"You want to use this in the manga?"
The Third took a puff of his pipe, struggling to make a decision.
If he agreed, those were after all forbidden techniques established by the First Hokage.
But if he refused—
"It's only about the names of the kinjutsu, so it shouldn't pose a problem."
"Your wisdom leaves me awestruck."
Akaba laid on the praise once more.
The Third tapped his pipe against the table and said firmly, "That sounds fine, but I feel like you have another meaning behind it."
A bead of cold sweat broke out on Akaba's forehead as he hurriedly explained, "How could that be? I'm just genuinely admiring your unparalleled wisdom."
"Hmph. Let's hope there isn't one. Just using the names should be acceptable, but the ideological orientation conveyed in your manga must be correct."
The Third said seriously.
"Please rest assured, I'll definitely promote positive energy and contribute to the village's peace."
Akaba replied confidently.
In his past life, writing original manga had won him lots of praise—he knew exactly how to spread positive vibes.
The Third paused for a moment, pondering the meaning of "positive energy."
Probably meant having proper thoughts—
As he thought, his fingers rhythmically tapped on the desk. After a while, he stood up and walked toward a specific corner of the room.
Was that where the Scroll of Seals was?
Akaba glanced over, seeing nothing at first. But the next moment, he watched the Third reach that spot, his hands rapidly forming hand seals.
Then, the scroll appeared.
"It really wasn't easy for Naruto to steal this despite the jutsu concealment, Tobirama."
Akaba inwardly made a sarcastic remark.
With security standards like this, even jonin who didn't know the location and seal method might struggle to find it—let alone someone like Naruto, who wasn't even a genin.
The Third took out the scroll and spread it across the table.
"You may only look at it here, and under no circumstances are you allowed to touch the Scroll of Seals."
He rotated the scroll towards Akaba to make viewing easier.
The first one listed was Multiple Shadow Clones.
[Multiple Shadow Clones]
Next came Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags.
[Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags]
Third...
After browsing a series of forbidden techniques, the Second Hokage's appearances were notably frequent.
Akaba fell silent.
Though he'd known this beforehand, actually seeing it still inspired admiration. Somehow, it felt like this book had been specially compiled for Tobirama Senju by the First Hokage.
Besides his techniques, there were also some from the First Hokage and others.
For example, the Dead Demon Consuming Seal was recorded due to its enormous cost.
[Dead Demon Consuming Seal]
Also included was an entry on the Eight Gates Kinjutsu.
[Eight Gates Kinjutsu]
Its content was completely sealed, but Akaba could roughly guess what lay beneath.
Clearly, the Eight Gates techniques contained methods to open the gates—but they were likely just preliminary ideas, sealed before ever being put into practice.
"The Second really is amazing."
Akaba murmured in admiration, indicating he had finished reading.
Hiruzen rolled up the scroll, temporarily leaving it on the table without touching it, then sat back down and said, "Remember your promise."
"Rest assured, I've always remembered."
Akaba nodded repeatedly.
"Remembered? Hmph. You sometimes act recklessly—you should occasionally consider my position too."
The Third said helplessly.
"Your guidance is appreciated."
He looked all ears, nodding with deep concentration.
"I hope that's true."
The Third added, "Submit a jutsu report afterward and clearly explain the principle behind this technique."
"Huh? Can't you just write it yourself? It's not like you don't understand it."
"You're the creator. What would it look like if I wrote it instead? Besides, your technique is extremely useful for warfare. I hope you'll write it up soon so I can consider promoting its use."
There was no way around it now.
Akaba sighed, waved goodbye, and prepared to go home and sleep.
Rest was everything right now.
The Third didn't call him back. There was no point staying any longer after everything had already been said. Besides, he still needed to deal with the sealing scroll. He had no time to play games with the little fox either.
After Akaba left and closed the door, secretly sealed the sealing scroll in another location.
Then he returned to his desk and opened a manga book.
"Orochimaru... ah!"
The Third sighed deeply, feeling endless melancholy.
The moment he saw the manga, he started worrying about Orochimaru. Partly because he valued Orochimaru so much, and partly...
Beside him lay another scroll.
It recorded Orochimaru's recent movements, along with details of his contact and cooperation with Danzo.
"If my most cherished disciple eventually betrays Konoha, then as his teacher, I really have completely failed."
He gently touched that page of manga, his emotions extremely complex.
If things kept going downhill, perhaps the events depicted in the manga might actually come true.
Therefore, he began wondering—did he really understand Orochimaru?
Previously, he thought he understood well enough, but now faced with this intelligence report, he felt he hadn't understood enough at all.
Just like before, he hadn't even understood what Jiraiya truly wanted.
"It seems the Third has learned something. I wonder how he will choose to act."
Walking out of the Hokage Tower, Akaba quietly sighed.
When viewing the sealing scroll earlier, he noticed that small additional scroll on the table.
Dark side intelligence information usually got recorded on scrolls like that.
Perhaps it meant Orochimaru's secret base in the Land of River had been exposed, or possibly one of his hidden laboratories had been discovered.
Reasonably guessing,
The latter seemed more likely.
"My head hurts again. No, I shouldn't think about this anymore. I really need some sleep first."
Rubbing his forehead, Akaba felt mentally drained after using ninjutsu nonstop for a whole day and night.
Thinking about these things alone was already giving him a terrible headache.
No more thinking!
Slowly walking home, at that moment he desperately wished he could master [Flying Thunder God Technique].
Unfortunately, for now, it remained just a dream.
Even if the Scroll of Seals were unsealed and laid open before him, he probably wouldn't be able to understand it.
This technique had only ever been mastered by Minato Namikaze since The Second created it—and that was because it was incredibly complex. Considering how difficult he found regular sealing techniques, how could he possibly handle such a complex technique like Flying Thunder God?
Returning home, Akaba didn't even maintain his Shadow Clone—he collapsed into bed and fell asleep immediately.
At the store.
Sakuma Yunlang happily counted money while delightfully calculating how to split the profits.
The number of people buying manga books hadn't changed much, yet those renting previously-read manga books had increased several times over, easily reaching one or two hundred people throughout the day.
That's all profit!
"Big Brother Yunlang, has Akaba not come yet?"
Tsunade stopped by again.
This was her second visit to the manga shop today.
"He's been training the last couple days. I don't know the specifics, though," Sakuma Yunlang said, lightly shaking his head.
At the same time, he couldn't help but feel curious inside.
So many people were looking for Akaba today, each appearing excited and eager to talk with him.
"Training?"
Tsunade showed a hint of concern on her face. She gave a brief nod before turning to leave.
Even someone like Akaba had suddenly become diligent?
As she pondered this thought, she realized she had already arrived at the Sakuma clan compound without even noticing.
"Forget the Sakuma clan; I'll go in and take a look."
Tsunade followed the usual route, vaulting over the wall, then climbing up toward the window from beneath.
Once reaching the window, carefully she used a senbon (a thin needle weapon) to pry it open.
Just as she got it open, she saw Akaba walking into the room wearing only a towel around his waist. Their eyes met. It got super awkward in an instant.
Akaba remained silent for a moment before sitting down. "Come inside first."
Somewhat embarrassed, Tsunade climbed into the room, noticing Akaba really might have stayed awake all night.
With an obvious headache, he spoke without much consideration. "I was just about to sleep. Anything urgent?"
"Nothing really. Just came to pick up Kyoyuki to play and check how you're doing."
Tsunade spoke indifferently.
"Oh, nothing serious. Just tired from staying awake twenty-four hours straight."
Akaba rubbed his hair dry with a towel.
Developing this jutsu (special technique) truly hadn't been easy, but fortunately it was completed now.
Tsunade nodded, then opened her mouth to speak but looked somewhat hesitant.
They locked eyes for a moment before Tsunade finally said, "By the way, Grandma may want to teach Kyoyuki sealing techniques."
Akaba paused mid-motion.
[Sealing Technique]
Among ten children from the Uzumaki clan, Uzumaki Kyoyuki did indeed possess the greatest talent.
Were they planning to train her as the next generation Jinchuriki (a ninja who hosts a tailed beast)?
He remained silent briefly, finally sighing, "The inevitable fate of the Uzumaki clan."
"I'm really sorry," Tsunade said, lowering her head, her heart heavy with guilt.
"You don't need to apologize. It was actually Lady Mito who least wished for her descendants to become Jinchuriki."
If they weren't going to be Jinchuriki, why would Konoha bother keeping them alive?
Cooperation between ninja villages isn't just about sentiment—it's far more complicated than that.
That was reality.
"Yeah, I'll go pick up Kyoyuki first."
Though technically a temporary excuse, teaching sealing techniques was indeed what Lady Mito had originally said.
But according to Lady Mito's meaning, let Uzumaki Kyoyuki keep playing happily for a while longer. When Mito herself could no longer hold on and signs of aging began to show, cultivating a successor wouldn't be too late.
"Go ahead. Remember to use the front gate."
Akaba reminded her, to prevent Tsunade from exiting directly through his bedroom door.
Although nowadays Kyoyuki could sense that too.
Tsunade nodded and jumped down, circling around to enter through the main entrance.
Akaba lay back down, thoughts swirling in his mind.
After some time passed, he slightly shook his head, no longer thinking about Uzumaki Kyoyuki.
With Lady Mito providing guidance, there was no need to worry about little Kyoyuki's safety and future.
As for Kushina...
It might take many years before she returns.
What's more, Konoha had never actually hosted ten full-blooded members of the Uzumaki clan before—yet now there were ten Uzumaki children among their ranks.
This alone proved to some extent that the storyline of the Uzumaki clan had already shifted; whether someone like Uzumaki Kushina would appear in the future was now questionable.
In short,
given the current situation, Uzumaki Kyoyuki seemed like the best choice.
At this moment, he heard a faint sound from below.
Looks like Tsunade entered through the main entrance and took away Uzumaki Kyoyuki.
Akaba stopped pondering random thoughts and casually glanced at the System Panel and Exchange List.
As for Points: using 600 points to exchange Water Dragon Bullet [Water Dragon Bullet] and Great Waterfall Technique [Great Waterfall Technique] had cost him. Although recently he hadn't been paying attention, his points had skyrocketed by nearly nine hundred.
He hesitated for a moment, then spent 15 spirit points. In one go, 750 points disappeared.
At last, his spirit attribute hit the 100 mark!
Although the increase in his spirit attribute by 15 points hadn't immediately led to a noticeable boost in power, it did significantly improve his previously fatigued mental state.
His spirit attribute was now at the Jonin level.
Akaba felt a little satisfied, but when he saw how expensive the next point would be? That 300-point price tag brought reality crashing down fast.
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