Chapter 138: My House is Huge, Let's All Live Together
Akiyama Makoto calmly jumped down. "Lord Hokage," he said. "What brings you here?"
"I'm old. Just taking a stroll. I saw you writing and came over to take a look out of curiosity."
"Then would you like to come in and sit for a while, Lord Hokage?"
He was just being polite, but to his surprise, Hiruzen Sarutobi actually nodded and followed him in.
As it turned out, he himself wasn't familiar with the layout of his new house. He fumbled around for a while before finally managing to serve the Hokage a cup of tea. Throughout this, Hiruzen showed no impatience, instead curiously examining the house.
"Please have some tea, Lord Hokage."
"You're too kind, Makoto. I can't believe you've achieved so much in just over half a year."
Hiruzen sighed. "Your writing goes without saying. Just now, I saw your steady steps on the wall. It seems your chakra control has also reached a decent level."
"On top of that, you've become friends with Sasuke, Naruto, and many of the girls, and you've even learned quite a few ninjutsu."
"I heard from Guy that you also designed a ninja tool, run a barbecue restaurant, have earned a lot of money, and have now even finished building a new house."
"Makoto, you are a genius the likes of which I have never seen in all my years. I am old now, and I envy your youthful vitality. Can you tell me how you did it?"
Although Hiruzen was smiling, he knew that this was undoubtedly a probe. It was clear that his many achievements had already aroused his suspicion, and Danzō was probably behind it as well.
This was the result even after he had deliberately hidden his strength. If he were to display his Wood Style and Flying Thunder God Technique now, he wondered what kind of expression Hiruzen would have.
In fact, he felt that if he were to show his full strength now, Hiruzen would probably start to cultivate him as his direct successor, using what little time he had left to push his position as high as possible.
Unfortunately, he had no intention of accepting his help. If Hiruzen had recognized his talent back when he was just starting to write, then he naturally would not have been able to refuse his support. But now, he knew that Hiruzen could not sever the bond between him and Danzō.
So, he would just have to rely on himself. What if, at the last moment, Hiruzen's heart softened and he asked him to spare Danzō? Wouldn't he become a thankless villain?
"Lord Hokage is in his prime. You will surely live to be a hundred."
He offered a compliment that was calm on the surface but playful in his heart. "As for the few achievements I've made, they are nothing compared to the geniuses who became Jōnin at my age."
"I have simply used the time that esteemed ninja spend on training every day to do some miscellaneous things."
Hiruzen shook his head slightly and said with a smile, "But you clearly train very hard as well—never mind. I came to ask you what your plans are for your writing."
He straightened up slightly. Could this be Hiruzen's true purpose?
"I wonder what your instructions are, Lord Hokage?"
"It's simple. Aren't you interested in the First Hokage's Will of Fire? Then just write the Biography of the First Hokage. I will personally supervise you."
Hearing this, a look of joyful surprise appeared on his face. "Then I am most grateful, Lord Hokage."
"It's good that you can accept this suggestion. You may not know, but Konoha has entered another period of turmoil recently."
"Someone is spreading rumors that there is too much darkness in our village. But which village's continuation can be a smooth journey?"
"It's time for everyone to recall the difficult journey of the First Hokage when he founded Konoha. I believe your new book can be the key to boosting the village's morale."
After speaking, Hiruzen stood up and left his house.
Watching his retreating back, Makoto's smile slowly faded. He knew that his performance this time had been flawless, but old-school ninja from the Warring States era like Hiruzen and Danzō didn't need any evidence to be suspicious.
But so what? He had already established himself. He was no longer someone they could suppress.
He then closed the door, returned to his room, and began to set up various sealing jutsu and curse marks to block any potential sneak attacks or sensory observations.
By the time he had finished, there was another knock at the door.
He opened it and was surprised to find a crowd of familiar faces standing outside. Not just the girls, but even Guy and his team had come. It was clear they were here to celebrate his new home.
He naturally wouldn't refuse them. In fact, he had already ordered food from various restaurants, and it wouldn't be long before all the food and drinks were delivered.
The group partied in his house until midnight before leaving one by one. Just as he was about to start cleaning up by himself, Anko returned.
"Yo! I'm back to help you clean up. Aren't you moved?"
"Is it really just to clean up?" he asked, looking at her playfully.
Anko blushed and shot him a glare. But in the end, she shook her head. "I can't pay my utility bills recently. Can I find a room in your house to stay in for a while? I can pay you rent after I finish my next mission."
"Your house is quite big—"
He sighed. "Akiyama Anko, don't be so dramatic. From now on, this is your home. You can come and go as you please."
"However, you need my permission before entering my room."
Before he could finish, Anko had already pounced on him, hanging on him and laughing happily like a young girl in bloom. Her cheeks were red. Because of his single phrase, "Akiyama Anko," she was already dizzy and in desperate need of his deep, healing medical ninjutsu.
He looked at the time. It was about time for bed. He was just about to carry her to his especially large bathroom for a "Mandarin duck bath" when more girls returned.
Tenten, Ino, Sakura, and Hinata stood at the door, dumbfounded, as they watched him and Anko embrace. For a moment, they thought they were hallucinating.
Anko's face instantly turned pale, and her blood ran cold. Although he had accepted her, she knew that what she had done might not be accepted by others. She had originally planned to let this memory fade over a few years, but now it seemed she had to make an even greater sacrifice to protect his reputation.
Just as she was about to go into a drunken rage and pretend to molest him to give the other girls a chance to be the hero, he spoke first.
"You're just in time! Big Sister Anko wants to adopt me and make me take the Mitarashi name. Do you agree?"
The girls exploded in an instant, rushing over and grabbing Anko, carrying her straight out of the front gate.
It wasn't until she saw the gate slam shut that Anko realized he had just saved her. She felt both angry and amused, and at the same time, she thought to herself that her "little brother" was truly worthy of his ambition to build a grand family. It seemed he really did have the strength for it. She just didn't know how he would handle four little girls at once.
However, what she couldn't have imagined was that he didn't need to "handle" them at all.
The four girls nervously surrounded him, educating him on the dangers of "bad women" and telling him to stay away from those older sisters who might have ill intentions. As for being angry or jealous at seeing him embrace Anko, that thought had long been thrown out of their minds.
And then, his next words made everyone present blush.
"To make it more convenient for us to train together in the future, I have reserved a room for each of you. There is only one key for each room. You can leave a change of clothes in there."
"I also built a large bathhouse, modeled after the Kazematsuri Bathhouse. It's just that because the land is limited, it's not separated by gender. But that's okay. When you're using it, I'll just use the shower in my room."
He then gave the keys to the girls. Besides the keys to their respective rooms, there was also a key to his front door.
"My house is very big, but unfortunately, I'm all alone. It's inevitably lonely living in such an empty house."
"So, if you want to come, please just come. You can treat this place as a free hotel or even a bathhouse. You are 100% welcome."
Seeing the girls standing there, motionless, he showed a regretful expression. "You don't like it?"
"Then I'll just—"
He pretended to take the keys back, but the four girls' actions were surprisingly synchronized. They quickly hid the keys on their persons, resolutely refusing to give him a chance to take them back.
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