Konoha Talent Institute

The bell rang, and Amamiya Maki sprang out of his seat.

He headed for the classroom door as fast as he could.

Minato Namikaze was faster.

It wasn't the Body Flicker Technique, just sheer reaction speed.

Before Amamiya Maki could step through the doorway, Minato was already beside him, lunch box still in hand.

"Maki, you said you'd practice Taijutsu when you got back tonight. Want to practice together?"

"...I just said that offhand."

"Then I'll practice with you."

Minato sounded earnest.

"Sparring with someone is more efficient than figuring things out alone, and I think you..."

"Stop." Amamiya Maki raised a hand to cut him off.

"Go home first. You haven't washed your lunch box."

"I can wash it later."

"Well, I mind!"

This was his first encounter with Minato Namikaze's ability to pester people.

Classic terrifying Konoha brotherhood.

In the end, he resorted to making something up.

Only after he claimed he still had chores to do at the Orphanage did Minato Namikaze leave reluctantly.

He watched Minato Namikaze's figure recede into the distance.

Only then did Amamiya Maki breathe a sigh of relief.

His ass had nearly been in danger.

He stood up, brushed the dirt off his knees, and headed toward the Orphanage.

It looked like he'd have to devise a whole set of methods for shaking Minato off.

Or figure out how to get Minato to direct that enthusiasm toward someone else.

Would Jiraiya work?

Probably not.

Jiraiya was probably still lurking outside some bathhouse, peeping.

It would be several more years before he took on a student.

Maki quickened his pace.

By the time he returned to the Orphanage, the children had already gathered in a small cluster in the yard.

Some hadn't made it in time to take Root's test.

Some had taken it and been rejected.

And some were simply too young and had come to join the fun.

When they saw Amamiya Maki enter the gate, they swarmed him like a pack of little dogs that had spotted their target.

"Maki! What's the Ninja Academy like?"

"Are the teachers mean?"

"Did you learn ninjutsu? Show us!"

Four or five children surrounded Amamiya Maki.

Someone tugged his sleeve on the left, while someone else pulled his schoolbag strap on the right.

Another tried to squeeze in beside his legs to claim the best spot for listening.

He felt like a tree surrounded by sparrows.

The children at the Orphanage had complicated feelings about the Ninja Academy.

Those who could attend at least had a path forward.

Those who couldn't would probably remain part of Konoha's loyal base for the rest of their lives.

"A school's a school. Desks, chairs, benches, a blackboard."

"The teacher's a middle-aged guy. He's not mean, but he does give you looks that could kill."

As he answered, he tried to pull his sleeve out of one child's grip.

Then he slipped his schoolbag off his shoulder.

He was just about to head toward the dormitory when a soft, sweet voice came from behind him.

"Maki, I... I've extracted chakra too."

He turned around.

The speaker was a little blonde girl with two braids, standing on the edge of the crowd.

Her hands were twisted together, as though it had taken all her courage to say those words.

She was short, and her hair looked a little fluffier than it had yesterday.

She had probably just come back from outside and hadn't had time to comb it.

Amamiya Maki looked at her, and a name flashed through his mind.

Yakushi Nonō.

The future matron of Konoha's Orphanage.

Known as the "Wandering Miko."

The woman who would eventually die because of that scheming old bastard, Shimura Danzō.

"What's wrong, Maki? Why are you spacing out?"

"I was thinking how lucky some people are."

"They're born talented, and with just a little effort, they can surpass everyone else. It really puts the pressure on."

He was telling the truth.

What did it mean to extract chakra in two days?

He had only managed to get started with the system's help.

Otherwise, in a place like Konoha, where geniuses were everywhere, his talent might not have made him stand head and shoulders above the crowd.

But it would at least have made gods and ghosts alike recoil in disgust.

This girl had figured it out all on her own.

Comparisons could drive a man to his grave, just as comparing goods could make you throw the inferior ones away.

He had a cheat, but even his cheat required him to collect fragments.

[Detected: host has caused psychological pressure to "Yakushi Nonō"]

[Pressure +5]

[Obtained: Medical Ninjutsu talent fragment ×1.]

Nonō blinked, clearly not understanding what he was being sour about, but still nodded earnestly.

"You're amazing too, Maki. Matron Yuki said you came second in today's physical fitness test."

"How did you know?"

"The matron went to the school to deliver some documents. She told us when she got back."

"She also said she never expected you to be so physically fit."

Amamiya Maki fell silent for a moment.

"Maki." Nonō took a step forward, lowering her voice even further.

"There's another Root test tomorrow. I'm... a little nervous."

The word she used was "nervous."

But Amamiya Maki heard what lay beneath it.

Uncertainty.

Matron Yuki had always thought highly of her and hoped she would take over from her, continuing to care for these children.

That was why Yuki had stalled as long as she could, never reporting that Yakushi Nonō had extracted chakra in two days.

But Root wasn't the Orphanage. Root was a meat grinder.

Nonō probably didn't fully understand what the name "Root" meant yet.

Her instincts simply told her it wasn't somewhere she wanted to go.

"Keep your talent under wraps. Don't look so outstanding."

Nonō looked up at him. "Why?"

"Don't you want to become a medical ninja?"

Amamiya Maki slipped his hands into his pockets.

He remembered how, in the original story, this girl had been brainwashed and exploited by Root, only to meet a miserable end.

Danzo's punchable face flashed through his mind.

"Once you enter Root, even dying isn't easy. They don't kill you. They use you."

"When they're done, they hand you over for someone else to use, until you can't even remember your own name."

"Besides, you're so talented that after training in Root for a while, you'd be lording it over all of us."

[Pressure +2]

[Obtained: Medical Ninjutsu talent fragment ×1.]

Nonō's eyes reddened.

Oh, crap, Amamiya Maki thought. I forgot to turn off auto-attack.

He had only wanted to tell her what Root was really like.

"That's not what I meant."

"I mean, you want to be a medical ninja, right? If you join Root, you won't be able to become one."

"They only train killing machines there. Everything you learn will be put to the opposite use."

Nonō froze for a moment, then nodded vigorously.

Amamiya Maki breathed a sigh of relief.

He might have forgotten to turn off his automatic targeting, but his intentions were good.

In the original owner's memories, Nonō was one of the few people at the Orphanage willing to exchange more than a few words with him.

Not empty pleasantries like, "Nice weather today."

She genuinely cared about him as a friend.

Since he had inherited everything from the original owner, he ought to help where he could.

Besides, this girl's medical talent was the real deal.

If Danzo hadn't snatched her up first, then with her chakra control and learning speed, she would most likely have become Tsunade's most prized student once Tsunade discovered her.

Nonō would probably fit in well at Tsunade's side.

There was only so much a kid who could do nothing but throw fireballs could do about something like this.

At the very least, he could make sure Matron Yuki knew this girl's talent shouldn't be wasted in Root's dark rooms.

"Then what should I do?" Nonō asked.

She truly had no idea what to do.

Matron Yuki had never taught her how to deal with Root, because Yuki herself couldn't escape them.

"I'll talk to Matron Yuki about this." Amamiya Maki swung his schoolbag back over his shoulder.

"Take tomorrow's test as usual. Release chakra when you're supposed to, but not too much."

"Just look a little stronger than an ordinary person. Leave the rest to me."

"Oh, right. You said you extracted chakra just now. It took you a long time to succeed, didn't it?"

Nonō nodded.

"Good girl." With that, Amamiya Maki continued on his way.

Nonō was left standing alone in the corridor.

Her fingers were still twisted together, but the corners of her mouth were secretly turning up.

Matron Yuki's office was at the end of the second-floor corridor in the Orphanage.

Amamiya Maki stood outside and knocked twice. A voice inside said, "Come in."

He pushed the door open.

Yuki sat behind her desk, sorting through a thick stack of documents, with a cup of tea beside her that had gone completely cold.

She looked more tired than usual.

Fortunately, the Root ninja who had come to conduct a spot check at the Orphanage that day hadn't caused her any extra trouble.

"What is it? Your first day back from the Ninja Academy, and you're already reporting to my office. Don't tell me you were insulting people at school again."

"No, today was peaceful." Amamiya Maki pulled out a chair and sat down.

"I wanted to discuss something with you. It's about Yakushi Nonō."

He briefly explained Nonō's talent, the risks of Root's test, and his assessment of the girl's future path.

He neither exaggerated nor concealed anything, merely dressing up the events of the original story in explanations such as, "I've noticed that Root pays particular attention to talented orphans."

After listening, Yuki remained silent for a long time.

She picked up the cold tea, took a sip, and set it down again.

"Do you know what would happen if someone from Root heard what you just said?"

"I do, but Root's people aren't here today. They're coming tomorrow."

Yuki looked at him and fell silent for another moment.

"Do you really think she's suited to becoming a medical ninja?"

"She extracted chakra in two days, her hands are unbelievably steady, and she didn't even blink when she set a crow's broken bone."

Amamiya Maki shifted his chair back a little.

"Putting someone like her in Root as an assassin wouldn't just waste her talent. It would be a loss for Konoha's entire medical system."

Yuki did not answer immediately.

She looked down at the stack of documents, as though considering something.

Then she raised her head and looked at Amamiya Maki.

"Tomorrow, I'll request that she be tested with the regular group. There's still one recommendation slot left for the Ninja Academy."

Amamiya Maki stood and gave Yuki a slight nod.

"Thank you, Headmistress."

"Don't thank me. I'm only doing what I should."

Yuki pushed her teacup aside and picked up her pen again.

"You, on the other hand, caused quite a stir on the first day of school.

"Next time you speak up in class, remember to consider how much the teacher's heart can take."

"I'll try." He turned and headed for the door. Just as his hand touched the handle, Yuki's voice came from behind him again.

"Are you helping Nonō because she's your friend, or because you think she's talented?"

Amamiya Maki stood at the door and turned his head.

"Probably both."

"But there's one thing I'm certain of: I don't want to see another talented person turned into a tool of Root. It's that simple."