It Seems I Was Being Overly Sentimental

Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others returned to Konoha with lingering fear in their hearts.

Do not underestimate the destructive power of that girl's Shinra Tensei; the terrain itself had been drastically altered.

While an ordinary ninja might have been critically injured or killed by such a technique, everyone present was at least at the Jonin level, with most being elite Jonin or Kage-level. Consequently, they had mostly suffered only minor injuries and were otherwise fine.

However, the situation for Shimura Danzō was not looking good. Having already had his chakra drained by Otsutsuki Urashiki, he was too weak to withstand the technique.

Even with Hatake Sakumo carrying him away, he had been severely wounded. His legs were twisted and mangled by the terrifying repulsive force, leaving him completely crippled. Even Tsunade could not guarantee that she would be able to help him fully recover.

"It seems the other party bears no malice toward Konoha, otherwise, if such a technique were unleashed within the village..." Hiruzen Sarutobi shuddered as he imagined the consequences of that jutsu being used inside Konoha.

"Forget it, no use dwelling on it. I should assign the students who passed today's assessment to suitable Jonin leaders."

After saying this, Hiruzen Sarutobi picked up a scroll from the side and began to write.

"Hiruzen!"

"I still request that Bai Lin join Root. I still feel he harbors great secrets; once he enters Root..."

The office door was pushed open, and Shimura Danzō, having received some treatment, was wheeled in by a member of Root, his face deathly pale.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was speechless. Instead of focusing on his recovery after such a severe injury, he rushed here the moment he could. His ambition was plain for all to see.

Still, they were old comrades, so he frowned. "Danzō, you are in such a state—you should focus on your treatment. I have already decided on Bai Lin's assignment, so there is no need to say more."

Faced with Hiruzen Sarutobi's attitude, Shimura Danzō felt a surge of resentment: If I had been the one to step forward and cover the retreat for our teacher back then, the position of Hokage would be mine.

"From his eyes, I can vaguely see the shadow of a person—someone you would never expect," Shimura Danzō said coldly.

A shadow?

Is it him?

"I trust my judgment. As long as there are sufficient bonds, the Will of Fire will not abandon anyone," Hiruzen Sarutobi said calmly.

Bai Lin's strength was still within a controllable range, and he had enough time to observe him, intending to decide his future only after he had grown to a certain extent.

"Hmph! If that is the case, Hiruzen, you will definitely regret this!"

"Remember, I am the Hokage!"

"Bang!"

With a loud slam, Shimura Danzō left the office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi felt a sense of helplessness. Shimura Danzō's abilities were indeed formidable, not just in raw power, but even more so in schemes and plots.

A mere genius ninja—were there not enough geniuses in Konoha already?

Could so many people really not compare to a boy who was not even twelve years old?

The Senju residence.

"You brat, you don't want to learn the Mystical Palm Technique, and you don't want to learn my Super Strength. What exactly do you want?" Tsunade looked at Bai Lin before her with an ugly expression.

Bai Lin maintained an indifferent attitude and said calmly, "It's fine. I have the ninjutsu I want, and I will go ask Lord Orochimaru for guidance."

"Lord Tsunade should just worry about herself; there is no need to concern yourself with me."

His strength relied on the system, and ninjutsu could not be learned through study. Since Tsunade could not teach him, he was actually happy that she didn't care about his growth progress.

"You naturally evil brat!" Tsunade clenched her fists, wanting to strike.

Hiruzen Sarutobi had already handed Bai Lin over to her; although it wasn't officially finalized, it was a done deal.

Both Bai Lin and Tsunade understood that their future relationship would be that of master and disciple.

"To think you'd rather ask Orochimaru for advice than learn from me. Are you my disciple or his?"

"It doesn't matter. Lord Orochimaru will be very willing to teach me. If you have nothing else, Lord Tsunade, I will take Kushina to train now." Bai Lin stood up, ready to leave.

"Stop right there!"

"Oh? Does Lord Tsunade have more to say?" Bai Lin asked, turning his head.

"What do you know about that girl?" Seeing Bai Lin's attitude, Tsunade held back her temper and asked the question that had been weighing on her mind.

Based on what Bai Lin had said to her earlier, it was clear he knew something, especially since he seemed to understand that girl.

"One hundred million ryo for a piece of information. You know how important information is!"

"Her information might be useless to others, but it is very important to you. As long as you can give me one hundred million, you won't be losing out, and you won't be getting scammed."

Bai Lin waved his hand and walked toward the exit.

"This brat, not cute at all."

Bai Lin wandered around the Senju residence and finally spotted Kushina in the kitchen.

Kushina was clumsily assisting Mito Uzumaki.

"Kushina, you must know that to capture a man's heart, you must first capture his stomach." Mito Uzumaki, wearing a plain apron, was teaching Kushina how to knead dough hand-in-hand. Her long red hair was loosely tied behind her head, and a kind smile graced her features.

Since the death of Senju Hashirama, she had abandoned the Yin Seal that kept her youthful, and the years had left their marks on her face.

Kushina's cheeks turned bright red, and the dough in her hands was being kneaded into a crooked mess. "Grandma Mito! I—I'm not trying to capture any man's heart! I just felt that Brother Lin was injured earlier and wanted to make something delicious to help him recover!"

"I just like cooking; I definitely didn't prepare this food specifically for him."

"Oh? So it wasn't specifically for Bai Lin?" A glint of mischief flashed in Mito Uzumaki's eyes as she deliberately slowed her kneading. "If Bai Lin heard that, he would probably be very sad, wouldn't he?"

"I, I, I don't have any relationship with him, so why would he be sad?"

"I don't want to cook for him, wash his clothes, or clean his house... and I certainly wouldn't do things I dislike just for his sake."

"I am a woman who wants to become Hokage! Let me tell you, Grandma Mito, some idiot even called me Hokage today, hahaha!"

"I have the potential to be Hokage!"

As Kushina spoke, she burst into loud laughter, leaving the dough on the cutting board forgotten.

Mito Uzumaki was amused to the point of laughter, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes smoothing out. "Alright, alright, our Kushina has the potential to be Hokage! Once you become Hokage, Grandma will definitely be the first to support you!"

She raised a hand to wipe the flour off Kushina's face. "But even as Hokage, you must learn to take care of yourself and those around you."

"Take some time to learn from Grandma; Bai Lin would definitely be very happy to see that."

"Grandma Mito, I told you it's not for him! I just like learning, that's all," Kushina retorted, her face flushing red.

"Really not for Bai Lin? You just like cooking?" Mito Uzumaki teased.

"No, absolutely not!" Kushina stomped her feet in a panic. With her slightly tsundere nature, she was being teased mercilessly by Mito Uzumaki.

No sooner had she finished speaking than a disappointed voice drifted from the doorway: "Oh? And here I was looking forward to the food Kushina made for me."

Bai Lin's voice carried just the right amount of disappointment. He leaned against the doorframe, his gaze resting on the lopsided lump of dough on the cutting board, though a faint, imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

Kushina froze in terror, her cheeks turning so red they looked ready to bleed. "Brother Lin! You, when did you get here? Who told you to eavesdrop on us!"

"I just arrived, just in time to hear someone say it was 'absolutely not' for me." Bai Lin walked into the kitchen and reached out to pick up a clean cloth, wiping the flour from Kushina's cheek. "It seems I was just being wishful."

The warmth of his fingertips made Kushina's face flush even deeper. "I, I didn't! I... I did want to cook for you a little bit."

"Oh? Is that so? Only a little bit?" Bai Lin raised an eyebrow.