ruri patted Masashige on the shoulder. Since he had been wearing a mask the entire time, running eight hundred laps had been even harder for him than for an ordinary person.

Yuna walked over from the side, somehow producing a cup of water and handing it to Masashige. Since it was inconvenient for him to remove his mask, he took the water and poured it over his head.

"Thanks, Yuna!" Masashige returned the cup to Yuna and looked at Ruri. "Teacher, can we take her home first?"

Ruri nodded. It was so late, yet Yuna was outside without any family beside her. There had to be a story behind that.

"Doichi, if this child finishes eight hundred laps, consider him passed." Ruri pointed at Akito, then turned to Gento. "Uncle Gento, if Akito can finish eight hundred laps before nightfall, I will personally teach him."

Personally teach him? Though Ruri was not taking him as a disciple, he was the Takikage! The last trace of reluctance in Gento's heart vanished, replaced by support for Akito. "Akito, your talent is greater than Dad's. You can definitely do it!"

For some reason, Akito's steps seemed to grow even more resolute.