Naruto: Young Teacher
Chapter 30
Ren and Team 7 successfully completed their mission as the bridge was finally finished. With Zabuza gone and Gato no longer a threat, peace had returned to the Land of Waves.
As they prepared to leave, Kakashi glanced at Ren thoughtfully.
"You're sure you had nothing to do with Gato suddenly going bankrupt?" Kakashi asked casually.
Ren looked genuinely offended by the accusation.
"Come on, Kakashi-sensei," Ren said. "I was with Sakura the whole time."
He gestured toward her.
"You can ask her. My shadow clone was helping her while I stayed on guard duty. You can even ask the bridge workers if you don't believe us."
Sakura nodded immediately.
"Yeah, sensei. Ren was with me the entire time," she confirmed. "He didn't go anywhere."
Kakashi studied their expressions carefully.
After a moment, he sighed in relief.
"Good," he said. "Gato had connections to powerful people. If this was connected to you, it could've caused problems."
He observed them one last time before relaxing.
Even if Ren can control his expression, Sakura definitely can't, Kakashi thought. She's telling the truth.
Ren, meanwhile, smirked internally.
You really think I'm that careless? he thought. Every last bit of Gato's money is safely stored in my wrist seal.
With that wealth secured, Ren no longer had to worry about resources like chakra ink or materials for fuinjutsu.
Maybe I should even create a seal printer, he thought idly.
The team began their journey back to Konoha, arriving after three days of travel.
The moment they reached the village gates, Ren immediately left Team 7 and headed straight home.
He jumped onto his bed with a satisfied sigh.
"I missed this," he muttered.
As soon as he relaxed, the seals placed around his house quietly activated.
Ren created several shadow clones, and they immediately got to work organizing the money taken from Gato.
Stacks of currency appeared as they carefully counted and sorted everything.
"Well… we're basically billionaires now," one clone muttered in disbelief.
Ren leaned back, thinking deeply.
"What if we recruit Karin and her mother?" he said.
The clones fell silent as they processed the idea.
"We can teach them fuinjutsu and train them properly," Ren continued. "With Karin's talent, she could easily reach S-rank."
His eyes sharpened slightly.
"She has the full potential of the Uzumaki bloodline."
After a moment of thought, the clones nodded and dispersed.
Ren then created a single shadow clone, pouring a large portion of his chakra into it.
"With that amount of chakra, you should be able to handle it," Ren said.
The clone smirked as its appearance shifted into that of a masked ninja.
"Leave it to me," the clone replied. "But where should I bring them?"
"Bring them here," Ren answered. "This house is completely secure with my seals. It's the best place to train them."
The clone nodded once before disappearing using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Ren stretched lazily before collapsing onto his bed.
Within moments, he fell into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, Team 7 stood inside the Hokage's office, reporting the details of their mission.
Hiruzen listened carefully as Kakashi explained everything.
"So after your battle with Zabuza, a masked ninja took him away… and you didn't encounter him again?" Hiruzen asked.
Kakashi nodded.
"Yes, Hokage-sama. Naruto and Sasuke were training. Sakura and Ren were guarding the bridge builders."
Hiruzen's gaze sharpened slightly.
"And you're certain Ren had nothing to do with Gato's situation?"
Kakashi answered without hesitation.
"Yes. I confirmed it myself. He was with Sakura the entire time, even while using a shadow clone to assist her training."
Hiruzen tapped his pipe lightly against the table.
"Very well," he said. "Team 7 may rest."
He then looked at Kakashi.
"Kakashi, stay. I have something to discuss with you."
The others left the room, leaving Kakashi alone with the Hokage.
"What are the chances that Ren was involved in Gato's downfall?" Hiruzen asked directly.
"None," Kakashi replied firmly. "I verified everything. Sakura's reaction alone was enough to confirm it."
Hiruzen studied him for a moment before nodding.
"You may go."
As soon as Kakashi left, Hiruzen activated his crystal ball.
The familiar image shimmered into view.
Inside it, Ren could be seen lying on his bed, fast asleep.
Hiruzen observed quietly.
"So… he really has no connection to Gato's incident," he murmured.
What Hiruzen didn't know was that Ren had already deactivated most of the surveillance-related seals in his house before falling asleep.
Only defensive and alarm seals remained active.
Even in his sleep, Ren stayed one step ahead.