Konoha: Starting with the Tenseigan and Taking Charge of Team 7

Was that any way to compliment someone?

Damn you, Cangyue!

If you weren't so strong, I'd have punched that grinning face of yours into next week!

Aogetsu Hyuga looked at the stunned Sasuke and Naruto. Adopting a teacherly air, he said earnestly, "You're my students, after all. Show off in front of other people all you want, but be polite to me. At the very least, treat people as politely as I do."

"..."

Team 7 was speechless. How did Cangyue-sensei have the nerve to talk about treating people politely?

He was always mocking his students for being weak with that flippant attitude of his. He had pinned his female student to the ground and spanked her until she bawled, then slapped his male students flying.

That was his idea of politeness?

Cangyue-sensei has some nerve!

"Damn it! How can you even say that with a straight face?" After a moment of stunned silence, Naruto Uzumaki sprang up and pointed furiously at Cangyue, his eyes wide as a bristling cat's.

Smack! Aogetsu Hyuga raised his hand and slapped Naruto flying.

"Naruto's brave," Sakura Haruno said, covering her face. She couldn't bear to watch anymore.

Aogetsu Hyuga cupped a hand to his ear and feigned confusion. "Naruto, did you say something just now? I didn't catch it."

"I said, you bastard..." Naruto Uzumaki climbed to his feet, ready to repeat himself.

Smack! Naruto Uzumaki went flying again.

Aogetsu Hyuga pretended he still hadn't heard. "What was that? Speak up."

Naruto Uzumaki's head was covered in bumps, and his face was swollen like a steamed bun. He knelt obediently on the ground and mumbled through his swollen lips, "I said Cangyue-sensei is an excellent, handsome, powerful teacher."

"Mm, very good. You can compliment me more often." Aogetsu Hyuga nodded in satisfaction, then glanced at Sasuke Uchiha.

"C-Cangyue-sensei." Sasuke Uchiha turned his head away.

Who Would Win Against Itachi? I Would!

Aogetsu Hyuga sat on a rock, unwrapped a lollipop, and put it in his mouth. "That concludes our pleasant lesson in manners. Now you can ask your questions."

The corners of every Team 7 member's mouth twitched as they grumbled inwardly.

A pleasant lesson in manners?

You're the only one who enjoyed that, Cangyue-sensei!

Sasuke Uchiha awkwardly forced out a polite question. "C-Cangyue-sensei, do you know Uchiha Itachi?"

"I do. Of course I know the beast who slaughtered his own clan." Sucking on his lollipop, Aogetsu Hyuga recalled what he knew of Uchiha Itachi. "His strength is nothing special. Tsukuyomi is about the only interesting thing he has."

"Uchiha Itachi? Who's that?" Naruto Uzumaki looked baffled. It was the first time he'd heard the name, but Sasuke seemed to care. The man must be important.

"Uchiha?" Sakura Haruno gave Sasuke a puzzled look. If she remembered correctly, the Uchiha clan had been wiped out. Wasn't Sasuke the only one left?

"Uchiha Itachi... Where is he?" Sasuke Uchiha's emotions surged as images from the Night of the Massacre flashed through his mind. His eyes changed into the Two-Tomoe Sharingan.

He would find Uchiha Itachi and avenge his dead clansmen!

"Sasuke..."

Naruto Uzumaki and Sakura Haruno watched him with concern.

Could it be... Sakura Haruno froze as she recalled Cangyue's words. He had called Uchiha Itachi a beast who slaughtered his own clan. Was that man still alive?

And Sasuke intended to take revenge on Itachi!

"Calm down, brat." Aogetsu Hyuga pointed his lollipop at Sasuke Uchiha's chest. "With how weak you are now, finding Itachi would be pointless. Use your head and think about what you should be doing."

Every member of Team 7 was a tool for earning his mission rewards.

Put simply, they were his cash cows.

If the Uchiha brat got himself killed, Cangyue would lose out on plenty of rewards. He needed Team 7 to train hard so he could earn more.

Though even if the brat went looking for Uchiha Itachi now, he would probably only get beaten to a pulp.

"I know. I'll gain power—enough power to fulfill my ambition!" Sasuke Uchiha sat back down and forced down his murderous rage.

"Cangyue-sensei, who's stronger: you or Uchiha Itachi?" Sasuke Uchiha asked.

Aogetsu Hyuga stroked his chin and considered the question seriously. "Who's stronger? We've never fought. That little beast's Dojutsu Power would be troublesome."

Sasuke Uchiha frowned. "Would you lose?"

"I'd win." Aogetsu Hyuga smiled, quietly confident.

Uchiha Itachi's Tsukuyomi and Amaterasu were troublesome, but Aogetsu Hyuga was certain he would win.

Sasuke Uchiha grabbed Cangyue's clothes. Hatred filled his eyes as he said fiercely, "Give me power. Give me enough power to fulfill my ambition!"

Cangyue-sensei doesn't seem to be lying. If he's stronger than Uchiha Itachi, then following him might give me the power to take revenge!

"Didn't I just teach you to be polite?" Aogetsu Hyuga slowly raised his hand, about to slap Sasuke flying.

Sasuke Uchiha saw the raised hand and flinched. He immediately changed his tone. "Cangyue-sensei, please help me train and give me the power I need to take revenge."

Naruto Uzumaki hadn't understood the earlier conversation, but he understood that. He sprang up and pointed at Sasuke Uchiha. "Whoa! Sasuke, you're playing dirty! You asked Cangyue-sensei to train you before I could! Damn it, I want to get stronger too!"

Naruto Uzumaki bowed slightly. "Cangyue-sensei, please help me train too. I'm going to beat that bastard Sasuke!"

"Cangyue-sensei, I'd like your help too," Sakura Haruno said.

She could accept Sasuke surpassing her. He was a genius, after all.

But the thought of that idiot Naruto surpassing her made her furious.

Aogetsu Hyuga sucked on his lollipop and put on a troubled expression. "Determination is good, but what should I do? As a responsible adult, I'm busy earning enough money to eat. I don't have time to help a bunch of brats train."

"Money is important, after all."

Despite his troubled act, Cangyue fully intended to train Team 7 until they grew stronger. Even if they refused, he would beat them into submission and train them anyway.

After all, he could only earn mission rewards once Team 7 grew stronger.

"Oh. Okay," Sakura Haruno said dejectedly.

Sasuke Uchiha clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, but said nothing. He understood how asking someone for help worked.

If Cangyue-sensei agreed, it would be a kindness. If he refused, that was his right.

Naruto Uzumaki recalled something Cangyue had said earlier.

When you run into a problem you can't solve, use your head and think about what's in your pocket.

"Cangyue-sensei, this is money I've saved for a long time." Naruto Uzumaki took out his Frog Wallet. After a moment's hesitation, he gritted his teeth and handed it over with a pained expression.

He had a wallet in his pocket.

Aogetsu Hyuga took the Frog Wallet and weighed it in his hand. It was fairly heavy. He opened it, saw the money packed inside, and smiled. "Here's a lesson from your teacher: the adult world is filthy. Offer someone a benefit, and you can solve a lot of problems."

"You're pretty quick on the uptake, Naruto."

"My little frog..." Naruto Uzumaki stared mournfully at his Frog Wallet, on the verge of tears. He had worked hard to save that money so he could feast on ramen for days once he became a Genin.

"I'll gladly accept this tuition." Aogetsu Hyuga put the Frog Wallet away.

As a responsible adult, he had no interest in stealing a kid's money.

Tuition was another matter.

Teachers had to eat too.

"Here's my tuition." Sasuke Uchiha took out a black wallet. After a moment's hesitation, he tossed it to Aogetsu Hyuga. Nothing but revenge interested him, so he had kept every allowance payment he'd received since childhood as cash in his wallet.

"No need to be so formal. Even without tuition, it's my duty as your teacher to guide your training." Aogetsu Hyuga opened Sasuke's wallet. Surprise flashed through his eyes when he saw it stuffed with bills.

The Uchiha brat has some money.

Sasuke's savings nearly matched the pay for an S-rank Mission.

"But it's also my duty to teach you that you shouldn't take someone's help for granted." Aogetsu Hyuga tucked the wallet into his pocket.

"Cangyue-sensei, here's my tuition." Sakura Haruno gave him her wallet, looking utterly speechless.

What kind of teacher asks his students for money?

Tuition?

She had never heard of a Jonin charging tuition to lead a team.

Lord Hokage paid team-leading Jonin plenty, after all.

"Don't worry. I'll help you get stronger. You're all very important tools to me... Ahem." Aogetsu Hyuga cleared his throat and corrected himself. "You're all very important students to me."

Team 7 were his tools for completing system missions. Rather cute tools, at that.

Naruto Uzumaki pointed at Aogetsu Hyuga and shouted indignantly, "Hey! I heard that! You were about to call us tools!"

Aogetsu Hyuga deliberately looked disdainful. "Girls don't like men who obsess over every little thing. No wonder Flat Chest can't stand you."

"Cangyue-sensei!" Sakura Haruno's cheeks reddened as she glared at him.

Cangyue-sensei is the worst.

"S-Sakura hates me?" Naruto Uzumaki deflated like a punctured balloon and slumped to the ground.

You Call That a Fireball Jutsu? That's S-Rank!

"Cangyue-sensei, I have a question." Sakura Haruno raised her hand and looked at him curiously.

"Go ahead," Aogetsu Hyuga replied absently. He was thinking about how to spend the large sum of tuition he had just collected.

First, he would have some fancy Grilled Meat. Then he would go drinking with some older women.

Perfect.

"When Naruto surrounded you earlier, you used something like Wind Release, didn't you?" Sakura Haruno asked. "But I don't think you made any Hand Seals. How could you use Ninjutsu without them?"

She clearly remembered Naruto Uzumaki surrounding Cangyue with Shadow Clones. Cangyue hadn't made a single hand seal, yet he had unleashed an invisible force like Wind Release and blown every clone away.

At the Ninja Academy, she had learned that all Ninjutsu required hand seals. How had Cangyue-sensei used one without them?

She wanted to know.

Sakura Haruno really wanted to know.

"You mean this?" Aogetsu Hyuga raised a hand, aimed at a nearby tree, and flicked a finger.

Boom! A massive gale-like Repulsive Force tore up the ground around Cangyue and sent the entire tree flying.

"S-so powerful!"

Every member of Team 7 froze, staring in disbelief at the tree that had flown so far away.

Cangyue-sensei is incredible. He sent a tree flying with a flick of his finger. If that hit a person... The thought was terrifying.

"I can fire it repeatedly or increase the output." Aogetsu Hyuga shifted his finger toward the forest on the other side. Wave after wave of tremendous, gale-like Repulsive Force burst from his fingertip and struck the distant grove.

Rumble! The entire grove was blasted to ash.

Aogetsu Hyuga chuckled. "It's just a basic attack, but it's handier than throwing Kunai."

He wasn't exaggerating. Freely controlling Attractive Force and Repulsive Force was merely a basic attack for the Tenseigan.

It consumed plenty of Chakra, but Aogetsu Hyuga had vast reserves.

"Teach me that move! Cangyue-sensei, hurry up and teach me!" Naruto Uzumaki gazed at Cangyue with starry-eyed admiration.

Naruto Uzumaki glanced at Sasuke. He pictured Sasuke and Sakura in danger, with an enemy beating Sasuke senseless.

Then Naruto would make an imposing entrance, defeat every enemy with a few flicks of his fingers, and bask in Sakura's adoring gaze.

Naruto Uzumaki drooled as he imagined the scene, covering his mouth with a snicker. "Heh heh. Sasuke gets beaten until he's on his knees begging for mercy, then I show up and win Sakura's heart."

Just imagining it felt great.

"As if Sasuke would ever get on his knees and beg for mercy, you idiot!" A vein throbbed on Sakura Haruno's forehead, and she punched Naruto Uzumaki.

Thud! Naruto Uzumaki hit the ground. Clutching the bump on his head, he looked up at Sakura Haruno with wounded eyes.

"Sakura..."

He had been so caught up in his fantasy that he hadn't noticed himself speaking aloud.

"Moron," Sasuke Uchiha said with a cold snort.

"I'm so sorry, Cangyue-sensei. Please continue explaining." Sakura Haruno grabbed Naruto and apologized to Cangyue in a fluster.