ALL NOVEL Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Hinata, Have You Been Growing Up?
After more than two months, the opportunity to take on a mission outside the village had finally arrived! For Yagyu, this was undoubtedly great news.
Now that his Sharingan had evolved to three tomoe, his strength was only a step away from that of a Jonin, with combat experience being the key difference.
To reach the level of an Elite Jonin, Yagyu would need to endure a long period of accumulation:
Gaining battle experience, expanding his arsenal of jutsu and techniques, and acquiring a wealth of trump cards...
Both Kakashi Hatake and Might Guy followed this path.
Kakashi had copied over a thousand jutsu and developed his own S-rank Lightning Release jutsu.
Guy had honed his body through rigorous training, creating various taijutsu techniques and improving the number of Eight Inner Gates he could open, as well as extending their duration.
If Yagyu wanted to skip this accumulation phase, there were only two methods:
1. Master a powerful trump card capable of threatening a Kage, such as an S-rank jutsu—one that required immense talent and effort to even have a chance at learning.
2. Obtain a large number of jutsu, talents, and Kekkei Genkai, compensating for quality with sheer quantity.
Of course, if Yagyu could somehow evolve his three-tomoe Sharingan to the Mangekyo Sharingan in a short period, it would be a game changer.
If that happened, and he could proficiently use the unique Mangekyo abilities and awaken the Susano'o—a power akin to a divine force—then his only worthy opponents in this era would be Onoki, the strongest of the Five Kage, and Nagato, the gatekeeper of "super-Kage" level.
Even Obito Uchiha, without retrieving the left eye Kakashi held, would only be able to provoke Yagyu for five minutes. Unless Obito resorted to using Izanagi for the sake of his pride, he might last ten minutes.
Because the moment the Mangekyo Sharingan awakened, the golden legend of Asura's chakra would come into play.
However, having just evolved his Sharingan to three tomoe, it was impossible to further evolve it to the Mangekyo Sharingan so soon.
For now, Yagyu's shortcut lay in enriching his arsenal.
But expanding his arsenal was no easy feat.
Yugao Kurenai's most prized genjutsu talent had already been acquired by Yagyu, as well as some of the Yuhii clan's genjutsu techniques. Even if he found an excuse to spar with her and won, there wouldn't be much left to gain.
As for Hinata's Byakugan, Yagyu had been working on that for over two months but still hadn't managed to obtain it.
Even if he did acquire the Byakugan, the improvement would be minimal. The Byakugan, until it evolved into the Tenseigan or mutated into the Sharingan or Jougan, was the Otsutsuki clan's lowest-tier sensory ability.
Regarding the Aburame clan's insect-based secret techniques, Yagyu wouldn't bother integrating those even if he acquired them.
Since those around him couldn't provide much assistance, Yagyu had to seek targets beyond the village.
He didn't expect a mission outside the village to escalate like Team 7's, encountering powerful enemies.
He only hoped to pass through populated areas, run into some rogue ninja, or—ideally—meet shinobi from other villages.
Having developed the Spiraling Water Tornado, Yagyu understood the immense boost that chakra control talent could provide. If he could obtain other chakra natures and jutsu, then master their transformations, he was confident he could evolve the Rasengan or even create jutsu not found in the original storyline.
Thus, under Kurenai Yuhi's lead, Team 8 arrived at the Hokage's office in the Hokage Tower.
"Here for a C-rank mission?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen, donning his Hokage hat and holding a smoking pipe, glanced at them while puffing smoke.
In his other hand was a report summarizing Team 8's achievements over the past two months.
Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded in satisfaction.
"Since Team 8's formation, all your missions have received excellent reviews from clients. Your teamwork is the best among the current batch of teams."
"It seems your coordination and synergy have reached a certain level. It's time to assign you higher-level missions."
Putting down the report, Sarutobi Hiruzen retrieved a large scroll from beneath the desk.
After unrolling the scroll, he quickly found a suitable mission for Team 8.
"A few days ago, a merchant caravan came to Konoha for business. They're worried about being robbed on their way back, so they've requested an escort to the mining village in the Land of Rivers."
With that, Sarutobi Hiruzen lightly tapped the mission description on the scroll.
With a "poof," a puff of white smoke dissipated, leaving behind a smaller scroll in his hand.
Tossing the scroll to Kurenai Yuhi, Sarutobi said, "This contains the merchant caravan leader's information. Kurenai, you'll handle the negotiations."
"Understood, Lord Hokage," Kurenai replied respectfully.
She then led Team 8 out of the Hokage's office.
On their way out, Yagyu noticed Sarutobi Hiruzen observing him closely.
It was clear the Hokage knew about him and might have been monitoring him for some time.
However, since Sarutobi said nothing, Yagyu also kept silent, pretending not to notice as he left.
Outside the Hokage Tower, Kurenai unrolled the scroll and led Team 8 to an inn where they met a middle-aged man watching over a cart.
Kurenai began negotiating with the man while Yagyu and his teammates watched from a distance.
Soon, the middle-aged man entered the inn, and shortly after, a more lavishly dressed middle-aged man emerged to continue the negotiations with Kurenai.
During this, the well-dressed man occasionally glanced at Team 8.
Hinata whispered softly, "Yagyu-kun, it seems like that man is looking at me."
Before Yagyu could reply, Shino Aburame spoke flatly: "He's indeed looking at you, or rather, at your eyes."
Yagyu chuckled.
"That's perfectly normal. Hinata, your eyes are the most famous sensory tools in the shinobi world. With your Byakugan, we can easily detect any ambushes within a kilometer."
Hearing this, Hinata nodded slightly, a hint of realization dawning on her face.
Shortly after, Kurenai completed the negotiations and turned to address Team 8.
"Take the rest of the day off to prepare. Meet at the village gates tomorrow morning at 8."
"Yes, Kurenai-sensei," the three replied in unison before disbanding.
"Hinata, want to train together?"
"Mm."
After parting ways with Kurenai and Shino, Yagyu extended his usual invitation to Hinata, who nodded in agreement.
They went to the market to buy ingredients, then returned home, where Yagyu's shadow clone cooked while their main bodies headed to the training room for their daily sparring match.
As usual, Yagyu activated his Sharingan to cheat, subtly disrupting Hinata's balance during her attacks and catching her when she stumbled.
Noticing that Hinata was becoming more resistant to such tactics, Yagyu decided to escalate.
As he caught Hinata in his arms, he smirked and teased, "Hinata, have you been growing recently?"
"Huh?"
Hinata blinked in confusion, then followed Yagyu's gaze downward. Her delicate, adorable face instantly flushed crimson, her head steaming like a boiling kettle.
Moments later, Yagyu felt her weight shift in his arms.
The young girl had fainted, her iconic white eyes spinning into spiral patterns.
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