Let bygones be bygones

If one had to describe Mizuki's life over the past few days, the phrase "unable to care for oneself" would summarize all the bitterness and sweetness of it. Having clothes put on for him, food fed to him, water poured when thirsty, and legs massaged when tired—such a comfortable life was truly enough to make others envious. Eating, drinking, and relieving oneself; the first two were indeed a life of luxury, but a ninja is not a true immortal. After eating and drinking, one must eventually "relieve" oneself. In just a few short days, Mizuki felt as though a lifetime's worth of "embarrassment" and "dignity" had been completely wiped away, even though it was his fiancée taking care of him. The taste of it was truly hard to explain to outsiders without experiencing it firsthand.

It seems memory and experience are really not the same thing, even if the soul-transmigration and assimilation process are different.

Take the ninja experience of his predecessor, Mizuki; although he knew it clearly in his mind, could a landlubber learn to swim just by reading a swimming manual ten thousand times? It seemed impossible no matter how one looked at it.

If this were merely an entertainment work like an anime, anything would go as long as it was interesting. But in a real world, everything must adhere to logical self-consistency. A white-collar worker transforming into a combat genius overnight is not something just anyone can pull off. Ordinary people should honestly grind for experience points and train their skill proficiency first; life and death situations leave no room for too many unrealistic fantasies, especially since he was not the Child of Prophecy of this era.

Heroes don't think of martyrs before sacrificing themselves to save others, and Mizuki had no time to specifically focus on the original Mizuki's combat experience while fighting. There was no trembling fear of a novice on the battlefield, nor the seasoned feeling of a veteran who had killed countless men. Everything relied on the desire to seek advantages and avoid harm, slowly mobilizing the body's combat instincts and experience until they gradually merged. One must get into the water and splash around to test the skills in the swimming manual and eventually learn to swim. Only through constant fighting could he verify the various combat styles in his memory and make them his own.

The barrier between body and consciousness can only be gradually eliminated through practice and the passage of time. This cannot be taken lightly at all, Mizuki sighed to himself.

"Tsubaki, do you think I should change professions?" While eating an orange handed to him by Tsubaki, Mizuki suddenly dropped a bombshell.

"What?" Tsubaki Chie was bewildered.

"Look, being a ninja is such a dangerous job. I almost didn't make it back this time. Just look at these injuries; who knows how much money it will take to fully recover? All the supplements, fruits, and meat I've been eating these past few days—do you know how much that costs? The meager pay I get isn't even enough to fill the gaps between my teeth."

"It's okay, I have money. You can use mine."

"How much could you possibly have? You've been taking leave every day to look after me at the hospital; your salary must have been docked to almost nothing. How could that be enough?"

"I still have quite a bit," Tsubaki said, hesitating as she confessed. "I've saved up a lot, preparing for when we get married."

Mizuki was left speechless. This woman's "devoted wife" skill was already maxed out; she was just waiting for a class change.

"It's not good to always spend your money," Mizuki continued. "It seems like being an actor or an entertainer is very profitable these days. Becoming a star right away might be too rushed, so how about we become a comedy duo and perform magic tricks or something? Look, if you and I form a comedy act, it should be pretty good. Using ninjutsu to fool ordinary people is just too easy. Once we've accumulated enough experience, we can go into movies and make big money. How about it?"

"But... but..." Tsubaki looked reluctant, not knowing how to refute him. "Maybe not. How about we open a flower shop? I have quite a bit of experience in growing things..."

"Selling things? That's an idea," Mizuki's mind had already drifted far away. "Do you think I should discuss it with Iruka and get the students at the Ninja Academy to buy stuff? Hmm, that's not quite right; the parents would complain. What if we add some training subjects and have them wholesale materials from me? Is there any difficulty in throwing kunai at a wooden target? How about changing it to throwing flowers? That's much harder. Let's do that. Swindling the village's budget is much easier than swindling the students' parents. If Iruka doesn't agree, we can give him a cut—two percent of the profits, plus a bit of personal favor. That should be convincing. Tsubaki, this is doable..."

"But..." Tsubaki, already stunned by Mizuki's delusions, countered, "Wouldn't it be bad if we got caught?"

Before Mizuki could continue his persuasion, he suddenly heard a cough from the doorway.

"Third Hokage, why are you here?" Mizuki couldn't help but greet him awkwardly. It seemed his budget-swindling operation was about to die in the cradle before it even began. Why didn't Tsubaki close the door? She was too careless.

"Third Hokage..." Tsubaki quickly stood up to greet him.

"No need to be nervous. I heard Mizuki's condition had improved, so I stopped by to take a look," the Third said kindly. "Though, it seems I heard something quite extraordinary."

Tsubaki could only offer an embarrassed, awkward smile. Mizuki had to bite the bullet and say, "You must have misheard. I've just been eating; I didn't say anything."

"Is that so? Heh heh." The Third didn't dwell on it and continued, "I heard from Ibiki and Aoba about the last mission. The village's intelligence was flawed, and you two suffered for it."

"You worry too much. Ninjas are born for such things. Eliminating accidents and completing missions is our duty."

"Hmm," the Third was noncommittal toward this statement. "The village will not mistreat its own ninjas. You suffered a great loss this time and expended a lot of energy, especially you, Mizuki. Is there anything you need the village's help with?"

"There's nothing urgent for now," Mizuki said modestly. "However, my recent research into sealing techniques and summoning has hit a bottleneck. I wonder if the village has any techniques in this area?"

"Summoning beasts shouldn't be a problem. Although summoning beasts are often the closely guarded secrets of many clans, the methods of application are actually much the same. There's nothing particularly special about them. The village will provide you with some materials on this."

"Thank you very much."

"Sealing techniques are more troublesome. Aside from forbidden techniques, ordinary sealing techniques have already spread. The remaining materials on sealing formations and barrier techniques usually have extremely high requirements and require multiple people to perform simultaneously. Do you need those?"

"Yes, yes, Third Hokage. I don't need anything too profound; general basic materials will suffice."

"Very well. I will have them sent to you later. These are not very critical things, so I hope they are useful to you. This is all the help the village can provide."

"You are too kind. You've already helped a great deal; I am deeply grateful."

"Alright, I'll be going now. You should get well soon; the village is in need of manpower."

"I understand. Please take care."

As the Third left, Mizuki let out a sigh of relief.

"Tsubaki, make sure to lock the door next time."

"Yes."

The Third Hokage's visit was like a small interlude, allowing Mizuki to experience the feeling of being flattered. For Mizuki, the biggest gain was not the ninjutsu materials, but the fact that the Third had made the village's stance clear: bygones would be bygones. This could be considered the final victory of his "whitewashing" campaign over the past few months. Confirming his faction was a major event; even if something went wrong later—for instance, if he fell out with Orochimaru and Kabuto Yakushi and they spread rumors that he was a spy—the village would not easily believe the enemy's claims, or at least they wouldn't investigate and monitor him in the open or in secret as they were doing now. He had finally seen the clouds part to reveal the sun.

"Tsubaki, my hair is too long. Cut it for me."

"Okay."

"Give me a 'wild noble' hairstyle, the kind that won't get messed up even in a strong wind..."

"What is that?" Tsubaki was completely unable to keep up with Mizuki's wild imagination.

"Forget it. Shoulder-length straight hair, with some thin, choppy bangs in the front."

"Got it."

"Later, I want to eat chocolate fondue, with extra ice cream."

"I don't know how to make that."

"Then let's have a big bowl of seafood udon instead. No onions or cilantro, but add plenty of garlic."

With a "poof" sound, chakra smoke filled the air, and a burly figure appeared.

Bastard, are all ninjas this rude? Can't they see the door is locked? Making such a huge scene just to barge in, Mizuki thought, feeling annoyed. I want to see who is so tactless, interrupting a couple's private conversation.

When the smoke cleared, it was Ibiki Morino who appeared. Gazing at that face covered in terrifying scars, Mizuki swallowed his burning rage back down in a rather unsightly manner.

"Isn't this Captain Ibiki? To what do I owe the pleasure of such a sudden appearance?"

"The mission is over; I am no longer a captain," Ibiki said with a straight face. "Regarding the upcoming Chunin Exams, due to your unexpected severe injuries, your original assignments have been adjusted. All your patrol and security duties are canceled. You are now reassigned as an assistant proctor for the first written exam and a mobile reserve for the second exam, the Forest of Death. The third exam will take place a month after the second; by then, you should be mostly recovered, so you are tentatively assigned to the overt venue security force to assist Hatake Kakashi. The specific details will be discussed later. The arrangements are here; take a look."

Mizuki took the mission sheet, glanced over it, and said, "Doesn't this just mean I get to slack off during the first and second exams? I never expected someone with a face as scary as yours, Ibiki, to be such a good guy. Haha, thanks a lot."

"This isn't for you to slack off," Ibiki Morino's eyebrows twitched. "Forget it, it's all the same anyway. Get some rest; I'm leaving." With that, Ibiki opened the door and walked out.

"These guys—no manners when they come in, and they don't even close the door when they leave. Truly lacking in morals, wouldn't you agree, Tsubaki?"

"I don't think that's the case."

"Whatever. But Tsubaki, your haircut is crooked~" Once I'm out of the hospital, I'll have to ask the salon to fix it.