22. The Genius Novelist

"Dinner's ready!"

Minato Namikaze interrupted the conversation, announcing, "Try my Fire Release: Charred Perfection Supreme Style!"

"You keep coming up with these weird names no one understands."

Kushina Uzumaki rolled her eyes as she took a grilled fish from him.

"I couldn't help myself," Minato said, scratching his head with a sheepish smile.

Hanekawa quietly bit into his grilled fish.

Better to eat fish than to endure their lovey-dovey antics.

"How does it taste?"

Kushina turned to Hanekawa, asking with genuine curiosity.

From their earlier chat, she had already learned about this pretty child's situation: a war orphan currently living with Yuhi Shinku's family. It was a tragic story, somewhat similar to her own past.

"It's delicious," Hanekawa said earnestly, nodding.

"Next time, you should try my cooking," Kushina said with a warm smile.

"Sure," Hanekawa agreed readily.

Meeting Kushina had been an accident, but forming a good relationship with them was definitely a win—especially with Minato Namikaze. In the upcoming Third Shinobi World War, having such connections might just be a lifesaver.

"Kushina."

Minato coughed lightly to get her attention.

As usual, Kushina had sneaked out by trapping her ANBU guards with sealing techniques. According to her, she planned to do it again.

"What?" Kushina clenched her fist, feigning irritation. "Are you saying my cooking isn't good enough?"

"It's delicious," Minato replied instantly.

"Good answer," Kushina said, pretending not to notice the underlying meaning. Life within the village barriers was just too dull for her.

Hanekawa felt like he'd been force-fed another serving of their affection.

The meal ended amid their lighthearted chatter.

Hanekawa said his goodbyes and headed back to Konoha.

---

By the time he returned, the sky had turned dark, and the streetlights illuminated the village roads.

He couldn't help but imagine a crow flying by, heralding the appearance of Itachi Uchiha.

Luckily, the Uchiha clan's downfall is still far away, and I'm not even part of their clan.

As he walked, Hanekawa opened his status panel.

The progress bar for the E-rank Trait: Seven Ninja Tools had reached 70%.

Apparently, using explosive tags was much more effective than he had expected.

Perhaps this was the power of "pay-to-win."

As the saying goes, "money buys happiness."

The progress bar for the E-rank Trait: Academic Star was also nearly complete. All that was left was the grand finale: the end-of-term exams.

"I'm home!"

Hanekawa pushed the door open and started changing his shoes at the entrance.

Hearing his voice, Kurenai Yuhi jumped off the couch and darted out like an excited little rabbit.

Her father, Yuhi Shinku, sitting across from her, couldn't help but twitch the corners of his mouth.

My standing in this household is seriously under threat.

"Hanekawa, why are you so late?"

Kurenai crossed her arms and pouted. "And you didn't even tell me in advance!"

Ah, so that's the real issue.

Seeing her puffed-up cheeks, Hanekawa smiled and said, "I ran into Minato Namikaze."

"Who's Minato Namikaze?"

Kurenai tilted her head in confusion.

"You met Minato?"

Yuhi Shinku's face lit up with surprise.

"I ran into him at the Fourth Training Ground," Hanekawa said, improvising. "Maybe he thought I had potential, so he invited me to eat grilled fish with him."

"It's probably because the Hokage mentioned you to him," Yuhi Shinku said thoughtfully.

"Eh?"

Kurenai Yuhi widened her eyes in surprise. "Even the Hokage knows about Hanekawa?"

"What do you think?"

Shinku Yuhi patted her head with a smile. "He did defeat Asuma, after all."

"It was just a sparring match," Hanekawa said earnestly.

"Alright, let's continue this inside."

Shinku gave Hanekawa a sharp look and led Kurenai inside.

…?

Hanekawa was puzzled.

What's going on? I didn't leave my explosive tags parked outside your house or anything.

---

Once in the living room, Hanekawa cut straight to the point.

"Uncle Shinku, I want to learn kenjutsu."

Since Hayate Gekkou and Uzuki Yugao were still younger than him, and he didn't know Kisame Hoshigaki, his only option was to turn to Shinku.

"Why the sudden interest in kenjutsu?"

Shinku looked at him with surprise.

"I don't have enough chakra right now to learn new genjutsu, so I thought I'd learn kenjutsu for self-defense."

Hanekawa had already prepared this explanation.

Shinku nodded slightly.

It was a valid reason, leaving him no room to refuse.

So this is what it's like to be a genius, Shinku thought, feeling a bit emotional.

"Alright, I'll teach you kenjutsu in a moment."

"Huh?"

Hanekawa instinctively looked doubtful.

"You little brat!"

Shinku's eyebrows furrowed as he glared.

"What, you think a genjutsu ninja like me wouldn't know some kenjutsu?"

Kenjutsu was part of taijutsu, and taijutsu was a fundamental skill for all ninjas. For genjutsu users, it was essential as a fallback when their illusions failed.

"No, no problem at all!"

Hanekawa straightened up immediately and replied seriously, "Thank you, Uncle Shinku!"

"I want to learn too!"

Kurenai raised her small hand eagerly.

"Kurenai," Shinku said gently, "Learn genjutsu first, and then I'll teach you kenjutsu."

"Fine…"

Kurenai understood there was a big gap between her and Hanekawa. Trying to learn everything at once might lead to mastering nothing.

"Go wait for me outside," Shinku instructed, heading to his room.

After a while, Shinku returned with two wooden swords.

"The kenjutsu I'm teaching you is called Konoha Style Kenjutsu. Though it's a basic sword technique, it's nothing to scoff at."

He casually tossed one of the wooden swords to Hanekawa. "If you master it, you can develop your own secret techniques."

Hanekawa immediately thought of Konoha-Style: Willow, which was a fusion of kenjutsu and genjutsu.

"Let's start with the basics," Shinku said, swinging his wooden sword to demonstrate.

"Yes, sir!"

Hanekawa nodded with a serious expression.

---

Under the night sky, moonlight bathed the ground.

After two hours of practice, Hanekawa finally unlocked a new trait.

> [E-Rank Ninjutsu Trait: Sword Ninja (Unobtained)]

Unlock Condition: Achieve basic proficiency in Konoha-Style Kenjutsu.

Current Progress: 5%.

Once training was over, Hanekawa took a bath and returned to his room.

Although tired, he didn't immediately go to sleep. Instead, he picked up a pen.

After much thought, he began drafting ideas and an outline for a novel.

The story he had in mind was Demon Slayer Shinobi.

---

Two days passed.

In the early morning, after his usual jog through the streets, Hanekawa entered the Konoha Knowledge Bookstore.

There, he quickly found Tsuchibashi and handed over the outline for Demon Slayer Shinobi.

"So soon?"

Tsuchibashi asked casually. "What's your friend's name?"

"Thunderfire Blade," Hanekawa replied after a pause. "That's his pen name."

"Ah, a pen name? I get it."

Tsuchibashi gave him a knowing smile.

What exactly do you think you get?!

Hanekawa felt a shiver down his spine. He didn't dare imagine the social embarrassment he'd face if the truth about this "friend" got out.

Tsuchibashi began reading.

Before long, his smile disappeared, replaced by a serious expression. Then, his face lit up with excitement.

"Your friend is a genius!"

Tsuchibashi exclaimed, his tone filled with enthusiasm. "This kind of ninja setting is unprecedented—it's bound to be a bestseller!"

______

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