The trip to the Land of Hot spring concluded.
After obtaining some information on the Evil God Cult, Satoru did not continue to linger in the Hidden Hot spring Village.
Instead, he returned directly to Konoha.
Looking at the gradually shrinking Land of Hot spring, Satoru wore a faint smile.
The journey to the Land of Hot spring had yielded great rewards.
Next, he could proceed with the third stage of his secret Ninjutsu.
Although it was difficult, who was he? The genius Satoru.
Swoosh!
The flying eagle beneath him carried him towards the boundless sky... Konoha Village.
School training ground.
"Ascending Dragon Sword."
Boom!
As Takeshi wielded his katana, a yellow divine dragon enveloped it.
It instantly passed through his opponent, Ise Udon, and the katana was placed at his neck.
"Ise Udon, you lost."
Takeshi said.
Phew~
Iruka, who was just about to intervene, immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
This child truly combines Genjutsu and Kenjutsu well!
His talent is far superior to mine; he is a promising seed for a powerful Ninja in the future.
He only obtained his teacher's notes and developed this Ninjutsu himself, which is even more remarkable than me, a disciple who stayed by my teacher's side.
He then looked at Tenyu, Maki, and Konohamaru; the children of this generation are generally more talented.
"Next, Fuma Kotaro vs. Ichinose."
The sparring among classmates continued, and Takeshi returned to the team.
"Tenyu, when is your dad coming back? I want to show him my new ultimate move."
"...Why come back so early? And didn't you just use your new ultimate move on Ise Udon?"
Tenyu grumbled.
Maki also chimed in: "Exactly, if he comes back, I'm afraid he'll whip us again, it's so annoying.
But your Ascending Dragon Sword move just now was really cool!"
"How could Captain Satoru, such a gentle person, whip you guys?
I don't believe it."
Even though Tenyu and Maki emphasized it multiple times that Satoru liked to whip them, Takeshi simply refused to believe it.
His idol was so gentle, so considerate.
Even he, a fan, could feel that boundless gentleness.
As Captain Satoru's children, how could Tenyu and Maki be beaten?
"...Anyway, I don't want him back for now, otherwise I feel like I'm going to get a beating again."
Tenyu pointed at the bruised and swollen Konohamaru.
Just when the practical combat class was about to start, he used Genjutsu to prank Konohamaru.
Making him trip and fall while walking.
Konohamaru seemed to feel his gaze and glared back fiercely; even if he wasn't smart, he knew Tenyu was behind it.
"Pain..." He covered his face, his anger soaring.
Just wait, I'll definitely tell Grandpa when I get back.
His grandpa had let slip that every time he complained, Tenyu and Maki's dad would give them a beating.
Konohamaru didn't feel ashamed about complaining; Ninja Rule #12: Collect intelligence, and use the power of intelligence.
This is a Ninja's professional skill, not a child's tattling.
That's right, that's how it is... Hokage Office.
Bang!
Satoru appeared before Hiruzen Sarutobi.
"You're back. How did the mission go?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked.
Satoru handed over a scroll: "Mission perfectly completed. This is the intelligence Uchiha Itachi gave me, concerning the abilities of some Akatsuki Organization members."
Since some Akatsuki Organization members hadn't revealed any information, the intelligence Itachi provided was only for a few, relatively clear ones.
Hiruzen Sarutobi took the scroll but didn't rush to process it.
Instead, he said to Satoru: "Do not leak this intelligence to prevent it from reaching the Akatsuki Organization and exposing Itachi."
"Understood."
"There's one more thing. In three months, there will be a joint Chunin Exams with Sunagakure and several smaller Hidden Villages.
So, we need to prepare our defenses to prevent any enemy disturbances."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stated.
Unlike regular Chunin Exams, joint exams put more pressure on the Hidden Villages.
Therefore, preparations must be made before the Chunin Exams.
"Hmm."
Hearing this, Satoru nodded.
Is another big event coming?
I wonder what changes the strengthened Twelve Strongest Ninja will undergo during this event.
This change is certain.
If all of them become stronger, the people from other Villages will have a tough time.
I wonder if I can gather some physical information from people in other Villages.
Although he lacks nothing now, only time.
But perhaps information from others could give him some inspiration to develop even more outrageous Ninjutsu...
After Satoru left, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally picked up the scroll and began to read it.
The more he read, the graver his expression became.
His already wrinkled face now had even more wrinkles.
From the intelligence, it was clear that every member of the Akatsuki Organization possessed special abilities.
They were all extremely powerful Ninja.
Very troublesome.
"A storm is brewing ~"
There was also important intelligence from Itachi: the Akatsuki Organization's goal was to collect all the Tailed Beasts and complete a plan called the Eye of the Moon.
How it would be implemented was unknown, only that once completed, the entire Ninja World would undergo a transformation.
This reminded him of Jiraiya's words.
"I'm going to search for the Child of Prophecy who can bring about a revolution in the Ninja World..."
These were some of the most important words from Jiraiya.
Could the Great Toad Sage's prophecy, mentioned by Jiraiya, be to counter this?
"It seems I need to inform Jiraiya to gather more relevant information."
...
"Honey, I'm home."
Satoru changed back into his normal casual clothes, dressed handsomely, and returned home with a bouquet of lilacs.
His steps were very light.
With a dance in his heart, everywhere was a stage.
"Husband, you're back."
Opening the door, Ayame inside saw him and immediately rushed out, jumping onto him.
"Uh, what happened?"
Satoru held her, looking at the two children standing timidly.
"These two, I told them not to forget to hang the laundry when they got home, and they forgot again."
Ayame got off him and said fiercely.
That's right, because Satoru's thinking differed from ordinary Ninja, he had long noticed the technological advancements in the Ninja World.
He purchased a washing machine, very novel for the Ninja World, from the largest technology company in the Land of Fire.
And some other technologies.
This way, when Satoru was busy, Ayame and others could use them themselves.
Previously, he himself or Satoru would take care of it using the Bathing Figure Technique.
"We were training, to become Ninja like Dad."
Tenyu and Maki said in unison.
"...Oh, you two, now you're turning the blame on me?
When I personally washed clothes, washed dishes, swept floors, and cooked, why didn't you learn?
Now that good things have been bought, and you don't have to do chores, you still dare to talk back?
It seems my stick isn't hard enough..."
Satoru didn't expect these two little rascals to use words so skillfully. What do you mean 'become Ninja like him'? Are you saying that by making you Ninja, I delayed the laundry, so it's my fault?
A soft bamboo stick immediately appeared in his hand, designed to sting the skin but not break bones, and had been praised for years.
"...Then why don't you teach us the Bathing Figure Technique?"
Tenyu and Maki looked at the whip, their throats 'gulped'.