The Hands-Off Boss, Mitarashi Anko

It was no longer just dissatisfaction. She was completely disappointed.

Precisely because she no longer held out any hope,

She was unwilling to return to Konoha. Out of sight, out of mind.

She no longer wanted to get involved in anything concerning Konoha.

"It's rare for you to come back, yet you won't even see me. Instead, you're here drinking alone to drown your sorrows. I really have failed as your teacher, haven't I?" The Third Hokage took off his Hokage hat and sat down beside Tsunade without waiting for an invitation.

A benevolent smile graced his deeply wrinkled face.

He gestured for the tavern owner, who looked both respectful and uneasy at seeing the Hokage, not to be nervous and asked him to bring some sake.

"You really have failed..."

Utterly disappointed in her teacher, Tsunade couldn't be bothered to say much and offered a blunt jab.

She showed him no regard at all.

"Is that so?" The Third Hokage gave a helpless, bitter smile.

"Then what did you come back for this time?" He looked at Tsunade and asked calmly, "You won't even see me, your teacher, so it stands to reason you'd be even less likely to come back of your own accord!"

"What?"

She drained her cup.

Drunk as she was,

Tsunade sneered, "Did you come running over to ask because you're worried I'll threaten your position?"

"Lady Tsunade..."

Shizune broke out in a cold sweat.

She hadn't expected Tsunade to show the Third Hokage so little regard.

She hurriedly apologized to him. "Lord Third, please don't take it to heart. Lady Tsunade is drunk!"

"Hehe, don't worry. She's my own student. How could I not know her?"

The Third Hokage waved a hand.

He accepted the sake the tavern owner brought and poured himself a cup.

Having long held a high position, weathered many storms, and mastered his temper, he wasn't angry. Instead, he reassured Shizune, "You're Shizune, aren't you? I didn't expect you to have grown so much in the blink of an eye..."

He took a puff of his pipe and smiled at Tsunade. "If you're willing to come back, I'd be happy to see it happen, as your teacher!"

"Drop the act, hypocrite!"

Tsunade cut him off bluntly as she poured more sake. "I don't have the slightest interest in being Hokage. Only a fool would want the job..."

Glancing at the aged Hiruzen Sarutobi, who no longer resembled the Shinobi Hero of old, Tsunade jeered, "You're already halfway into the grave. Careful you don't die in the Hokage's seat!"

"You're in your forties or fifties, yet you still have such a fiery temper. You really don't hold back with your words!"

The Third Hokage felt somewhat helpless.

"I know you don't want to see me, but some of the situations the village has been facing lately are a little complicated..." He sighed softly and said frankly, "The Uchiha Clan has been somewhat restless, so..."

"What!?"

Hearing that,

Shizune's pupils contracted sharply.

Her heart began to pound. The Uchiha Clan was restless?

"You don't need to tell me any of that. It's a matter for you higher-ups!"

Before the Third Hokage could finish,

Tsunade patted the table and rudely cut him off.

She didn't want to have anything more to do with Konoha's affairs.

When she had returned to the village with Shizune earlier, she had already faintly sensed the strange atmosphere.

She simply didn't want to get involved and couldn't be bothered to care.

"This is what happened, Lord Third..."

Seeing that Tsunade was unwilling to pay the Third Hokage any attention,

And that the Third Hokage had given a bitter smile and said no more, smoking his pipe in silence,

Shizune could only gather her thoughts and explain, "Granny Chiya Nao hasn't been in good health and felt she didn't have much time left, so she had someone send Lady Tsunade a letter... Lady Tsunade came back this time to see an old acquaintance, but at Granny Nao's request, Lady Tsunade has taken her grandson, Chiya Rikuto, as her student!"

"Chiya Rikuto?"

The Third Hokage was astonished.

Precisely because he knew how fiery Tsunade's temper was,

He hadn't sent Anbu to follow and investigate her as soon as she returned.

He only knew that after returning, Tsunade had gone straight to visit the Chiya family.

He hadn't expected her to have taken Chiya Rikuto as her student.

"That child not only has exceptionally precise Chakra control, but also far more Chakra than others his age..."

The Third Hokage came to a realization. "He certainly has potential!"

As for Chiya Nao,

It wasn't as though he had never investigated her.

She had once been a member of the Senju Clan.

Moreover, she was the daughter of Senju Toka, the once-renowned Genjutsu ninja of the Senju Clan and a close confidante deeply trusted by the First Hokage.

Nao herself, however, had little talent and hadn't inherited her mother's gifts. She was merely a Chunin of average strength.

Years ago, under the Second Hokage's arrangements, she had married beneath her station to a civilian ninja from the village.

Chiya Rikuto had most likely inherited the Senju Clan's bloodline.

That was why he had been born with far more Chakra than ordinary people.

Over the years, thanks to the strong efforts of the two far-sighted previous Hokage, who had pushed past fierce opposition,

The Senju Clan's bloodline had long since become part of Konoha.

Occasionally, civilian ninja with decent aptitude and outstanding performance would emerge as well.

Konoha had quite a few such examples.

Chapter 24: The Hands-Off Boss, Mitarashi Anko [Please support]

"Poof, poof, poof..."

Early in the morning,

At the Chiya home,

Inside Rikuto's room,

Wood Clones were dispelled one after another.

Thanks to the Wood Clones, he had learned most of the Genjutsu recorded on the scroll.

Having just put away the Genjutsu scroll passed down by Senju Toka, Rikuto dispelled his Wood Clones. His brain received the memories and experience of the clones practicing those Genjutsu, brought back along with their Chakra.

Although, to prevent any mishaps,

Rikuto had deliberately separated the Wood Clones and dispelled them slowly, one after another,

The staggering mass of information piling up still left his head spinning.

"Phew... I was still a little too impatient!"

Rikuto, looking rather exhausted, rubbed his temples and smiled wryly. "There's a huge difference between having all the Wood Clones work together to practice one Ninjutsu and having them practice dozens of different Genjutsu at the same time..."

"The Chakra consumption and physical fatigue are secondary. The main thing is that practicing all those different Genjutsu puts too much strain on the mind, and the information I receive is too jumbled!"

"If I'd been more careful and waited an hour or two between dispelling each Wood Clone, I probably wouldn't have ended up in such a sorry state!"

He let out a long breath.

A thick strip of wood emerged from his right hand.

It transformed into another Wood Clone before his eyes. "I'll leave the house to you today. I'm going to get some sleep first... Remember, no taking advantage of my Sister Kurenai!"

If his original body lost consciousness,

The Wood Clones he created might disappear immediately.

But he wasn't passing out; he was going to sleep and rest his mind.

There was still a big difference

Between that and directly losing consciousness.

"Got it. Honestly, you're the original, and you're even jealous of your own clone!"

The Wood Clone rolled his eyes.

Wary even of his own clone—he really was himself.

Two hours later.

"Ahh-" Refreshed, he woke up and smiled. "I'm finally back to full health!"

Rather than dispelling the Wood Clone, he simply bumped fists with him.

Receiving the memories the Wood Clone sent back through their Chakra connection, he raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Did Sister Kurenai go out?"

Seeing that the old woman was still asleep,

He didn't stay in the room and walked straight outside.

He planned to take a stroll.

"Swish..."

Both his hands turned into branches once more.

Two more Wood Clones grew out of them.

Together with the earlier Wood Clone,

That made three in all.

"The puppet blueprints I designed are on the table, along with that storage scroll. It contains the materials Tenten's family gathered. I think you should be able to handle it... I'll leave the rest to you!"

"Also, remember to keep an eye on Grandma while you're at it. I'm going out for a stroll!"

Looking at the three figures identical to himself, Rikuto promptly became a hands-off boss.

With his perfect Yang Release power, his physical recovery was remarkable, and the same was true of his mental recovery.

He felt completely refreshed, with not a trace of mental fatigue remaining.

There was no sign at all of the sorry state he had been in that morning.

Humming a tune with his hands in his pockets, he sauntered away.

He had drawn every component of the new puppet's blueprints thoroughly and in considerable detail. He believed that with three Wood Clones working on it together, they should be fairly quick.

At worst, he could inspect it again when he got back.

If there were any mistakes or shortcomings, he could fix them then.

Watching the original body stroll away so carefree, the three Wood Clones looked at one another, their lips twitching.

"Even capitalists aren't as ruthless as you. You really are me!"

"Enough talking. Let's get to work!"

"Come on, workers!"