Naruto: Trash Station

Ren spoke slowly, but he knew in his heart. That red hair was the mark of a clan, and those somewhat familiar features told Ren exactly who she was.

Then Hiruzen Sarutobi's voice came from inside the principal's office. "Nawaki... come in!"

Hearing this, Nawaki smiled awkwardly, then dragged Ren into the principal's office.

The moment he entered, Ren saw a little girl glaring at him furiously. "My hearing is very sharp. Is there something strange about my red hair?"

The little girl's eyes were full of displeasure, as though she would start fighting the instant Ren said something wrong.

Ren shook his head and chuckled, sincerity in his gaze. "There's nothing strange about it. What's strange is people's eyes. This is my first time seeing red hair too, but it looks beautiful on you. And this red hair is beautiful, isn't it?"

His sincere words carried a faint smile. Then a breeze stirred, lifting a strand of red hair. Ren raised his right hand and caught it. "It's beautiful. I'll keep it!"

As soon as the words fell, the little girl before him turned shy.

Nawaki stared at Ren in astonishment. "Amazing. I'm convinced!"

Ren ignored Nawaki and merely held out his hand. "My name is Ren. I'm here to attend the Ninja Academy too. We might even end up being classmates!"

The little girl shyly extended her hand. "My name is Kushina Uzumaki!"

After speaking, she quickly withdrew her right hand. Ren nodded slightly, then looked at the other red-haired little girl.

Standing on tiptoe, she said calmly, "My name is Reiko Uzumaki!"

Ren smiled as he looked at Kushina and Reiko. They were members of the Uzumaki Clan. Ren did not know who Reiko Uzumaki was, but he knew exactly who Kushina was. She was the future protagonist's mother, though she looked like nothing more than a little girl now.

Ren had originally thought Kushina had already entered the Ninja Academy. Who would have thought she was only entering now? In the original story, Kushina had transferred into the class. He had not expected her to transfer in alongside him.

Ren looked at the two little girls, sincerity in his eyes, then slowly took out a jade box. Inside were three pitch-black pieces of wood: Qilin Resin.

At that moment, Ren took out the Qilin Resin and carefully placed Kushina's red strand of hair into the jade box as though it were something exceptionally precious.

By then, Nawaki had already raised a thumbs-up. "Brilliant... This is absolutely brilliant. Jiraiya always teaches me how to pick up girls, but I get rejected every time. Now this is what a true master looks like."

Ren had no idea what Nawaki was thinking. He only felt that the strand of hair was precious. This was the hair of the Uzumaki Clan—the Uzumaki Clan! In the original story, Minato Namikaze had won Kushina over because of her red hair. Now that Ren had met Kushina ahead of time, he naturally would not miss such a fine opportunity. As for the protagonist Naruto, Ren could not care less whether he lived or died.

Kushina had gone from furious to strangely flushed, and she no longer dared meet Ren's gaze.

Hiruzen Sarutobi chuckled. "You've only just arrived, and you've already made friends. It seems my worries were unnecessary. Then study hard here."

As Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, two voices came from outside.

Tsunade was dragging Jiraiya into the principal's office. Her enraged eyes were still fierce as she said, "You bastard, Jiraiya! If there's a next time, I'll definitely kill you!"

Jiraiya's face was swollen and bruised. "I won't do it again, I won't do it again..."

Ren swallowed as he stared at Tsunade in a daze. Jiraiya did not have many injuries on the rest of his body, but his face had turned into a pig's head. Ren had nearly failed to recognize him.

Hiruzen Sarutobi looked somewhat awkward as well. "You two came too!"

Tsunade nodded, then her gaze fell on Ren. "Heh heh... Little brother Ren, you seem quite impressive!"

Her eyes moved from Kushina to Ren.

Ren chose to remain silent. What could he possibly say at a time like this?

However, Jiraiya said, "That's right, he inherited my true teachings. You should know, these moves—"

Before he could finish, Tsunade punched him again.

Jiraiya immediately fell silent. Tsunade merely smiled lightly, then looked at Nawaki. "I brought you to school today. Why are you still standing around here?"

Hearing this, Nawaki immediately said, "I'm leaving right now."

Then he looked at Ren. "I'm in Class One of the third year. If anything happens, come find me. I'll look after you!"

After saying that, he jumped straight out the window, completely ignoring the helpless look on the teacher's face. Nawaki was the First Hokage's grandson, a genuine third-generation official. He could even ignore the Hokage's words, let alone those of a teacher.

Tsunade nodded in satisfaction. "Since the old man is here too, this child was recommended by Jiraiya. He's preparing to attend school!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. "I heard Jiraiya mention him. This child is named Ren, correct?"

Hearing this, Ren looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi. "Yes, Lord Hokage!"

Mysterious Smile

Konoha, Ninja Academy.

The Third Hokage smiled. "Yamaki... I'll leave this child to you as well!"

After speaking, the Third Hokage looked at Jiraiya and Tsunade. "Gather on time tomorrow. Orochimaru will lead the team this time!"

Then the Third Hokage slowly walked out of the principal's office, while the others watched him leave.

Once the Hokage left, the atmosphere changed.

Jiraiya immediately complained, "The old man is so biased. It's Orochimaru leading the team again, even though I'm strong too!"

Tsunade completely ignored Jiraiya's complaints. Of the three of them, Orochimaru was the wisest and could make the best arrangements. Although Orochimaru could be ruthless, he was reliable at times.

Ren naturally did not care about that. He only looked at Jiraiya. "Strange... How did the Third Hokage know about me? What exactly did you tell him?"

Perhaps any ninja in Konoha would have been thrilled that the Third Hokage knew his name. Ren did not see it that way. Keeping a low profile while making a fortune was the proper path.

Jiraiya scratched his head and smiled. "It was because I recovered too quickly. The old man asked me a few questions."

As he spoke, Tsunade looked at Ren. "You really did recover far too quickly. I know exactly how badly Jiraiya was injured that day. Given Jiraiya's recovery speed, even with precious medicinal herbs, it should have taken half a month. Yet he recovered in only three days. That was far too fast and truly unusual. Does little brother Ren's family have some powerful Medical Ninjutsu or medicinal herbs?"

Ren quickly shook his head. "No... They were only medicinal herbs my grandfather collected long ago. Maybe they were old enough that their effects were better!"

Ren did not want his Magical Beast meat to be exposed. This Magical Beast meat was a resource for his cultivation. If Tsunade found out, she might snatch it away for research. Jiraiya already kept trying to mooch food and drink from him, and Ren could do nothing about it. After all, he only had a few tons of Magical Beast meat, and even that was not enough for himself.

Tsunade wore an amused smile. "Oh... So that's how it is. Fine, then."

Then Tsunade looked at Yamaki. "Yamaki... Take good care of this child, and these two little girls as well. If I hear any unpleasant words, I'll come over and have a little talk with you!"

The moment she finished speaking, Tsunade flashed a mysterious smile and turned to leave. Jiraiya had originally wanted to say something, but Tsunade punched him in the head, grabbed his clothes, and dragged him away.

After Tsunade and Jiraiya left, only Ren and the other three remained in the spacious principal's office.

Yamaki had it the hardest. Though he was in charge of the Ninja Academy, essentially the vice principal, he could not afford to offend figures like the Third Hokage, Tsunade, and Jiraiya.

As he looked at Ren, Kushina Uzumaki, and Reiko Uzumaki, his eyes filled with helplessness. Schools probably hated well-connected students the most, yet these were exactly that, and every one of them had an extraordinary background.

Yamaki said, "Complete the enrollment procedures today. Starting tomorrow, come directly to school for classes!"