Chapter 6

"Watch what you call me. I don't need you drawing a swarm of flies over to bother me. Your sister and I aren't together anymore." Xuan Zhe looked disgusted.

According to the original plot, this kid should have been blown to death a few years ago, right at the start of the Second Shinobi World War.

But because of one remark Xuan Zhe had made back then-"You're not cut out to be a ninja"-Nawaki hadn't gone to war.

He had escaped death and gone off to teach at the academy.

That woman Tsunade was fiercely protective of her little brother. She had been so angry over this that she had broken up with Xuan Zhe.

"Heh heh..." Nawaki grinned mischievously, sidled up to Xuan Zhe, and lowered his voice. "Brother-in-law, I heard some guy from the Katō family keeps hanging around my sister on the Sunagakure front. What do you think we should..."

"What's there to think about?" Xuan Zhe scoffed and strode toward the Administration Building, his disdain plain on his face.

The retort left Nawaki red-faced and unable to squeeze out a word for quite a while.

"If you'd ever been in a relationship, you wouldn't be such a coward." Xuan Zhe glanced at him, his tone teasing.

Nawaki's round face instantly burned, and even his voice went off-key. "H-how do you know I haven't?!"

Xuan Zhe's smile deepened. "What do you think Dan Katō has over me? Height? Looks? Or strength?"

He paused, then continued, "Men have an unwritten rule when picking a partner. If a woman they've just met doesn't measure up to their ex, they can't even be bothered to pursue her, unless she throws herself at them. Women are even pickier. They won't even spare many words for a man who falls a little short, and his attentiveness only puts them off."

At this point, Xuan Zhe's smile grew even wider. "Believe it or not, with a princess like your sister, who's been spoiled since childhood, I'd bet she hasn't initiated a single word with Dan Katō in all these years."

Beside him, Hatake Sakumo, Kakashi, and Nawaki all froze.

Nawaki in particular had a gleam in his eyes as though he had found a life coach.

"Th-then, brother-in-law... is there a trick to getting girls?!" Nawaki asked eagerly.

His expression practically begged to have "I want a girlfriend" carved across his forehead.

"Tailor your approach to the person," Xuan Zhe said unhurriedly. "If she's innocent and pure, show her the world. If she's experienced, help her rediscover childhood fun. If she's just awakening to romance, be tender and gentle. If she's been with too many men, give her a steady, peaceful life."

At this point, he added, "For someone like your sister, for example..."

"Ahem!"

Hatake Sakumo suddenly coughed loudly twice and glanced toward his son. "Watch what you say. There's a child listening."

Xuan Zhe glanced at Kakashi, who was listening intently beside them, and thought, This kid will still be a bachelor in his thirties. By the time he dies, he'll probably have cultivated his way to immortality. There's no harm in letting him hear this.

Kids in this world were all terribly precocious.

Twelve-year-old Obito could destroy ** for love, while six-year-old Sakura Haruno turned into a devoted pursuer the moment she saw Sasuke. There were too many examples to count.

Riiing-

The Ninja Academy's bell rang in the distance.

Kakashi abruptly snapped out of his daze. "Teacher Nawaki, that's the warning bell!"

"Oh no, we're going to be late!"

Nawaki panicked, grabbed Kakashi, and ran toward the academy.

After a few steps, he even turned back and called, "Brother-in-law! I'll come ask you for more advice after school!"

As the two figures receded into the distance, Hatake Sakumo walked on beside his brother again, shaking his head with a wry smile.

"Just how many women have you been getting involved with out there?"

"Don't talk nonsense, okay? I just know a lot of theory. I really don't have much practical experience."

At least, not in this life...

Xuan Zhe silently added that qualification.

It wasn't a lie. He really had experienced more in his previous life.

But now that he had awakened his system, and Konoha was in its dark period of so-called "correct politics,"

Xuan Zhe had poured almost all his energy into sword training.

The only woman he'd had any involvement with was Tsunade.

Practical experience?

Hatake Sakumo's face turned black as soot when he heard those words.

What kind of practice was he talking about?

But on second thought, it did seem true.

This younger brother of his had spent twenty years holed up on the outskirts.

The people he usually interacted with could be counted on one hand: Sakumo and his son, plus Tsunade and Nawaki.

As far as women went, the only one Hatake Sakumo knew about was Tsunade.

It really was unlikely that he had gotten himself tangled in any ** debts.

They entered the Administration Building.

They went upstairs and pushed open the door to the Hokage's office.

"Lord Hokage."

Hatake Sakumo stood ramrod straight and saluted the man behind the desk.

Seated behind the desk, Hiruzen Sarutobi held his pipe in one hand and a document in the other, engrossed in reading.

"Hey, Lord Hokage."

Xuan Zhe greeted him as well. He used the respectful title, but there wasn't a trace of respect in his listless drawl.

"Long time no see, Sakumo, Xuan Zhe."

Hiruzen Sarutobi set down the document and spoke with a genial smile.

His face showed no sign of anger over Hokage Rock's destruction.

Had anyone else been present, they surely would have marveled inwardly-

Lord Hokage really is extraordinarily magnanimous!

That kindly air nearly rivaled a benevolent emperor's. It was Hiruzen Sarutobi's most formidable weapon.

Tobirama Senju had also been a skilled politician, but he had needed to play both good cop and bad cop himself.

As Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi only needed to play the good cop.

As for the bad cop, that scapegoat behind him took care of everything.

Even Xuan Zhe, a transmigrator, couldn't help marveling at how perfectly Hiruzen Sarutobi and Shimura Danzō complemented each other.

What they lacked in ability, they made up for with political maneuvering.

One operated in the open, the other in the shadows.

Through this arrangement, Hiruzen Sarutobi, whose strength ranked at the bottom among all the Hokage, had actually managed to acquire the title of [Strongest Hokage].

"Lord Hokage, my younger brother destroyed Hokage Rock in a moment of impulse. I'll cover the cost."

Hatake Sakumo's very first words addressed compensation for Hokage Rock.

He didn't just want to smooth things over. He also hoped he could spare his younger brother a prison sentence.

Destroying Hokage Rock?

Hatake Sakumo frowned. If that charge stuck, it would mean at least eight to ten years in prison.

"Don't overthink it, Sakumo." Sarutobi Richuan raised a hand and pressed it downward. "I've already explained to the villagers that Sunagakure's ** were responsible for Hokage Rock. It has nothing to do with you."

With that, a hint of apology appeared on his face. "That boy Shinnosuke speaks without thinking. Don't take it to heart."

He's over twenty, and you're still calling him a boy?

Kids in this world dare to pledge themselves to each other at six. Which eight-year-old protagonist on Feilu isn't running around wreaking havoc everywhere?

Twenty-eight-year-old Xuan Zhe rolled his eyes inwardly.

If someone said nobody was pulling strings behind this, ** I wouldn't believe it.

Just then, the Hawk-Eye Swordsmanship Inheritance within Xuan Zhe suddenly took effect.

His Observation Haki keenly detected a presence hiding beneath the eaves outside the window behind Sarutobi Nicheng.

"However..." Sarutobi Nicheng shifted the conversation. "Although I've publicly said Sunagakure did it, if we can't end the war with Sunagakure soon, we won't be able to keep this under wraps forever."

There it is. Now we're getting to the point.

Even a political ** like Hatake Sakumo caught the implication.

Let alone Xuan Zhe.

Deal with Sunagakure yourselves.

Sarutobi Nicheng's meaning couldn't have been clearer.

You really won't take even the slightest loss, Xuan Zhe sneered inwardly.

Why don't you mention how your son held us back during that mission to ** the Second Kazekage?

Hatake Sakumo had understood. He immediately stepped forward. "Lord Hokage, please authorize Xuan Zhe and me to head to the front in the Land of Wind and reinforce Tsunade and the others!"

The wrinkles on Sarutobi Nicheng's face spread with his smile. Stroking his beard, he nodded repeatedly. "Good, good, good. That would be best."

Xuan Zhe cast a sidelong glance at Hatake Sakumo beside him. "Brother, how about I go instead? You're so fragile. If you suffer another setback this time, I'm afraid you'll start thinking about slitting your throat again."