Hyuga Arin raised his hand, and a small tornado formed in his palm. As a trace of blue-black flame appeared, the tiny tornado instantly transformed into a flaming vortex.
He clenched his hand, dispersing it completely.
"Yang Release, Water Release, and Lightning Release can all be obtained from drops, so there's no need to spend experience on them. That means the only one left to upgrade and fuse is Earth Release."
Once all seven releases were fused—
It would be time to obtain Tailed Beast power.
And by then—
He might not stay in Konoha anymore.
After all, if he made a move on the Tailed Beasts, Konoha might not tolerate him—unless Nawaki became Hokage.
"Speaking of which… Kushina hasn't been kidnapped yet. Did my butterfly effect prevent it?"
Arin stroked his chin.
Whether it happened or not didn't really matter.
At most, it would've been a few tens of thousands of experience.
Now he was dealing in millions—
That amount was negligible.
"But in the original story, Kushina became a jinchūriki after that kidnapping incident…"
Still—
Now wasn't the right time to act.
To obtain Tailed Beast chakra, he had to kill the Tailed Beast.
At his current strength—
Holding his own against the Nine-Tails would already be impressive.
Killing it?
That would be difficult.
Not to mention—
Konoha's current strength wasn't weak.
The Sannin had matured, the White Fang was still around, and both Hiruzen and Danzo hadn't declined yet.
That wasn't something he could deal with right now.
By the time Arin left Root, it was already night.
He stepped out from an alley and looked at the brightly lit streets, where drunken civilians staggered past.
Only the ninja remained sober.
After all—
Alcohol was one of the three major prohibitions for ninja.
Most didn't drink.
"Great booze!!"
Tsunade staggered down the street, her flushed face making it clear she was drunk.
Arin's forehead twitched.
Alcohol, gambling, and… well—
She really was a disaster of the shinobi world.
He turned to leave.
He had no intention of dealing with a drunk.
Ninja reputation was already bad enough.
But suddenly—
A soft arm hooked around his neck.
The strong smell of alcohol hit him instantly.
"Hey… you look familiar… ah, it's you, brat… hic."
Tsunade let out a burp.
Arin turned his head, speechless.
"Lady Tsunade, even drunk, you still want to cause me trouble?"
Their relationship was… complicated.
She had always had some issue with him.
"Brat…"
Tsunade leaned closer and sniffed him, then looked up with disgust.
"You stink of blood."
"That smell doesn't exist!!!"
He didn't smell anything like that.
At most—
Maybe sewer odor from Root's VIP passage.
"Blegh—"
She suddenly threw up.
Luckily, Arin dodged in time.
Otherwise—
That would've landed on him.
Looking at the completely drunk Tsunade, Arin sighed.
He had already tried to ignore her—
But she insisted on getting involved.
So he had no choice but to support her and walk toward her house.
Fine.
He'd give her a lesson she wouldn't forget.
…
Tsunade woke up with a splitting headache.
"How much did I drink last night…"
She only remembered drinking nonstop, then stumbling home.
And then—
She seemed to have seen Hyuga Arin.
That brat.
Suddenly—
She lowered her head.
Her gaze froze.
The room fell silent—
Except for Arin's faint breathing beside the bed.
Then—
A gust of wind.
Arin's eyes snapped open.
His figure vanished instantly.
"BOOM!!"
The bed shattered into pieces.
Arin, fully dressed and unharmed, now sat by the window. He casually opened it and waved.
"Now that you're awake, Lady Tsunade, no need to be so violent."
Tsunade took a deep breath.
Her face was flushed red—whether from alcohol or something else.
"What happened last night?" she demanded angrily.
Arin yawned, then gave her a teasing smile.
"Last night was quite unforgettable, Lady Tsunade."
In reality—
Nothing had happened.
He had dropped her off and gone home.
Then came back in the morning.
"Bastard!!"
Tsunade roared, instantly appearing in front of him and throwing a punch.
Arin raised his hand.
Bang!
He blocked it head-on.
"Lady Tsunade, being this violent… no one's ever going to marry you," Arin said with a grin.
He leaned backward and fell out the window.
By the time Tsunade looked out—
He was already gone.
"HYUGA ARIN!!! I WON'T LET YOU OFF!!!"
Tsunade's furious shout echoed.
On the way home, Arin clicked his tongue.
Let's see if she dares to stop him next time she's drunk.
When he got home—
Machi was already seated on her "throne," the sofa.
She looked at him curiously.
"You're back already? Finished so quickly?"
"There wasn't much to do," Arin said, yawning as he headed for bed.
He had made plenty of money during the war.
Even doing nothing—
He wouldn't run out anytime soon.
"Whatever." Machi muttered, returning to her TV.
Arin glanced at Hyuga Natsuna, who was cleaning nearby.
Did the Hyuga clan really not care about this girl at all?
It had been so long—
And no one had come looking for her.
It was as if she didn't exist.
And after staying here this long—
Even someone slow would've noticed something.
Yet the Hyuga clan showed no reaction at all.
He quickly dismissed the thought.
For now—
Neither side could act.
Just like he couldn't openly move against the Hyuga—
They didn't dare move against him either.
Both sides were restrained by Konoha.
A fragile balance.
But once that balance broke—
Everything would change.
…
After lying around at home for three days—
Someone finally came.
"Nawaki."
Arin greeted the boy at the door.
"Come in. Finished your mission?"
Their team had already been split up.
Nawaki and Aburame Mushihime simply couldn't keep up with Arin's growth anymore.
They had to separate.
Arin's missions were too dangerous.
And ordinary missions—
Hiruzen didn't dare assign them to him.
Afraid they'd turn dangerous.
Just like that Daimyō mission—
Hiruzen was still suspicious, but had found no evidence.
Nawaki stood there, looking conflicted.
"What's wrong?" Arin asked.
He had never seen this expression on Nawaki before.
After hesitating, Nawaki finally spoke with a hint of melancholy—
"Brother-in-law."
"…Huh?!!!"
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