Hokage Grandpa! Hold On!

Whoosh--!

High-temperature flames swept across the entrance of the Hokage Office Building!

"Argh!!!"

Screams erupted from within the wave of fire.

The two guards had indeed attempted to respond.

But subconsciously, who would believe a little brat could unleash such a fierce jutsu?

Most likely a D-rank basic ninjutsu, or at most, a C-rank.

B-rank? Had he even finished growing? Did he have that much chakra?

Fugaku: I thought the same thing yesterday.

So, their method of response was... to take two steps forward.

At this distance, a single Body Flicker could take the kid down; why dodge?

The two of them were guarding the gate of the Hokage Office Building!

They represented the face of the Hokage himself!

Could they be scared off by a little Uchiha brat? What a joke!

And so, the two of them took the Fire Style straight to the face...

Ruohuo had actually held back.

What was his current behavior equivalent to?

A six-year-old child, attempting to rescue the village chief, storming the town hall with a single-handed AK!

The key was that besides the two guards, there was a group of Anbu inside.

Anbu, the Special Assassination and Tactical Squad, equivalent to SWAT.

The kind carrying sniper rifles!

But these "SWAT" members certainly wouldn't "snipe" a little kid.

The newbie protection period, especially for the Uchiha Clan during this era, still held some weight.

Konoha was indeed ostracizing the Uchiha.

But if they weren't afraid, why bother ostracizing them?

Killing a little genius of the Uchiha family within the village would mean preparing for war.

However, that was just talk.

Playing the innocent child was one thing.

But Ruohuo wasn't stupid enough to kill someone in broad daylight.

He could hold the AK, but it had to be a water gun.

Therefore, Ruohuo used the bare minimum amount of chakra, focusing the ninjutsu on scale while dialing down the quality.

Isn't that why there's an advantage to practicing a single ninjutsu to death?

Once you master the Great Fireball, most of the experience gained can radiate to other ninjutsu.

But regardless...

This was still a Fire Style!

One could dodge, block, or even, like Might Guy did to save Rock Lee during the Chunin exams, disperse it with a wave of the hand to look incredibly cool.

But taking it to the face... that was probably not appropriate.

"Ah!!!"

The two guards flew backward, crashing to the ground where they curled up, clutching their faces and screaming in agony.

Crap! Ruohuo's heart skipped a beat. Were these two always this brave? Taking a Fire Style to the face? They're not dead, are they?!

"Nani!?" The Third's eye twitched. Is this how the Will of Fire is supposed to be used?

"Go!!!" The Anbu in the shadows launched a full-scale assault; the Hokage Office Building was under attack!

Where is the enemy!?

In broad daylight, under the clear sky, someone actually dared to attack the Hokage Office Building!?

Did the Cloud Village sneak in again? Are those trash in the Barrier Team blind!?

"Kid! Did you see anyone suspicious? Where did they go!?"

The captain of the Anbu guard team on duty at the Hokage Office Building today shouted loudly.

To be a captain, this Anbu ninja's strength was beyond doubt.

Although he had been looking in another direction just a moment ago, he was the first to arrive at the scene of the incident.

Then, a subordinate immediately flickered to his side and whispered a report of the true situation.

The subordinate was somewhat flustered while reporting.

He had witnessed the entire event, yet he never expected the brat would actually dare to...

And he had truly unleashed a B-rank Fire Style to bombard the Hokage Office Building!

"Suspicious people? I think you guys are the suspicious ones!"

At this point, Ruohuo had no choice but to see this through to the end.

"I'm telling you, don't think I'm afraid just because you're wearing masks. We Uchiha men fear nothing!"

"Hurry up and hand over the kidnapped Grandpa Hokage!"

"Hiss... you little brat."

The Anbu squad leader, having finished the report, felt his temper flare. With a Body Flicker, he reached out and hoisted Ruohuo into the air.

The scene was a perfect reenactment of what had happened earlier in front of the Police Force.

It was a pity that Obito and Shisui weren't there; otherwise, Shisui might have even awakened his eyes.

"Let me go! If you've got guts, fight me one-on-one!"

"Behave yourself! Do you have any idea how much trouble you've caused? Do you even know where you are!"

"Ah!!! Will of Fire, grant me strength once more! Let me defeat this guy!"

"Grandpa Hokage! Hang in there!!!"

"..."

The Third sat in his office, witnessing the finale of this "drama" through the floor-to-ceiling window.

Once the laughter in the office subsided slightly.

"Orochimaru."

"I have already sent a shadow clone, Teacher."

Orochimaru responded with a smile.

"The children these days are truly full of vitality..." the Third sighed.

"And their courage is certainly a bit excessive," White Fang laughed. "My boy doesn't have that kind of nerve, haha."

"This is the result of a lack of discipline, Senior Sakumo." Hyuga Hiashi was the only one not holding back his laughter.

He said in a stern tone, "If this child continues like this, he will inevitably cause a major disaster once he becomes a ninja."

"He's still young, Hiashi..." White Fang waved his hand.

Knock, knock, knock—

The Third tapped on the table.

"Alright, let's continue, everyone."

"Compared to this child, Iwagakure and the Cloud Village are clearly being much more restless..."

"I've told you already! Lord Hokage has not been kidnapped; he is attending a very important meeting!"

"Kid, don't look at me with those eyes. Do you know how much trouble you've caused today?"

"If it weren't for your age, you'd be dead by now, you know... Lord Orochimaru, you've arrived."

"Mm."

Orochimaru's arrival interrupted this "legal education."

Ruohuo, who had been trussed up and sealed, immediately quieted down...

Why did this guy Orochimaru show up?

I can't keep acting anymore; if I push it too far, it'll be over.

Come to think of it... Orochimaru at this period doesn't seem to be the "mad scientist" yet, right?

He hasn't started human experimentation, nor has he evolved into that slippery snake.

As the only one of the Sannin permanently stationed in Konoha, the current Orochimaru seems to be a top contender for the next Hokage.

"Leave this child to me for now," Orochimaru said calmly.

"Yes!" The Anbu member agreed respectfully, closing the door as he left.

"It seems you know who I am, child... You can rest easy now, can't you?"

Orochimaru's smile widened; he looked exactly like the teacher before Gintoki awakened, with his gentle attributes maxed out.

But after the awakening, tsk tsk...

"I've just learned about the situation... You want to graduate early, is that right?"

Ruohuo nodded again, still silent, and then pulled out the application form once more.

Orochimaru did not take it.

"You can hand it to Lord Hokage yourself, and then confirm with your own eyes that he hasn't been kidnapped..."

Orochimaru reached out, intending to pat Ruohuo's short-cropped hair.

Ruohuo instinctively dodged.

Anyone.

No one was allowed to touch his head!

Orochimaru's hand hung in the air, though he was not annoyed.

"Relax, child... You didn't hurt anyone, nor did you cause much damage; no one is going to blame you..."

"I'll tell you a secret." Orochimaru withdrew his hand and smiled again.

"Actually, I've wanted to do the same thing for a long time..."

"..." Ruohuo believed that.