Watching the Third Hokage stroll away, his originally short figure seemed to grow taller with every step.
Tendo-kun and Inuzuka Akita soon bid farewell to the still-dazed Mizuki and their overly enthusiastic classmates.
"Mizuki really is a good man. Every time I see him, I gain something," Tendo-kun lamented inwardly.
It seemed he would be dealing with Mizuki quite often in the future.
After leaving the Ninja Academy, it was still early. Neither Tendo-kun nor Inuzuka Akita mentioned returning to work. Instead, they casually chose a direction and began to walk.
Neither spoke along the way, but their relationship had long since passed the stage where silence felt awkward. They continued until they reached the Nakano River, where they found a patch of grass and sat down side by side.
"I've always heard people say that a man can grow up overnight," Inuzuka Akita said softly. Resting her hands on her knees, she leaned against Tendo-kun's shoulder. Turning her head, she studied his familiar face. It had only been one night. His features were exactly the same as always, yet she could feel that something momentous had happened to him.
Although the change was a good one, the fact that she hadn't been part of it left her with a faint sense of melancholy.
Tendo-kun tilted his head as well, gently leaning into Inuzuka Akita. The two had known each other for many years. In the beginning, Tendo-kun had admittedly harbored some ulterior motives—he had thought of using her. But after spending time together, he had come to understand that Inuzuka Akita was a genuinely good woman.
And a good woman, naturally, should never be let down.
Tendo-kun reached down and picked several small flowers blooming by the riverbank. Carefully, he wove them together into a simple wreath and placed it atop Inuzuka Akita's head. He gently tucked away her stray strands of hair, then leaned close and whispered into her ear.
"No matter how much I change, I will always be Class Leader Akita's most loyal subordinate."
[Latest Mission: Bring Inuzuka Akita into the Uchiha Clan.]
[Unlock Intimate Contact CG Reward: Water Attribute Chakra Increase.]
[Unlock Defeat CG Reward: Selectable Summoning Beast.]
'Skip.'
With no interest in whatever nonsense the System was muttering, Tendo-kun lowered his head and unlocked Inuzuka Akita's intimate CG.
——————————
March 26th.
The cherry blossoms were in full bloom.
Stepping across a carpet of fallen petals, Tendo-kun walked out of Inuzuka Akita's house and headed toward the Ninja Academy with a light step, ready to take up his new post.
Under the Third Hokage's personal order, all appointment procedures had been completed and delivered into his hands within a single afternoon.
[Multiple missions completed. Please claim mission rewards in time.]
At the System's reminder, Tendo-kun began reviewing the rewards from yesterday. The first was the Byakugan.
[Claim: Byakugan.]
As expected of something originating from the Ōtsutsuki bloodline, the sensation of receiving the Byakugan was similar to that of obtaining the Sharingan. Two streams of heat surged into his eyes and flowed throughout his body.
When the heat finally dissipated, Tendo-kun walked to the water's edge to examine his reflection. The cataract-like white eyes he had feared did not appear. His eyes looked exactly as they always had. If there was any difference, it was subtle—a sense of purity when examined closely, like polished agate stones.
More importantly, the Hyuga Clan bloodline brought by the Byakugan actively merged with his Uchiha bloodline in Tendo-kun's perception. His intuition told him that if he activated the Sharingan now, it would simultaneously grant the effects of both the Sharingan and the Byakugan.
His physical fitness had also improved significantly. Both his strength and speed had increased. If his previous chakra reserves could be measured as 0.5 Kakashis, they had now risen to roughly 0.8 Kakashis.
One shouldn't underestimate one Kakashi's worth of chakra just because of how things appeared in the original series. Kakashi's stamina issues stemmed largely from his permanently active Sharingan, which continuously drained his energy.
Tendo-kun, on the other hand, possessed his Sharingan as original equipment.
[Claim: Water Attribute Chakra Increase.]
Tendo-kun had previously tested his chakra nature. His innate attribute was Lightning alone.
As the reward was confirmed, a warm current slowly spread throughout his body. He refined a small amount of chakra to test it and felt a new sense of vitality layered atop the sharp, aggressive Lightning attribute.
And since the reward explicitly mentioned a chakra increase, his physical fitness improved yet again. His current chakra reserves were now close to one Kakashi.
After eighteen years of anxiety, Tendo-kun finally allowed himself to breathe a small sigh of relief. Possessing one Kakashi's worth of strength meant that he finally had enough capital to survive steadily in the Ninja World.
At his current level, Tendo-kun could firmly stand among Special Jonin, though his skill tree remained relatively simple, focusing mainly on taijutsu.
There was no helping it. Although his Lightning attribute gave him an advantage in terms of raw power and style, his original chakra pool had been too small. He had expended immense effort just to learn a single Lightning Release technique: Lightning Ball.
Before the System awakened, Tendo-kun had planned to live a low-profile life. He intended to stay hidden in the research department, focusing on technology and waiting for the Ninja World's "version update" during Boruto: Naruto Next Generations to unlock the cyborg technology tree. With a first-mover advantage, he could then overtake everyone else.
Now that the System had awakened, none of that mattered anymore.
Just complete missions and stack stats.
Mechanics? What mechanics?
Go argue with my System about it.
[Claim: Selectable Summoning Beast Reward.]
With another confirmation of intent, the reward from Inuzuka Akita's defeat CG was finally issued.
Unlike the previous direct power boosts, the selectable summoning beast arrived in the form of a mental contract.
The summoning range was limited strictly to the Naruto world, instantly blocking several clever loopholes Tendo-kun had been eager to try.
Still, he tested it anyway.
First, he attempted to contract the Gedo Statue.
Out of range.
Next, he tried the nine Tailed Beasts.
Also invalid.
"Stupid System," Tendo-kun cursed inwardly. "Useless in every other way, but when it comes to restrictions, it suddenly becomes precise."
With all tricks blocked, he had no choice but to choose honestly.
When it came to the most iconic summoning beasts in the Ninja World, only three stood above the rest—the Sannin's legacies: Toads, Slugs, and Snakes.
Hanzō's Salamander was powerful, but Tendo-kun had no desire to wear a gas mask all day. The coolness factor was simply too low.
As for minor summonings like Enma, they were impressive but unremarkable. He skipped them without hesitation.
The Sannin's summoning beasts were different. Not only were they powerful with immense growth potential, but they also had Immortals behind them. With enough familiarity, one could even pursue Sage Mode.
In the end, Tendo-kun was faced with a genuine three-way choice.
Rather than rushing the decision, he chose to think carefully.
By the time he arrived at the Ninja Academy, he headed straight to the principal's office to report to the assistant and complete his onboarding procedures.
The assistant was an older sister from the Sarutobi Clan. Although the Third Hokage concurrently served as the Academy's principal, his duties as Hokage prevented him from handling day-to-day affairs.
As a result, most administrative matters were managed by this Sarutobi woman. Her attitude was friendly—perhaps too friendly. She even hinted at having some "deeper exchanges" with Tendo-kun after school.
Unfortunately, no System mission was triggered, and she wasn't Tendo-kun's type. He politely declined.
As a combat instructor with only two classes per week, Tendo-kun technically didn't need to remain in the office. He only had to show up according to schedule. However, on his first day, he chose to stay.
The main reason was simple.
Mizuki was also there.
Tendo-kun found great amusement in watching Mizuki tremble the moment he entered the room. The man looked nothing like someone trying to avoid research department work by slacking off at the Academy.
"Hee hee hee."
Tendo-kun gave Mizuki a mysterious smile. Watching him shrink back in fear significantly improved his mood.
Soon, it was time for class.
Tendo-kun stood up and headed toward the training grounds.
Yesterday had been the final day Neji's class attended the Academy, so today's combat class belonged to Iruka's students.
When Tendo-kun arrived, Iruka was already waiting with the class assembled.
"Tendo-kun," Iruka said with a smile, "I'll leave these students to you."