Don't You Dare Speak That Way About Lord Hokage! / Chapter 14: Let's Put Some Plaster on This Place

"You're not Nawaki. Who are you!?"

Tsunade looked toward Uchiha Chonhua, as if asking how he had managed it.

Unbelievable. Nawaki, who usually acted like a mouse facing a cat whenever she tried to teach him, had actually asked to learn Medical Ninjutsu of his own accord?

Uchiha Chonhua smiled faintly. To Tsunade, he seemed unfathomable.

How had he managed it?

"Without studying medical books, you can't fully utilize the effects of Medical Ninjutsu..."

"Ahem."

Uchiha Chonhua quickly reminded Tsunade to look at Nawaki's face, which was already crumpling.

At Uchiha Chonhua's reminder, Tsunade's heart gave a jolt. Nawaki had finally volunteered to learn from her. She couldn't discourage the child's enthusiasm for learning.

Tsunade quickly changed tack. "Still, it's not that strict. If you want to learn, I can make a few small concessions."

"Do you mean...?"

Nawaki's expression shifted. His face had just fallen, but now it immediately brightened with joy.

"Great! I don't have to read! I'll learn ninjutsu—Medical Ninjutsu first!"

Thump!

"Ah! That hurts!"

Nawaki clutched his head. Tsunade clenched her fist and said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes, "Nawaki, getting carried away, are you? Did you forget your sister's right here? You actually dared to say out loud that you don't want to study. You're asking for it!"

"Ah, Sis, spare me!"

Uchiha Chonhua watched the siblings chase each other around and gave himself a thumbs-up.

Hadn't he solved the problem Tsunade had been facing?

Sure, he'd dressed it up as Medical Ninjutsu, but as long as it worked, that was all that mattered.

Tsunade kept her word, too. She went to the gambling den less often and spent more time teaching Nawaki and Uchiha Chonhua.

Later, Tsunade asked Uchiha Chonhua exactly how he'd inspired her younger brother to take an interest in learning Medical Ninjutsu.

Uchiha Chonhua told her the truth.

"So... that's what happened."

Tsunade was dumbfounded. So Nawaki had taken up Medical Ninjutsu because he wanted to learn chakra control more quickly?

The process of learning Medical Ninjutsu did indeed improve one's chakra control.

Tsunade glanced at Nawaki. In the end, he hadn't truly wanted to learn Medical Ninjutsu after all.

"But he's already started learning, hasn't he?" Uchiha Chonhua said with a smile after finishing the test Tsunade had given him. "Teacher Tsunade, now it's up to you to make Nawaki want to learn Medical Ninjutsu of his own free will."

Tsunade nodded. That was true.

So she kept her word. Her initial plan and the result they'd ended up with were a little different, but Nawaki had started learning Medical Ninjutsu. The result wasn't quite what she'd expected, but it was close enough.

"What a clever little brat. Always scheming."

Tsunade muttered under her breath, then seriously graded Uchiha Chonhua's test.

"Ahhh, don't die! You have to stay alive, ahhh!"

Nawaki's noisy voice rang out again. Tsunade helplessly pressed her fingers to her temples.

Another fish had died.

It was starting to seem a little cruel to Tsunade.

"Mm, steamed fish again tonight."

"You've been going to the Senju Compound more often lately."

That evening, Uchiha Ichiro was preparing ingredients for his shop the next day when he suddenly said this to Uchiha Chonhua, who was helping him.

"Yes. It's lucky that Teacher Tsunade is willing to spend more time teaching me."

Uchiha Chonhua set down the ingredients and looked at his father. Was he unhappy about it?

He was a somewhat unconventional Uchiha, with two lifetimes' worth of experiences. In the end, he was different from the Uchihas born and raised in this world.

So it would have been perfectly normal for his father, Uchiha Ichiro, to have reservations about him going to the Senju Compound.

But after observing him, Uchiha Chonhua realized he'd been overly suspicious.

His father looked worried.

"People in the clan aren't happy that you're going to the Senju Compound. Chonhua, be careful for a while."

"That's right, Chonhua. You should go less often from now on." His mother, Mie Uchiha, nodded and said worriedly, "I'm afraid those people might bully you."

Uchiha Chonhua fell silent. After a long while, he said, "I understand, Mom, Dad."

Uchiha Ichiro and Mie Uchiha relaxed at their son's promise.

Their child had always been sensible. If he said he'd do something, he would.

Unfortunately, in this matter, Uchiha Chonhua would disappoint them.

He was sensible, but he wasn't afraid of trouble. Becoming Tsunade's student was one of his goals.

What should you do when an obstacle appeared on the road to your goal? Kick it aside, move it, smash it to pieces!

With a cheat at his disposal, Uchiha Chonhua's confidence had grown along with his abilities. He'd become bolder in his ambitions and actions.

[Host, you're different from when you first met the system. You've changed so much.]

"That's human nature. People grow and change depending on their circumstances and abilities."

Uchiha Chonhua praised the system. "And these changes are all thanks to you."

[Heh heh, that's what the system is here for. The system is happy to see the host growing well.]

Feeling the system's clear sense of joy, Uchiha Chonhua smiled warmly.

[Of course, the system would be even happier if the host became Hokage soon and earned lots of primordial stones.]

"...I'll become Hokage. Don't rush me."

His parents' warning still rang in his ears, but Uchiha Chonhua continued on his way to the Senju Compound as usual.

After giving Nawaki a beating and listening to Tsunade's lessons, he left the Senju Compound to find the sky ablaze with red. Fiery clouds stretched across the horizon; it was already dusk.

As soon as Uchiha Chonhua entered the Uchiha Clan Compound, his eyes shifted slightly. He continued toward home without changing his expression.

As he passed a street corner, several people blocked his way.

They were all dressed like Uchihas, and the one leading them looked at Uchiha Chonhua with ill intent.

Uchiha Chonhua knew all of them. After all, they were members of the Uchiha Clan, and they saw each other all the time. They were all related, too.

But family was family. If they had different beliefs and ways of doing things, then they were on different paths and had nothing to say to one another.

"Chonhua, you just got back from the Senju Compound, didn't you?"

The Uchiha leading the group wore a malicious smile. "You've been going there a lot lately. Do you know the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan have been enemies for generations?"

"All I know is that we're all part of Konoha. I deeply agree with something Lord Hokage often says: Konoha is one big family, and we're all family. So going to the Senju Compound is just like going home."

Uchiha Chonhua looked around at the members of his clan and said, "The Uchiha Clan and the Senju Clan were once enemies for generations, but we're all people of Konoha now."

"People of Konoha? That's a laugh. You look pretty happy, though."

Uchiha Chonhua looked at the rather fat clan member and smiled with a cheerfulness anyone could see.

"I am happy. But you all certainly don't look happy."

"Tch. What family? What people of Konoha? Pah! Those disgusting words came from Sarutobi Hiruzen. Konoha should belong to the Uchiha Clan! What right does he have to be Hokage? He comes from an inferior clan."

"Exactly!" Another Uchiha spoke up. "Senju Hashirama and Senju Tobirama were one thing, but who the hell is Sarutobi Hiruzen? Does he deserve to be Hokage? The Senju Clan has no one left now. The Hokage Position should have gone to our Uchiha Clan. What nerve that Old Monkey has, stealing the Hokage Position!"

"Don't you dare speak that way about Lord Hokage!"

Uchiha Chonhua appeared in front of the clan member with the Body Flicker Technique.

The man was still ranting and hadn't even realized what was happening when Uchiha Chonhua kicked him hard, sending him flying.

Chapter 14: Let's Put Some Plaster on This Place

"Damn brat!"

When the others saw Uchiha Chonhua attack, they were instantly enraged and rushed at him, throwing punches and kicks.

"We're doing this for your own good. Don't forget, you're an Uchiha!"

"I'm an Uchiha of Konoha!"

Uchiha Chonhua shot back. Since they'd chosen to start the fight, he had no intention of holding back.

After kicking the Uchiha clan member away, he pushed off the ground and charged at another. He dodged the man's roundhouse kick, raised his fist, and slammed it into the man's waist.

The man was already on guard, so Uchiha Chonhua couldn't catch him off guard as easily as before. He reacted quickly, raising his right hand to block Uchiha Chonhua's punch.

Uchiha Chonhua's strike missed. He quickly backed away, dodging another clan member's punch, his expression solemn.

There were six of them, and each wore a Konoha Headband. That meant they were shinobi who had passed the Military Police Force's examination, at least Genin.

Uchiha Chonhua maneuvered among them. The five men, along with the Uchiha he'd kicked away, all wore ferocious grins as chakra surged through them. They rained punches and kicks down on him with their Taijutsu.

Yet every attack that was about to land on Uchiha Chonhua missed him by a hair's breadth.

That drove them into a fury.

"You brat! If you've got the guts, stop dodging!"

Uchiha Chonhua responded with a mocking smile. "Are you sure you graduated as a shinobi? How can you be so naive? Don't go around telling people you're an Uchiha."

"Yaaah!"

His words made their anger rise even higher. Their faces reddened, and their attacks grew disorganized.

Uchiha Chonhua moved among them with ease, like a butterfly flitting through flowers. He bent at the waist, crouched low, or leaned to either side.

He moved as though he were dancing, dodging every one of his enemies' attacks.

As he dodged, Uchiha Chonhua watched them closely and got a sense of their abilities.

From what he could tell, they had Genin-level strength.

Come to think of it, only Genin would have enough free time to come bother him...

Wait a second.

Uchiha Chonhua realized that he'd made an assumption: he'd taken it for granted that they were shinobi from the Military Police Force.

He'd jumped to conclusions.

The Konoha Military Police Force had plenty of work to do. They patrolled all over the village, maintained order and public safety, and caught villagers and shinobi with criminal tendencies. That was their official authority, at least. In practice, the only shinobi they could arrest were Genin without any position in the village. To arrest anyone Chunin or above, they had to get the Hokage's approval.

Thanks to the current relationship between the Third Hokage and the Uchiha Clan, members of the Military Police Force often took part in supporting Anbu operations, too. It was one of Sarutobi Hiruzen's ways of winning them over.

This wasn't the later era, when the Uchiha Clan would be pushed out of Konoha's inner circle. For now, the Military Police Force had a decent relationship with Konoha's High Council. In turn, they were given more tasks, making their work tedious and busy.

Even Genin training with the Military Police Force didn't have much time to block his path.

Members of the Uchiha Clan could pass the Military Police Force's examination, become Genin, and start training with the force. But training was just training, not a permanent position; they could still be dismissed.

The Konoha Military Police Force carefully selected the best candidates and had a fixed number of positions. It wasn't bloated with unnecessary officials.

As for these people's abilities...to Uchiha Chonhua, they seemed a little weak.

Then again, these Uchiha Genin were around twenty, already young adults. How strong could they be?

Coming from the renowned Uchiha Clan, and still Genin at this age... It was a little hard to explain.