Hikaru had the talent of a Ninja; in other words, he could refine Chakra, so he could naturally become a Ninja.
The "school district housing" had been bought previously—ten units in one go—so he could live wherever he wanted.
Shikamaru believed that since the old King of the Land of the Moon was dead and Prince Michiru had succeeded the throne, having Hikaru, a legitimate prince, go to Konoha Village to study was highly beneficial. Regardless of whether he became a Ninja, his status alone would help establish a harmonious relationship between Konoha Village and the Land of the Moon.
For Konoha, for Ino–Shika–Choji, and for Arasaka, the Land of the Moon was a vital maritime transportation hub for the Land of Fire's access to the Southern Continent, making it of great significance.
Konoha taking him in offered only benefits and no downsides.
Ino tacitly accepted this reasoning.
She listened to Sakura and Hikaru recount their ordeal in the warehouse. She strongly suspected it was a site for Ōtsutsuki Isshiki's 'Karma' selection. However, according to Hikaru, he didn't see any posturing bald monks; those ferocious villains simply injected a black potion into large vats. He saw several other boys die from bleeding out of their Seven Orifices after inhaling the black potion, while he luckily survived.
The events were very simple; he still didn't know why those people kidnapped him, let alone what the potion injected into him was.
It was precisely this sense of powerlessness that gave birth to his idea of becoming a Ninja—to master martial force and take control of his own destiny.
Ino checked his hands and saw no black diamond mark belonging to 'Karma'. She searched with her sensory abilities and finally, behind the others' backs, observed him once with her Sharingan. Hikaru's body was very clean, with no extra Chakra visible.
Whether it was a blessing or a curse, there was no avoiding it. Regardless, she wasn't the Hokage; if the sky fell, there were taller people to hold it up.
Ino estimated that for this matter to fully erupt, it would take at least until the day Ōtsutsuki Isshiki saw through the true state of the Six Paths Sage. Even when the bandit ancestor of the Yamanaka Clan rushed up to mock him to his face, Isshiki had endured it. There shouldn't be any major issues for now, so she decided to take the child Hikaru back first.
Ino and the others stayed in the Land of the Moon for five days. The fleet bound for the Southern Continent returned just in time, so they took Hikaru—the boy who survived against all odds—along with two servants to wait on him and a large amount of gold, silver, and jewelry Michiru had prepared for his son, and boarded the ship back to the Land of Fire.
Mining the gelel stones was truly difficult. The fleet included Ninjas sent by the Ino–Shika–Choji families, led by the Yamanaka Clan's fourth Jonin besides Inoichi, Ino, and Fu Yamanaka: Yamanaka Sōten.
Yamanaka Sōten stated frankly that the natural environment of the Southern Continent was extremely harsh, with massive temperature differences between day and night and frequent earthquakes. In short, it was not a place for humans to live.
Despite the hardships, relying on Ninjutsu and the round-the-clock work of the Land of Fire laborers, they still managed to mine about a hundred catties of gelel stones.
After refining, they could produce at least several hundred Sandevistan Mk.2s. The combat power of Konoha Ninjas would undoubtedly leap to a much higher level.
The fleet rested at the Land of Fire port for a few days, unloaded the ore, replenished supplies, and then returned to the Southern Continent. Many miners were still there extracting ore; these were now strategic materials, and there was certainly no harm in stockpiling more.
Ino first arranged for Hikaru to enter the Ninja Academy. Not only was the child wealthy, but his aptitude wasn't bad either. In her estimation, he was more than capable of becoming a Genin.
Ino then found Tsunade and recounted her encounter with a powerful enemy in the Land of the Moon.
"That young silver-haired man is very strong. He can use Rasengan and Big Ball Rasengan, and he's skilled in Fire Release. He used Fireball, Great Fireball, and Needle Jizo. Even more miraculously, he seems to be able to use Sage Mode. I haven't seen Sage Mode myself, but his state of significantly increased attack power, defense, and Ninjutsu potency—I believe that was Sage Mode."
Ino gave an impartial account of her battle. Tsunade was initially nonchalant, but as she listened, the anger on her face became impossible to hide.
"That bastard! I won't let him off!"
Tsunade said fiercely, her silver teeth nearly grinding to pieces.
Ino was full of question marks. Who was she talking about? Did she also know about Ōtsutsuki Isshiki?
Tsunade left the room in a huff, her face so dark it looked like it could drip water.
Ino didn't know why she reacted this way and quickly followed after her.
At that moment in the office, Jiraiya was handling official business with Shikaku. With a loud "bang," Tsunade pushed the door open and entered, then spat out a few words through her teeth: "Come out with me."
Shikaku subconsciously backed up two steps to stand in the corner, pretending to be transparent, while signaling Ino with his eyes to ask: What's going on?
Ino shook her head; she didn't know either! She had only mentioned Kashin Koji, so why was Tsunade's reaction so violent?
Jiraiya was equally bewildered. Like a frightened quail, he followed Tsunade to the shade of the trees outside the Hokage Building. Ino and Shikaku arrived barely ten seconds later, only to see Tsunade punching and kicking, pinning the Fifth Hokage to the ground and giving him a brutal beating—even his shoes were knocked off.
"Tsunade, why on earth are you hitting me?"
"Even if you want me dead, you have to let me know why!"
"Stop hitting me, stop it!"
Shikaku really didn't want to get involved in their mess. He waved his hand, signaling Ino to hurry up and persuade them to stop.
Ino braced herself and went up to mediate.
"Teacher, calm down. Don't be angry, don't be angry. Let's talk this out properly."
Tsunade's eyes were full of fury: "Talk it out properly? This bastard! Look at him; even now, he's still playing dumb."
A black-and-blue Jiraiya kept pleading his innocence. Ino pulled Tsunade away, and he finally caught his breath.
Heaven and Earth be my witness, he hadn't gone out to 'collect material' these past few days. He had only used the Telescope Technique to peep a dozen or so times; he hadn't committed any other major blunders. We've known each other for fifty years; it's not like you just met me today.
Being straightforward, he quickly confessed to his peeping over the last few days, one by one.
Shikaku covered his face nearby; this Hokage was truly too unreliable.
Tsunade's voice suddenly spiked: "Is that what I'm talking about?!"
"Huh?" Jiraiya was completely dumbfounded. It wasn't about recent events? Then he had no idea. He had committed far too many past offenses; which one specifically was she talking about?
"Do you know who Ino met in the Land of the Moon? She met a silver-haired young man!" Tsunade roared.
A silver-haired young man in the Land of the Moon? Who? Was it a girl? Jiraiya recalled for a moment and thought of about a dozen names, but he hadn't contacted those girls in a long time.
Only then did Ino understand the source of Tsunade's anger. Honestly, thinking about it that way was quite logical.
Shikaku also thought of this possibility. He shook his head, looking at Jiraiya with the eyes one reserves for a scumbag.
Jiraiya's reaction was two beats slower than theirs. Seeing the strange looks from the three of them, he finally realized, thinking of romantic relationships and Tsunade's furious reaction.
A silver-haired young man? He was completely stunned.
He had a son? A biological son?!
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