It had to be said that although much of what Gekko Chizan said was fabricated, everyone in the conference room believed it.
After all, his strength was right there for all to see, and more than one person had witnessed the senjutsu of Ryūchi Cave.
Especially on the Night of the Nine-Tails—when that enormous crimson snake appeared, it shocked many people.
"So there are that many powerful people..."
"I really want to fight them!"
"Chizan, this time I've caught up to you again. I've started learning senjutsu too, though this stuff is really difficult."
Namikaze Minato's fighting spirit had been stirred up again. For all these years, he had constantly compared himself to Gekko Chizan.
He never believed he was weaker than him.
"Yeah, yeah, you're amazing, you're incredible."
"You're the Hokage. I'm just a small soldier."
"Alright, you win."
"Anything else?"
"Right now I just want to eat a bowl of Ichiraku ramen and then go home and sleep."
"Oh, right. When I went to the Land of Water, I found a promising kid. He's also a Bloodline Limit user, named Haku."
"He'll be registered under my family."
Gekko Chizan often brought surprises.
A Bloodline Limit user? Going out once and coming back with talent like this?
Minato nodded. In his opinion, Gekko Chizan was extremely capable when it came to raising kids.
Otherwise, those two little brats in his house, plus his younger brother Gekko Hayate and Yamato—such a lineup of young people even made him, the Hokage, sigh in admiration.
Not to mention that Gekko Chizan was also a jōnin team leader and a sensei at the Ninja Academy.
All these titles kept increasing his value.
"Is his identity clean?"
"You know how chaotic the Land of Water is. If there's even the slightest problem with his background, we have to choose carefully."
At this moment, Mitokado Homura voiced his opinion.
He wasn't opposed to Gekko Chizan recruiting talent for the village.
But the background of those talents had to be very clean.
Originally, these matters were handled by Danzo, but now that Danzo had defected and disappeared, he and Utatane Koharu had begun taking over such responsibilities.
"Don't worry. You all know how Kirigakure treats Bloodline Limit users."
"You think the Bloody Mist Village reputation is just for show?"
"This kid's entire family is gone. Saving him was just a coincidence."
"And I even killed a few Kirigakure ninja because of it."
Gekko Chizan explained the situation very seriously.
Since Haku would become his disciple, he had to study under him.
This was truly a good seedling.
The power of Ice Release was quite impressive in certain aspects.
"Alright. I'll have the intelligence network keep an eye on things afterward."
"But Chizan, where do you think the Akatsuki organization will hide?"
Minato nodded.
Most matters were now clear, except for Akatsuki.
Akatsuki was the key.
Such an evil organization had to be eliminated as soon as possible.
If their location could be found, he wouldn't mind personally leading a team to wipe them out.
"Hard to say. But I don't think they'll continue staying in the Land of Water."
"After all, the current situation there isn't suitable for them to recuperate."
"If I had to choose, I might go to Iwagakure."
Gekko Chizan voiced his thoughts.
But when everyone heard Iwagakure, a hint of doubt appeared on their faces.
Going from the Land of Water all the way to Iwagakure—wasn't that a bit too big of a leap?
"Don't forget they possess a dōjutsu that can alter distance."
"If it's just used for traveling, even Minato and I can't compare to him in that regard."
Uchiha Makito's dōjutsu was extremely strange.
It could be used both in combat and for everyday purposes.
Even Gekko Chizan had no good countermeasures against it.
"Sigh. Their strength is undoubtedly formidable."
"Chizan, go get some rest."
"For the foreseeable future, you can take it easy."
"As for the intelligence work, I'll have the network handle it."
Gekko Chizan gave Minato a satisfied glance.
After all, he truly needed some time to rest.
But before leaving, he glanced at Sarutobi Hiruzen.
"Hey, old man, when did you buy another pipe? That one looks better than the previous one."
Hiruzen nearly spat smoke in his face after hearing that.
"Hmph. If it weren't for you, would I have needed to replace my pipe?"
"I'm too lazy to argue with you. Rest if you want, but report to the Academy in a few days."
"Sakumo has been nagging about you for a long time."
After all, he was the most suitable teacher in the Ninja Academy for teaching stealth techniques.
After all, he was the ninja in Konoha who was best at hiding.
There was no doubt about that.
"Yeah, yeah, I know, I know."
"Seriously, can't even rest for a bit."
"I'm off—going to eat noodles!"
...
The Gekko household.
"Pakura, come meet someone. Haku."
"Haku, this is your sensei's wife, and these are your older brothers."
During dinner, Gekko Chizan used the Flying Thunder God Technique to bring Haku to his home.
Looking at the unfamiliar people before him, Haku seemed nervous.
But with Gekko Chizan beside him, he quickly regained his composure.
"Chizan, every time you go out you come back with something, huh?"
"Tell me, Haku—what's special about you?"
Pakura understood her man's personality very well.
If he had brought Haku back, it meant the boy definitely possessed some unique talent.
"Hahaha, you really do understand me."
"Haku possesses the Ice Release Bloodline Limit."
"It happens to be the opposing attribute to yours."
Pakura's Scorch Release was, in essence, fire.
And Haku's Ice Release naturally countered it.
"Ice Release?"
"A pretty good Bloodline Limit."
...
Over the next few days, Gekko Chizan truly did rest.
At the same time, he also brought Haku around to familiarize him with the village.
Haku's age was perfect for entering the Ninja Academy.
But Gekko Chizan had no such plan.
Instead, he directly handed Haku over to Pakura for individual training.
"Why do you want me to train Haku alone?"
"At his age, going to school would be the best choice, right?"
Pakura was quite puzzled.
But Gekko Chizan had a different opinion.
"Haku's personality isn't suited for school."
"He's better suited to a life of independence."
"Later, I'll recommend him to the Anbu and have him become my subordinate directly."
"If he joins the Ninja Academy, he'll most likely end up running around everywhere for missions."
"For him, that would be a waste of his talent."
Gekko Chizan understood Haku's abilities very well.
He wasn't depriving Haku of a childhood.
In fact, to help him live a better life, he specifically arranged for Yamato and Gekko Hayate to accompany him.
But becoming a genius always comes with a price.
He couldn't allow an ordinary life to dull his sharp edges.
"Alright, I understand."
"My classes are usually in the morning anyway."
"If I have time in the afternoon, I'll train Haku."
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