You'll Regret This, Hokage

"Danzo! Do you have no respect for Lady Mito? Do you know what it would mean if she heard you say that?!"

"That woman already has one foot in the grave..."

"Danzo! Watch what you say!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi hurried to shut Danzo up. If Mito Uzumaki heard that, all she had to do was complain to the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. What would happen to their military funding then?!

War was about to break out. If their supplies were cut off at a time like this, Hiruzen would never let Danzo off lightly!

"Hmph. Then hand Ryuuzaki Eiji over to me. He's only a Civilian Ninja. That Ninjutsu of his still looks immature, but once I get my hands on him..."

Danzo mentioned only Ryuuzaki Eiji's Ninjutsu, saying nothing about his Kekkei Genkai. Root's intelligence had arrived barely any later than the Third Hokage's live view through the Crystal Ball.

When Shimura Danzō heard that a Civilian Ninja at the Ninja Academy had awakened a Dojutsu Kekkei Genkai, greed flashed in his eyes.

His abilities could wait. The boy had to be under Danzo's control!

"No! His potential is limitless. I won't let your darkness taint him!"

"Hiruzen, you're too stubborn!"

Danzo was furious. Hiruzen wouldn't give him the Jinchūriki, and now he was holding on to a Civilian Ninja who might possess an entirely new Kekkei Genkai. How was Danzo supposed to gain control of Konoha?!

How was he supposed to devote himself to his Konoha?!

In Danzo's eyes, he and Konoha were one and the same!

So anything he did for himself was for Konoha!

He worked himself to the bone for Konoha. How could Hiruzen Sarutobi say something so vicious to him?!

"Danzo, I'm the Hokage!"

Danzo tried to say more, but those words left him choking on his reply.

"Hiruzen, you'll regret this!"

Danzo stormed out of the Hokage's Office and slammed the door behind him with a bang!

Kushina's first day of school in Mizuha ended in utter chaos.

"Thank you so much for today! I don't know what I would've done without you!"

Kushina stuffed her textbooks into her little schoolbag and beamed at Eiji.

It wasn't that she couldn't have handled the problem herself. If Eiji hadn't stepped in, she had planned to let them taste her fists. But doing it alone would have been a little lonely.

"No need to thank me. They were going to insult my parents, so I went after them."

Eiji's tone was calm. He had no intention of using this to earn Kushina's gratitude. To him, that felt a little too calculating.

"Oh, I see..."

Kushina lowered her head, a little disappointed. She had thought Eiji had stepped in specifically to help her.

But Kushina didn't stay discouraged. She clenched her small fists to cheer herself on, then leaned in until she and Eiji were face-to-face.

"Still, no matter why you did it, you helped me out! That means we're friends now, right?"

"I guess so, if you want to be my friend."

Honestly, Eiji liked Kushina. Thanks partly to his memories of his previous life, he thought she was a charming girl.

Meeting her face-to-face only made him feel that more strongly.

And now he had awakened his cheat. His Six Eyes let him read an enemy's movements, scout from afar, and enjoy a limitless supply of energy.

With Limitless, he could stroll across a battlefield during the Shinobi World War without taking a scratch.

And then there were "Azure," "Red," and "Hollow Purple," which he had yet to unlock.

His Domain Expansion, "Unlimited Void," would be even harder to guard against. No one would know what had hit them.

Unless the Ōtsutsuki suddenly came knocking, he felt he was already invincible in the Shinobi World.

Now that he no longer feared Konoha's darkness, he could afford to get close to Kushina, the future Jinchūriki. So...

Sorry, Minato! I'll find you a beautiful wife to make it up to you!

"Oh, right. Since you're my friend, I have another gift for you."

Eiji took a transparent box full of sparkling candies from his backpack and handed it to Kushina.

"Wow, these candies are so pretty!"

"I made them with honey I got by risking my neck to raid a hornet's nest. I promise they taste good."

Eiji grinned and gave Kushina a thumbs-up.

Using various Cursed Techniques would make his brain work faster. Until he learned Cursed Technique Reversal, eating more sugar to keep his thoughts flowing seemed like a good idea. Daifuku, though? No thanks.

Ninja got plenty of exercise. Just look at Mitaraishi Anko: she ate Three-Color Dango like crazy during the Shinobi World's turbulent years and stayed slim, only to turn into a giant potato once peace arrived.

Eiji was sure he would learn Reverse Cursed Technique long before the Shinobi World found peace, so he wasn't worried about getting fat.

"Thank you for the candy!"

Kushina was delighted with the gift, but then she realized she hadn't prepared anything for Eiji. She lowered her head and tugged awkwardly at the hem of her clothes.

"I'm sorry. I didn't get you a present."

Seeing her disappointment, Eiji went on.

"Don't worry about it. I only thought of giving you this just now. Real friends don't have to stand on ceremony."

Kushina's expression softened at his words.

"Okay, I get it! But I'm still getting you a present tomorrow. I promise!"

"Eiji, um... what about our training today?"

The familiar voice made Eiji turn. Minato was looking at him, a little embarrassed.

Only then did Eiji remember the training session he had arranged with Minato. It wasn't as though he had no one to talk to at school. He was on friendly terms with Uchiha Fugaku, Hyuga Hiashi, and the future heads of the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans.

Eiji figured that even if he became invincible in the Shinobi World someday, good relationships would still matter. Friends were worth having.

Those small fry from earlier didn't matter, but building ties with the prominent figures he knew from the original story would help him unite the Shinobi World one day.

He was closer to Minato than to the others, mainly because the two of them often trained in Taijutsu together.

Everyone knew Ninja had poor defenses—unless they were the Raikage.

So Eiji had sought out Might Duy, the perpetual Genin, early on and learned how to train in the Eight Gates from him.

Minato was also a commoner, and his parents had died when he was young. He had little access to Ninjutsu, so focusing on Taijutsu had been a choice born of necessity.

When Minato saw how systematic and well-designed Eiji's training was, he asked if they could work out together. Little by little, they grew closer.

Eiji was about to apologize when Kushina suddenly planted herself in front of Minato and glared at him.

"W-what's wrong?"

Minato took a timid half step back from the fierce-looking Kushina.

He was already afraid of Kushina, which was why he spoke so hesitantly around her. Now she looked ready to eat him alive, and his heart began to race.