Chapter 150: The Unclear Future, Friends or Foes?

"Teacher… we…" Yahiko scratched his head, starting to speak, but Takuya raised a hand to stop him.

Waving his hand with a sigh, Takuya smiled, "Don't call me 'teacher.' I never took you in as my students. Besides, I'm only three years older than you."

He continued, "Given the situation, it's impossible for us to have a teacher-student relationship. For all we know, one day the situation might change, and we could end up as enemies."

Takuya was ten years old, while Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato were seven. But looking at them, the gap between them seemed like more than just three years. Takuya already looked like a teenager, while the three of them, due to malnutrition, were much smaller, resembling kids around five years old.

Unless someone mentioned their ages, no one would guess that the difference was only three years.

Yahiko's expression froze, the smile fading from his face. Nagato, who had been looking down, clenched his fists, his emotions clearly unstable. Konan's eyes reddened as she whispered, "But teacher, this is what we want…"

"..."

I never planned on taking any disciples… For a moment, Takuya wasn't sure how to respond. Looking at Konan's tear-filled eyes, Yahiko's hopeful expression, and Nagato cautiously raising his head, Takuya sighed in defeat.

"Alright, let's drop this topic. Call me whatever you want. But for the record, I'm not acknowledging you as my disciples."

Takuya Yagami is still just a kid himself, he thought. There's no need to take on disciples right now. Plus, taking on disciples isn't something you just do on a whim. What if these kids end up turning against him in the future? He'd be the first target.

And who knew if the mysterious Black Zetsu was already keeping tabs on them?

Best not to get involved with Nagato's Rinnegan too much. I've already given them some help. The rest is up to their own abilities.

"Oh, by the way, you still haven't told me why you came to Rain Village," Takuya reminded them.

"Since the war ended, there've been a lot of rogue ninja causing trouble, stealing, and killing. For safety, I brought Konan and Yahiko here," Nagato explained. "One of the village's ninja even helped us. He didn't turn us away."

Yahiko smiled brightly at the mention of the helpful ninja, though he didn't know the man's name.

Hanzō might not be the best leader, but when it came to his own people, he was fair. Unfortunately, after his return from the Land of Iron, Hanzō had more or less given up. The once-feared "Demi-God" had become a recluse, leaving Rain Country in chaos.

It wasn't until the Third Great Ninja War that things took a turn for the worse. Manipulated by Danzō, Hanzō attacked the Akatsuki, leading to Yahiko's death and ultimately sealing his own tragic fate.

As their conversation wound down, the food arrived, and the three kids eagerly dug in. Watching them devour their meal, Takuya couldn't help but sigh. To him, the food wasn't anything special, even bordering on bland. But to Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato, it was a rare treat.

Yahiko, eating too quickly, started choking. After gulping down a large glass of water, he finally caught his breath, looking relieved.

Konan rolled her eyes at him in exasperation.

"Teacher, did you come to Rain Village on a mission?" Konan asked, ever the observant one.

Putting down his chopsticks, Takuya ruffled Konan's hair, making her smile. "The war may be over, but some things still need to be settled. The village sent me here to join the negotiation team to talk with Hanzō. It's taking a bit longer than expected, so I decided to take a walk—and here we are."

"What about the explosion at the gate…?" Konan asked hesitantly. Even though no one had been talking about it, the loud explosion had echoed throughout Rain Village. Of course, the three of them had heard it.

"Cough, cough…" Takuya cleared his throat, feeling a bit awkward under their questioning stares. "Well, Hanzō wasn't exactly being cooperative. He didn't think we were worthy of negotiating with him, so I had no choice but to use a few jutsu to blow up part of the wall. It worked—we got into the village, and now we can talk."

Yahiko's eyes widened in shock.

Nagato dropped his chopsticks onto the table.

Konan's jaw dropped, speechless.

They hadn't expected that the explosion at the gate had been caused by Takuya—and intentionally, at that.

It was all part of his plan to force Hanzō to the negotiating table. Without that, the talks would never have started.

In truth, Takuya hadn't wanted to do it. But Hanzō had been looking down on them, refusing to acknowledge them as equals. A little destruction was the only way to make him take them seriously.

If he hadn't made a strong move, Hanzō would've continued to act like a god.

What 'Demi-God'? If he'd ever faced someone like Hashirama or Madara, he would've been beaten so badly he'd forget his own name.

This whole situation was a clear sign of how much Konoha's elite had thinned out since the deaths of Hashirama and Madara. The First Ninja War had hit Konoha hard, leaving a major gap in top-tier power.

Watching the kids' stunned faces, Takuya chuckled. "Anyway, things are settled for now. Sure, a lot of Rain Village's people died, and the wall will take some time to rebuild, but the negotiations are going smoothly. It should all wrap up today."

"So… does that mean you'll be leaving today, too?" Konan asked quietly. She didn't care about the negotiations or the destruction—her only concern was that Takuya would be leaving.

Takuya knew they didn't want him to go, but unlike Jiraiya, he couldn't stay behind to look after them.

"Yes," he said, nodding solemnly, though he knew it would upset Konan. "Once the talks are done, I'll be leaving by sunset. Hanzō won't want someone like me staying here. It'll keep him up at night."

"In the meantime, if you have any questions—about anything—this is your chance to ask. I'll do my best to answer."

"Really?" Yahiko's mood instantly shifted from sad to excited. "That's awesome!"

Yahiko had a ton of questions about ninjutsu and fighting techniques, and Konan and Nagato were no different. As budding ninja, they still had a lot to learn.

They quickly finished eating, then gathered around Takuya, bombarding him with questions. Anything Takuya could answer, he did, explaining each concept patiently.

As time passed, Takuya sensed Tsunade and Shikaku's chakra signatures nearby.

"Looks like it's time for me to go," Takuya said, standing up. "Consider this my parting gift to you."

He asked the shopkeeper for a pen and unrolled a blank scroll. Writing down some basic ninjutsu hand signs and training tips, he handed the scroll to Yahiko.

Note: If you're interested, you can read up to chapter 245+ at patreon.com/ Emik01. Don't forget to give a power stone for many bonus chapters