A Big News

It happened to be the weekend, so Hinata stayed home for those two days.

For two straight days, Tahm was sandwiched between two little girls, enjoying a feeling even more tense and thrilling than fleeing for his life from Orochimaru.

Whether they were eating or watching TV, Hinata and Karin both squeezed in, fighting over the spot in Tahm's arms.

Things were even bloodier during training at the dojo. Now that there was one more little disciple, Tahm had the two spar to improve their practical combat experience.

As a result, the normally conservative Hinata opened with Neji's style. Her Eight Trigrams Palm was practically turning into Bajiquan as she aggressively tried to teach the redhead a lesson. Karin was not as strong as Hinata, who had received Tahm's cheat-like instruction, but she had truly seen blood before. She showed no mercy, and every move was sharp and fierce.

Even Tahm, who had seen Kage Level experts fight, broke out in a cold sweat as he watched from the side.

The two had always disliked each other, which gave Tahm a terrible headache. But when he thought about how he could never have ignored Karin and let the Grass Ninja control her, he knew he had done the right thing.

Fortunately, Monday was approaching, and the Ninja Academy was reopening. Tahm could finally accompany Hinata to class and lie low for a while, separating the gunpowder from the fuse.

I'm actually looking forward to elementary school classes. I really am getting younger the longer I live.

Knowing that she would be going to school with Tahm tomorrow, Hinata discreetly shot Karin a look that said, "Stay by yourself." It made Karin so furious that she turned into a bright red little chili pepper.

After two days of fighting, even Hinata's personality had subtly been led astray by Karin.

But then the Third Hokage sent someone over, bringing Karin's Konoha identification documents and her Ninja Academy enrollment notice.

In the Third Hokage's words, "Such an excellent seedling naturally needs to be cultivated into an inheritor of Konoha's Will of Fire."

What inheritor of the Will of Fire? He just wanted to make use of Karin's Uzumaki bloodline!

As a successor of socialism, Tahm scoffed at that title.

But those were not the only things the Third Hokage had sent. He had even given Karin a room key and assigned her a subsidized apartment like Naruto's.

Even more unexpectedly, Karin accepted it on her own initiative and planned to move out and live alone.

Hinata was a little confused. Hadn't this redhead spent the last two days fighting her for everything? Was she going to withdraw on her own? The more Hinata thought about it, the better her mood became.

Karin keenly sensed Hinata's scrutinizing gaze and gave a soft snort.

"Don't overthink it! I'll have my own home from now on. Sooner or later, I'll steal Tahm away from your house!"

Hinata's little face darkened once more.

Karin then threw her arms around Tahm and said eagerly, "Tahm, take me to see my new home!"

"Sure, let's go." A seven-year-old child wanted to go out and live alone, so naturally Tahm could not refuse such a simple request.

The next day, at the Ninja Academy.

"Everyone, we have a new classmate today!" Iruka introduced. Immediately afterward, a pretty girl with eye-catching red hair walked onto the podium.

"Hinata," Sakura asked, "wasn't that girl the one who came with you and Tahm? She'll be our classmate from now on too?"

Hinata was instantly reminded of that unpleasant memory from the morning, when she and Karin had fought over the exclusive seat on Tahm's big head. Tahm had merely kindly gone to Karin's new home to pick her up for school, yet that redhead had actually tried to steal her exclusive spot! Although Tahm ultimately left the head seat to her, he had held that redhead in his arms instead.

Tahm himself still felt lingering fear over that walk to school. Walking with two adorable, pleasing young girls should have been a cheerful experience, but one sat atop his head while the other lay in his arms, and they spent the entire way clashing with intense looks in their eyes. Caught between them, Tahm felt like his big face was about to be roasted.

Seeing that her good friend Hinata did not answer and instead looked increasingly gloomy, with a frightening expression she had never seen before on her cute little face, Sakura swallowed and said, "Hinata, are you okay?"

"It's nothing." Hinata finally came back to herself, then said in a haughty, tsundere tone, "But that redhead is no good!"

So harsh. Was this really the gentle Hinata I knew?

Cold sweat trickled down Sakura's head.

"Hello, everyone! My name is Karin Uzumaki!" Karin began introducing herself. "I used to be an orphan wandering outside. Tahm saved me and brought me to Konoha."

"What I like most is Tahm!"

"My dream is to always be with Tahm!"

Were Uzumaki Clan declarations really this different? Tahm felt uncomfortable under the curious gazes of the other children. Hinata clenched her little fists in anger, looking like she was about to teach herself Sakura's Monstrous Strength Fist.

Fortunately, Naruto caught onto another key point and asked Tahm excitedly, "Big Brother Tahm, her surname is Uzumaki too?" His eyes flickered with hope.

"Yes, she can be considered one of your clansmen," Tahm said. He had expected Naruto to react this way.

"I have clansmen?" Naruto asked in shock.

Tahm sighed. "There aren't many pure-blooded Uzumaki Clan members left after the wars. The only two I know of are you and her. Actually, you only count as half Uzumaki, otherwise you should have red hair too." There's also Nagato, my junior disciple, but that's inconvenient to mention.

Naruto's excitement finally calmed down, but then he suddenly thought of something. He grabbed Tahm and asked excitedly, "Boss Tahm, you definitely know who my parents are, right?"

"Ahem. How would I know?" Tahm felt a little guilty. He really did know, but that old man, the Third Hokage, would not let him say it. He was honestly worried that if the still-young Naruto learned the truth, he might turn into a bad fox.

"Boss Tahm, you're a prophet! How could you not know?" Naruto refused to let it go.

"What?!" This time, Tahm cried out in shock, earning a resentful look from Iruka. I'm still teaching here!

But since Tahm belonged to the powerful summoned beast category, Iruka could not exactly throw chalk at him like he did at students.

"How do you know about the prophet thing?" Tahm lowered his voice, giving Naruto plenty of face.

"Huh?" Naruto was bewildered by Tahm's reaction. "I saw it in this morning's Shinobi World Daily?"

"What?! I made the newspapers?"

When class ended, Tahm got a copy of that day's Shinobi World Daily from the teachers' office. The Chunin teacher who handed him the paper looked at him with a complicated yet admiring gaze.

Feeling uneasy, Tahm ignored Naruto, Sakura, and the other little followers gathered around him and opened the newspaper.

His name was easy enough to find. It was right in the headline.

"Exclusive Scoop! Konoha's Mysterious Trump Card Emerges?" Sakura could not help reading the eye-catching headline aloud.

The first accompanying image was a high-definition photograph of Tahm treating the daimyo's son at the daimyo's residence. It even included side-by-side "before treatment" and "after treatment" photos, letting readers witness the shocking sight of a man with less than half his body left being healed to full health with just a few mouthfuls of healing.

Who the hell took this? Did the daimyo's residence have no security at all? Were reporters in this world all Kage Level? Tahm felt deeply frustrated.

Far away in some underground base, Orochimaru smiled faintly. His little snakes were far more capable than Teacher Zhuo Wei.

"Medical abilities surpassing even Lady Tsunade and the First Hokage." Ino looked at the familiar yet unfamiliar Tahm with complicated emotions.

The next section began extolling Tahm's combat ability. The accompanying photo was actually from the instant Tahm had used Riftwalk to snatch Karin away from Orochimaru.

It had to be said that this picture could have made the cover of Time magazine even in Tahm's previous life. It was simply too impactful: Tahm, covered in mysterious purple light, took form from the void; Karin, under control, had tears in her beautiful eyes; and Orochimaru, whose might shook the Shinobi World and who had always been utterly arrogant, actually wore a stunned expression!

Everything was perfectly timed, making the little followers' eyes shine. Karin herself blushed happily at the photo, already planning to buy a copy of the newspaper later and treasure it properly.

The third section was even more outrageous. Citing reliable information from a "mysterious informant," the article analyzed Tahm's various abilities in detail. For example, his move that could conjure sword light, spatial blinking similar to Flying Thunder God, and his mysterious devouring ability. More frighteningly, it clearly stated how many seconds each skill's activation interval was and how much damage his attacks dealt. It did not resemble a news article meant to pass the time at all. Instead, it read like a precise analysis report written by an expert with exceptional combat awareness.

At the end, the article particularly emphasized Tahm's "prophet" ability. In the article's own words, it was something that "even the Cold Lord Orochimaru and Sasori of the Red Sands had to acknowledge," that he "understood the secrets of every bloodline limit and secret technique in the Shinobi World," and that he "held the mysteries of the Rinnegan, the Shinobi World's supreme bloodline limit."

Tahm felt a chill run down his spine. This "mysterious informant" appeared to be praising him and raising his reputation, but the article's true meaning was this:

Konoha has produced an incredible figure. Other four great nations, are you scared?

He knows the weaknesses of every bloodline limit and secret technique. Secret technique ninja and bloodline families, are you nervous?

He can revive the dead, regrow bones, and foresee the future. Ambitious people, do you want him?

And this frog even knows about the legendary Six Paths eyes, the Rinnegan!

Finally, I've analyzed all this guy's combat abilities for you. Aren't you all going to test him out?

Tahm had a terrible headache. Trouble was coming. He could already imagine the heads of the Underworld Exchange holding emergency meetings, discussing what price to put on his frog head. According to this article, he was probably worth several Hatake Kakashi.

At the Hokage's Office, the Third Hokage, Kakashi, and several subordinate ninja were staring worriedly at the same issue of the Shinobi World Daily.

"Have you found out who wrote the article?" Kakashi asked the ninja who had entered to report.

"Other than knowing that the information came from a mysterious informant, the newspaper staff knows nothing," a subordinate reported.

Kakashi frowned, but the Third Hokage said with some disappointment, "It looks like the work of that mysterious organization. To get photographs like those, they probably used the snake clan's unique image-recording ability from Ryūchi Cave." The Third Hokage knew his wayward disciple's methods extremely well.

Kakashi sighed. "One article has brought us so much trouble. Now the entire Shinobi World will be watching Konoha."

"Yes." Konoha's elderly top leader sighed. "Some newspapers just want to make a big news story. It seems we need to pay more attention to regulating them."

After pondering for a while, the Third Hokage said to Kakashi, "We previously said we would have Tahm follow you on a few missions to get started. I never expected him to cause so much trouble the moment he got started. Don't assign him any new missions for now. Let him stay safely in Konoha."

Sigh. The Anbu and Root would probably be busy for quite some time.

The Third Hokage could fully imagine how many spies and secret agents this article would attract. If mishandled, it might trigger another war.

After thinking for a while longer, the Third Hokage issued orders to his subordinates. "Recall all Chunin and above currently on leave. Strengthen Konoha's guard ninja forces. Raise the Anbu alert level to S-rank. And deliver this news to Danzo."

In the Land of Rain, at Akatsuki's special base.

Several figures stood facing one another. Aside from the leading man with the Rinnegan and the blue-haired woman—namely the leader Pain and the Angel Konan—the others were all remote projections created through secret techniques.

"Other than the meeting where the organization introduced its newest members, this is only the second time I've seen all the core members gathered together," said Jūzō Biwa, the former Seven Ninja Swordsman carrying Kubikiribōchō on his back. "Is something important happening?"

"The previous mission failed." Kakuzu was as terse as ever.

"Failed?" Jūzō Biwa was somewhat surprised. "Didn't the three of you go to the Land of Wind together?"

Sasori's expression darkened as he said resentfully, "We encountered an extremely annoying fellow."

"A Mount Myoboku frog called Tahm," Orochimaru added. "You'll learn about him soon enough. I've already put him in the newspapers."

"Huh?" Jūzō Biwa still did not understand. Three notorious killers had been stopped by a frog?

"In any case," Pain said from the head of the group, "Orochimaru did well. We can first use this method to keep Konoha too busy to worry about anything else for a while."

"This mission failure exposed our organization ahead of schedule. The Third Hokage and Jiraiya have now directly seen our core members."

"Next, notify the outer organization members under us to contract their spheres of influence. Leave no traces behind. The ones coming to investigate us will be Konoha's Anbu, perhaps even Jiraiya of the Legendary Sannin."

"Accelerate the search for suitable core members and increase the organization's combat strength." Pain then turned to Kakuzu. "By the way, you can begin following up early on that prospective partner we found for you in the Land of Hot Water."

Kakuzu gave a strange laugh. "Let's hope this time it's someone I won't kill."

After Pain finished giving his instructions, no one wasted words. They dissolved their projections and ended the meeting.

Only Pain and Konan remained in the dark base.

A few breaths later, the space before them twisted, and a mysterious man emerged from the void. He too wore Akatsuki's uniform and a spiral mask, with one Sharingan exposed.

"Madara," Pain called him. "Can you explain why that frog knows about the Rinnegan?"

"Madara" himself was completely baffled. He knew who had orchestrated the Rinnegan, but how did that frog know? Did Tahm merely know what the Rinnegan could do, or did he even know about the conspiracy behind it?

If it was the latter, then things would become troublesome.

"Madara" could only say stiffly, "I don't know either. Perhaps he really does have some so-called prophet ability. After all, he is a frog from Mount Myoboku."

"When there is an opportunity, I will personally go meet him. Our plan cannot tolerate variables."

In the TV storyline, Kakuzu had a nameless partner around this time. I sent him off early instead (;￣ェ￣). Since I used the two-in-one technique again, everyone, please don't nitpick the details (/ω＼)