After a mission ended.
Amada walked up to Kushina and said seriously,
"Sensei, I want to learn Sealing Jutsu from you."
Kushina froze for a moment, looking a little surprised.
"You want to learn Sealing Jutsu from me?"
Amada nodded.
"Yes, Sensei. I'm very interested in Sealing Jutsu, and I hope to learn more from you."
Kushina looked at Amada, feeling both surprised and delighted.
To be honest, she had always considered Amada a genius no less talented than Kakashi.
In fact, he had performed better on missions than many Chunin.
Students like him often left their teachers feeling awkward, because there was practically nothing they could teach them.
He could learn so many things on his own that, as his teacher, she sometimes felt a strange sense of frustration.
And now, this genius student had actually come to her for guidance of his own accord. A wave of excitement and pride surged through Kushina.
She laughed.
"Oh, I never thought you'd need me to teach you something! But since you're so sincere, I suppose I'll just have to accept you as my student!"
Amada smiled faintly.
"Thank you, Sensei."
Kushina waved for Amada to follow.
"Come on, I'll take you to my house."
Amada nodded and followed behind Kushina, feeling a sense of anticipation.
He knew that the Uzumaki Clan was renowned throughout the Shinobi World for its Sealing Jutsu.
And as a descendant of the Uzumaki Clan, Kushina surely had a wealth of precious knowledge about Sealing Jutsu.
Before long, the two arrived at Kushina's house.
She led Amada into a spacious room and pushed open a heavy wooden door,
revealing a room packed with scrolls and books.
"This is the Uzumaki Clan's archive. Feel free to look around, and if there's anything you don't understand, just ask me."
Kushina said with a smile, her voice carrying a hint of pride.
Amada stepped into the room and looked around. He was stunned.
The shelves were filled with scrolls and books on all kinds of Ninjutsu and Sealing Jutsu, from the most basic to the most advanced.
"So this is the Uzumaki Clan..."
Amada said, still reeling.
Seeing his astonished expression, Kushina couldn't help laughing.
"Well? Surprised? These are some of the few things the Uzumaki Clan left behind, so make sure you treasure them."
Amada felt deeply grateful for Kushina's generous instruction.
He said to her solemnly,
"Sensei, I'll study hard and won't let you down."
Kushina smiled and waved a hand, then turned and left the room.
Amada walked over to the shelves, picked up a scroll at random, and began reading it carefully.
And so Amada began a routine of going on missions during the day and studying Sealing Jutsu at night.
Though busy, he felt more fulfilled than ever.
The Shinobi World occasionally saw minor conflicts, but overall it was still relatively peaceful.
However, storm clouds of war had already begun gathering on the edges of the Shinobi World, though most people had yet to notice.
One day, Kushina's team received a new C-rank mission—
they were to meet up with another Konoha Ninja squad and retrieve an important piece of intelligence.
The mission sounded simple enough, but Amada noticed something unusual in Kushina's expression.
All along the way, Kushina seemed unusually excited, barely making any effort to hide it.
She walked with a spring in her step, as if she were looking forward to something. Even Asuma noticed.
"Sensei, why are you so happy?"
Kushina froze for a moment, then smiled and waved a hand.
"Am I? I just think the weather's nice today, and it's put me in a good mood."
Kurenai couldn't help chiming in.
"But Sensei, you've been humming the whole way. That's not like you."
The two of them had made Kushina a little embarrassed, and her cheeks flushed slightly.
"Oh, you kids really do ask too many questions!"
It wasn't until they met up with another Konoha Ninja squad that Amada understood why Kushina had been so excited.
From a distance, he spotted a young ninja with blond hair and blue eyes standing at the front of the group, a gentle smile on his face.
"Kushina, you're finally here. I was starting to get impatient."
Minato Namikaze's voice was clear and warm, like sunlight falling on someone's heart.
Hearing Minato's words, Kushina deliberately put on a stern expression, her tone carrying a hint of playful annoyance.
"So you're saying I took too long?"
Minato immediately grew flustered and hurriedly waved his hands as he explained.
"No, that's not it! I just... missed you so much."
Kushina blushed at his explanation, but still gave a deliberately disgruntled snort.
"That's more like it."
Amada stood to one side, watching the two flirt, and felt a pang of helplessness.
Kushina and Minato Namikaze's relationship was no secret in the village,
but couldn't they at least be a little more discreet in front of all these students?
He turned to look at Asuma and Kurenai and saw that they, too, were watching Kushina and Minato with awkward expressions.
Even Minato's students—Uchiha Obito, Rin Nohara, and Kakashi Hatake—looked exasperated.
"Hey, hey! Minato-sensei, Kushina-sensei, could you at least pay attention to where you are?"
Obito couldn't help complaining.
Only then did Minato and Kushina realize that there were so many students watching them. Their faces immediately flushed.
Minato cleared his throat, trying to hide his embarrassment.
"All right, all right. The mission comes first. Let's get going."
Kushina also put her smile away and said with feigned seriousness,
"That's right, the mission comes first. Everyone, stay alert!"
The group set out at once and soon reached a secret Konoha base.
The person in charge of the base was Shikaku Nara, who was exchanging intelligence with Minato and Kushina.
Amada and the others were allowed to move about freely.
Only then did Obito and the others come over to catch up with their old classmates.
Kakashi maintained his usual cool demeanor, saying nothing.
Obito excitedly told Amada and the others about the dangerous missions he had taken on and how much he had grown from them.
He confidently claimed that he was now the strongest Genin in his year, second only to Kakashi.
Amada listened with a smile. Although he knew Obito was exaggerating, he didn't interrupt him.
Asuma, standing nearby, curled his lip, unconvinced.
He thought to himself,
The strongest should be Amada and Kakashi. Though he's never gone head-to-head with Kakashi, Amada's strength has clearly surpassed the level of an ordinary Chunin.
Obito continued to chatter away, as if he meant to list every one of his heroic exploits.
Just then, Amada felt someone's gaze fall on him.
He turned and saw Kakashi quietly watching him.
Amada smiled slightly and nodded to Kakashi.
Ignoring Obito's astonished expression, Kakashi walked straight up to Amada.
"Once this mission is over, have a match with me. I hadn't noticed before, but there's someone as impressive as you in our year."
Amada scratched his head helplessly.
He didn't have Kakashi's adolescent urge to prove himself,
but looking into Kakashi's eyes, full of fighting spirit, he knew it would be hard to refuse.
So he could only nod in agreement. "After the mission, then."
Before you continue