Tenten's Decision

Caught off guard when her feelings were exposed, Tenten searched around in a panic for someone to back her up.

But all her teammates were too stunned by Kimura Takuya's all-surpassing ninja way to react.

Under Takuya's firm gaze, Tenten slowly calmed down.

"I understand, Takuya. I'll work hard to become stronger!"

"Ah! This is so moving! Tenten, you've become youthful too.

Here, take this training outfit.

I actually prepared one not just for Lee, but for you and Neji as well. It's just that neither of you has ever been as youthful and energetic as Lee.

Now you're ready to sweat it out in the bloom of youth so you can grow stronger.

Come on, Tenten. This outfit is lightweight, breathable, and stylish, and it wicks away sweat wonderfully!

Once you put it on, you'll never want to take it off. Just look at Lee!"

"Mm-hmm! Tenten, this training outfit definitely won't disappoint you!"

"Ah! No! What kind of proper young lady would wear something like this?"

"That's right, Tenten. Just stick to your usual style. Forget the other looks. I don't like them."

Huh?

Tenten's eyes widened as she stared at Kimura Takuya.

If he didn't like the other looks, didn't that mean he liked this one?

Takuya-kun said he liked me just the way I am!

Takuya likes me!

Takuya only likes me!

Takuya loves me so much he can hardly bring himself to say it!

Was that why he'd confessed so subtly? Hahaha! Yamanaka Clan girl, you lose!

Kimura Takuya had no idea that a single comment had awakened Tenten's lovestruck side.

He showed Tenten how to use the gloves. It was actually quite simple.

She just had to channel chakra through the gems on the gloves to gain an enhancement to her elemental affinity.

The gems on the gloves were actually similar to Chakra Metal.

They conducted chakra well and even had excellent regulation, stabilization, and amplification capabilities.

But, like the special wood cultivated with chakra, they weren't sturdy enough to be considered suitable weapon materials.

They were only used when building permanent sealing facilities.

Their uses were even more limited than those of Chakra Wood; they could barely be used for anything besides constructing sealing facilities.

Whether out of sheer stubbornness or for some other reason, people in the Ninja World didn't give much thought to anything that couldn't be used directly as a weapon material.

The only exception was the Ninja World's first great scientist, Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, who held no such prejudice.

The legendary weapon Tobirama had once used—the Sword of the Thunder God.

That lightsaber had Lightning Release Chakra permanently infused into its blade.

It could clash head-on with Chidori and Rasengan. If not for plot armor, that weapon wouldn't have been so easily destroyed.

Just think about it. How ridiculous was that?

The blade of a lightsaber could actually be broken?

Kimura Takuya was more inclined to think it had been damaged by an energy overload.

And in fact, that was exactly what had happened.

The Sword of the Thunder God had only been a prototype. Both its output and stability were poor.

Tobirama had already planned how to improve it.

But man proposes, and Heaven disposes. He went to a peace negotiation, and that was the end of the Second Hokage.

Many plans and research findings were buried with him.

If Tobirama had lived to this day, Konoha would probably have gone to the moon long ago and stopped bothering with the nations on the ground.

But fortunately, Kimura Takuya had inherited Tobirama's legacy.

"All right, Tenten. Have you got it?"

Watching Kimura Takuya put on the gloves and casually demonstrate various elemental transformations, Might Guy was amazed. This was a technique only jonin could master.

He hadn't expected Kimura Takuya to have already mastered so many elemental transformations.

Seeing Tenten nod, Might Guy couldn't help worrying for her.

Could she really catch up to a genius who was practically a monster?

It seemed impossible, didn't it?

Even Might Guy, who always believed nothing was impossible, felt a flicker of doubt.

Tenten took the Amplification Gloves and tried for a long time, but couldn't manage a single one.

"This is too hard, Takuya. It might take me my whole life to learn this, right? Learning every elemental transformation is impossible, isn't it?"

"No, it's actually quite simple. You can do it. I believe in you. You believe what I say, don't you?"

"Mm! I believe you, Takuya. You're the one they call a miracle!"

"That's right. You have to believe in miracles!"

Hearing Kimura Takuya's words, Might Guy suddenly understood.

So that was it.

The boy known as the Undying Miracle.

Was he someone who wanted his teammates to achieve the impossible too?

Giving Lee regular electric therapy, teaching Neji Konoha-Style Nintaijutsu, helping Tenten develop her potential.

Were all these miracles things he believed in?

He was someone who believed in miracles too. Now that someone called a miracle had become his teammate, Might Guy beamed and pointed ahead.

"Yoshi! Let's move out!"

"Wait, Guy-sensei. If we just head straight out, we won't be able to complete the mission. We should decide on the order of our targets first."

Neji, who hadn't spoken until now, couldn't help speaking up.

Might Guy thought he had a point.

So they all returned to where they'd begun their discussion.

Kimura Takuya took the opportunity to share his opinion.

"Our mission has two targets: Jiraiya and Uchiha Itachi.

We don't know where either of them is.

But compared to Uchiha Itachi, who's part of a mysterious organization and whose motives are unclear, I think we should look for Lord Jiraiya first.

After all, one reason we're looking for them is to deal with Orochimaru, who's also one of the Sannin.

Lord Jiraiya is already tracking Orochimaru, so we'll probably have a better chance of finding him."

"Agreed."

"I'm with you."

"Takuya's right." ×2

Everyone agreed that Kimura Takuya was right.

Then Kimura Takuya continued his attempt to persuade them.

"Finding Lord Jiraiya is actually quite simple, even though it wasn't mentioned in the ninja information we were given.

My master told me that Lord Jiraiya is extremely lecherous, practically a born sex fiend.

Once, he visited every brothel on a whole street in a single night!

People gave him the nickname 'Pervy Sage.'"

"Huh?! Lord Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, is actually a lecher?"

"That's true. I heard rumors about it when I was a kid, too."

Faced with his students' questions, Might Guy recalled the stories about the Sannin that he'd heard as a child.

"All right, it's settled. We'll look for Lord Jiraiya in a famous brothel first. I heard there's one he visits often near Konoha. We can go there to ask around and leave him a message.

That way, even if we don't find him, he might still hear that the village needs him to come back."

"Good idea. It's settled, then!"

"Let's go!"

Meanwhile, somewhere else.

Inside an unnamed brothel, Jiraiya suddenly sneezed.

He had no idea that he'd already been given a "title."

"Ah-choo! Ah, what's going on? I suddenly sneezed. It must be cold outside. Let's head back to the room and warm up together under this uncle's covers! Hahaha!"

"Honestly, uncle, you're such a pervert!"

"Yeah, uncle, we just got up. Why are we going back to bed again?"