Since their bodies would probably be sore tomorrow, Haruki generously gave them the morning off.
Before leaving, Minato was still curious about his future teammates.
The Hyuga clan was one of the strongest in Konoha, and their Byakugan was just as famous as the Uchiha's Sharingan. So naturally, the clan leader's son, Hyuga Hiashi, wasn't going to be weak.
Haruki didn't bother explaining much because it simply wasn't possible.
The next day, Haruki headed to Orochimaru's research lab. Compared to the dark caves and underground hideouts he used before, the lab inside the Ninja Academy felt more like something built for actual people.
Even Orochimaru himself looked a little less creepy in this setting.
"Where are the people I asked for?" Orochimaru got straight to the point.
With the number of projects piling up, even he was starting to feel overwhelmed.
Not that he'd ever admit it.
Still, a lot of these tasks were dull and felt like a waste of time, at least from his perspective. If he had enough manpower, he could just dump the boring work onto others and focus on what truly interested him.
"They'll be here within a week," Haruki assured him.
If all the ninjas from the Oshima Chamber of Commerce showed up in the village at once, Danzo did definitely catch on that something was off.
A week was already pushing it.
After getting the answer he wanted, Orochimaru's voice turned cold again. "Then why are you still here?"
After three years of working together, he knew Haruki was all talk when it came to research. He had no real skill in running experiments.
"It's about the Caged Bird Seal. I saw you remove it from Hyuga Makoto. Have you made any new progress?" Haruki asked, looking thoughtful.
"I've been studying the Uzumaki clan's sealing techniques recently. It won't take long before I fully understand the mechanics behind the Caged Bird Seal," Orochimaru replied in his usual detached tone.
Among the three Sannin, he was undeniably the most gifted, and when it came to fuinjutsu, he didn't find it particularly challenging.
As for why Konoha had access to Uzumaki sealing techniques, that was no mystery.
After the Uzumaki clan's downfall, most of the survivors ended up in the Leaf Village. Especially since Hashirama Senju's wife, Mito Uzumaki, the very first Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tails, who was still alive.
Even Hiruzen's Reaper Death Seal came from the Uzumaki clan.
And since Orochimaru was his student, he naturally had the right to study it.
Technically, if Haruki put in a formal request or got Tsunade to pull some strings, he could learn it too.
But his ninjutsu talent was… average.
Mastering fuinjutsu would take way too long.
It was far more efficient to rely on the favorability system.
Besides, he didn't need sealing techniques right now. It made more sense to wait for the system to hand him a reward instead.
As for how the Caged Bird Seal and sealing techniques were connected, the Caged Bird Seal was essentially a type of fuinjutsu, and the Uzumaki clan's sealing arts were the best in the world.
There was definitely something to learn from them. In short, Orochimaru was delivering exactly what Haruki expected.
"You're planning to use the Caged Bird Seal to make the Hyuga branch family side with you?" Orochimaru scoffed. "I'd advise against being so naive. It would be far easier to use the seal to control them directly. It's not difficult for either of us."
Orochimaru always felt that Haruki was too soft. If he wanted results, there was no need for kindness unless it served a purpose.
"In the short term, it'd be effective," Haruki admitted with a nod. "But I don't want slaves. The Caged Bird Seal protects them, but it also shackles them."
"Compared to the Uchiha, who keep producing top-tier ninjas, the Hyuga clan is like an old man on his deathbed. The main family is afraid of dying, and the branch family is stuck in place. How can you expect any true strength to emerge?"
Orochimaru didn't respond.
He had no interest in understanding Haruki's ideals, nor did he care.
He only brought it up because he was concerned it might interfere with his research.
The Hyuga clan was one of Leaf Village's major clans. If Hiruzen or Danzo caught wind of something suspicious, they'd undoubtedly step in.
If Orochimaru had thought of this, Haruki had naturally considered it too.
But according to his plan, he wouldn't have to make a move himself. Everything depended on whether Hiashi would disappoint him or not.
"I'll need you to put on a little show for me later," Haruki said casually.
Haruki immediately caught the look on his face.
After all, he was one of the few people who truly understood Orochimaru's personality.
Grinning, he reassured him, "Don't worry, it won't take up much of your time."
Orochimaru shot him a doubtful glance. "I hope so."
"Alright, I'm heading out. Keep up the good work, Orochimaru."
With a casual wave, Haruki disappeared from the lab.
Orochimaru licked the corner of his mouth, then turned back to his research, already putting the conversation out of his mind.
Just as Haruki stepped out of the research institute, an Anbu in an animal mask suddenly appeared in front of him.
"Haruki-sama, the Hokage has summoned all jonin for a meeting. Please report to the Hokage Building."
"I got it," Haruki nodded before using the Body Flicker Technique to arrive at the Hokage's office.
By the time he got there, many jonin had already gathered, including his girlfriend.
Feeling a bit curious, he leaned over. "Tsuna, do you know what this is about?"
He reached out to hold her hand, only for Tsunade to glare at him.
"Be serious in front of Sensei," she warned.
"But isn't it serious for couples to hold hands?" Haruki protested, retracting his hand with a look of grievance.
"That's not what I meant!" Tsunade sighed, clearly exasperated.
Before she could say more, a chorus of voices rang out.
"Hokage-sama!"
Haruki immediately dropped the teasing and straightened up as the meeting officially began.
"I just received word that the Sand Village has sent another battalion of ninja," Hiruzen announced. "The estimated number is nearly a thousand."
The room fell into brief silence before several jonin reacted with surprise.
The five great ninja villages didn't have endless numbers to throw around. Even as the strongest village, their total forces didn't exceed 20,000. The Sand Village, with its weaker economy and smaller population, had even fewer.
"Are they trying to start another full-scale war with us?"
The question came from Utatane Koharu, one of the village elders.
Hiruzen shook his head slightly.
"According to our intelligence, this seems to be in response to several of their jonin and chunin disappearing near near the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain."
His sharp gaze swept across the room. "But I haven't received any reports on this. Do any of you know anything?"
The gathered jonin exchanged glances, but no one spoke.
Haruki remained calm, his expression unreadable.
"It seems this Isn't our doing," Hiruzen murmured, though his face remained tense.
The ongoing conflict between the Leaf and the Sand was still unresolved, and those missing ninja had died within the Land of Fire's borders. That alone was enough to cause trouble.
Almost instinctively, he turned his gaze toward Danzo.
"Hmph, don't look at me like that," Danzo scoffed, clearly annoyed. "At this point, does it even matter who did it? Why should we bother explaining anything to the Sand Village?"
"You're not wrong," Hiruzen admitted with a sigh. "But right now, we're already stretched thin. We still have to keep an eye on the Rain Village and the Rock Village. The last thing I want is another war breaking out."
Danzo frowned slightly before making his suggestion. "Then let's have two classes from the Academy graduate early."
Once again, he was playing the villain, but that was nothing new.
Hiruzen mulled it over for a moment before nodding reluctantly. "At this point, we don't have much choice."
Hiruzen stood up, his expression grim as his gaze swept across the room. Finally, his eyes settled on Takahiro.
"Takahiro, organize the students and have them complete their graduation exams within two days. Submit the list of graduates as soon as it's ready. The advisory council and I will assign team leaders."
"Understood, Hokage-sama," Takahiro responded immediately.
"If there's a student you're particularly interested in mentoring, you can submit a request. I'll take it into consideration," Hiruzen added after a brief pause.
With that, the meeting concluded, and Haruki left the Hokage building alongside Tsunade.
Orochimaru hadn't attended. Given that his student, Nawaki, had recently died, it wasn't surprising that he had no interest in leading a team.
As for Tsunade, in the original timeline, her apprentices were Shizune and Sakura.
But right now, Shizune was still too young, and Sakura hadn't even been born yet.
"Haruki, I've noticed you've taken a real liking to those two kids, Minato and Kushina," Tsunade remarked, eyeing him curiously. "Are you planning to lead their team?"
"Yeah, unless something unexpected happens, it'll be those two," Haruki replied, intertwining his fingers with hers.
"But a two-person team doesn't follow protocol," Tsunade pointed out, looking puzzled.
"I already have a third candidate in mind," Haruki said with a knowing smile.
It was none other than an Uchiha.
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