"After school, you are not allowed to go to the Akimichi Clan's home!" Hyuga Hiashi scolded Hyuga Hinata.
Unlike the quiet Senju Clan compound, the heart of the Hyuga Clan was brightly lit and bustling with people. Yet a stern, oppressive atmosphere hung over the entire estate.
Hinata knelt on the floor, her hands clenched tightly around the hem of her clothes.
She'd expected to be scolded after going to the Akimichi Clan's home for dinner. Hinata had prepared herself for it.
But as she faced her father's reprimand, she couldn't help wondering what Denji would do in this situation.
She thought back to that afternoon, when she'd been kneeling on the ground and a figure had descended from the sky to save her.
If it were Denji, surely he'd have the courage to stand up to her father.
She shook her head. No, if it were Denji, he wouldn't have made her father angry in the first place.
"As the eldest daughter of the Hyuga Main Family, you represent the face of the Hyuga Clan whenever you go out."
"Akimichi Denji is suspected of not being of Akimichi blood. For the past month, there have even been voices in the village suggesting he's a spy from the Land of Rain. You must not associate with him so much."
"Denji isn't a spy!" Hyuga Hinata blurted out in protest. The instant the words left her mouth, she was stunned herself.
Hyuga Hiashi was taken aback too. He hadn't expected his usually timid daughter to contradict him.
His face tightened with impatience, and he snapped, "You dare talk back to me! Do you know that, as a great and respected clan, the Hyuga Clan cannot tolerate a stain on its reputation? What will people think of us if you befriend someone suspected of being a spy? You will reflect on this properly."
"From now on, Tokun will escort you to and from school. You are not to go anywhere outside the school or the clan compound!"
With that, he rose, issued an order confining her, and stormed off.
Hyuga Hinata clenched her fists, her face flushed red. Clear tears trickled down her cheeks, and in the end, all she could manage was, "He's... he's not a spy."
Night had fallen. Akimichi Denji walked out of the Senju Clan compound.
Akimichi Choza came to meet him. He seemed to have been waiting there the whole time. He hadn't left. Dew clung to his hair.
"How did it go? Can Lady Tsunade solve it?" Akimichi Choza asked anxiously.
Akimichi Denji shook his head. "My constitution is special. Lady Tsunade figured out what's going on, but there's no way to fix it."
Akimichi Choza looked disappointed, but the expression vanished almost immediately. He comforted him, "It's all right. You just can't train in the Multi-Size Technique, that's all. With your talent for ninjutsu, you can still become a powerful ninja without it."
"Don't lose heart. Your old man will support you."
Akimichi Choza had already made up his mind to exchange for the Yang Release forbidden technique from Lord Hokage so Denji could learn it.
Watching Akimichi Choza force down his disappointment to comfort him, Akimichi Denji felt a twinge of complicated emotion.
His father in his previous life had seemed much the same...
He shook his head. "Although I can't learn the Multi-Size Technique, Lady Tsunade taught me another secret technique. Its effects are about the same."
Akimichi Choza froze. An idea sprang into his mind before he could even think it through.
Tsunade had made her name with it. The principles were different, but it also multiplied one's strength. It was a ninjutsu called "Strength of a Hundred." The technique was famous throughout the Shinobi World and was Tsunade's signature move. Of course he knew about it.
But what truly mattered to him wasn't the technique's effects. It was what it meant that Akimichi Denji had learned it.
Everyone knew that famous ninjas had signature techniques of their own, and they never taught them casually.
There was only one exception, and that was...
Akimichi Choza asked carefully, "Were you..."
Akimichi Denji nodded. "Lady Tsunade took me on as her apprentice."
Akimichi Choza's breathing suddenly quickened, and his face flushed red.
He couldn't deny that when he'd asked Lord Hokage to have Tsunade examine Akimichi Denji, he'd harbored a little hope of this happening.
In Konoha, strength wasn't everything. Connections mattered too.
Akimichi Denji had escaped from the Land of Rain, and Akimichi Choza had acknowledged him as his son. Although Akimichi Choza had done everything he could to clear away the clan's objections, rumors were hard to stop and foolish people were hard to educate. There were still whispers within the Akimichi Clan that Denji was a spy, let alone in the village.
And Tsunade—eldest princess of the Senju Clan, student of the Third Hokage, granddaughter of the First, the Second Hokage, and the first Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, and reformer of the Medical Ninja system. If she had his back, who would dare run their mouth?
In his mind, the process should have been anything but simple.
The proper approach would have been to start by getting Denji examined and building rapport, making a good impression. Then he'd use the Akimichi Clan's connections to visit the Senju Clan often, and take advantage of their shared interest in Yang Release secret techniques to keep in touch with Tsunade. Next, Akimichi Denji would pay off Tsunade's gambling debts. Finally, on a sunny, breezy afternoon, Tsunade would be moved by Denji's character and talent and decide to take him on as her apprentice.
How had Denji managed to win her over just by going in for a checkup?!
After all Akimichi Choza had carefully planned, Akimichi Denji had simply announced the result as if it were nothing. The only explanation was that the kid had just come back from the Land of Rain and didn't know any better. He must be joking.
Akimichi Choza felt as if he were dreaming. He pinched himself, but his fat was too thick. He couldn't feel a thing.
Akimichi Denji added matter-of-factly, "And I've already learned Strength of a Hundred."
Akimichi Choza opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but he was speechless.
Things had gone far beyond what he'd expected.
In an instant, a bold idea entered Akimichi Choza's mind and took root like a weed.
But he forced himself to keep it to himself.
After the two of them took their leave of Tsunade and left the old Senju estate, they returned to the heart of the Akimichi Clan.
Only then did Akimichi Choza speak, asking in a low voice, "What do you think of Lady Tsunade's strength?"
Akimichi Denji thought for a moment. "She's very big."
"Do you have confidence in your apprenticeship to Lady Tsunade?"
"What do you mean?" Akimichi Denji gave him a puzzled look. Was he questioning his ability to handle a big woman?
"Does your Scorch Release and your talent make you feel pressured about becoming Lady Tsunade's disciple?" Akimichi Choza asked tentatively.
Thinking of how Tsunade would become the Fifth Hokage in the future, Akimichi Denji casually replied, "No. I'm going to be Hokage."
Kids said whatever came to mind. That was an outrageous thing to say.
But the more Akimichi Choza thought about it, the more possible it seemed.
Denji's talent and Kekkei Genkai, Lady Tsunade's status, and the alliance between the Ino-Shika-Cho clans...
The weather was getting cold. He'd have to embroider a Hokage Cloak for Akimichi Denji.
Ding! Akimichi Choza's wish [My Son Has the Bearing of a Hokage] has been fulfilled. Wish Point +1.
The ceremony to become Tsunade's apprentice was held the next day.
In the original story, most master-apprentice relationships were formed through the officially assigned team system. Those relationships were generally superficial, since they were simply arranged by the system. Neither the team leader nor the Genin had any choice; they just followed the Hokage's orders.
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