Kitazawa took a semi–hands-off approach when it came to teaching Gaara.
In the original story, almost every jinchūriki experienced a huge jump in strength after obtaining a tailed beast. Gaara was the exact opposite—after losing Shukaku, he still reached Kage-level in a very short time.
And no one was there to teach him, either, because in the original timeline both Rasa and Chiyo had already passed away. From that alone, Gaara's talent was honestly terrifying.
Of course, there was another reason as well.
Kitazawa didn't have Gaara's ability to freely control sand. Still, with Kitazawa's strength, giving pointers wasn't a problem.
Gaara joining didn't affect the Advanced Class's training, and it didn't affect Kitazawa's own training either.
Time moved into March.
Uchiha Sasuke returned to the Advanced Class to train again.
Kitazawa knew he'd gotten a new task too: helping Sasuke with a surgery.
But surgery wasn't something you could treat lightly.
Even though, in the original story, the Sharingan and Byakugan were jokingly described as something you could "plug in and use."
Hokage Office.
After receiving permission, Kitazawa walked in.
"Since when did you learn to knock?" Tsunade asked as she set the documents in her hands onto the Hokage's desk.
"I was worried I'd interrupt your work," Kitazawa said, stepping up in front of her.
"There isn't much going on today," Tsunade said with a smile as she stood up. "Sit."
"I've got something serious to talk to you about," Kitazawa said, clearing his throat.
After that, he sat down in the Hokage's chair.
"This is the Hokage's office. What are you thinking?" Tsunade rolled her eyes, then casually settled onto his lap. "So what do you want?"
"Have you heard of the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan?" Kitazawa asked, his arms naturally wrapping around her waist.
"It came up in the Second Hokage's research," Tsunade thought for a moment, "but even he wasn't completely sure."
Senju Tobirama had studied the Sharingan and the Mangekyō deeply, but the Eternal Mangekyō was something only Uchiha Madara possessed. There was never really a good opportunity to examine it.
Technically, after the battle at the Valley of the End—after Madara's "death"—Tobirama might've had a chance.
But it was very likely Senju Hashirama stopped it.
And because of that, Madara was able to use Izanagi to claw his way back to life.
"I just went to the Uchiha clan," Kitazawa said.
He lowered his head and kissed her fair cheek once, then began explaining the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
Tsunade instinctively licked her lips.
These days, whenever she got physically close to Kitazawa, her mind tended to drift to thoughts she really shouldn't be having.
It was an itch that was hard to ignore.
"Pay attention," Kitazawa said, lifting a hand and tapping lightly near her chest through her clothes.
Tsunade's body trembled faintly, her gaze going hazy for a split second.
"It's been a long time since we've done surgery together," Kitazawa said, finally stating his real goal. "This time, for Sasuke's procedure—let's do it together. What do you think?"
He wanted to raise the odds—through technique and planning—of successfully achieving the Eternal Mangekyō. Even if the chance was small, it was worth trying.
"Do I even have a reason to say no?" Tsunade snapped back, coming back to herself.
"Then when do you have time? We can start by drafting a treatment plan," Kitazawa said after thinking it over.
"This period is a little… delicate," Tsunade said, leaning into his chest. "The Akatsuki have been quiet for a while. I'm worried they're preparing something bigger."
"Their goal is already obvious—capturing the tailed beasts," Kitazawa said, pinching her cheek lightly. "We just have to keep Naruto safe. With the Third Hokage and the others around, Naruto won't be in danger."
"That's easy to say, but none of the Akatsuki are simple," Tsunade said, shaking her head. "And I suspect the Akatsuki we've seen so far still isn't the whole group."
Kitazawa silently thought: you're right.
As the Eye of the Moon Plan progressed, many Akatsuki members had become known to the major villages. But there were also members who still hadn't openly appeared—like Nagato and Zetsu.
Because Kitazawa had interfered, the main force catching beasts had shifted to Kakuzu and "Tobi"—Uchiha Obito.
In the original story, it had been Kakuzu, Uchiha Itachi, and Hoshigaki Kisame, among others.
"The Akatsuki are troublesome, but it's not something we need to solve all at once," Kitazawa said, stroking her cheek. "First, we finish Sasuke's surgery and raise his strength. That way he can handle the Akatsuki better."
"If you hadn't said that, I would've forgotten Sasuke's already on that level," Tsunade froze for a second, then couldn't help but laugh.
Sasuke was still young—so Tsunade had instinctively overlooked it.
In reality, the moment he awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, he already counted among the top-tier monsters of the ninja world.
A top-tier fighter like that would absolutely be able to play a role against the Akatsuki.
"And it's not just Sasuke—your other students aren't weak either," Kitazawa said, smiling.
"That's because you taught them well," Tsunade said, tilting her head up and kissing him.
Only after a long moment did she let him go.
"There's one more thing," Tsunade suddenly remembered. "Jiraiya plans to go to the Land of Rain to investigate the Akatsuki personally."
"No need," Kitazawa said, startled. "If he has time, he'd be better off coming back to train Naruto."
"And what exactly can he teach Naruto?" Tsunade asked with a light laugh.
"Mount Myōboku," Kitazawa reminded her.
"The toads of Mount Myōboku are great summons," Tsunade frowned slightly, "but I'm worried Naruto might get dragged around by some prophecy."
Jiraiya had spent years searching for the so-called Child of Prophecy because of the Great Toad Sage's prediction.
"Naruto won't," Kitazawa said, shaking his head.
To him, the Great Toad Sage's prophecy was something optional at best.
Right now, Uzumaki Naruto's head was full of passion and training—trying to influence him with prophecy talk would be incredibly difficult.
And becoming a Mount Myōboku contractor was also an important step in building the new "Sannin" of Konoha.
"Fine," Tsunade said. "I'll send someone to notify Jiraiya."
"Mm." Kitazawa understood why Jiraiya wanted to go.
But since Kitazawa already knew how the original plot went, there was no reason to let Jiraiya walk into danger. At the very least, he was Tsunade's teammate.
"Let's draft the treatment plan now," Tsunade said after a brief pause. "But don't forget to keep an eye on the Akatsuki. If anything happens, tell me immediately."
Kitazawa nodded.
The Akatsuki really had been unusually quiet lately.
He planned to find time to visit the Akatsuki and press Konan for information.
[Current Mission: Help Uchiha Sasuke awaken the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.]
[Mission Reward: Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.]
[Accept?]
The sudden system mission made Kitazawa pause.
But almost immediately, he felt a surge of excitement.
First, because of the reward.
He wouldn't need to hunt down another pair of Mangekyō eyes to create the Eternal Mangekyō—something that would be absurdly difficult.
There were only a handful of Mangekyō users in the entire ninja world.
And the worst part was: none of them had any blood relation to him.
After all, Kitazawa's own Mangekyō came from the system.
Second, if there was a system mission, that meant their surgery would most likely succeed.
A mission given by the system wouldn't be impossible to complete.
Even if it couldn't be completed immediately, it would be completed eventually.
Of course, Kitazawa only said "most likely."
If it failed, that would be normal too—it would just cost them more time.
The two of them began discussing in earnest.
"Fusing two Mangekyō Sharingan will definitely cause a massive spike in ocular power," Tsunade said thoughtfully. "Sasuke's body will probably take a hit. We need to be careful about that."
"That's definitely an issue," Kitazawa agreed. "Especially since Sasuke's still young and his body hasn't reached its peak yet."
As he spoke, he suddenly thought of Uzumaki Naruto.
After the battle at the Valley of the End, Uchiha Madara obtained a piece of Senju Hashirama's flesh.
After transplanting it, he gained Wood Release—and eventually awakened the Rinnegan.
Of course, that "flesh" was essentially Hashirama's chakra.
The Rinnegan was the product of Madara's own Yin chakra combined with Hashirama's Yang chakra under special conditions.
So what would happen if Sasuke gained Uzumaki Naruto's chakra?
The Rinnegan was too far off to worry about right now.
But without a doubt, it would benefit the Mangekyō in some way.
Just like with Uchiha Obito—who could repeatedly use Mangekyō techniques.
And it would also increase physical durability.
"This part, I can help solve," Kitazawa said, half-serious, half-casual. "Over the next period, I'll put Sasuke through special training."
"All right," Tsunade said, not overthinking it, and continued the discussion.
Before they realized it, dusk had arrived.
"We'll stop here for today," Kitazawa said after checking the time.
"Discussing a treatment plan is more exhausting than actual office work," Tsunade said, standing up and stretching.
"Tonight, I'll help you relax," Kitazawa said, blinking.
Tsunade paused, then understood immediately.
She didn't feel shy at all—in fact, she looked forward to it.
"Let's go home, Tsunade-sensei," Kitazawa said with a grin, taking her wrist and using Flying Thunder God.
In the blink of an eye, the two of them appeared at the Senju clan compound.
"Kurenai still isn't back?" Tsunade asked as she entered the living room and looked around.
"Not yet," Kitazawa said.
Ever since Kurenai's film department was established, she'd gone to the Land of Snow.
It had already been a week.
"I'll go check on things in the Land of Snow tomorrow," Kitazawa added.
Tsunade nodded.
It looked like tonight would be another intense night—without Kurenai around to help share the "pressure."
Not long after, Shizune, Uzumaki Rina, and Karin all returned home.
After dinner, Tsunade spoke calmly as if it were nothing unusual. "Kitazawa and I are going to discuss a treatment plan. Don't come disturb us."
"What treatment plan?" Shizune asked curiously.
Normally, a treatment plan had to be finalized before surgery.
But Tsunade and Kitazawa rarely needed one.
They were so strong they could improvise safely.
So hearing that they were seriously drafting one together surprised Shizune.
"It's like this," Kitazawa said, giving a brief explanation.
Shizune and Uzumaki Rina were both effectively high-ranking Konoha personnel now, so it was fine for them to know about the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Okay, don't waste time," Tsunade said the moment Kitazawa finished, then turned and went upstairs.
"Then go do your thing," Shizune nodded. "We'll handle the dishes."
Kitazawa followed Tsunade upstairs.
The moment he stepped inside, she took his hand and pulled him in.
She guided him toward the bed, and with a firm push, he fell back onto it.
He wasn't upset—if anything, the look in her eyes made his heartbeat jump.
"Weren't we supposed to discuss the treatment plan?" Kitazawa asked with a smile.
"And who says we aren't?" Tsunade replied, drawing closer.
The rest of the night, their "discussion" continued behind closed doors—more private than clinical—until words blurred into warmth and sleep.
The next day, Friday.
Kitazawa opened his eyes.
The first thing he saw was Tsunade's bright, smooth skin in the morning light.
"Tsunade-sensei," he said, reaching out and gently pinching her nose.
"Mmm… let me sleep a little more…" Tsunade murmured.
She caught his hand and tucked it against her, clinging to it like it belonged there.
Kitazawa immediately felt warmth and softness.
He hesitated, then decided not to wake her further.
But he also knew Tsunade sleeping in was basically impossible.
"Tsunade-sama!" Shizune's voice soon called from outside.
"I heard you! You're so noisy!" Tsunade shouted back, clearly annoyed.
Kitazawa couldn't help but laugh.
"What are you laughing at?" Tsunade rolled her eyes. "This is all your fault!"
"It's my fault," Kitazawa admitted without hesitation.
Tsunade paused, and suddenly didn't know what to say.
Strictly speaking, she'd been the one who pulled him into that "discussion."
Tsunade sat up and stretched, completely unbothered by the cold, moving her body like someone utterly confident in herself.
When she looked down and caught Kitazawa staring, she gave him a satisfied smile.
She'd done it on purpose.
And if Kitazawa liked looking, nobody lost. Everyone won.
"Go back first," Tsunade said, leaning in and lightly biting his lip. "So Shizune doesn't get suspicious."
"Mm." Kitazawa nodded.
He dressed, then used Flying Thunder God to return to his own room.
After breakfast, Kitazawa and Tsunade left the house with the others.
Before long, they split up.
Kitazawa went to the ninja academy and called Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto over.
"Kitazawa-sensei," Sasuke and Naruto greeted in unison.
"Naruto," Kitazawa said, holding out his hand. "Output a portion of your Yang Release chakra."
Naruto didn't understand what he was planning, but he did it anyway.
He placed his hand above Kitazawa's, and Yang chakra flowed from his palm.
"That's enough for now—stop," Kitazawa said when it felt sufficient.
Naruto nodded and pulled back.
"Sasuke, don't resist," Kitazawa said, turning to him.
"…?" Sasuke looked confused.
Kitazawa didn't explain. He simply guided Naruto's Yang chakra into Sasuke's body.
Sasuke tensed on instinct, then quickly relaxed.
He felt warm chakra pouring into him.
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
Transplanting Hashirama's cells was extremely dangerous—those cells were too active and invasive.
But Naruto's Yang chakra was gentle.
Still, simply injecting Yang chakra wasn't enough.
With a thought, Kitazawa activated and "vitalized" the Yang chakra.
Sasuke let out a muffled grunt.
The warm chakra became lively, and even Sasuke's own chakra began to stir.
If it were someone else, he might've thought Kitazawa was trying to set him up.
But Sasuke quickly noticed the difference.
His chakra wasn't chaotic—it was simply energized.
More than that, his whole body felt warm, like soaking in a hot spring. Comfortable.
Five minutes later, Kitazawa stopped.
Under his control, that portion of Naruto's Yang chakra had fully merged into Sasuke's body.
Kitazawa immediately opened his Byakugan.
He scanned Sasuke from head to toe.
The changes were subtle, but his Byakugan didn't miss them.
Sasuke's physical strength had increased slightly.
Kitazawa nodded.
So his hypothesis wasn't far off.
As fellow reincarnations tied to Asura's chakra, Naruto and Hashirama had similar effects in terms of chakra "compatibility."
The difference was that Hashirama was a special, mutated case—his effect and potency were far more extreme.
Combined with Wood Release, Kitazawa suspected Hashirama had some kind of ancestral reversion.
As a Senju, it wouldn't be strange for his bloodline to "reawaken" in an abnormal way.
"Sasuke, do you know what activation is?" Kitazawa asked, meeting Sasuke's puzzled gaze.
"I do," Sasuke nodded. "Kakashi-sensei taught me when he taught me Lightning Release: Chidori."
"Good. Chidori involves activating Lightning chakra," Kitazawa said, briefly thinking of Lightning Chakra Mode. In a way, Sasuke was actually well-suited for that kind of ninjutsu-body technique.
"Today, I'm going to teach you Yang Release chakra activation," Kitazawa continued. "Once you learn it, you'll be able to use Naruto's Yang chakra to strengthen yourself."
"Huh?" Sasuke's eyes widened. "Why do I have to use Naruto's Yang chakra?"
"It's fine!" Naruto immediately gave a thumbs-up. "I'm willing to share my power of youth with you!"
"If you think that's unfair," Kitazawa said, an idea forming, "you can share your Yin Release chakra with Naruto too."
In the original story, only Hashirama's cells were emphasized as having all kinds of miraculous effects.
It also stated that awakening the Rinnegan required an Indra reincarnation to graft the flesh or cells of an Asura reincarnation.
But what if it went the other way?
Kitazawa figured it was worth trying.
Who knew—maybe Naruto would awaken some strange mutated eye of his own.
"But…" Sasuke hesitated.
This kind of training felt weird.
"Don't waste time. We're starting now," Kitazawa said with a dry cough, his tone turning serious.
After teaching for an hour, he handed the rest of it to a shadow clone.
He had other things to handle.
Flying Thunder God!
Kitazawa instantly appeared beside Yūhi Kurenai.
He glanced around and realized they weren't in the Land of Snow palace—this was a tent.
"You came?" Kurenai asked, surprised.
"Of course I came to see you," Kitazawa said with a smile.
He'd also left a Flying Thunder God mark on Kurenai.
"How are things going here? When can you come back?" Kitazawa asked.
"Yukie Fujikaze introduced me to quite a few crews," Kurenai replied. "I want to pick a good one and have them shoot Konoha's first film."
Kitazawa nodded in approval.
"Probably another week," Kurenai said with a smile. "Just come pick me up next week."
"Alright," Kitazawa said, rubbing her head. "I'll be on time."
"Are you busy right now?" Kurenai asked, then teasingly brushed his finger with her tongue.
Kitazawa didn't answer with words—he simply scooped her up and carried her toward the bed.
After lunch, he finally left the Land of Snow.
But he didn't return to Konoha.
He went straight to the Akatsuki.
Konan, who had been sitting on the sofa, stood up the moment she saw him.
Since she knew Kitazawa could appear at any time, she stayed in the room whenever she had nothing to do—outside, Nagato might notice her.
"Have you eaten?" Kitazawa asked as he walked up to her and kissed the corner of her lips.
"No," Konan paused. "I'm not hungry."
"I made a bento. Want some?" Kitazawa casually took out a lunchbox.
"Mm." Konan nodded.
"I'll feed you. How about it?" Kitazawa asked with a smile, looking at her moist lips.
"Mm." Konan's expression remained cool and distant.
Even if she was secretly happy, she never showed it.
Kitazawa opened the bento.
He picked up a piece of fried shrimp with his chopsticks.
Konan leaned forward slightly, lips parting as she waited.
Kitazawa brought the shrimp to her mouth.
Konan opened her mouth, bit down, and slowly chewed.
"So how have things been with the Akatsuki lately?" Kitazawa asked as he continued feeding her.
"The Akatsuki have been recruiting," Konan answered.
Kitazawa thought for a moment and understood.
They'd always been short on people.
Kitazawa had even helped Konan recruit Chino's father, En Oyashiro—yet it still wasn't enough.
Especially since he'd captured Sasori.
Kitazawa guessed the Akatsuki's next moves would be twofold.
One: continue recruiting.
Two: have Nagato personally take action through the Six Paths of Pain.
In the original story, it was mentioned that several jinchūriki were captured by the Six Paths of Pain—like Han (Five-Tails) and Utakata (Six-Tails).
But no matter what, Konoha would be left for last.
One reason was the Gedo Statue's absorption order.
The other was that the Nine-Tails—and Konoha—were the hardest targets.
Kitazawa suddenly made a small sound of surprise.
Before Pain attacked Konoha… would Pain first attack Kumogakure?
After all, Kumogakure had protected both Yugito Nii and Killer B tightly.
If Nagato didn't act personally, it would be hard for the Akatsuki to capture those two.
What happened to Kumogakure didn't matter to Kitazawa.
What mattered more was his system missions—especially building the new Sannin of Konoha.
He was thinking about whether there was a chance for Sasuke to make a name for himself.
~~~
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