On Monday morning, Shinji woke up at the first sign of the sun.
He hadn't slept much last night, using Chakra Perception the entire time.
While brushing his teeth, he involuntarily looked in the direction of Root's largest underground base. He couldn't help but grin.
Danzo must be having a terrible time now. After all, since last night, the entire Root had been like busy ants, constantly moving many things. But before they could even move half of it, Hiruzen's people showed up.
This nearly led to a skirmish between the two sides, but in the end, thanks to an unknown person's intervention, things quieted down. Shinji had sensed that Chakra for the first time, but he didn't pay much attention to it.
As long as Danzo was suffering, he was happy.
After tidying up, Shinji went straight out.
...
At the Academy, Naruto greeted some familiar classmates as soon as he entered the classroom. Then he happily went to his seat and saw Sasuke in the seat behind him.
Naruto grinned and said, "Sasuke, good morning."
Sasuke was startled, then turned his face away, responding indifferently as if he didn't care.
Seeing this, Naruto wasn't discouraged. After all, Sasuke's attitude was much better than others'.
Not far away, Choji, seeing Naruto like this, turned his head in confusion to Shikamaru beside him and asked, "Shikamaru, why do I feel like Naruto is a bit different?"
"I don't know, what a drag."
Shikamaru, leaning against the wall, responded listlessly, but his eyes glanced at Naruto.
In the past week, Naruto had run into them a few times on the rooftop. So they could at least exchange a few words.
Choji, in particular, liked Naruto, especially since Naruto had given him a bowl of a limited-edition ramen.
As soon as the class bell rang, Shinji walked in with a smile.
The students, who had been looking lazy, immediately sat up straight when they saw Shinji.
"Class, in this lesson, we will be explaining the five elemental natures of Chakra."
As Shinji opened his materials, the sound of rustling pages echoed across the tiered desks.
Naruto took out the notebook Shinji had given him and began to take notes while listening. He couldn't help it. Athough Shinji's explanation was already simple and clear, there were still some parts that made him a little dizzy. He could only write them down first and ask Shinji about them later during the Q&A session.
By the end of the class, almost all the students had an enlightened expression.
Naruto, however, scratched his head, feeling like his brain was growing from too much information.
[Lecture completed, calculating...]
[Overall Rating: S]
[Rewards: Genjutsu: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique (Master), Ninjutsu: Shadow Clone (Proficient), Chakra Nature: Water (Beginner)]
Shinji was initially stunned when he saw the S rating for the lecture.
The subsequent rewards made him even happier. He hadn't expected the rewards for an S-rank lecture to be so generous.
Just the Master-level Bringer-of-Darkness Technique alone was a huge gain, let alone getting Shadow Clone.
This is a Ninjutsu that can be used to cheat, as long as one's mental and physical strength can endure it. At that time, having Shadow Clones train or help with classes would be absolutely perfect.
However, Shinji first looked at the Bringer-of-Darkness Technique. Once activated, it can create visual hallucinations, thereby depriving the target of light.
Shinji could now openly carry out some of his subsequent actions.
Shinji, who had just hit the jackpot, was in a very good mood. As soon as he arrived at the office, he saw several teachers who had already finished class looking at him with disbelief.
Shinji was startled at first, then looked at himself.
There didn't seem to be anything wrong with him, did there? Why did they all have that expression?
Iruka was the first to react, greeting Shinji. "Shinji, Hokage-sama just sent word, saying he wants you to go to his office after class."
Hearing Iruka's words, Shinji nodded knowingly.
After putting down his lesson plans, he nodded to the teachers in the office and then turned and left.
To be summoned by Hiruzen twice in less than two weeks. No wonder these teachers looked at him like he was a monster.
Don't underestimate Hiruzen's influence within Konoha. He was a veteran Hokage who had governed for nearly 40 years.
In the eyes of these teachers, Shinji's current situation meant he was definitely going to achieve great things in the future.
As for something going wrong? Anbu would have directly apprehended him, there's no way he would still be summoned.
Shinji arrived at the office upstairs again and reached out to knock on the door.
Knock, knock!
"Come in."
Hiruzen's voice sounded from inside the door, sounding slightly tired.
Upon entering, Shinji saw Hiruzen with his pipe and quickly bowed, saying, "Lord Third."
"Hmm, it's Shinji. Come, sit down."
Hiruzen, with a smiling expression, motioned for Shinji to sit in the chair in front of his desk.
"Yes, Lord Third." Shinji nodded in response, then walked in.
Seeing Shinji's demeanor, even Hiruzen felt good about it. It wasn't that he cared about such formalities, but rather Danzo from last night, and the two advisors who had come to argue this morning, made Hiruzen, who hadn't slept all night, feel very weary.
After casually dismissing them, Hiruzen went directly to the Academy. He had thoroughly re-examined all the information about Shinji. All information showed that Shinji was a true Konoha member, his clan having joined Konoha even earlier than some clans.
After all, the Aratani clan could be considered an affiliate of the Senju, having fought alongside the Senju even before Konoha was formed. Frankly speaking, only the Uzumaki clan could compare.
This made Hiruzen even more at ease.
As for the idea of sending Yamanaka and Konoha's Torture and Interrogation Unit to test him further, he hadn't considered it. After all, Shinji wouldn't have had the opportunity to become a spy for another ninja village.
As soon as Shinji sat down, Hiruzen spoke directly, "Shinji, I want you to participate in missions. Once you qualify for Jonin promotion, I will personally endorse and recommend you."
"What do you think?"
At these words, Shinji was stunned.
Thinking of the system panel, he had a mind to refuse but after some thought, the words changed.
Shinji first scratched the back of his head, as if overwhelmed by the honor and then said, "Hokage-sama, I am very grateful for this opportunity you've given me, but I really enjoy teaching. Otherwise, I wouldn't have reported to you directly after being promoted to Chunin, wanting to come here."
"Moreover, I'm also worried that my abilities aren't enough. After all, I still have many shortcomings in terms of actual combat."
Having said that, Shinji displayed an apologetic expression, as if his strength couldn't meet the requirements.