In Konoha's Hokage Office, the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had a pipe in his mouth and was reviewing official documents on his desk. Without looking up, he listened to the report from the Ninja Academy teacher. Then, upon hearing some news, he suddenly looked up, slightly shocked, and asked:
"This year's top student isn't that kid from the Hyuga clan? Who is it, then?"
"It's Ren, the son of Tatsuo, the ninja shop owner," the Chunin teacher reported truthfully.
"Oh?" A hint of curiosity appeared in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes. He couldn't imagine how a child from a commoner family could defeat the genius boy from the Hyuga clan. "Give me this young man's actual combat data," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, raising his brows and speaking in a deep voice.
"Yes, Hokage-sama!" The Chunin teacher immediately handed over the materials he had already organized.
After the Chunin teacher left, Hiruzen Sarutobi flipped through the report on the table. He then frowned slightly, his expression looking a little grim.
Knock! Knock!
There was a knock on the office door. Might Guy walked into Hiruzen Sarutobi's office. "Lord Hokage, are you looking for me?" Might Guy asked.
"Oh, it's Might Guy. I was looking for you about something," the Third Hokage smiled kindly. "You don't know yet, that child, Ren, has become the top student of this class."
"Huh? Really? Not bad! That's excellent news!" Might Guy laughed.
"He used your technique, Konoha Whirlwind, in the actual combat assessment. What's going on?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked.
"Reporting, Hokage-sama, this child, Ren, has great talent in taijutsu and works very hard. I always wanted to accept him as a disciple, so I taught him my taijutsu," Might Guy explained.
"So that's it." The Third Hokage nodded. He didn't care much about that. What he wanted to bring up next was what he truly cared about.
"How much do you know about the kunai that Ren created, which has the ability to release the Three Body Arts?" The Third Hokage's expression became serious. The moment he saw the report earlier, he immediately thought of this matter. If the ninja tools created by this child named Ren could be mass-produced and supplied to Konoha's ninja, it would be a qualitative improvement to the overall combat effectiveness of Konoha Village!
But Might Guy's next answer disappointed Hiruzen Sarutobi. He saw him shaking his head and saying: "Sorry, he cannot."
"In the beginning, when I learned that Ren had such a talent, I also considered this question, so I asked him in detail. It takes him a week to create one Three Body Kunai, and if he creates a long sword with certain functions, it would take a whole month."
(Of course, Ren had lied to Might Guy about this forging time. Ren had long anticipated that someone would have an idea about his ninja gear, so he didn't tell the truth at first. Before his own wings could grow, he had to hide himself and not let himself become a pawn in anyone's ambitions.)
"The forging time is very long..."
Indeed, after hearing Might Guy's words, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes dimmed. But he still seemed a little unwilling to give up and proposed another possibility: "Ren's age is still young; if he grows up, perhaps the speed of forging will increase..."
"Lord Hokage!" Might Guy interrupted him, shaking his head again. "If it's just the forging time, it's not enough to dismiss your previous thoughts, but the ninja tools created by Ren have another unique feature."
"What's unique?"
"That is, other than the kunai, the other weapons he created, only he can use. If they fall into the hands of others, they become like scrap metal. I have personally confirmed this," Might Guy said seriously. When he saw Ren take out the Grass Pheasant Sword, he was curious and wanted to take it and try its power. But after the sword fell into his hands, not only was there no light, but its effectiveness was not even as good as a normal long sword, let alone capable of releasing any ninjutsu.
"Is that so..." A long sigh. There was obvious disappointment in Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes. Others might lie to him, but with Might Guy's character, he would never lie to him. He had immense trust in Might Guy.
"Okay, I understand. You can continue to pay attention to the child named Ren. I will transfer him into your class after he graduates." After Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression returned to normal, he said slowly, "If you have nothing else to do, you may go."
"Lord Hokage, I have one more thing," Might Guy said suddenly.
"What is it?"
"I know that you have previously issued a notice that early graduation is not permitted. But you have also seen Ren's strength; it has definitely surpassed that of a Genin. I think it's a pity for his talent to be left in the Ninja Academy..." Might Guy raised his head and said firmly, "So I ask for your permission, Hokage-sama. I'd like to take Ren out of the village to train. We will definitely return before he graduates from the Ninja Academy course."
"Training? It seems you truly favor that child..." Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled and said, "I can approve this matter, but not now."
"Not now?" Might Guy asked.
"I still need your help here in Konoha Village. During this time, the village is not very safe. The conflict between a certain family and the village is becoming more and more serious, and there may be conflicts at any time. So I have to keep all the elite Jōnin in the village in case of emergency." Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and said in a deep voice, "I hope you can understand me. It would be best if this matter could be resolved peacefully, but before that, I also have to plan for the worst in advance."
The Uchiha clan... Might Guy nodded slightly. It was no wonder that he and Kakashi, both elite Jōnin, hadn't received any missions that required them to leave the village. It turned out that Hokage-sama wanted to keep them in the village and preserve their fighting power. He secretly thought to himself, he really didn't expect that the conflict between the Uchiha clan and the village was already so severe. Although Might Guy had a straightforward personality, he wasn't stupid. He was also aware of the disputes between various forces in the village. It was just that he was usually obsessed with taijutsu training and was too lazy to participate in these matters.
"I understand, Hokage-sama. I will wait for your order in Konoha."