Chapter 93: Rin Nohara: I Don't Mind
The next day.
Rongichirō stood at the podium, lecturing on the Will of Fire.
Hanekawa was speechless.
He never would have thought the very first class of their fourth year would be on the Will of Fire.
If he hadn't checked the schedule, he would have suspected Hiruzen Sarutobi was retaliating for him running off midway through the speech yesterday.
But on second thought, the Hokage, of all people, wouldn't bother targeting a single student.
Hanekawa automatically tuned out Rongichirō, pulling out a Lightning Release ninjutsu scroll.
As he looked at the text, he suddenly thought of Kakashi Hatake's Chidori.
It was said that Chidori was a jutsu he created during his youth.
Does this count as youth now?
In the original story, two jutsus were used all the way to the very end: the Rasengan and Chidori.
Hanekawa really wanted to learn them.
Chidori was out for now, but maybe the Rasengan was possible.
Like the Strength of a Hundred Seal, the Rasengan was a hand-sign-less jutsu, making it easy to land a devastating first strike. On top of that, any elemental chakra could be mixed into it; it was truly "come one, come all."
Time flew by, and soon it was the end of class.
As Rongichirō left, the classroom became lively.
"Rin!"
Obito Uchiha asked with a big smile, "I made a contract with a cat during the break, want to see it?"
The Uchiha Clan had a good relationship with the Ninja Cat Clan, so their first choice for a summoning animal was often a cat, followed by a crow.
"Sorry."
Rin Nohara shook her head, saying, "I have to train today."
"What kind of training?"
Obito looked surprised as he asked.
"I don't know yet."
Rin explained, "It's with Hanekawa."
"No way!"
When Obito heard Hanekawa's name, he immediately panicked. "What could he possibly teach you?"
"Hanekawa is Lady Tsunade's student; he can guide me in my medical ninjutsu training."
Rin paused, then asked, "Kakashi's going too, do you want to come?"
"No!"
Obito refused without a second thought, but almost immediately regretted it.
Even though he didn't want to train with Hanekawa, he couldn't stand the thought of something happening to Rin if he wasn't there.
"I... I'll come with you."
Obito said awkwardly, his face flushing.
"Let's go."
Kakashi Hatake stood up, ending the conversation. "Hanekawa is waiting for us."
"Let me ask him."
Rin took a few steps forward and asked, "Hanekawa, can Obito come with us?"
"Sure."
Hanekawa wasn't surprised in the slightest.
Where Rin was, Obito was sure to follow.
The group arrived at Tsunade's home.
Everyone was there except Kurenai Yūhi, who had to go find Maruboshi Kosuke to learn Water Release.
In the outdoor training ground, Shisui Uchiha had already arrived.
After exchanging greetings, they each began their training.
Shisui pulled Kakashi over to a nearby open space to practice kenjutsu.
Asuma Sarutobi made hand signs, practicing a new Wind Release ninjutsu.
Only Obito Uchiha looked around, unsure of what to do.
He usually trained, but not this diligently.
"Rin."
Hanekawa stood in front of a tree and beckoned to Rin.
Seeing this, Obito also came closer.
He had to keep an eye on Hanekawa.
"To become a medical ninja, you have to have extremely high chakra control."
Hanekawa explained as he demonstrated, "Concentrating chakra on the soles of your feet to walk up a tree is the simplest and most effective training."
"I understand!"
Rin watched him walk up the tree and nodded emphatically.
"Go on and train."
Hanekawa chuckled lightly and said, "Once you master tree-walking, we can move on to the next stage."
"Thank you."
Rin emulated Hanekawa, slowly climbing the tree.
"Rin! I'll train with you! Aaaah!"
Obito took two steps and immediately fell, letting out a painful cry.
Rin's expression faltered, but she continued on.
When she was halfway up, her body became unstable, so she reluctantly gave up and jumped back down.
"Rin, you're way stronger than me!"
Obito got up, grimacing in pain.
Rin finally understood why his Fire Release jutsus always went wrong.
It was a problem with his chakra control.
Hanekawa ignored them, found an open space, and began his own training.
Today, he was going to learn Lightning Release ninjutsu.
As for medical ninjutsu and creating poison, he would learn those tomorrow at Konoha Hospital.
"That kid really has the makings of a Hokage."
At a window not far away, Tsunade watched the group train, her arms crossed.
To be Hokage, you can't be a lone wolf; you have to be the alpha wolf. In other words, you have to earn respect and support.
Hanekawa was already showing these qualities.
The shinobi who interacted with him praised him, and his peers were willing to train with him.
In another ten years, or maybe less, prodigies like Kakashi Hatake and Shisui Uchiha will make a name for themselves.
If they support Hanekawa, his chances of becoming Hokage will increase significantly.
"Too bad he's so young."
Tsunade sighed.
Just as Hanekawa said, even if he were to become Hokage, it would likely be the Fifth Hokage.
As for the Fourth Hokage... Tsunade fell into deep thought.
If she wanted to, she really could compete for the position.
Why have I been thinking about becoming Hokage so much lately?
Tsunade came to her senses, rubbed her forehead, and grumbled, "It's all that kid's fault!"
Ever since Hashirama Senju and Nawaki died, she had lost all interest in the title of Hokage.
But because Hanekawa kept bringing it up, her feelings about it had subtly changed.
Night fell.
Everyone finished training, but Hanekawa stayed behind.
Because he still had to cook for Tsunade.
"Did they go home?"
Tsunade sat on the couch, holding a cup of tea, and asked leisurely.
"Mhm."
Hanekawa nodded slightly.
He walked over and looked at the tea, finding it a bit odd, as it was the first time he'd ever seen Tsunade drink it.
"Want some?"
Tsunade held the cup out to him.
"Thanks."
Hanekawa didn't stand on ceremony. He bent down and took a sip.
"Before I knew it, you've gotten so tall."
Tsunade suddenly noticed something and said with a sigh.
"What's with you today?"
Hanekawa shot her a look. "Why are you being so sentimental?"
"It's nothing."
Tsunade put down the teacup and said.
She was conflicted over whether she should vie for the Hokage position.
Hanekawa looked at her elegant face and said, "If there's nothing wrong, go gamble a little. Losing some money will stop you from overthinking."
"Can't you say something nice, you brat?"
Tsunade raised an eyebrow and said, annoyed, "If I lose money tomorrow, you'd better watch out! I'll make you pay!"
"Hey!"
Hanekawa couldn't help but retort, "You're bullying an honest man!"
"You? Honest?"
Tsunade laughed at his words, wiggling her bare feet. "There's not a single part of you that's honest."
"That's slander!"
Hanekawa said with a look of displeasure.
"I'm your teacher!"
Tsunade narrowed her eyes, emphasizing her point.
"Teachers can't just talk nonsense."
Hanekawa said solemnly.
"You brat!"
Tsunade couldn't help but lift her leg to kick him.
Hanekawa leaned back, narrowly dodging the toes that were just inches from his face.
He turned and ran, shouting, "I'm going to cook!"
Tsunade watched his figure slowly disappear and couldn't help but shake her head.
That kid really is clever.
She closed her eyes, no longer thinking about the Hokage position.
Where there's a will, there's a way. She'd deal with it when the time came.
Chapter 94: Rin Nohara: I Don't Mind (Third Update)
The next day.
When Hanekawa arrived at the classroom, he found Rin Nohara sitting in his seat.
"Hanekawa."
Rin quickly stood up and said, "I have some questions for you."
"Go ahead."
Hanekawa naturally sat down next to her.
A faint, sweet scent lingered in the air.
He instinctively looked at Rin.
He had always had one question: why did she have those two purple markings on her cheeks?
"It's about the tree-climbing technique."
Rin said, looking troubled, "Yesterday, I felt like I couldn't continue after climbing halfway."
"How did you concentrate your chakra?"
Hanekawa thought for a moment and asked.
Tree-climbing doesn't require a lot of chakra; the most important thing is control.
If something went wrong, it was likely because the chakra wasn't distributed correctly.
"Let me show you."
Rin didn't know how to explain, so she simply rolled up her pant leg, took off her shoe, and revealed her fair, bare left foot.
She took a deep breath, mobilized her chakra, and focused it on the arch of her pale foot.
Hanekawa's gaze sharpened slightly.
Although he didn't have the Byakugan, he could vaguely sense the flow of chakra.
"H-How's this?"
As he stared at her, Rin's cheeks suddenly flushed.
"I think I know what the problem is."
Hanekawa calmly extended his hand and pointed his finger at the top of her foot.
Rin's body trembled slightly, and she held back an odd feeling as she listened to his explanation.
"Do you understand?"
Hanekawa asked after he finished.
"Mhm."
Rin quickly put her shoe back on and said, "Thank you."
Her face was bright red, like an apple.
"It's nothing."
Hanekawa instinctively patted her head.
Rin's heart skipped a beat. Her lips twitched, but she didn't move away.
"Ah, sorry, it's a habit."
Hanekawa realized his mistake and quickly pulled his hand back.
He often patted Kurenai's head when they were together.
"It's fine."
Rin said in a low voice, her head bowed, "I... I don't mind."
"Try the tree-walking again after school today."
Hanekawa nodded slightly and said, "If you run into any problems, just come find me again."
"Mhm." Rin stood up and said, "I... I'll go back to my seat now!"
The school bell rang, signaling the end of the day.
The group once again made their way to Tsunade's home.
But this time, Hanekawa was missing, as he had gone to Konoha Hospital.
Rin stood in front of the same tree from yesterday and took a deep breath.
She followed the technique Hanekawa had explained, focusing chakra on the soles of her feet, and slowly climbed up, step by step.
This time, she successfully reached the top of the tree.
A smile couldn't help but spread across Rin's face.
"Rin! You're amazing!"
Seeing this, Obito Uchiha couldn't help but exclaim in praise.
Compared to Rin, he was far behind; he couldn't even make it a third of the way up.
"Hanekawa taught me."
Rin said, her voice light.
Obito Uchiha was instantly struck as if by lightning.
............
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