12 Tarnished Reputation
Both of them didn't have time to react before the office door was forcefully pushed open.
Natsuhiko and Kushina instinctively turned their heads toward the door.
What they saw was the appearance of the head-master Umino, at the doorway.
His smiley expression gradually froze.
"Sorry for the interruption!"
In an instant Umino retreated at a speed that could make Namikaze Minato feel envious.
The office door slammed shut again, leaving the two inside the office looking at each other in dismay with blank expressions.
Outside the door, Umino leaned against the office door, and was now somewhat doubting why his life did not go that way ever.
Could it be that his excellency opened the door to a parallel universe?
Or maybe that smelly brat Natsuhiko was using his projection technique to mess with him?
Otherwise, there was no explanation for what he witnessed just now.
Thinking about it, Umino couldn't help but recall the scene he had glimpsed earlier.
In the centre of the office, Kushina was suspended in midair, bound with black ropes in a strange manner.
Standing beside her, Natsuhiko held a wooden carving in his left hand, while his right hand was reaching towards Kushina...
What shocked Umino the most was that, while being exposed to Natsuhiko's evil clutches, Kushina actually had a curious and thankful look on her face!?
Reflecting—or rather, replaying the scene in his mind, Umino quickly ruled out the possibility of it being a projection technique.
Because that scene was too realistic to be fake.
So, in this case, firstly...
Oh my god!
What on earth were they doing in the office?
Umino's imagination ran wild.
Initially, he was already worried about the two troublesome children being together, and to put icing on the cake Natsuhiko's sudden sprint towards the room earlier made Umino feel suspicious. That's why Umino had come to check on them and remind them to get along.
He didn't expect to witness such a shocking scene.
...At least they seemed to be getting along well.
Umino tried to comfort himself... with utter nonsense!
Their behaviour had already crossed the line of only getting along well—no, it had crossed countless lines, heading straight into the situation of generic *** ಡ ͜ ʖ ಡ!
Is this how youngsters play these days?
Umino couldn't understand, but he was greatly impressed.
What kind of game was that just now?
Why did it seem like they even used rune techniques from Sealing Jutsu?
So, when Natsuhiko said earlier that Ninjutsu had many practical uses in daily life, was this what he meant?
Should Umino sama also learn Sealing Jutsu for his beloved wife?
No other reason, he just wanted to learn how to play the rope game….with others….
No, wait!
Umino, with countless question marks and weird thoughts swirling in his mind, finally realised.
In broad daylight, these two individuals were engaging in such vulgar behavior in the sacred Academy!
That was the real issue!
As their former sensei,
As the current head teacher,
As their senior,
As a normally functioning ordinary person,
Umino felt the responsibility to stop their actions!
Even if it meant they would resent him for it!
For a moment, Umino felt a surge of determination, feeling that his own realm of intellect had elevated significantly.
Then he took a deep breath, put on a resigned expression, and entered the room once again.
A few moments later.
"Ah ha ha ha, so you were disarming a trap. You scared me. I thought you were..."
Sealing Jutsu Sensei's office, Umino scratched the back of his head, while laughing at Natsuhiko to ease the awkwardness from the recent misunderstanding.
After being rescued finally, Kushina had been to the restroom, just entered the room looking relaxed.
She happened to hear Umino's words and curiously asked, "Umino-sensei, what did you think we were doing?"
"I..." Umino opened his mouth but couldn't bring himself to express the indecent thoughts he had.
"Sens--" Natsuhiko interjected, giving Umino a disdainful look, then pondered and decided to help him out. "Yes! That's right, Umino-sensei thought we were sparring using Sealing Jutsu."
Umino quickly seized the lifeline offered, nodded and said, "And… Yes!, I truly believed you were sparring while using Sealing Jutsu. It's not a lie."
"Really?" Kushina, with a confused expression, felt that the two had a strange look on their faces.
"Of course! By the way, I have something to attend to. I'll leave first," Umino couldn't sit still, hastily left Sealing Jutsu's office.
Now, the office was left with Natsuhiko and Kushina, it created a somewhat awkward atmosphere.
Earlier, while they were solely focused on undoing the trap, Kushina didn't feel embarrassed. But now, recalling how she was bound and suspended, and was seen by Natsuhiko, she felt extremely ashamed.
Natsuhiko, as the instigator, also felt a bit uneasy being next to the victim.
He scratched his head and took another look at Kushina.
Kushina had tidied herself up in the restroom, so she no longer looked as disheveled as before.
She was about 1.5 meters tall, with cute features, slightly on the chubby side. She wore a yellow ninja outfit with a black belt around her waist. Below, she had black knee-high socks, outlining the round contours of her slender legs.
Her fiery-red, waist-length hair was tied with a black hairband, giving her a vibrant and youthful appearance.
Natsuhiko couldn't help but think of Namikaze Minato, whom he had seen a few times before. They looked quite alike.
So, with such good-looking parents, why did Naruto turn out to be so... ordinary?
Was it because, during the fetal stage, the influence of the Nine-Tails, also residing in Kushina, affected him?
Natsuhiko, during his research on Sealing Jutsu, had discovered that chakra was not just pure energy but a unified entity of energy and information.
Chakra, formed by the combination of physical and spiritual energy, contained a vast amount of information from the main body.
Techniques like Shadow Clone Jutsu created independent clones with the main body's memories, allowing top-tier ninjas to understand their opponents' thoughts through battle.
These were all excellent examples.
Even more terrifying was that chakra could alter genetic information.
Many Kekkei Genkai, once developed, could be inherited by the next generation through genetics.
So, it was no surprise that Naruto, who had lived in close quarters with the Nine-Tails, inherited many traits from it.
The terrifying chakra reserves of the Nine-Tails were enough to transform Naruto with just a little bit of exposure.
The six whiskers on Naruto's face were the result of this.
No wonder, when facing danger, despite being foul-mouthed, the Nine-Tails would ultimately arrogantly lend its chakra to Naruto.
So, all that chakra was filled with fatherly love!
"Um... Sensei?" Kushina, unaware of the impolite thoughts running through Natsuhiko's mind, called out after hesitating for a moment.
Natsuhiko's wandering thoughts were interrupted by Kushina's voice, and he blinked at her.
"Please go ahead. We're of similar age, so just call me Natsuhiko," he said.
"Oh, then you can call me Kushina."
Kushina nodded and, with an apologetic tone, asked, "Actually, I wanted to ask, what should I do now?"
Right, he almost forgot about her role as an assistant.
"Emmmm..." Natsuhiko pondered, stroking his chin. "First, I need to understand your current level. Please wait a moment; let me prepare a test for you."
(End of Chapter)
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