Smack.
Hyūga Ming slapped Hyūga Hiashi's outstretched hand away.
"Teammates?" Ming looked at him with undisguised disdain.
"Sorry. You're not qualified."
It wasn't that Ming looked down on Hiashi specifically.
He looked down on everyone.
No one was worthy of being his teammate.
What if they stole his kills?
Hiashi's face flushed red with anger, words spilling out uncontrollably.
"Aren't you afraid my father will punish you again?!"
Ming rolled his Byakugan so hard it felt like he'd activated a second pair.
"Why don't you guess whether I'm afraid or not?"
The main family didn't dare kill him.
That alone was his confidence.
If he weren't already a ninja, he wouldn't dare act like this—but unfortunately for them, he was.
As long as Konoha stood, the Hyūga couldn't take his life or cripple him.
So why fear them?
Ming bumped Hiashi aside with his shoulder and walked straight toward the dungeon stairs.
Hiashi ground his teeth.
This guy was completely impossible to reason with.
He even felt that if Ming were an Uchiha, he'd already have awakened the Sharingan from sheer rage.
Ming stepped out of the dungeon—
And saw Tsunade standing there with her arms crossed.
When she noticed him, she said simply,
"Let's go."
She didn't even look at him again, turning and walking out of the Hyūga compound.
All around them, people stared in surprise.
Everyone knew Ming had been thrown into the dungeon.
So why was he out after just one day?
Ming grinned smugly at the crowd.
The Hyūga main family still hadn't dared do anything to him.
In the crowd, he spotted the elder Hyūga Huo, glaring furiously.
Ming immediately pulled a face at him.
"Bleh."
Huo's face turned crimson.
His eyes rolled back—and he collapsed.
"Elder!!"
The sudden fainting sent the clan into chaos.
With everyone rushing to help, no one paid Ming any further attention.
Tsunade said irritably,
"Can you cause less trouble?"
Ming looked innocent.
"Who knew that old man had such a weak temper?"
Honestly, he hadn't expected to knock someone out with pure annoyance.
If he'd known, he'd have pushed harder—might've sent him straight to the grave.
Tsunade sighed helplessly.
This kid was a once-in-a-generation troublemaker.
They left the Hyūga compound together.
At the gate stood a boy with natural blush on his cheeks—
Ming had always suspected it was makeup, but unfortunately, it was natural.
All Ming could do was sigh in admiration.
The Senju bloodline really is terrifying.
"Big bro!!"
The boy lit up when he saw Ming.
This was Nawaki—Tsunade's younger brother.
The Senju clan had dissolved and fully integrated into the village, so neither Nawaki nor Tsunade used the Senju surname anymore.
"This is all thanks to you," Ming said, patting Nawaki on the shoulder.
From the very beginning, Hizashi's instincts had been right—
Tsunade had been backing Ming all along.
And the reason was standing right here.
Nawaki.
Ming and Nawaki's friendship was simple in origin.
After Ming ran out of opponents in his own year, he started challenging upperclassmen and underclassmen alike.
Nawaki was the only one who gave him real trouble.
After several difficult (and totally not shady) battles, Nawaki—one year younger—became Ming's most loyal follower.
For the sake of her hopeless little brother, Tsunade had no choice but to help Ming out.
She shot Ming a sharp glare.
"Don't corrupt my brother."
This guy was far too reckless.
Ming waved it off casually.
"I'm such an upright, honest person. How could I corrupt him?"
He gestured toward Nawaki.
Nawaki immediately pumped his fist.
"Yeah! There's no way big bro would corrupt me!"
Tsunade pressed a hand to her forehead, exasperated.
Still… if Nawaki learned Ming's combat style, that might not be a bad thing.
"…Fine," she said at last.
She actually didn't mind Ming and Nawaki spending time together.
This kid wasn't stupid—just dangerous.
Her expression turned serious as she looked at Ming.
"You have at most one year. The Hyūga won't act against you during that time."
"You must learn medical ninjutsu to placate them."
"After that—you're on your own."
She could only help him once.
"More than enough," Ming replied eagerly.
Tsunade had no idea what he was so excited about.
She turned to Nawaki.
"You're graduating soon. Don't slack off on your training."
Before Nawaki could respond, she vanished in a Body Flicker.
Nawaki muttered unhappily,
"Seriously… always nagging me."
Ming snorted.
"Complaining after getting benefits."
He'd kill to have a future Sannin as a big sister.
Thinking about the one-year window, Ming's grin widened, sharp and dangerous.
This was Year 36 of Konoha.
Tensions among the Five Great Nations were escalating, though still restrained.
Everyone believed it would take years before war broke out.
But Ming knew better.
The Second Shinobi World War would erupt next year.
Three straight years of war—
Exactly what Ming was waiting for.
Ninja gave the most experience.
Fast leveling.
Rare drops from different villages.
Explosive growth.
And—
A real chance to completely break the Caged Bird Seal.
"Big bro," Nawaki asked excitedly,
"who are we messing with first?!"
Whenever Ming wore that smile, trouble followed.
Ming smacked Nawaki on the back of the head.
"First, find me a place to live."
"And I'm not the kind of guy who goes around causing trouble, okay?"
He was clearly very kind and gentle.
Nawaki rubbed his head and muttered,
"In the entire Academy, no one caused more trouble than you."
The Ninja Academy had practically become a battle school because of him.
Ming showed zero self-awareness.
In the end, Ming rented a small house in a remote area.
His money could barely support it—
maybe three months at most.
When they opened the door, a cloud of dust exploded outward.
"Cough—cough!"
Nawaki waved his hand.
"Can people even live here?"
It clearly hadn't been occupied in ages.
Ming's eye twitched as he looked at the bare, single-room space.
If he stayed here long-term, he'd probably feel like his life was over.
"I have to grind mobs and do missions."
Staying here wasn't an option.
Ming turned and walked straight back out.
"Come on. I'll take you to rob the rich and help the poor."
Nawaki had even learned to imitate Ming's Byakugan eye-roll.
"Didn't you just say you don't like causing trouble?"
"But big bro—how exactly are we robbing the rich and helping the poor?"
Ming pondered for a moment, then looked at Nawaki.
"…You got money?"
Nawaki took two cautious steps back.
"Big bro. You're not planning to rob me to help yourself, are you?"
Ming stared at him.
"Do I look like that kind of person?"
Nawaki shook his head seriously.
"No."
"You are that kind of person."