Training Day

Just as Danzo was about to let the words slip out, a familiar voice suddenly rang out—it was Qile.

In an instant, it was as if someone had grabbed Danzo by the throat; the words already on the tip of his tongue were forcibly swallowed back down.

Qile walked over with a puzzled look, his gaze landing first on Danzo before quickly shifting to the two others standing nearby.

Although he had already guessed their identities, Qile still asked politely, "Oh? And these two are...?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced at Danzo, suppressed a laugh, and stepped forward to introduce them to Qile: "This is Utatane Koharu, and this is Mitokado Homura."

Upon hearing Sarutobi Hiruzen's introduction, the playful smiles that had been on the faces of Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura vanished without a trace, replaced by serious and earnest expressions.

Together with Mitokado Homura, she bowed slightly and said to Qile with great solemnity, "A pleasure to meet you. We look forward to your guidance in the future."

Faced with such a formal greeting, Qile seemed rather indifferent. He waved his hand casually and muttered, "Guidance, sure, sure."

Immediately after, Qile turned and pointed to Kagami, who was standing not far behind him, introducing him to Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura: "Kagami, my clan brother! Yeling, the sister who takes care of me."

The two who were introduced both bowed slightly, showing the proper courtesy.

Qile's gaze fell upon the still-youthful face of Utatane Koharu, and he couldn't help but sigh inwardly: Utatane Koharu was still very pretty in her youth, especially those large, bright eyes that revealed a sense of youthful vitality and spirit.

As for Mitokado Homura, he really didn't look old at all back in his youth...

If his memory served him correctly, these two could truly be called the ultimate winners in life!

Not only did they successfully elevate their families—which were not particularly powerful to begin with—into major clans within Konoha, but they also remained firmly in the upper echelons of the village, weathering every storm without ever losing their positions.

Indeed!

Living a long life is the only real truth...

Just then, Danzo, who had remained silent, suddenly said, "Alright, let's begin today's training."

Before the words had even faded, Sarutobi Hiruzen, standing to the side, chimed in, "That's right! Let's get started. Qile, Kagami, you two had better try your best to keep up with our pace."

After speaking, Sarutobi Hiruzen and Danzo exchanged a knowing look, then their figures flashed, and they bolted toward the dense forest behind the Hokage Rock like arrows released from a bow.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura followed immediately behind.

Seeing this, Qile was completely stunned. He had prepared himself to train with them, but he never expected things to happen so abruptly...

Watching the figures that had already run quite a distance away, Qile shook his head helplessly. After a deep sigh, he turned to Yeling beside him and asked, "Yeling, are you going to train with us, or are you going to wait here?"

Yeling's beautiful eyes curved into crescents as she smiled, and she answered without hesitation, "I will follow you!"

Hearing this, Qile didn't offer any refusal. He let out a loud shout to pump himself up, then immediately began moving his short legs, sprinting with all his might to chase after the receding figures. Kagami, seeing this, quickly followed suit, trailing closely behind.

Just after the group had disappeared, a gentle breeze quietly swept by.

The next moment, Senju Tobirama appeared out of thin air atop the Hokage Rock.

His eyes gazed silently in the direction the group had just departed, a thoughtful glint flickering within them.

In truth, Senju Tobirama had originally come here to deliver an important message to the four of them: if they achieved excellent results after graduating from the Ninja Academy, he would personally take them under his wing as his disciples.

However, to his surprise, Qile had also appeared here at this time.

Faced with this sudden development, Senju Tobirama made a prompt decision to change his original plan, choosing not to reveal himself for now, but instead to observe from the shadows for a while longer before making further plans.

As for why he delayed the announcement, it was mainly because Qile was currently mixed in with the children he intended to take as disciples, and he increasingly felt as if Qile were trying to steal his techniques...

He was a man who never believed in coincidences...

Of course, he wouldn't mind if Qile really did learn his techniques, but he still wanted to test Qile himself...

Although he had heard rumors from his elder brother about Qile possessing extraordinary perseverance and talent, he had never witnessed it with his own eyes.

Therefore, adhering to the principle of "seeing is believing," he still needed to conduct a meticulous observation and assessment of Qile.

Meanwhile, just last night, his brother had relayed to him in detail Qile's proposal to form a private unit.

When these ideas reached his ears, they struck his heart like lightning, coinciding perfectly with his own long-held thoughts!

If not for Qile's background as a member of the Uchiha Clan, he might not have even needed any form of assessment; Qile's concepts and innovations alone would have been enough for him to take the boy as a disciple without hesitation.

It was a pity, however, that reality was always filled with helplessness and conflict.

It just so happened that Qile came from that Uchiha Clan, a family he both loved and hated, a fact that left him feeling conflicted and indecisive.

Not only that, but there was also his naive brother, who to this day still firmly believed that Uchiha Madara could become the Second Hokage—it was simply the most ridiculous thing in the world!

In his eyes, the probability of Uchiha Madara becoming Hokage was slim to none, even lower than the possibility of himself ascending to that position.

Qile ran wildly, chasing after Sarutobi Hiruzen and the other three like a wild horse off its tether.

He didn't know how much time had passed before he finally caught up to them as they stopped.

However, unlike the four of them, who were only slightly out of breath with beads of sweat on their foreheads, Qile was already gasping for air.

He took deep, ragged breaths, as if every inhalation were a torture, and beads of sweat the size of beans rolled down his cheeks, leaving him soaked as if he had just been fished out of the water.

"Wow..." Qile vomited again from overexertion. Yeling, standing by his side, quickly stepped forward to pat his back to make him feel more comfortable.

Kagami, beside him, was leaning against a nearby tree to keep from collapsing.

Even so, Qile endured the churning in his stomach and stared straight at Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others with dull, lifeless eyes, asking with a trembling voice, "Can you really be sure that when you were only three years old, you could handle training of this intensity and volume?"

"That's right! By the time I was three, I had already begun training as hard as Hiruzen. Therefore, in my opinion, you should definitely increase your training intensity even further," Danzo said, his face calm and his tone serious and solemn.

As soon as these words left his mouth, not only was Qile stunned on the spot, but even Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was closest to him and knew him best, widened his eyes in astonishment.

Sarutobi Hiruzen lowered his voice and whispered, loud enough only for the two of them to hear, "I say, Danzo, when we were three, we were clearly still just playing those ninja games all day long..."

However, Danzo merely shot him a cold glance and retorted in a low, annoyed voice, "Shut your mouth! Do you really want to tell this kid that we completely forgot to plan his training volume?"