The Hypocritical Hiruzen Sarutobi

"Forget it, I was only thinking out loud. Please don't put yourselves out, sirs!"

Qian Yun controlled his expression perfectly. He felt like he deserved a little gold statue.

Hearing that, the two men waved their hands at the same time. "Not difficult, not difficult! Not difficult at all!"

Shinku Yuhi said, "Well then, I'll write back right away and have you enroll in the Ninja Academy as a transfer student!"

Mimura Yomaki objected, "I'm the commander. I should be the one writing that letter!"

"What? I'm the captain who brought Qian Yun onto the battlefield. In other words, I'm his guardian now!"

Shinku Yuhi and Mimura Yomaki began arguing, much to the surprise of the other jonin, who all gathered around.

Everyone discussed it at once. In the end, they decided to jointly and formally recommend Qian Yun to enroll in the Ninja Academy in the name of the Valley of the End Defense Force.

And he was to go immediately!

The next day, at dawn.

Another ANBU squad directly under the Hokage arrived, saying that the Third Hokage would personally serve as Qian Yun's admissions sponsor.

After packing up a few things, he went to say goodbye to Kushina, Shinku Yuhi, and the others.

Kushina actually gave him a small gift, saying it was the little backpack she had used when she was in school.

Mimura Yomaki somehow used his authority to scrounge up a set of stationery from the camp, while Shinku Yuhi got him a complete set of textbooks.

Qian Yun thanked them profusely. At last, he felt a slight sense of belonging toward Konoha.

As they traveled through the forest, the three ANBU members kept gauging Qian Yun's chakra reserves, movement speed, and little habits.

The three kept Qian Yun in the middle. It looked both like an escort and an abduction.

Qian Yun did not care.

Tap tap tap...

Suddenly, the ANBU captain triggered a mechanism ahead. Ten shuriken shot toward them, and Qian Yun immediately used the Wooden-Post Substitution Technique to evade them.

The three ANBU were startled. They stopped to retrieve the trap tools, then continued on as though nothing had happened.

The ANBU captain did not explain, and Qian Yun did not ask. It was as if nothing had happened.

A test?

Konoha's higher-ups were quite cautious. He did not know whether it was Danzo's idea or whether Hiruzen Sarutobi simply did not trust him.

Then Qian Yun suddenly sensed that the eyes beneath the captain's specially made mask were actually a Sharingan.

Even more interestingly, the tattoo on his back was the crest of the Sarutobi Clan.

If his sensory abilities had not improved, Qian Yun felt that he would never have discovered it, not even in his next life.

Very good!

If he did not give him a special mark, it would be unfair to that trap just now.

Since he was stupid enough to do something like that, Qian Yun would make him even stupider.

Perfect. He could give him a dose of the newly researched unknown virus.

He had extracted it from the corpse of some drunkard by the roadside on the way back.

Initial projections suggested that this ANBU captain's personality would become increasingly uninhibited in the near future.

Hmm, if that did not work, he could always give him another virus later. There would be plenty of chances.

After returning to Konoha Village, he registered at the gate and then went home.

He had been gone for nearly four months. The house was covered in dust, and the basement had been searched repeatedly by multiple people.

He did not know whether they were looking for someone or for supplies, but Qian Yun did not care about that either.

With a casual use of the Triple-Cleaning Technique, the inside and outside of the house were immediately spotless, even newer-looking than before.

"Is Qian Yun home?

Ah, what a coincidence. This old man came specifically to deliver your living supplies!

Starting this month, you'll receive a monthly living allowance!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi acted like they were old acquaintances meeting up.

Qian Yun bowed politely, appearing obedient and sensible. He even poured Hiruzen Sarutobi a cup of water.

There was no tea in the house, no tables, chairs, or benches. There was only a yellowed memorial photo of his parents, their faces already too faded to make out.

However, there were ninja identification numbers on the back. It seemed that many people had examined it repeatedly, leaving behind a mix of scents.

Hiruzen Sarutobi awkwardly explained that no one had been able to verify his parents' deaths at the time, so the compensation payment had never been issued.

Qian Yun smiled and said that the Third Hokage was cautious in his work and a role model for all the village's ninja. It was only right for the compensation to be delayed.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was very pleased. He suddenly felt that Qian Yun had the temperament of an excellent attendant.

Perhaps it would be a good choice to have him serve as an attendant to his eldest son in the future.

After delivering the enrollment notice and supplies, Hiruzen Sarutobi chatted for a few moments before leaving.

Who knew what that man was thinking? The moment he returned to the Hokage's office, he used a crystal ball to watch Qian Yun.

Not only that, extra watchers appeared near the back streets. The Uchiha Clan, Hyuga Clan, Root, and ANBU all had people keeping tabs on him.

Was it for the One-Tailed Shukaku, Kado's money, or did they simply want to kill him?

But the problem was, he had neither slept with their women nor dug up their ancestral graves.

Why were they so obsessed with watching him?

Qian Yun could not determine their purpose for the time being, so he quietly prepared a ninja tool pouch filled with ordinary ninja supplies.

Of course, since he wanted to test the unknown virus, he had to make a move.

Otherwise, where would he find test subjects?

Uh... Qian Yun was not Orochimaru, so please do not get the wrong idea.

He spent the day reading. As night fell, things gradually grew livelier.

The Root ninja struck first, opening with genjutsu. Qian Yun cooperatively collapsed.

Ding! Ding!

But before the Root ninja could rush inside, the ANBU squad intercepted them. The two sides began fighting fiercely.

At that moment, a masked ninja slipped into Qian Yun's house, grabbed his ninja tool pouch, and ran. A crowd of people chased after him frantically.

Hmm, quite lively. There were quite a few test subjects too.

The next morning.

Early in the morning, Qian Yun went to the Konoha Police Force to report what had happened the previous night. He also said that his ninja tool pouch contained ninja tool canisters, a batch of A-rank ninjutsu scrolls, and one hundred thousand ryo in cash.

The Uchiha Clan members formally opened a case and told Qian Yun to go home and wait for news.

The Uchiha Clan was still the same as ever. They had always been extremely serious about their work.

They quickly identified several people.

It was only a matter of time before they clashed with Root and ANBU.

Even if they did not clash openly, they would still compete in secret.

Satisfied.

Qian Yun arrived at the Ninja Academy with his little backpack on, though he stood far taller than children his age.

He did not know which class he had been assigned to, so he first went to the academic affairs office to register.

A male teacher wearing glasses received him. After a brief registration, he led Qian Yun to the fourth grade.

Before they even entered the classroom, he could hear the loud chatter inside. It really did feel like an elementary school.

"Uchiha Obito, quiet down!"

The entire class fell silent. Obito muttered, "Why am I always the only one you call out?"

Teacher Umino Narwhal's mouth twitched, but he did not continue that topic.

"Let me introduce everyone. This is Qian Yun, a new transfer student. Let's welcome him with applause!"

The teacher took the lead in clapping, but Obito was the only one who followed.

"Hey! Isn't Qian Yun that trash collector from the back streets?

His parents died long ago. How could anyone recommend him for the Ninja Academy?"

"Really? A trash collector is coming to school?"

"Hahaha... This is killing me. He probably only knows how to dig through trash cans!"

"I bet he's like Might Guy and only knows taijutsu. Otherwise, he would've entered the Ninja Academy long ago!"

The children all spoke at once, mocking Qian Yun. If this had been before, he definitely would have cared, and might even have argued back.

But after nearly four months of battle royale in the ninja world, he truly had no interest in these brainless little brats.

"Hey! You bastards, that's enough!"

Uchiha Obito was the first to speak up for Qian Yun. He looked furious, as though they had been talking about him.

But before the teacher could tell everyone to quiet down, Might Guy stood up as well.

"Qian Yun is already a special genin, and he knows the A-rank Mystical Palm Technique!

And you... what right do you have to mock Qian Yun?

Also, Qian Yun learned the Three-Body Technique long ago. He would have no problem at all passing the genin exam!"

Asuma stood as well. "His medical ninjutsu is very good. He once treated my injuries!

Even Kakashi said he was very talented. Have any of you ever been praised by Kakashi?"

The classroom fell silent, and the teacher breathed a sigh of relief.

It was not that he had not wanted to stop them earlier. There were simply too many students in the school that he could not afford to offend.

"Qian Yun, Kakashi already graduated, so you can sit in his seat!"

But as soon as the teacher said that, a bob-haired little girl with purple vertical markings on her face immediately gathered her textbooks and sat down in Kakashi's seat.

"I won't let anyone else sit in Kakashi's seat. Qian Yun, you can sit in mine!"

Rin Nohara, the girl who had bound Kakashi and Obito together in the original story.

In theory, Obito's psychological breakdown was caused by her taking too long to reveal her feelings.

Qian Yun did not move. Instead, he looked toward Obito, who immediately gathered his textbooks and sat in Rin Nohara's seat.

"Um... Qian Yun, don't mind it. I won't let anyone else sit in Rin's seat either!"

The teacher sighed. "Qian Yun, then sit in Obito's seat!

Remember, no more changing seats from now on, so we can avoid unnecessary arguments!"

"Yes!"

The children answered listlessly, apparently unhappy with Rin Nohara and Obito.

Qian Yun sat down and took out his textbooks.

He had already looked over the schedule. Theory classes were in the morning, while practical combat training was in the afternoon.

The first class was on fixed-point projectile trajectories for shuriken: how much force was needed to hit the target?

Qian Yun thought, This kind of thing requires long-term training. You'll never learn it through theory alone.

Still, he quickly wrote down the key points while simultaneously sensing what was being taught in the other classrooms.

His note-taking speed grew faster and faster. He even took out three notebooks and spread them open to write in all at once.

The class lasted an hour and a half. When it ended, the students gathered around him.

Obito talked the most, mostly about ninja life and scenes of battle.

He claimed to dream of taking S-rank missions.

Qian Yun gave a bitter smile. "The Ninja Academy is paradise, actually. You should cherish every minute you have now!"

Uh...

After Qian Yun said that, the children all booed.

Asuma complained, "Why do you sound like some old man? Even your words have this gloomy feel to them!"

Might Guy added, "Yeah, yeah! Qian Yun, I practiced hunting the way you taught me, and now I've gotten much stronger!

Uh... but Qian Yun, could I ask you to come to my house after school and treat my dad?

You know my dad is clumsy. Every day, he either hurts his hands or twists his feet. Recently, he hasn't even been able to get out of bed!"

"Please!"

"Hahahaha..."

Everyone burst into laughter, but Qian Yun smiled seriously and nodded.