If the kid had been a normal, ordinary child, Hibari wouldn't have had much interest in him. At most, he would have found him a good home, arranging for him to be adopted by a willing family.
As for the matter of his parents being lost in the war, Hibari never even considered helping to look for them, as it would be impossible to find a definite result. The most likely outcome would be 'no remains.' As someone who had experienced war firsthand, Hibari was well aware of this.
But since the kid's name was Hidan, his treatment would be different. After all, Hibari had been looking for him for a long time, but hadn't been able to get any solid leads. He never expected to run into him like this.
Sorting through his thoughts, Hibari smiled, reached out, patted the kid on the head, and asked, "Your name is Hidan?"
The war still had some influence on people, especially on children. In Hibari's memory, Hidan should have had an outgoing personality, but this young Hidan looked a bit timid. He looked at Hibari and nodded, saying, "Yes, my name is Hidan..."
Looking at the kid's grayish-white hair, Hibari was even more certain that he was the future Jashin cultist from the Akatsuki's Immortal Duo.
Thinking of this, Hibari raised an eyebrow and said, "Since Tsunade saved you, you can live here with us for now. But while this place is safe, we don't keep idlers around, even if you're still a kid. How about this, I see that this church needs someone to do chores. You can stay and do some sweeping and dusting."
After hearing that Hibari was willing to take him in, Hidan's timid expression changed. His eyes showed a bit of hope, and he quickly said, "Thank you, High Priest..."
"High Priest?" Hibari raised an eyebrow and murmured softly.
And when Hidan heard him, he quickly said, "That's what everyone outside calls you..."
"Hahahaha, that's good. Just keep calling me that," Hibari said with a smile.
Although Hibari wanted to take Hidan on as his disciple, he couldn't be too hasty. It was best to guide him and let him ask himself. Then Hibari could 'reluctantly' agree to him. This would produce the best result. So for now, Hibari was just keeping Hidan around and found a suitable reason for him to stay by his side.
Tsunade claimed that she missed her 'Hibari-nii' and that's why she went to all the trouble of following Kakuzu to the Land of Hot Water to find him.
In reality, the girl was just a bit annoyed in Konohagakure. She finally became a shinobi, but her sensei, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, always made her do chores, chasing cats and dogs... It was nothing like the missions that her brother Hibari used to do, so Tsunade felt 'wronged.'
Her reason for running away this time was mainly to get away and relax. It could be understood as 'traveling abroad.' This was just how a little princess from a wealthy family was.
So after greeting Hibari and getting clingy for a while, she became very interested in the church and the town that was being built. There was no one her age around, so she grabbed Hidan and went out to explore.
"Hibari-nii, you and Kakuzu-san must have things to talk about, right? Then I'll go out and look around first. I won't bother you guys!" Tsunade said with a high-sounding tone.
Who knows if she picked up this bad habit from Hibari, but he didn't pay it any mind. The pot shouldn't call the kettle black; they were two peas in a pod.
Hibari nodded and then said, "Don't run around too much. Be careful."
Tsunade nodded to Hibari, then pulled Hidan and took off.
After Tsunade and Hidan left and only Hibari and Kakuzu were left in the room, Kakuzu finally spoke with a strange expression. "When you heard that kid's name just now, your expression changed. You even found an excuse to keep him by your side to do chores. That's strange. I thought you'd find a good family to adopt him..."
Hibari grinned and said with a smile, "I'm very interested in that kid..."
Upon hearing this, Kakuzu shivered and said, "You don't have that kind of disgusting fetish, do you?"
After saying this, he subtly took two steps back. When he thought about it, it seemed very possible. Hibari was now approaching sixteen. In this day and age, there were so many people who got married and had kids at sixteen. The children of prominent families were even more so. Perhaps some people had great ambitions and wanted to achieve something before considering these things, but at the very least, they should have a goal.
Wasn't Hiruzen Sarutobi ambitious? He became the Third Hokage of Konohagakure at a young age, but he also had a girlfriend early on, and now they were a complete family and even had a son, right?
Hitenn Hyuga, another representative of a prominent family in Konoha and the Deputy Commander of the Anbu, was one of the major stakeholders of the Mitsumine Group. He had a bright future and a successful career. He wasn't much older than Hibari, yet wasn't he also in a relationship with his cousin? He had a good balance of career and love!
The only one was Hibari. Kakuzu had known him for some time and had lived in the Senju household for a long time, but he had never seen him show any interest in girls his age. He also rarely interacted with them.
Was it because he had no advantages? Not at all. As the young master of the Senju clan... well, now he should be the eldest son. As the eldest son of the Senju clan, he was loved by both of the great masters of the Senju household. He also lived up to the expectations everyone had of him, becoming the strongest of Konoha's new generation at a young age. No one in his age group could compare to him; he was in a league of his own.
As for his career, he was also doing very well. Perhaps he relied on some family advantages, but no one could deny that his contributions in the war were immense, and he even became the Commander of the Anbu, even if he didn't manage it much.
He was also the largest stakeholder in the Mitsumine Group and had made an unknown amount of wealth. He was very talented in terms of combat ability, strategy, and business.
In terms of appearance, he often bragged that he was the face of Konoha's new generation. Although this was a bit exaggerated, in Kakuzu's eyes, Hibari's looks were not bad. It was true that the young women of Konohagakure liked Hibari, and calling him a 'friend of maidens' wouldn't be an exaggeration.
But despite all this, Hibari showed no signs of any of this, which truly surprised Kakuzu. Weren't rich kids usually very promiscuous? How did this kid become a 'celibate'?
Now, hearing Hibari personally admit that he was 'very interested' in a cute little boy like Hidan, how could Kakuzu not overthink it? He was now convinced that Hibari was a pervert.
"I've always heard that you rich kids have very unique tastes and that many of you take a perverted path, but I never expected you to be one of them..." Kakuzu said with a look of disgust.
Hearing this, Hibari was stunned and then said, "I'll kick you in the lungs! What are you thinking, you scumbag? Only a person with a dirty mind like you would think that way about others. As the saying goes, 'you see what's in your heart.' I, Senju Hibari, have a clean conscience and would never do anything dirty like you're imagining. My orientation is perfectly normal!"
"Normal? If you're normal, why haven't I seen you show that kind of attitude towards any other females?" Kakuzu retorted, refusing to back down.
"What attitude am I supposed to show? I still have a great career to build. I can't just 'abandon my path halfway through my career!' Besides, I don't like 'trophy wives' following me around. The person I'm looking for is someone who can grow with me, someone who can motivate me. And right now, I haven't met anyone like that, so I can only look forward to the future and hope that there will be some female heroes... Do you understand?" Hibari argued.
After a series of arguments, he finally managed to convince Kakuzu to slightly change his view of him being a pervert, but he was still 'under observation.'
"As for Hidan, I just think that with my current skills, I am qualified to be a teacher. So I want to find a disciple or something, and also see if anyone has the talent to inherit my Shiryōjutsu..." Hibari said with a smile.
After a slight pause, Hibari looked at Kakuzu and said, "I think you're also very suitable for learning my Shiryōjutsu. Aren't you interested?"
Kakuzu was slightly stunned and then said, "Can I learn it, too? I don't have to pay, do I?"
Hibari said with some disdain, "Do you think I'm a miser like you? Of course, you don't have to pay. After all, this is a situation where we both benefit..."
Kakuzu nodded and then said, "I'll consider it. But regarding your idea of taking Hidan as your disciple, I suggest you don't be so hasty. When I first saw that kid, he looked like he was about to die. Your little princess gave him some medical treatment, and I also helped out. Generally, I don't think that guy is suitable to be a shinobi. Or rather, even if he did become a shinobi, he would be lacking in talent..."
"What do you mean?" Hibari asked with a slight frown.
"His physical fitness is not very good. If he were to become a shinobi, I think his limit would be around the 'Chunin' level..." Kakuzu said softly.
Hibari rubbed his chin and thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "That's just an idea I have. I'll keep it in mind..."
The two of them talked about such topics for a while. Suddenly, Kakuzu seemed to have thought of something and asked, "What do you think of Tsunade?"
Hibari was stunned and asked, "What do you mean, 'what do I think of her'?"
"I mean, what do you think Tsunade's future will be like?" Kakuzu asked casually.
Hibari didn't think too much and said directly, "Why even ask? Although Tsunade is a little weaker than me, her aptitude has been outstanding since childhood. After all, she has the blood of the Senju clan flowing in her veins. With her talent, her future is limitless. I even think she might become Konoha's first female Hokage!"
When Kakuzu heard what Hibari said, he smiled and said, "She really is a 'female hero'... I understand... You guys from the great clans really like to do things like this. You're like this, and so is Hitenn and the Uchiha clan..."
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