Hours later, in one of the compound's hallways, Mito mentioned the topic casually while Tsunade studied, lying on the floor among scrolls.
—Nawaki starts at the Academy today.
Tsunade blinked.
—What do you mean, starts?
—Today. He says he wants to graduate quickly.
The girl sat up abruptly.
—Today? He's five years old!
She was twelve. She was in her final year before graduating as a genin, and yet she remembered perfectly how useless her first year had been. Poorly made seals, boring theory, repetitive practice.
—He won't last a week —she murmured, incredulous.
—Everyone progresses at their own pace —Mito replied calmly.
Tsunade snorted.
—Hmph.
That night, Noah ate dinner in silence and then locked himself in his room. He closed the door and stood for a moment looking at the floor before settling in.
"Let's try it again," he murmured, as he adopted the meditation posture. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his mental space, where his spiritual sea vibrated with contained force.
Twenty-four runes glowed within, organized into two runic rings.
To advance to the first level of apprentice mage, it was enough to reach double the spiritual strength of a normal person and form a ring of ten runes. But to advance to the second level, he needed something more demanding: a second ring of fourteen runes above the first, and quadruple the average spiritual strength of an adult. He had already surpassed that threshold. Only completing the second ring remained.
Five minutes later, the runes closed in a blinding flash. The sound was like the clash of two metallic spheres resonating, and a wave of condensed spiritual force coursed through his body, vibrating to his fingertips.
—Whew… finally… —he murmured—. Now I'm a second-rank Magus apprentice… although, of course, I still don't have any spells I can use. Though I guess that problem will solve itself in my future travels.
Noah opened his eyes, letting the moonlight stream in through the window.
The next day, he attended the ninja academy for the first time.
The first day at the academy was… exactly what Noah expected.
Classrooms full of restless children, a tired instructor repeating basic rules, and an endless introduction about how "honorable" it was to serve the village.
Upon leaving, Tsunade was waiting for him.
—Well? —she asked as they walked back together—. How was your big first day as a ninja?
Noah shrugged.
—Normal. We learned to sit up straight and not interrupt the instructor.
Tsunade snorted.
—Told you.
And the matter died there. For a first day, there was nothing more to tell.
During the following month, the initial impression didn't change. The academy progressed slowly, too slowly. Basic theory, summarized history, physical exercises designed for children who barely knew how to control their bodies. Useful for the majority, but irrelevant for him.
So he stopped going.
Or, more accurately, he stopped going in person.
One morning, in his room at the Senju residence, Noah carefully wove hand signs.
—Shadow Clone.
The figure formed in front of him, identical in appearance, but made entirely of chakra.
The clone went to the academy in his place. It listened to the classes, performed the exercises, and did everything Noah was supposed to do. When it dispersed, the memories would return to Noah without any loss.
Meanwhile, the real Noah disappeared underground.
His hideout was no longer just an escape tunnel. He had expanded the space with Mokuton, creating a stable underground chamber. There, he trained without interruptions.
Noah emerged from the hidden tunnel under the rug in his room as usual.
He dusted off his sleeve a bit and lay back on his bed calmly.
He wasn't too worried about his hideout being discovered.
He knew what his grandmother was capable of.
Mito had known about the existence of that tunnel almost from the first day Noah started sending a shadow clone to the academy while he himself disappeared underground.
With the Kagura's Mind's Eye —the sensory ability of the Uzumaki clan— she perceived two identical chakra signatures entering and leaving Noah's room. The first went to class.
The other slipped under the floor and moved away to some unknown place.
When she questioned him about it, Noah didn't try to lie.
He extended his hand, and wood sprouted from his palm.
—That's… Mokuton!
Mito's eyes moistened before she could help it. For an instant, her grandson's image overlapped with that of her late husband, Hashirama.
Noah withdrew the wood gently.
—I'm training underground to learn how to control it.
Then he added, with a firm tone:
—I don't want anyone to know. Not yet. I want to keep it as a card for the future.
Mito looked at him for a long while.
Then she nodded.
—Alright.
She didn't try to convince him otherwise. She understood better than anyone the weight of that power.
She approached and stroked his head with a warm hand.
—If you have awakened the same power as your grandfather… then you must also learn from his legacy.
She led him to the basement of the house.
There, at the end of a narrow hallway, was a wooden door covered in sealing scrolls.
Mito performed a sequence of hand signs.
Slow and precise.
—Memorize them.
Noah didn't look away. He etched every movement into his mind.
When she placed both hands on the door, the scrolls began to peel off one by one, floating in the air.
The wood creaked, and the door opened.
Behind it, there was a dark room filled with shelves reaching the ceiling.
The air smelled of old wood and dry ink.
—This is the secret library of the Senju clan —Mito said—. From today on, you have access to this place. If you're going to use Mokuton… do it properly.
She paused before continuing with a smile.
—And don't reveal it to Tsunade. She'd become insufferable.
Noah smiled and nodded.
With a slight movement of her fingers, Mito concentrated chakra at her fingertips and touched the wicks of the candles hanging from the shelves, lighting them.
The underground library was gradually revealed, and the flickering light cast long shadows that seemed to move through the aisles.
—From today, this place is yours —she said serenely.
Noah nodded seriously as he observed the place.
Mito watched him for a moment longer, with a slight smile, and then withdrew. Her footsteps faded down the hallway until the sound disappeared completely.
This library didn't only contain the records of her grandfather Hashirama Senju's wood release.
Also present were the scrolls recording his grandmother Mito's knowledge of Fuinjutsu.
Tobirama's water jutsus and experimental techniques.
And the earth jutsus accumulated over generations of the Senju clan.
Noah let his gaze wander over the shelves.
—Where should I start…?
He ran his fingers over several volumes before deciding. He pulled out three thick scrolls dedicated to earth release. He held them for a second, then stored them in his 4D pocket.
Then he turned around, blew out the candles, and left the library.
The door sealed itself behind him, scroll by scroll.
He decided to advance layer by layer, focusing first on his control over his three elemental affinities.
First earth, then water, and when he mastered both, he would begin to improve his wood release.
For the rest of the school year, his routine became constant.
A shadow clone attended the academy while the original body descended into the underground hideout.
There, underground, the ground cracked and recomposed under his control.
Mud learned to harden into rock.
Water began to flow in disciplined currents.
Day after day, Noah kept progressing.
But he didn't just focus on mastering jutsus.
He exercised his body to the limit his age allowed and refined his chakra control with almost obsessive precision.
Every now and then, he trained in hand-to-hand combat against the Copy Robot until he collapsed from exhaustion.
When the shadow clone returned at the end of the day and dispersed, Noah received all the information learned by it.
And so, while the war shook the world on the surface, Noah spent his days hidden underground.
The months passed without anything out of the ordinary… until finally, the day of the academy graduation exam arrived.