Teach Me

Kitahara Kaede locked the doors and windows, then wedged a strand of hair into the crack beneath the door as an early warning.

Once he was sure no one was around, he sat back down beside the bed and focused.

A light screen appeared.

[Please allocate your initial attribute points (20 total)]

[Options: Talent, Family Background, Appearance, Luck.]

[Note: Each attribute has a maximum of 10 points. Your attributes will determine the course of your "life script."]

Four options. Twenty points.

Kitahara Kaede didn't hesitate.

Talent—10.

Max it out.

He knew the rules of the Naruto world all too well.

Everyone paid lip service to the Will of Fire and equality, but in the end, it all came down to Kekkei Genkai and family background.

What did it mean when someone without talent worked hard on the battlefield?

It meant they were serving up kills to the enemy.

If he wanted to be someone's White Moonlight, he first had to be strong enough to make her look up to him.

If he wasn't strong enough to rush in and take a hit for someone, that wouldn't be a noble sacrifice. It would just block her view.

Appearance—8.

When it came to being White Moonlight, a handsome face was essential.

For the same lifesaving favor, an ugly guy got, "I'll work like an ox or horse in my next life to repay you," while a handsome guy got, "I'll give myself to you."

Family Background—2.

He didn't want to be born into a wealthy main branch. Better to come from a fallen family that had once been prosperous.

A name and status would make things easier, and maybe he could even get his hands on a few inherited jutsu.

Luck—0.

When his finger tapped the option, he didn't hesitate for even a second.

Luck was a lifesaver for other people.

For him?

A drawback.

The worse his luck, the more miserable his life.

The more miserable his life, the more gruesome his death.

And the more gruesome his death—

The more deeply she would remember him.

A brilliant talent cut down by fate. A beauty doomed to die young. Love unrequited, longing lasting until death.

Right in his wheelhouse.

[Talent 10 / Appearance 8 / Family Background 2 / Luck 0]

[Confirmed. Loading—]

The light screen flashed, and the text began to scroll.

[The Shinobi World has only recently found peace. First Senju Hashirama rules over the era. Konoha appears peaceful on the surface, but undercurrents are stirring.]

[Identity generated: Young Master of the Hagoromo Clan. The clan once allied with the Senju during the Warring States period. Its numbers have dwindled, and it has now joined Konoha.]

[You have been named: Hagoromo Kaede.]

[With an adult's memories and maxed-out talent, you have been given a genius's script. You walked at one, began molding chakra at two, and mastered every jutsu you learned.]

[Year 13 of the Hokage Era: Tsunade is born.]

[Fast-forwarding—]

[You are four years old. Tsunade is three.]

[Senju Hashirama has convened a meeting of the clan heads. Your father, the Hagoromo Clan Head, is bringing you to the Senju Mansion to attend.]

[The first chapter officially begins.]

His vision shifted.

Light flooded in, making him squint.

The air carried the fresh scent of wood. The floor beneath him was smooth and polished, and it felt too real to be a simulation.

A four-year-old body.

His hands were smaller now, and he knelt behind his father.

The last line of text still lingered in his mind.

[Year 13 of the Hokage Era: Tsunade is born.]

Tsunade.

Senju Hashirama's granddaughter, the future Fifth Hokage and one of the "Legendary Sannin."

The system's meaning was clear. Tsunade was his target this time.

He calmed himself and discreetly took in his surroundings.

More than a dozen clan heads sat on either side of the main hall.

The seat of honor at the front was empty, and tea had already been poured.

Tsunade wasn't there.

That made sense. A three-year-old wouldn't be in a meeting hall.

Kitahara Kaede looked away and dutifully lowered his head.

No rush. He'd see how things went first.

About the time it took to drink a cup of tea passed.

"I won! I won again! Hahahaha—"

Laughter came from outside the hall.

The voice was childish, but full of energy. It carried clearly through the corridor and across half the courtyard.

Then came the clatter of dice rolling across a table.

Kitahara Kaede lifted his eyes and looked through the open side door of the main hall—

In the gazebo, Senju Hashirama sat cross-legged on the floor, hands spread out, looking utterly dejected.

"I lost again... How is that possible...?"

A little girl sat across from him.

She wore a white dress and had a golden ponytail sticking straight up. Copper coins and snacks were piled on the table in front of her. Leaning back, she held her chin so high it nearly pointed at the sky.

Three-year-old Tsunade stood with her hands on her hips.

"Grandpa's so bad at this! Again!"

Kitahara Kaede glanced at Hashirama's hands.

He was throwing the game on purpose. He wasn't even trying to hide it.

The First—the man who could pin the Nine-Tails down and grind it into the dirt—was sweating buckets after losing at dice to his granddaughter.

"Again, again!" Tsunade reached for the dice.

Hashirama was about to pick them up when several Senju elders hurried over from the far end of the corridor, looking troubled.

Hashirama's smile faded as he stood.

"Little Tsunade, Grandpa has some things to take care of."

Tsunade wrapped both arms around his leg.

"You just can't stand losing! Cheater!"

"Grandpa really has something to do—"

"Liar!"

Tsunade's lips trembled, and her eyes reddened.

Hashirama looked down at her, clearly wavering.

This man had faced Tailed Beasts and Madara Uchiha, but now, with a three-year-old girl clinging to his leg, the corner of his mouth softened.

But the elders had already reached him and murmured something.

Hashirama sighed and signaled to the maid.

The maid stepped forward to soothe Tsunade, but she wouldn't listen.

They coaxed and carried her, finally prying her off the First's leg.

"I don't want to—let go—Grandpa, you big meanie—"

Her cries rose and fell as they gradually faded into the distance.

Hashirama rubbed his temples and headed for the main hall with the elders.

The clan heads stood and followed.

Kitahara Kaede's father rose as well and straightened his clothes.

"Father."

Kitahara Kaede tugged at his sleeve.

"It's stuffy in there. I'm going to sit outside for a while."

His father glanced at him and nodded. "Don't go far."

"Okay."

The meeting room door closed.

The main hall fell quiet.

Kitahara Kaede stood, walked through the corridor, and rounded a low wall.

Dice were scattered across the gazebo floor. The copper coins and snacks were piled up in a mess.

He walked over, picked up a die, and examined it in his palm. Just as he was about to put it back on the table—

"That's mine."

The voice came from behind him, thick with tears.

Kitahara Kaede turned.

Tsunade stood at the corner of the low wall.

Her eyes were red, and tear tracks still streaked her face. Her nose was red, too.

But her lips were pressed into a thin line as she stared at the die in his hand.

She had obviously broken free of the maid and run back.

Kitahara Kaede looked at her and held out the die.

"Yours."

Tsunade hurried over, snatched it, and clenched it in her fist.

Then she took half a step back and sized him up.

When she was done, she wrinkled her nose.

"Who are you?"

"My dad came to see your grandpa," Kitahara Kaede said. "It was stuffy inside, so I came out to sit for a while."

Tsunade tilted her head and studied him for a couple of seconds.

She seemed to be trying to figure out what this strange kid, half a head taller than her, was doing here.

Then she looked down at the die in her hand.

She looked at the empty gazebo.

Then she looked back up at Kitahara Kaede.

Suddenly, she perked up.

"Do you know how to play dice?"

Kitahara Kaede shook his head slightly.

"Not really." He sounded earnest. After a pause, he asked, "Will you teach me?"

Tsunade froze.

Ever since she could remember, her grandpa had been the one teaching her.

No one had ever asked her to teach them anything.

Her eyes lit up at once.