He had intended to have Tsunade train his two sons. Tsunade had been taught by both Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Second Hokage, and having her train his sons would help them grow quickly.
But he did not want his sons to become doctors.
Tsunade had not yet proposed the concept of medical ninja, and many ninja looked down on Medical Ninjutsu.
Tsunade meant to get Hyuga Akira released without offering anything in return.
That also meant Hyuga Akira's relationship with Tsunade was not particularly close.
But he did not want to turn Tsunade down, either.
He was even less willing to release Hyuga Akira. It had only been a day, and the torment he had suffered was not yet severe. It was still not enough for Hiashi to bring Hyuga Akira completely under his control.
The room fell silent.
Tsunade gently sipped her tea, her face reflected in the green liquid.
There was no coercion or exchange of benefits. It came down solely to Hyuga Masayuki's wishes.
Agreeing would not necessarily build any connection with Tsunade, but refusing would certainly put him on bad terms with her.
Tsunade also looked as though she did not care either way.
"I want to know why," Hyuga Masayuki asked, going straight to the heart of the matter.
Why would Tsunade stand up for a mere Branch Family member when the two barely knew each other?
Even this team had been part of his arrangement with the Hokage.
Tsunade set her tea on the table and said softly, "Hyuga Akira is my subordinate."
Seeing that Tsunade did not want to explain, Hyuga Masayuki sighed helplessly. "All right."
In the end, he still did not want to make an enemy of Tsunade.
"891."
"892."
"893."
Hyuga Akira was doing handstand push-ups, his entire body supported on one hand as he moved up and down.
Sweat dripped from his face onto the floor, where it had already collected into a little stream.
Soft footsteps suddenly sounded. Hyuga Akira immediately stopped, stepped forward, and put away the trash and lamp on the table.
The room sank into complete darkness.
He did not want to expose these things.
The Inventory's existence was his greatest source of confidence.
Click. The lock turned, and Hyuga Akira looked toward the door as a sliver of light shone in.
Fortunately, he had not been in darkness the entire time, so the light had no effect on him.
"Hyuga Akira, your confinement is over." A familiar voice came from outside.
The corners of Hyuga Akira's mouth lifted, and he stepped through the doorway.
Hyuga Hiashi stood outside with a conflicted expression. When he saw Hyuga Akira emerge, his face immediately turned solemn.
He held out a hand and said, "We're on the same team, after all. I hope we can work well together from now on."
Chapter 10: Temporarily Free of the Hyuga Main Family's Threat
Smack! Hyuga Akira knocked Hyuga Hiashi's hand aside.
"Teammates? Sorry." Hyuga Akira looked at Hyuga Hiashi with undisguised disdain. "You're not good enough."
It really was not that he looked down on Hyuga Hiashi in particular.
He looked down on everyone.
None of them deserved to be his teammates.
What if they stole his kills?
Hyuga Hiashi's face flushed with anger, and he blurted out, "Aren't you afraid my father will keep punishing you?"
Hyuga Akira rolled his pale eyes again. "Take a guess."
The Main Family did not dare kill him. That was what gave him confidence.
Had he not already become a ninja, he would not have dared act so brazenly. Unfortunately for them, he already was one.
As long as Konoha remained intact, the Hyuga Clan could neither kill nor cripple him.
He simply was not afraid.
Hyuga Akira bumped Hyuga Hiashi with his shoulder and headed straight for the dungeon stairs.
Hyuga Hiashi gritted his teeth in fury. Nothing got through to Hyuga Akira.
He felt that if he were an Uchiha, Hyuga Akira would have angered him enough to awaken his eyes by now.
Hyuga Akira emerged from the dungeon and saw Tsunade waiting with her arms folded. When she saw him, she said, "Let's go."
Without looking at him again, she headed out of the Hyuga Clan Compound.
Quite a few people looked at Hyuga Akira in surprise.
Everyone knew he had been locked in the dungeon.
Why had he been released after just one day?
Hyuga Akira chuckled twice at them, looking rather pleased with himself.
In the end, the Hyuga Main Family had not done anything to him.
Among the crowd, he spotted the Main Family elder, Hyuga Hi, glaring at him angrily.
Hyuga Akira pulled a face at him.
"Bleh."
Hyuga Hi's face turned red with rage. His eyes rolled back, and he toppled backward.
"Elder!!"
Hyuga Hi fainting from anger threw the Hyuga clansmen into a panic and caused a commotion. Now no one was paying attention to Hyuga Akira.
"Could you cause a little less trouble?" Tsunade said, somewhat annoyed.
Hyuga Akira looked innocent. "Who knew that old man would get worked up so easily?"
He truly had not expected that to make someone faint from anger. Had he known, he would have provoked him more and angered him to death.
Tsunade felt rather helpless. She thought Hyuga Akira was a truly formidable troublemaker in the village.
The two walked straight out of the Hyuga Clan Compound.
A boy with rosy cheeks was waiting at the entrance. Hyuga Akira had always suspected the blush was painted on, but unfortunately, it really was natural.
At the time, he could only marvel.
The Senju Clan's bloodline really was terrifying.
"Big bro!!" The boy beamed when he saw Hyuga Akira come out.
He was Tsunade's younger brother, Nawaki.
The Senju Clan had disbanded and fully integrated into the village. Neither Nawaki nor Tsunade used the Senju surname anymore.
"I owe you for this." Hyuga Akira patted Nawaki's shoulder.
What Hyuga Cha had sensed from the beginning was right: Tsunade had been on his side all along.
The main reason was this younger brother of hers.
Nawaki.
The way the two had met was actually simple.
After Hyuga Akira could no longer find a worthy opponent in his own year, he had turned his attention to the years above and below him.
Nawaki was the only particularly troublesome opponent.
After several hard-fought-or rather, underhanded-battles, Nawaki, who was a year below Hyuga Akira, had become his loyal follower.
For the sake of her hopeless younger brother, Tsunade could only help Hyuga Akira out.
Tsunade glared fiercely at Hyuga Akira. "Don't be a bad influence on my brother."
This fellow was a little too reckless.
Hyuga Akira said casually, "How could someone as open and honorable as me be a bad influence on your brother?"
He gave Nawaki a look.
Nawaki immediately waved his fist. "Exactly! How could big bro be a bad influence on me?"
Tsunade pressed a hand to her forehead helplessly, not wanting to say anything more. Still, if Nawaki could learn Hyuga Akira's way of fighting, that would actually be quite good.
"Fine."
She actually had no objection to Nawaki spending time with Hyuga Akira. This brat was no fool.
Her expression turned serious as she told Hyuga Akira, "You have one year at most during which the Hyuga Clan won't do anything to you. During that time, you also have to learn Medical Ninjutsu to keep them at bay. After that, you're on your own."
She could only help Hyuga Akira this once. Afterward, it would no longer be her concern.
"That's enough." Yet anticipation appeared on Hyuga Akira's face.
Tsunade did not know what Hyuga Akira was looking forward to. She told Nawaki, "You're graduating soon. Don't forget to train hard."
Before Nawaki could answer, Tsunade used the Body Flicker Technique and left.
Nawaki grumbled in exasperation, "Seriously, she's always bossing me around."
Hyuga Akira rolled his pale eyes. "You've got it good, and you're still complaining."
He wanted an older sister who would become one of the Sannin, too.
But at the thought of that year, Hyuga Akira grinned, revealing his stark white teeth with a hint of menace.
It was Konoha Year 36. Friction between the Five Great Nations was growing increasingly intense, but they were still exercising restraint.
Everyone was waiting for the day when the conflicts erupted in full.
But many believed it would take a few years before that happened.
Only Hyuga Akira knew clearly that the Second Shinobi World War would erupt in full next year.
Three consecutive years of war were also something Hyuga Akira looked forward to.
After all, ninja gave him the most experience, allowing him to level up quickly. Those from different villages could also drop plenty of good things, allowing his strength to grow rapidly.
And there was also completely undoing the Caged Bird Seal.
"Big bro, whose trouble are we going to stir up first?" Nawaki asked eagerly when he saw the smile on Hyuga Akira's face.
Hyuga Akira always wore that smile whenever he went looking for trouble.
Hyuga Akira slapped Nawaki on the back of the head. "Find me a place to live first."
"Besides, do I look like someone who enjoys making trouble for people?"
He was such a kind, gentle person.
Nawaki rubbed his head and could not help muttering, "Who in the entire Ninja Academy causes more trouble than you?"
The Ninja Academy was practically turning into a school for hot-blooded brawlers.
Hyuga Akira had no self-awareness at all.
In the end, Hyuga Akira rented a place in a relatively out-of-the-way area.
But his money was only enough for this one place, and it would last three months at most.
When the two opened the front door and walked inside, dust billowed throughout the room.
Before you continue