Kushina's eyes lit up at those words, and she said, "Then I'll go get Lan's room ready."
With that, she turned and went to tidy up the room.
Behind her, Mito Uzumaki smiled as she watched Kushina's retreating figure and remarked, "Little Kushina has become much livelier since she started school and met Qianye Lan."
After saying that, she rose and followed her.
There were still a few spare rooms in Mito Uzumaki's home.
Kushina chose the room next to hers and went inside to tidy it up.
Mito Uzumaki also stepped forward to help.
Meanwhile, Qianye Lan was carefully reading the notes Tobirama Senju had left behind.
They contained far more detail than the Book of Forbidden Techniques.
If he had to make a comparison, the Book of Forbidden Techniques was like a textbook from Qianye Lan's previous life, while Tobirama Senju's notes were like a teacher's manual.
The notes recorded every problem Tobirama had encountered while creating this technique, along with his own solutions.
Combined with Qianye Lan's extraordinary mental power, this allowed him to quickly grasp the broad theoretical principles behind the Flying Thunder God Technique.
But he also knew that theory was the easiest part to understand; putting it into practice was where things truly began.
Just as he was about to keep reading, Mito Uzumaki walked in and said, "Get some rest for today. You can read more tomorrow. We've already prepared your room."
Qianye Lan bowed sincerely in thanks. "Thank you, Grandma Mito."
Mito Uzumaki's smile remained kindly as she stroked his black hair and said, "Good boy. Come with me."
She led Qianye Lan to the room they had already prepared and said, "This is your room. Have a look and see if there's anything else you need."
Qianye Lan entered the room, and his first impression was that it was clean and tidy.
He turned to Mito Uzumaki and said, "Thank you, Grandma Mito. I'm very happy with it."
Seeing this, Mito said gently, "I'm glad you like it. If you need anything from now on, just say so. Make yourself at home."
Somewhat moved, Qianye Lan's eyes reddened slightly as he said, "Okay."
Seeing Qianye Lan's slightly reddened eyes, Mito Uzumaki knew that all her efforts had not been in vain.
At least for now, Qianye Lan seemed to be someone worthy of her trust.
"Then get some proper rest. I'll leave Tobirama's notes in your room."
Mito Uzumaki set the notes on the table, then left the room.
Hearing the door close, Qianye Lan lay on the bed, his thoughts unknown.
He lay there with his eyes open, staring at the ceiling light, and fell asleep at some point without knowing when.
The next day, while Qianye Lan was still asleep, a series of knocks woke him.
"Lan, time to get up."
Qianye Lan opened his eyes and switched off the light he had forgotten to turn off the night before.
He got dressed and came out, looking at Kushina in confusion. "What is it?"
Hearing his question, Kushina rolled her eyes at him and said, "Aren't you going to eat?"
Only then did Qianye Lan realize, and he followed Kushina to have breakfast.
After eating, Qianye Lan returned to his room, picked up Tobirama Senju's notes, and began reading them carefully again.
Kushina also entered his room, leaned closer, and asked, "What are you reading?"
Looking at the eager Kushina, Qianye Lan swallowed the words, "You wouldn't understand it even if I showed you," and moved the notes in his hands closer to her.
Seeing this, Kushina sat right beside him and leaned her head over to read.
Their shoulders touched, and Kushina's red hair kept brushing against Qianye Lan's chin and neck, the constant friction making him itch.
At the same time, a fresh, pleasant scent from her hair drifted into his nose.
It made Qianye Lan unable to resist taking a few more sniffs.
Kushina did not notice and simply read the notes intently.
But after reading for a while, Kushina puffed out her cheeks and pushed the notes away, muttering, "What is this? I can't understand any of it."
Seeing Kushina like this, Qianye Lan found it quite funny.
He could not resist reaching out to poke her cheek, but Kushina nimbly dodged him.
Kushina stuck her tongue out at him. Qianye Lan shook his head with a smile and continued reading Tobirama's notes.
The Flying Thunder God Technique was far harder to learn than he had imagined. The notes clearly listed several requirements for learning it.
1. Possess an enormous amount of chakra.
2. Be proficient in Sealing Jutsu.
3. Have an outstanding ability to perceive space.
Aside from his ability to perceive space, which was uncertain, Qianye Lan could meet the first two requirements.
Having fully integrated the Uzumaki Physique long ago, he now had dozens of times as much chakra as before.
If he used the future Kakashi as a unit of measurement, he had at least around ten Kakashis' worth.
Moreover, Qianye Lan knew very well that this was not his body's limit.
He could clearly sense that his body was still slowly growing stronger.
As for Sealing Jutsu, the Uzumaki Clan's greatest expert in it, who might also have been Konoha's greatest expert, happened to be right beside him.
If he had any questions, he could simply ask Mito Uzumaki.
Aside from this rather abstract ability to perceive space-time, the other requirements were not much of a problem for Qianye Lan.
At the thought of Sealing Jutsu, Qianye Lan slapped his forehead.
He had left the Sealing Jutsu scroll Grandma Mito had given him at home.
With that thought, he let Mito Uzumaki know, then headed home to get his things.
When Qianye Lan reached home, he found Hatake Sakumo waiting at his door.
He walked up and asked, "Senior Sakumo, may I ask..."
Seeing him, Hatake Sakumo smiled faintly and said slowly, "There are indeed a few things."
Qianye Lan opened the door and said, "Come inside and we can talk, Senior Sakumo."
Hatake Sakumo smiled kindly and said, "You don't need to call me senior. Just call me Uncle. Your parents and I were old comrades, after all."
At the thought of Qianye Lan's parents, a trace of sadness appeared on Hatake Sakumo's face, but he quickly concealed it.
He continued, "I came this time just to let you know that the war on the front lines is nearing its end. Unless something unexpected happens, there should be an official ceasefire before long."
Seeing Qianye Lan's puzzled expression, he said apologetically, "I made many attempts to kill Chiyo, but in the end, I only killed her son and daughter-in-law. I'm sorry."
Looking at him like this, Qianye Lan said sincerely, "Uncle Sakumo, that isn't your fault."
Hatake Sakumo shook his head firmly and said, "I was your parents' team leader. On both personal and moral grounds, I bear a great deal of responsibility."
Qianye Lan continued to reassure him. "At least you did your best, didn't you?"
Looking at the sincere Qianye Lan, Hatake Sakumo felt even more guilty.
He said firmly, "Then if you ever need my help, make sure you ask."
Qianye Lan nodded, having complete faith in Hatake Sakumo's promise.
After all, the Hatake Clan had originally been a samurai family, and Hatake Sakumo's own words and actions also bore a samurai's manner.
And samurai were precisely those who valued promises most.
So Qianye Lan bowed to Hatake Sakumo and said, "Then I do have a presumptuous request."
Hatake Sakumo said, "Go ahead. As long as it's within my abilities, it won't be a problem."
Qianye Lan said, "I hope you can teach me swordsmanship, Uncle Sakumo."
Afraid that Hatake Sakumo might misunderstand, he added, "Just some guidance in basic swordsmanship would be enough."
Hatake Sakumo readily agreed to Qianye Lan's request.
After confirming that Qianye Lan needed nothing else, he left his home address, said goodbye, and departed.
Before you continue