Hizashi: Lord Hokage, You Led Me Astray

Might Guy stepped forward and hugged Hizashi's legs, pulling him out like a radish and laying him flat on the ground.

The light seemed to have vanished from Hizashi's eyes as he stared blankly at the sky, still reeling from the blow. He could not imagine that the Hyuga Clan's legendary strongest defense had been broken so easily.

Seeing his teacher so devastated, Might Guy thought seriously for a moment, then gave a thumbs-up with a smile. "Sensei, you're already incredible. You held out against Big Brother Setsuna for so long."

Hearing Might Guy's "praise," Hizashi remembered that the test was to last three minutes against Setsuna. The corner of his mouth twitched. Had he really lasted three minutes under Setsuna's attacks?

As if noticing Hizashi's concern, Might Guy thoughtfully supplied the answer. "Sensei, you lasted a full two and a half minutes against Big Brother Setsuna. Adding the half minute from before, that makes exactly three minutes."

Hizashi became even more withdrawn. At the same time, he could not help wondering whether those exact three minutes had been Setsuna sparing his pride. Judging by the power Setsuna had displayed at the end, if he had fought at full strength from the beginning, Hizashi might not have lasted even half a minute.

At that thought, Hizashi could only smile bitterly. Not only was Setsuna powerful, but he had even considered Hizashi's feelings. Who exactly had the Third Hokage assigned as the team leader? It would be better to let Setsuna lead the team instead.

Of course, that self-defeating thought lasted only an instant. A ninja did not necessarily complete missions just by being powerful. They also had to account for all manner of enemy ambushes and poisoning tactics.

As the team leader, his experience as a ninja was not something a rookie ninja like Setsuna could compare with. That was surely why the Hokage had made him the team leader.

Hizashi let out a long breath, pulled himself together, and stood up. He said as calmly as possible, "You have successfully passed the test. You do not need to return to the academy."

Hearing that they had passed, Shizune gave a small cheer. Compared to her senior's strength, she truly seemed far too ordinary.

Hizashi commented on their fighting. "Might Guy, your Taijutsu is too straightforward. You lack adaptability and defensive methods. I suggest you seek out a senior in the village known as Chen-sensei. The Leaf Dragon God he created can be called Konoha's strongest Taijutsu secret technique. It is somewhat similar to Rotation, a powerful technique that combines defense and offense. If you can learn this Taijutsu, it will make up for your shortcomings in defense. Of course, that depends on whether your sincerity can move him."

Might Guy's eyes burned as he clenched his fists. "Hizashi-sensei, where does Chen-sensei live? I can't wait to use my blazing youth to move him!"

Hizashi said, "Chen-sensei lives in the west of the village. You'll find out if you ask around. As for Shizune, if you are certain you want to become a medical ninja, the first thing you need to do is improve your chakra control. I suggest trying to condense chakra into threads to control Shuriken. On one hand, it will improve your chakra control; on the other, it can serve as an offensive method."

Shizune nodded repeatedly. "I'll definitely work hard."

"As for Setsuna, I have nothing to teach you in Taijutsu. But I need to remind you of one thing: without teammates to assist you, do not fight Genjutsu users alone," Hizashi warned earnestly.

Setsuna nodded heavily. That was indeed his weakness.

Hizashi barely regained some confidence as a teacher before saying, "Go back and rest well today. Starting tomorrow, we'll officially begin taking missions. Unless something unexpected happens, we'll take missions in the morning and train in the afternoon."

Shizune raised her hand and asked, "Hizashi-sensei, I heard at the academy that ninja missions require energy and patience, and they may take more than ten days to complete. Can we really do them in just one morning?"

Hizashi said, "Those are high-level missions. Newly graduated ninja like you can generally only take D-rank missions for experience, such as finding pets, watching children, cleaning garbage, and transporting simple items. They do not involve confidential information."

Might Guy pulled a miserable face. "Not that kind of thing! I've already picked up garbage for a year. Do I have to start picking up garbage again?"

Shizune also looked dejected. This was completely different from the ninja life she had imagined.

Hizashi laughed helplessly. All ninja went through things step by step like this, so he understood how they felt. But when he looked at Setsuna, he found him very calm, with none of the resistance Might Guy and Shizune had shown.

With his strength, he would be qualified to take even A-rank missions, yet he can endure such monotony. His temperament truly is extraordinary, Hizashi praised inwardly. The most important thing for a ninja was naturally endurance. If one could not even endure this little boredom, then strength alone could never make one a qualified ninja.

Of course, perhaps he simply does not yet have a clear enough understanding of D-rank missions. Hizashi did not rush to a conclusion. After brushing the dust from himself, he said sternly, "Dismissed. Go home."

After Hizashi limped away, Might Guy suggested, "Big Brother Setsuna, it's still early. How about we train first, then go have a meal together? Food tastes best after hard training!"

Setsuna nodded. "Mm, I was thinking the same thing. We can keep going after dinner too. At least until ten tonight."

Might Guy looked at Shizune with sparkling eyes. "Shizune, do you want to come too?"

Shizune felt her scalp go numb from the pressure. Were both of her teammates training maniacs?

Keeping up with their training intensity would be difficult, but she was the weakest member of the team. After thinking for a moment, Shizune set her little face firmly. "Mm, I'll work hard at training too!"

While they planned the start of their day's training, Hizashi arrived at the Hokage's office.

"How does it feel to be a team leader for the first time?" the Third Hokage asked kindly. Then he suddenly noticed that Hizashi's body seemed somewhat uncoordinated and could not help asking, "What happened to you...?"

Hizashi gave a bitter smile. "I have disappointed you. On my first day, I lost to my own student—and it was a crushing defeat."

"Was it Setsuna? Don't worry about it. Even Jiraiya suffered a major setback at his hands," the Third Hokage reassured him.

"Ah? Lord Jiraiya lost too?" Hizashi froze, then quickly understood. He looked at the Third Hokage resentfully. "Why didn't you tell me about that?"

The Third Hokage gave a few guilty, awkward laughs, his gaze drifting away. "Haha, wasn't that so you could understand him better?"

Hizashi nodded thoughtfully. "That makes sense. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I truly could not have imagined that someone could learn the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist after watching it only once."

This time, it was the Third Hokage's turn to freeze. "What did you say?"

Hizashi said with emotion, "He is a genius of Taijutsu. He watched me use the Eight Trigrams Palm once and learned the Gentle Fist's greatest secret technique, the Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms. Even his Acupoint Striking is better than mine."

The Third Hokage was secretly shocked, and at the same time, felt somewhat self-reproachful.

In a corner beyond his notice, Setsuna had actually grown to such an extent on his own.

If he had discovered Setsuna's talent earlier, perhaps Setsuna would now be able to rival the Third Raikage. What Konoha lacked was precisely a war weapon like the Third Raikage, capable of facing a thousand alone.

At that thought, the Third Hokage said seriously, "Hizashi, I'll leave the task of guiding those three children to you. Make sure they grow as quickly as possible."