The Hokage Is Coming to School?

"Heh, Tsunade told me Lord Hokage is coming to the Ninja Academy today.

"Apparently, we're having combat training. Anyone who performs well will get guidance from some of the village's best ninja. They might even become their students." Kushina Uzumaki did not keep them in suspense. "And it's not just Tsunade. Her teammates are coming too, along with some famous Jonin from the village, including Jonin Hatake."

Uchiha Yi was startled. He had not expected anything like this.

Why hadn't anyone in the Uchiha heard about it?

Yi glanced around at his classmates. Aside from Kushina, none of them seemed to know either.

It seemed Tsunade had given Kushina a private tip. From the looks of it, Kushina was doing fairly well living with the Senju Clan.

Become a student of one of those powerful ninja?

Yi's eyes flickered toward Minato Namikaze, who sat in front of him. Perhaps this was the opportunity that would catch Jiraiya's eye and eventually make Minato his student.

Nawaki was also at the Ninja Academy. He would become Orochimaru's student.

As for Kushina, she had no shortage of guidance. Mito Uzumaki, the strongest person Konoha kept hidden away, was devoting herself to teaching her.

The Ninja Academy held combat classes, and Yi could clearly see Kushina growing stronger by the day. When she first arrived in Konoha, she had been weaker than Uchiha Mikoto. Now, Yi suspected Mikoto would have a hard time defeating her.

That did not necessarily mean Kushina was stronger. In a battle between ninja, intelligence and the ability to adapt on the spot were both crucial.

Countless possibilities flashed through Yi's mind. Was the Second Shinobi World War about to begin? Were Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others assessing the students so they could start cultivating the next generation early?

Come to think of it, he had spent over a month with Kushina, yet Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others had shown no interest in him. Even Mito Uzumaki seemed to have overlooked his existence.

"One more thing," Kushina whispered, keeping her voice low enough that only Yi could hear. "Lord Hokage wants Tsunade and the others to take on students. Orochimaru has already picked Nawaki. If Mikoto performs well, she might graduate alongside Nawaki and become Orochimaru's student too."

Kushina had been in Konoha for over a month now and had learned quite a bit.

A good teacher could make an enormous difference. No one knew whether Orochimaru would be good at teaching, since he had never taken on a student before. But he was the Third Hokage's student and one of the most outstanding ninja of his generation.

Tsunade had personally chosen him to teach Nawaki. How bad could he be?

Kushina had met both Orochimaru and Jiraiya. Compared with Jiraiya, Orochimaru certainly seemed much more dependable.

Orochimaru? Yi was tempted. Future Orochimaru would be anything but dependable—someone he would need to guard against, given Orochimaru's obsession with the Sharingan.

But Nawaki had not died yet, had he?

Son Goku had transformed into a Super Saiyan after Krillin's death. Orochimaru, likewise, had come to believe in science after Nawaki's.

The one concern was how unpredictable Nawaki's fate was. If Mikoto became his teammate and had to face danger after danger, would she survive?

If she stepped on an Explosive Tag alongside Nawaki one day, would the girl Yi had so carefully nurtured be gone?

Should I try to become Orochimaru's student too?

Yi would have liked to finish his time at the Ninja Academy before graduating, but reality would not allow it. War could break out at any moment, and the village would not let students like him remain at the academy indefinitely.

Besides, good teachers would not wait around forever.

Once war broke out, those outstanding ninja would head to the front lines. They would have no time to teach students.

Early graduation was inevitable. Two years would be enough for Yi to grow much stronger.

At this point, Orochimaru was still worth getting to know. By the time he became a problem, Yi would have grown strong enough to handle it.

As for Jiraiya, forget it. The toads of Mount Myōboku had already filled his head with nonsense. Becoming his student would be far too dangerous.

Tsunade, though... Heh. Before, Yi would not have thought her a suitable teacher for him. But now that he had acquired Nawaki's constitution, he felt practically like a Senju himself.

"And Yi, make sure you give it your all!" Kushina looked at him expectantly. "I've already talked to Tsunade. If you do well, she'll introduce you to a good teacher!"

"Don't worry. I will." Yi smiled confidently. It looked like he would have to take this match against the other students a little more seriously.

Just as Kushina had said, Sarutobi Seiichiro entered the classroom before lessons began. "Give it your all in today's combat class," he said gravely. "Lord Hokage will be watching."

After speaking, he let his gaze linger on Yi, Minato, and Kushina.

He had high hopes for those three children. Part of his role at the academy was to identify talent for Hiruzen Sarutobi and give promising students some support.

Yi and Kushina already had people to guide them. Minato, on the other hand, appeared to be a commoner ninja—or at least, he did on the surface.

In terms of current strength, Minato might still lag behind the children of established clans. His talent, however, was among the best in the class.

Seiichiro was impressed by his exceptional reflexes, his ability to analyze a fight, his aptitude for learning, and how hard he worked.

When it came to improvement, Minato was progressing faster than anyone.

Seiichiro had already mentioned Minato to Hiruzen Sarutobi. Part of the reason Hiruzen was coming today was to assess him. If Minato seized this opportunity, he might make a name for himself in a single stroke.

With Kushina's news confirmed, the students in the classroom grew excited.

Lord Hokage! Most of them had only seen Hiruzen Sarutobi at the opening ceremony. To see him again—and perhaps even catch his attention—was something they could only dream of.