The name of a genius

It was already very late when Lin Ze returned to the orphanage.

Miyamoto Ichirō, Rei Uesugi, and the others had long since eaten dinner. After helping soothe the two little girls to sleep, Lin Ze returned to his room.

Since Nonō left, the old director was the orphanage's only remaining caregiver, but she needed someone to look after her herself.

Konoha had already sent the newly admitted orphans to other orphanages. It seemed no more children would be sent here until a new caregiver was found-after all, this was not Konoha's only orphanage.

At Lin Ze's suggestion, the orphanage had been renamed "Nonō's House," just like Nonō's later "Kabuto's House."

Inside his room.

Lin Ze sat cross-legged on his bed and took out the ninjutsu scroll he had obtained that day to examine it.

"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet?"

After reading the words on the scroll, Lin Ze raised an eyebrow and carefully scanned the technique's instructions. Before long, he casually rolled it up and set it aside.

This Water Dragon Bullet technique required a full forty-four hand seals. Although Lin Ze's hands were fast, forty-four seals still took far too long on an ever-changing battlefield.

Lin Ze could not help recalling the scene on the bridge in the Land of Waves: when Kakashi and Zabuza fought, they formed hand seals simultaneously to unleash Water Dragon Bullet. The process dragged on for nearly a minute. Just thinking about it felt awkward.

On a battlefield, they would probably have died ten times over.

It fell far short of Kisame Hoshigaki's single seal and Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi's zero seals.

Still, Lin Ze remembered that someone else in Konoha could perform Water Dragon Bullet with two seals-the true scapegoat, Maruboshi Kosuke.

His Water Dragon Bullet technique had been taught to him by Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, and it also had a chakra-absorbing effect.

I could find a chance to get my hands on that simplified version sometime, Lin Ze thought.

Without dwelling on the scroll any further, Lin Ze turned his attention back to his chest and began controlling the beastification of that area. Before long, however, he could not help thinking about Nonō's situation again.

I wonder which country my sister is in now, and whether she's in danger.

Lin Ze no longer felt the trace of embarrassment he once had when calling Nonō his sister. From the night Nonō was forced to leave because of him, he had fully accepted her as his older sister.

Nonō had been only twelve when she left, yet she had to shoulder the burden of caring for her younger brothers and sisters alone, like an adult supporting a family.

In his previous life, most children that age had only just entered middle school with their schoolbags on their backs, and still needed their parents to worry about their daily lives.

Early the next morning, Lin Ze got up for his morning training, then went to the Ninja Academy with Rei Uesugi.

As he entered the academy, the sneers and mockery along the way were gone. The other children's gazes no longer held contempt, hatred, or the like when they looked at Lin Ze.

Instead, there was a hint of awe and envy, and some even showed a trace of fear.

Although the competition two days earlier had been divided among four arenas, quite a few people had still seen Lin Ze brutally beat Ryota Uchiha. As word spread, Lin Ze's strength, personality, and image became increasingly exaggerated, leading to today's situation.

"Lin Ze, doesn't it seem like the others are looking at us differently today?"

Rei Uesugi, beside him, had noticed it too and spoke up.

"Yeah. Don't worry about them. We just need to be ourselves."

Lin Ze did not care, just as before, whether these people mocked and hated him or envied and feared him now.

In Lin Ze's eyes, they were no different from random passersby. The Third Shinobi World War would break out in Konoha Year 43, and most of the people present would die on the battlefield like cannon fodder.

When he entered B-Rank's classroom, the somewhat noisy room instantly grew much quieter.

Many gazes landed on Lin Ze at once. The contempt and provocation some had held in the past were gone, replaced by curiosity, awe, and admiration.

"Look, it's Lin Ze..."

"I never thought he'd actually take first place. Even Hikaru Hyūga lost to him!"

"That last move of his was amazing. I couldn't even see it clearly!"

"Shh, he's coming..."

Whispers rose as Lin Ze walked past, then quickly faded whenever his gaze swept over them.

A few children who usually joined Ryota Uchiha in jeering even instinctively ducked their heads, not daring to meet his eyes.

Lin Ze understood perfectly well and did not care in the slightest.

In the ninja world, strength ultimately reigned supreme. He had previously been mocked for two reasons: his useless chakra and his status as an orphan from another village.

Now that he had demonstrated the corresponding strength, he naturally earned a measure of superficial respect.

Kurenai Yuhi had arrived long before him. When she saw Lin Ze, she immediately waved happily. "Lin Ze, over here!"

Lin Ze walked over and sat down, smiling. "You're here pretty early."

"Of course!"

Kurenai's cheeks flushed slightly as she leaned a little closer and whispered, "You're famous now, Lin Ze."

"Famous? I just got lucky." Lin Ze shook his head and casually took out his textbook, preparing for the day's academic lessons.

He knew perfectly well that although first place had shielded him from Danzo's threat, it would also draw more people's attention.

Previously, hardly anyone noticed Lin Ze when he walked down the street; he had been practically invisible. Now things were different. Even if not everyone recognized him, more than half had heard his name.

But there was no avoiding it. He could only accept it.

A genius it is, then! With Hiruzen Sarutobi backing me, there's nothing to fear.

From the beginning, Lin Ze had never feared the label of "genius." After all, he had positioned himself as a "hardworking taijutsu genius" from the outset.

As long as the power of the Fish-Fish Fruit, Model: Azure Dragon was not exposed, a few more labels like "genius" or "powerhouse" would do no harm.

Ryota Uchiha's absence from his seat in the back did make Lin Ze take a couple of extra looks, though. He heard that Ryota had taken a week's leave.

After a little thought, Lin Ze more or less worked out why. Although he had not struck to kill, it would still take several days for the swelling to subside and for Ryota Uchiha to recover. He could hardly come to school with his face swollen like a pig's head. Even if he did not care about losing face, the Uchiha Clan still had its reputation to consider.

Presumably, he was still lying in bed now...

The academic lessons that followed remained simple and dull for Lin Ze. After understanding what the teacher taught, he shifted his attention to practicing his breathing method, while also devoting some thought to his subsequent training in the Eight Gates Released Formation.

As soon as the afternoon dismissal bell rang, Lin Ze said goodbye to Kurenai and headed straight for the little river where he often trained.

Sure enough, before he even reached the riverbank, he heard the passionate shouts of those two figures in green.

"Might Guy! This is youth! Another five hundred squats!"

"Yes, Father! Burn, youth!"

"..."

Although he had been training with Might Guy and his father for quite some time, every time Lin Ze saw their signature green bodysuits, their dazzling white teeth, and that spirit of "youth" ready to blaze up anytime and anywhere, he still struggled to keep a straight face.

"Senior Duy, Might Guy!" Lin Ze called to the two figures by the river from afar.

After greeting them, Lin Ze wasted no time. He quickly took off his jacket, tossed it aside, and joined their training.

Before long, just as Lin Ze finished a set of push-ups and was about to switch to another exercise, Might Duy suddenly called him over.

Might Duy flashed his gleaming white teeth and said, "Lin Ze! Congratulations on taking first place in the assessment! This is a victory for youth!"

As he spoke, he took a heavy-looking cloth bundle from behind his back and handed it to Lin Ze. "Here! This is a gift to celebrate your first place!"

Somewhat surprised, Lin Ze accepted it and felt its weight sink into his hands. He opened it to find a pair of weighted wrist guards and ankle weights made of refined iron. The workmanship looked quite solid.

"Senior Duy, this..." Lin Ze remembered that Might Duy's family was not well-off, and this weighted equipment was clearly expensive.

"Hahaha!" Might Duy laughed loudly, thumping Lin Ze on the shoulder several times.

"Don't worry! I was promoted to chunin a while ago! My mission pay has gone up a little too! Since you've been doing high-intensity taijutsu training all this time, I thought these should help you!"

"This is a senior's gift to a junior's youth!"