"Hiruzen, this time we must stand together and show them who really holds power in Konoha!"
Danzo's gaze was dark, his face murderous.
In his mind, every voice of opposition ought to be silenced.
Hiruzen Sarutobi saw the killing intent in Danzo's eyes. He sneered inwardly, but immediately moved to soothe him:
"Danzo, don't go too far!"
"Whatever else, this is all for Konoha!"
"Jonin are the mainstay of our forces in war. Every one of them is a treasure!"
No matter whom he faced, Hiruzen Sarutobi always put on an air of righteousness. As Hokage, he had no choice.
"Hmph!"
Danzo merely snorted. Yet who could have known that he wasn't angry at all?
His supposed towering rage was an act. He wasn't about to eliminate Kakashi over something like this.
"How about this, Hiruzen? Let's approve Zhou Cheng's application to graduate first."
"Once he becomes a genin, we can assign him to the ANBU, Root, or even the Advisory Department."
"Even without taking him as our disciple, we'll still have opportunities to teach him!"
Mitokado Homura's eyes shifted as he came up with a compromise.
"As his elders, we can't force him to become our disciple."
"We can only guide him gradually, so he'll remember our kindness and keep us in his thoughts!"
Everyone present agreed with his words.
Indeed, as the village's senior leaders, they couldn't fly into a humiliated rage just because a child refused to become their disciple.
Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo both coughed awkwardly.
In fact, they had already been doing exactly that, privately sending Zhou Cheng ninjutsu scrolls.
From here on, it would come down to who treated Zhou Cheng best in private.
Even if they couldn't become his teachers, they still had to build a good relationship with him.
Hiruzen Sarutobi finalized the arrangement: once Zhou Cheng became a genin, he would spend three years gaining experience in the ANBU, then another three in Root, before finally moving to the Advisory Department.
That would make nine years in total, by which time Zhou Cheng would be an adult.
He would then have both the strength and the experience to stand on his own.
Meanwhile, elsewhere, in what remained of the Uchiha clan grounds.
A cold-faced, dark-haired boy was training alone.
He first practiced throwing shuriken, then some simple taijutsu. Finally, he practiced the ninjutsu he knew, stopping only once he had exhausted his chakra.
Drenched in sweat, he slumped to the ground.
His eyes, however, remained as cold as ever.
"Zhou Cheng, as long as I defeat you, I'll have the power to kill that man!"
This boy was Sasuke Uchiha, the sole remaining member of the Uchiha.
The slaughter of his clan had driven him mad with hatred. He craved more power, power that would let him take revenge.
The sight of Zhou Cheng performing A-rank ninjutsu was deeply etched into his mind.
Yet he hadn't seen Hyuga Hiashi, a jonin, punch straight through Zhou Cheng's A-rank ninjutsu with a single palm strike.
In his inexperience, he naively believed that defeating Zhou Cheng would qualify him to confront that man.
"Soon. The graduation exam is almost here. When that day comes, I'll challenge you as a genin!"
With that, he ignored his soaked clothes, sat down where he was, and began molding chakra.
At the Yamanaka Clan compound.
Ino had been summoned home by her father, Inoichi Yamanaka.
Seeing an unprecedentedly cold expression on her father's face, Ino immediately wiped away her displeasure at being forced to return.
"Father, what's wrong?"
"Did something happen?"
Inoichi Yamanaka didn't answer right away. Instead, he quietly studied Ino for a long time, only speaking once his stare had made her uneasy:
"You like Zhou Cheng?"
Naturally, Inoichi Yamanaka felt uncomfortable. The precious daughter he had painstakingly raised for over a decade was about to be swept away by some boy.
What angered him even more was that Ino had openly declared Zhou Cheng her man in front of so many people.
Once a daughter grows up, there's no keeping her at home!
Ino visibly froze for a moment. She remembered telling her father that she liked Zhou Cheng:
"Didn't you already know that?"
Inoichi Yamanaka shook his head helplessly and patted his forehead.
When Ino had told him before, he had assumed it was merely an adolescent crush, just like her previous feelings for Sasuke.
He hadn't expected Ino's feelings for Zhou Cheng to be genuine this time.
She had even openly declared her love in public, which made Inoichi Yamanaka's heart ache a little.
It was the same reaction any father had to his daughter's love life.
"Are you sure you've chosen the right person?"
Inoichi Yamanaka still couldn't quite accept it.
Ino's expression was serious, her resolve unwavering:
"A big part of why I liked Sasuke before was to compete with Wide Forehead Sakura. It was more about rivalry than affection!"
"But after meeting Zhou Cheng and spending time with him, I realized he'd completely filled my heart!"
"I'm certain I truly like him!"
Zhou Cheng is so handsome and so strong. Who wouldn't like him? I'd better keep a close eye on him!
Inoichi Yamanaka looked into Ino's eyes for a long time. Realizing that she meant every word, he couldn't help sighing inwardly.
He felt a pang of sorrow. In the end, his daughter would belong to someone else's family.
"Sigh! I understand. With his talent, at least he wouldn't be an unworthy match for you!"
"I won't oppose the two of you being together!"
Inoichi Yamanaka's heart trembled as he said those words. The precious daughter he had raised for over a decade would be taken away after all.
Ino Yamanaka threw herself into Inoichi Yamanaka's arms and planted a firm kiss on his cheek:
"Thank you, Father!"
As a member of one of Konoha's prominent clans, Ino knew that she would most likely have no say in choosing her future husband.
Now that Inoichi Yamanaka was allowing her to experience a love she would never forget, she would have no regrets even if she didn't marry Zhou Cheng in the future.
News of Zhou Cheng's victory over Neji spread like wildfire through Konoha.
After just one month of training, he had defeated an acknowledged genius who had trained diligently for seven years. Such talent left everyone who heard the news shocked and astonished.
The civilians cheered with delight. At last, another person of extraordinary talent had emerged from their ranks after the Fourth Hokage.
They hoped Zhou Cheng wouldn't die young and would grow into an important figure in the village!
Ordinary shinobi were divided between envy and jealousy.
Those who envied Zhou Cheng's talent saw him as another powerful shinobi in a few years, perhaps even their future superior.
Those who were jealous of his talent felt that the heavens were unfair. They were all human, so why hadn't they been given such talent?
When the jonin who hadn't watched the match heard the news, they were merely surprised by Zhou Cheng's talent.
They had seen far too many extraordinarily gifted prodigies die on battlefields or during missions.
Talent wasn't strength. It took time to turn one into the other. Only those who grew into truly powerful fighters could be called true geniuses.
When the neutral clans heard the news, they began considering bringing Zhou Cheng into their families, giving him their surname and making him one of their own.
Then, when Zhou Cheng became a powerful shinobi, that glory would belong to their clan.