A princess carry

Qianye Lan looked at Kushina, whose eyes were sparkling, and patiently explained, "You gather chakra in both feet, then..."

After he finished explaining the basic principle, Kushina eagerly gathered chakra in both feet, then stepped onto the pool without waiting.

Seeing this, Qianye Lan opened his mouth, but was too late to stop her.

The result was obvious. Once Kushina had placed both feet on the water at the edge of the pool, she lost her balance the very next second, and just as her whole body was about to fall into the pool-

Qianye Lan rushed over and caught her in a princess carry.

Kushina cried out and instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck.

Once they reached the bank, Qianye Lan gently set her down.

Kushina tilted her head, looking at Qianye Lan in confusion.

Qianye Lan smiled, walked up to her, and said somewhat helplessly, "You went into the water before I finished."

He then pointed at a tree in the yard and said, "Normally, you should practice Tree Climbing first, then Water Walking."

Only then did Kushina understand. She nodded, then set off to practice Tree Climbing with renewed enthusiasm.

Qianye Lan smiled at the sight of Kushina brimming with enthusiasm, then returned to the pool to continue practicing Water Walking.

This time, however, he took out a water balloon and gathered chakra in his palm, trying to burst it by making his chakra rotate chaotically.

As the water's surface shifted, he also had to keep adjusting the chakra in both feet.

He divided his attention between three tasks at once to improve his chakra control.

Soon, the water balloon in Qianye Lan's hand burst with a pop.

His expression unchanged, he took out another water balloon and continued training.

Kushina's Tree Climbing practice, however, was not going particularly well.

After several failures, Kushina's enthusiasm had also run out.

She sat to one side with her chin in her hands, watching Qianye Lan train with a bored expression.

Finally, Mito Uzumaki finished making dinner and called the two of them to eat.

Hearing her voice, Qianye Lan stopped training and walked out of the pool.

Kushina could hardly wait by then. She grabbed Qianye Lan's wrist and pulled him into the room.

Mito Uzumaki had already set the food, bowls, and chopsticks on the dining table. She gently told them, "Wash your hands and get ready to eat."

After enjoying a free meal, Qianye Lan said goodbye and headed home.

Kushina stopped him and asked, "Would you like me to bring you lunch?"

Qianye Lan paused, then nodded and said, "Thanks."

Kushina watched him leave. Behind her, Mito Uzumaki smiled and said, "Little Kushina, stop staring. Keep that up, and your neck will grow longer."

Kushina lowered her head, her pretty face slightly flushed, and protested, "I'm not! I'm just worried."

Mito Uzumaki gently stroked her head and said, "All right, all right. Little Kushina is just worried about her friend."

She continued, "Can you tell Grandma how you became friends on your very first day?"

Kushina told her how the two of them had met that day.

After hearing her out, Mito Uzumaki said, "So that's what happened. Congratulations on making a friend on your first day, little Kushina."

She then motioned for Kushina to go play and went somewhere secluded herself. "Come out."

Her voice was cold, nothing like the kindness and gentleness of a moment ago.

A masked Anbu emerged from a corner and knelt on one knee. "Lady Mito."

"Have the Third come by when he has time. I have something to ask him."

The Anbu nodded, then disappeared before her.

The Third Hokage soon received the message. After putting his documents in order, he promptly made his way to Mito Uzumaki's home.

By then, Mito Uzumaki had already been waiting in the guest room for quite some time.

Upon seeing her, the Third Hokage bowed respectfully and said, "Lady Mito."

She looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi and said evenly, "Sit down, Third."

Only after he sat down did Mito Uzumaki speak. "Third, that child, Qianye Lan..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi had come fully prepared and replied, "Rest assured, Qianye Lan is..."

Mito Uzumaki nodded, reassured. After all, she had also been worried that Qianye Lan had been sent by people with ill intentions.

After all, certain rats in the gutters were very interested in Kushina's pure Uzumaki Bloodline.

The Third Hokage wanted to say something, but looked hesitant.

Seeing his hesitation, Mito Uzumaki had already guessed what he wanted to ask and answered directly, "I can probably hold on for another year or so."

The Third Hokage fell silent for a long while, then stood and bowed deeply to Mito Uzumaki.

Seeing this, Mito Uzumaki smiled and said, "Monkey, there's no need to make this so solemn."

The name Monkey left him momentarily dazed, as though he had returned to the time when he had just graduated from the Ninja Academy.

But the Third Hokage soon recovered and said, "In that case, I won't disturb your rest any longer, Lady Mito."

With that, he left the room.

At Qianye Lan's home, he formed hand seals with both hands.

[Wind Release: Gale Palm]

As he thrust out one palm, he released a blade of wind that left a dent in the boulder before him.

Deeply dissatisfied with the power of his technique, Qianye Lan continued forming hand seals to become more proficient in this ninjutsu and gain control over it.

He soon trained late into the night. With his final [Wind Release: Gale Palm], he at last shattered a piece of broken stone.

Seeing the results of his training, Qianye Lan nodded in satisfaction and went back to rest.

While he slept, the system's daily settlement rewards arrived on time as well.

Early the next morning, Qianye Lan checked his rewards.

They were much the same as before, but he had also received proficiency in Gale Palm and Rasengan.

By the time he arrived at the Ninja Academy.

Kushina was already sitting in her seat.

The two chatted for a while.

As the teacher entered the classroom, Qianye Lan put his head down and began sleeping as usual.

Kushina tried listening to the lesson for a while, only to discover that she could not understand it at all.

She glanced again at Qianye Lan, who was already asleep beside her,

And felt much less guilty. Since Lan's asleep, it should be fine for me to sleep too, right?

With that thought, Kushina also lay down on her desk and began sleeping.

Poor Kushina did not know that Qianye Lan was sleeping because he already knew everything, whereas she...

Watching this, the teacher hesitated to speak, then remembered what the head teacher had personally told him.

As long as Kushina did not tear down the school, anything was negotiable. He abandoned the idea of lecturing her and continued teaching.

Class soon ended, and Qianye Lan and Kushina woke up in perfect sync.

Kushina took out the lunch she had prepared and handed it to Qianye Lan.

After eating, the two returned to the classroom to get ready for class.

This afternoon, however, they did not have a practical lesson, but an accompanying wilderness survival lesson, mainly covering how to identify edible things in the wild.

This time, Qianye Lan listened very attentively, for the simple reason that this material was not in the textbook.