Chapter 55   - Complaining To Hiruzen

Hiruzen was currently inside his office and was smoking his pipe. He wasn't sure why, but his instincts were telling him that something troubling would happen soon. He wasn't even done thinking what might have happened when two people intruded into his office. Kurenai through the door and Kakashi through the window.

'*Sigh, I knew it.'

Hiruzen was just about to rebuke them for entering his office like that when the two started to speak simultaneously.

""Hokage-sama, am I being punished for something?""

Hiruzen had, naturally, no clue what they were talking about, but considering today was the day of the final genin test, he could make a good guess what this was about. He took another drag from his pipe and then asked the question he knew he would regret asking.

"Please calm down for now. You are not being punished. Can you explain the situation?"

What followed was an incomprehensible mess of two people telling their story at the same time, which was quickly stopped by Hiruzen. He motioned towards Kurenai to tell her story first.

Although Hiruzen could make out the whole story properly this time, he felt like he didn't understand it at all.

'Hinata? As in the previous heiress of the Hyuga clan? That meek little girl? Did Kurenai accidentally pick up the wrong person as a student? There is no way a shy girl like that would attack her sensei with a sword in her hand and a smile on her face, right? Additionally, that jutsu Kurenai mentioned could reach A rank or even S rank if the flaws get ironed out. How can a fresh genin not only use it but even claim to have created it? How much of a monstrous genius is she? No, even more important: has everyone in the Hyuga clan been kicked by a donkey? Why would you kick someone this talented out of your clan? Do you want to make it fair for the other clans or something?'

Hiruzen, however, wasn't called "The Professor" without a reason. He quickly understood the situation and came to a conclusion.

'The Hyuga clan doesn't train ninjutsu or kenjutsu. They didn't know about her talent at all. Then why did she reveal herself now? Obviously, because the Hyuga clan no longer has any claims on her. She is considered an adult now.'

Hiruzen almost started to chuckle in glee when he came to that conclusion.

'Hiashi, that idiot actually let go of such a genius. Won't he cough out blood in anger when he hears about that?'

Kurenai, meanwhile, was a little bit weirded out by Hiruzen.

'What is he doing? Has he finally gone senile? Why is his face constantly changing expressions? He does know I am still here, right?'

Kurenai quickly glanced at Kakashi who was still standing beside her and noticed that he was currently giving Hiruzen a questioning look as well.

It took a while for Hiruzen to notice the awkward mood but when he did, he quickly started talking again to dispel it.

"Seems like Hinata hid rather well. I guess she didn't want to be claimed by the Hyuga clan, so she pretended to be weak all these years. Isn't it fine? Having a student this powerful will probably bring you quite a bit of fame in the future."

Kurenai wanted to curse Hiruzen but wasn't sure how to formulate it without admitting her own weakness. As things were, she certainly would become rather well known in the future. She would be known as the teacher that got accidentally killed by her student. Hinata's words just after landing the killing blow would probably be something like: "Damn, I thought you could dodge that for sure." All Kurenai could do was to grit her teeth and grow stronger. As long as she is stronger than Hinata, she won't get killed accidentally.

Hiruzen quickly dismissed Kurenai, to hear Kakashi's report, who claimed that it is a secret matter. That was why Kurenai was dismissed before they spoke about it.

This time, it was Kakashi's turn to report what he had experienced, and the more he said, the more lifeless Hiruzen's eyes became. After finishing his report, Hiruzen just sat there with lifeless eyes, contemplating what kind of sin he had committed to be punished with this kind of fate. Having a super genius within a generation is great for every hidden village. There might be some assassins trying to prevent the genius from growing too powerful, but people won't wage war because of it. If that genius manages to grow long enough to become a deterrent for other villages it naturally will give the village a lot of benefits.

But the current situation is completely different. Three people that could be considered a supreme geniuses. Hinata with her water style, Yuna, who can apparently even overwhelm Kakashi with technique alone, and Naruto, who can apparently not only control the Kyuubi's chakra to some degree but seems to be a high-level sealing master as well. On top of all of that, Yuna and Naruto are the children of the fourth Hokage, a man feared by every other nation.

'If information of these three gets out, there will probably be more assassins than civilians inside Konoha. Won't those three die by suffocation simply because there are too many assassins piled on top of them?'

The atmosphere in the room grew somber, while Hiruzen's eyes turned serious as a bit of his chakra leaked out causing the room to tremble. Even the usually lazy Kakashi straightened his back and awaited Hiruzen's next words. Hiruzen might be rather casual when speaking normally, but that doesn't mean he has lost the respect of the shinobi under him when he is serious.

"This is an SS rank secret. No one is allowed to know about it. Sooner or later, those three will be exposed, but we will keep it a secret for as long as we can. Catch up to Kurenai and explain the situation to her while revealing as little information as possible. Tell Kurenai to talk about this with her genin as well. You will do the same with your own and Yuna. The longer we keep this a secret, the longer those three will have time to grow, and the easier it will be for us when they are finally revealed."

"Yes, Hokage-sama…"

"What is wrong Kakashi, it seems like you have more to say."

"This…yes. This is just a… gut feeling, but something feels…off?"

"Off? What do you mean?"

"Well, it is like this: If you were to rank those three by talent, who would you put in what place?"

Hiruzen didn't have to think about that too long and immediately gave his answer.

"Naruto is, obviously, in the first place. A high-ranking seal's mastery and control over Kyuubi's chakra easily puts him in the first place. Hinata is definitely second place. Her affinity for water release might even surpass the second Hokage, after all. This would put Yuna in third place. Although a high mastery in taijutsu is great, it is simply not comparable to the other two."

Kakashi nodded his head in agreement, after all, he thought the same at first, but…

"If you rank them like this, then why is Yuna the only one who won?"

"Pardon?"

"Between the three of them, she is the only one who actually won. Naruto was close to getting the bell a few times, yet he didn't. Hinata was close to defeating Kurenai a few times, yet she didn't. Yuna on the other hand did not only get a bell from me, she did it pretty much without breaking a sweat."

Hiruzen pondered that for a moment and then nodded his head.

"Indeed, I never thought about it like this, but I don't think we have to…"

Surprisingly, Kakashi interrupted Hiruzen's speech before he could finish

"Hokage-sama, Yuna's presence is making me nervous. I can't get a read on her at all. Her body language is constantly changing. When I speak to others, I look for signs of whether the other party is lying or saying the truth on instinct, yet when I talk with her, she shows signs of both whenever she says something. And, worst of all is, without a doubt, her eyes. Whenever I cross eyes with her, I feel like all lies will be exposed in front of them. I am not saying that she is Konoha's enemy, I am only saying that my instincts are screaming at me to be careful every time I stand in front of her."

Although Hiruzen had no idea how Kakashi came to that kind of conclusion, Hiruzen still nodded in agreement. As one of Konoha's strongest shinobi, Kakashi's words, naturally, held a lot of weight.

'Maybe it is finally time for me to meet her properly? Should I visit them at their flat? I am sure they will be surprised when the Hokage himself appears in front of their doorstep.'

Hiruzen couldn't help but smile with mischief after dismissing Kakashi.

'Hehe, I am looking forward to seeing their surprised faces.'