Hashirama, You've Changed

After this "catastrophe," all the younger brothers had grown increasingly handsome, except for Hashirama Senju. Tobirama Senju in particular.

The strength Yanbai displayed was not especially overwhelming. As long as Tobirama and the other two were willing to avoid him, they could generally escape a makeover from his fists of love.

But the three of them could not simply let Yanbai run around alone.

Tobirama Senju had figured it out. Yanbai wanted something very simple: to follow Hashirama Senju around.

It was such a simple wish. What harm could there be in granting it?

Having Hashirama Senju keep an eye on Yanbai did not seem like much of a problem, either.

So Tobirama Senju compromised.

And just like that, without quite knowing how it had happened, Hashirama Senju became Yanbai's minder.

Whenever Hashirama Senju went out, he took Yanbai along.

After following them a few times and receiving Yanbai's "corrections" in the name of love, Tobirama Senju gave up on tailing Hashirama and Yanbai.

Tobirama Senju simply assumed that Yanbai resented being watched for so long, and that was why he treated him that way.

So Tobirama Senju decided they should both take some time to cool off.

And so...

"Hashirama, it's only been a few days, but I keep feeling like you look different..."

Madara Uchiha stood beside Hashirama Senju and followed his gaze toward Yanbai, who was talking to small animals by himself a short distance away.

Ever since Yanbai appeared, Madara Uchiha had felt unable to look him in the eye. Yanbai, however, had considerately moved aside on his own without interrupting their reunion.

Hashirama Senju smiled wryly. "It's a long story..."

At first, curious about why his three younger brothers looked more handsome than before, Hashirama Senju had asked about it. Then Yanbai had "corrected" him with his fists of love.

Hashirama Senju never asked again. Whatever Yanbai wanted, Hashirama Senju obliged. He did not want another makeover.

If this kept up, Hashirama Senju might become more handsome, but Madara would no longer recognize him.

Madara Uchiha looked hesitantly at Hashirama Senju. "When we first met, your little brother was nearby. After you left, he came out to see me and even healed my injuries..."

Hashirama Senju covered his face with one hand. He had already guessed as much.

"I won't tell anyone about that," Madara Uchiha said. "I know that ability is special, and it could put him in danger. I think keeping him at home would be safer."

Hashirama Senju looked at Madara Uchiha with a bitter expression. "Do you know why I look different now? Let me tell you..."

Yanbai had already revealed his "healing technique" to Madara Uchiha himself. Even if Hashirama Senju wanted to hide it, he could not.

After hearing about the brothers' painful experiences, half of Madara Uchiha's face twitched. It took him a long time to squeeze out a reply. "Your little brother has a rather... unusual personality."

Hashirama Senju held his forehead. "As long as he's happy."

Meanwhile.

Yanbai crouched outside a patch of bushes, surrounded by stray cats and small animals.

He muttered as though summoning a spirit through a pen. "Brother Zetsu, Brother Zetsu, come on out. Brother Zetsu, Brother Zetsu, come on out..."

The Black Zetsu of this virtual world was special.

Under normal circumstances, Yanbai was responsible for testing the system, while Black Zetsu had to keep the plot progressing smoothly.

But Yanbai's system had developed a bug. He had spent six months trying to fix it, yet nothing had changed. It was still a jumble of garbled text.

So Yanbai called for Black Zetsu every day, hoping he would lend him a hand.

But after all this time, Yanbai felt that Black Zetsu was avoiding him.

It was his routine call. If Black Zetsu refused to appear, there was nothing Yanbai could do.

Bored out of his mind, Yanbai propped his chin on one hand and looked toward Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha.

They seemed to have started sparring.

Yanbai merely watched in silence.

Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju had truly become friends without knowing each other's names. They met increasingly often, sparring with ninjutsu and talking freely about the future.

There was one difference from their original fate.

They now had Yanbai beside them.

Yanbai neither interrupted them nor caused a fuss. He simply went about his own business quietly off to the side.

As Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha sparred, they did not pay much attention to Yanbai.

Only Yanbai knew what he was really up to.

Over the past several days, Yanbai had copied physiques and bloodlines while treating members of the clan.

In truth, skills and the like were not important to Yanbai.

A max-level player knew what he needed.

Rather than ninjutsu, Yanbai focused more on training his stamina, Taijutsu, flexibility, and physical strength.

How was he supposed to train those things?

Working within his current capabilities, whenever Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha were not paying attention, Yanbai trained himself nearly to death off to the side, healed himself, then trained himself nearly to death again and healed himself once more.

After obtaining Hashirama Senju's sage body and asura chakra.

The effectiveness of Yanbai's extreme training method reached its peak.

In a short span of time, Yanbai grew taller, nearly overtaking Tobirama Senju.

As for ninjutsu, Yanbai already had the experience and know-how. He did not need to devote time specifically to practicing it.

Time passed.

The conversations and events that were meant to happen continued to unfold.

After a thoroughly satisfying sparring session, Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha paused their training and sat cross-legged on a rock to rest.

Naturally, Yanbai stopped training as well. In the clearing near the rock, he directed the small animals to dig a smokeless stove.

"What exactly is that thing your little brother is making?"

Madara Uchiha stole several glances at Yanbai in the distance before finally giving in and asking.

Lately, because of Yanbai's presence, Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju had been obliged to eat extra meals.

Yanbai's food was simply too delicious, and their appetites were especially good after all that physical exertion.

Yanbai merely did these things in silence, without talking to them.

Madara Uchiha had also grown curious about the things Yanbai made.

"Oh, Yanbai said it's a smokeless stove." Hashirama Senju gazed gently at the small figure busily working in the distance. "He said everyone needs to eat. Things change in an instant on the battlefield, and there's no guarantee you'll always have enough food pills, so you have to learn how to eat safely in the wilderness. Building a smokeless stove is an essential skill."

"Huh? That actually makes a lot of sense." Madara Uchiha began watching closely as Yanbai built the smokeless stove. Over the past few days, he had never paid attention to whether this thing Yanbai made really was smokeless. He asked uncertainly, "Does that mean you can light a fire and cook inside it without producing any smoke?"

Hashirama Senju explained, "Not quite. It's designed to disperse the smoke quickly, keeping the light hidden and the smoke scattered so enemies are less likely to spot you."

"Is that how it works?" Madara Uchiha was amazed.

But in the brief moment they had been distracted, Yanbai had already finished.

Seeing Madara Uchiha's slightly frustrated expression, Hashirama Senju could not help saying, "Yanbai digs smokeless stoves really quickly. It never takes him more than three minutes."

Watching Yanbai, who had already begun lighting the fire, Madara Uchiha was beyond surprise.

Although Yanbai had only watched them from a distance these past several days, he always found all sorts of strange ways to make his presence impossible to ignore.