Naruto: Young Teacher
Chapter 34
Akari still felt as if everything around her was a dream. But when she looked at Karin, quietly studying fuinjutsu with full focus, a soft smile formed on her face.
Her daughter could finally sleep comfortably, eat properly, and smile without fear. That alone made everything worth it.
She picked up the advanced sealing scrolls Ren had left behind, along with notes containing his original ideas. Each concept was innovative and far beyond conventional fuinjutsu.
Ren's words echoed in her mind.
If there's something fuinjutsu can't do, it's only because no one has tried it.
Smiling faintly, Akari formed a single shadow clone and began studying.
Ren had strictly warned her not to create more than one clone until she fully recovered. She shook her head lightly and focused on the seals, though a faint blush lingered on her cheeks.
Back in Konoha, Ren stretched lazily as he walked toward Team 10's training ground.
Today, he was assigned to assist them on missions. Unlike Team 7, however, these were simple D-rank tasks.
After completing several missions, Ren headed toward the hospital.
Inside the library, Sakura was already there, deeply focused on reading books about the human body.
Ren didn't disturb her.
He quietly picked up a few books and sat nearby, immersing himself in reading.
Soon, Hinata arrived and joined them without a word.
Hours passed in silence.
Eventually, Sakura stretched, rubbing her temples.
"Memorizing all this is mentally exhausting," she complained.
Ren and Hinata chuckled softly.
The three of them sat together with notes in hand, discussing topics they didn't fully understand and helping each other improve.
Weeks passed in the same steady rhythm.
Akari gradually recovered, though the damage to her vitality hadn't completely healed. Even so, she was back to functioning normally.
Her chakra reserves were immense, and despite her lack of prior training, her talent in fuinjutsu surpassed even Karin's.
Ren estimated that within a month or two, she would be able to assist him with advanced sealing work.
Karin was also progressing rapidly, but compared to her mother, she still lagged behind.
Ren had copied all the medical books he had read, and both Akari and Karin studied them whenever they had free time.
Watching them, Ren couldn't help but sigh.
"Uzumaki really are built for fuinjutsu and medical ninjutsu," he muttered.
Their strong Yang energy, combined with massive chakra reserves, gave them unmatched potential.
Hinata, Ino, and Karin had grown extremely close—almost like sisters.
Naturally, Hinata and Ino took on the role of older sisters, pushing Karin through intense chakra control and nature transformation training until she exhausted her reserves.
After that came physical training.
Karin often complained that they were bullying her, but she never stopped training.
Akari joined them occasionally, though she was still restricted from physical exertion.
Every evening, the four of them visited the hot springs together.
Watching them, Ren smiled faintly.
"They really look like a family," he thought.
He was genuinely glad that they were happy.
Days passed, and soon Ren stood with Team 8 as Kurenai handed them their Chunin Exam forms.
"Well," she said with a smile, "you're all ready. Do you want to take the exam?"
Kiba immediately jumped in excitement.
"Of course we do!" he said. "We're going to pass and finally stop doing D-rank missions!"
Hinata quietly clenched her fists.
She could finally compete properly—especially with Ino.
Her eyes briefly drifted toward Ren.
Ren, meanwhile, looked at Kurenai.
"Sensei, which team will I be in?" he asked. "Or should I go solo?"
Kurenai smiled knowingly.
"You'll be going solo," she said. "You're already qualified to be a Chunin. This is just a formality."
She gave him a small wink.
Ren nodded in understanding.
It was clearly a political move. The Third Hokage wanted to use the joint Chunin Exams to showcase Konoha's strength.
Kurenai watched him with a faint smile.
He was sharp—quick to understand things without needing explanations.
Sometimes, she almost wished he was solely her student.
She quickly shook her head.
What am I even thinking? she scolded herself. I'm a jonin…
Just then, she noticed Hinata staring at her with narrowed eyes.
Kurenai's cheeks flushed slightly.
She quickly leaned toward Hinata and whispered,
"Hey, don't look at me like that. I'm not eyeing your crush."
Hinata's face turned bright red.
"S-stop! We're just friends!" she stammered.
Kurenai only gave her a knowing smile.
Hinata covered her face in embarrassment, peeking through her fingers toward Ren.
He was lost in thought, completely unaware of the conversation.
"Stupid Ren…" she muttered inwardly.