I, Konoha's Sage of Life

"What is Shisui doing?"

"He's... helping civilians carry water and firewood."

"Huh?"

The Third Hokage's eyes flickered with confusion.

For a moment, he thought he had misheard, perhaps mistaking Shisui's name for Obito's.

But after a pause, he reassured himself that he wasn't that old, nor were his subordinates incompetent enough to mix up names.

He remained silent for a long while before setting down his pipe.

"Shisui? Carrying water and firewood?"

"Yes..."

Even the ANBU were puzzled.

Carrying water and chopping firewood were tasks typically assigned to genin.

But...

This was wartime. There were no genin to handle such tasks, so they piled up, usually done by Obito, whom everyone just ignored.

But Shisui? A genius treasured by the Uchiha clan? Instead of training, he was running errands for villagers? Why?

"Hmm... I see."

The Third Hokage waved dismissively, signaling the ANBU to leave. Then, without hesitation, he retrieved his crystal ball and activated the Telescope Technique.

Moments later, the crystal ball displayed a scene of Obito and Shisui helping villagers carry water.

The Third Hokage's face turned blank with confusion.

He couldn't understand why Shisui would involve himself in something so trivial.

Was it Obito's influence? Or... Uchiha Fugaku's?

The Third Hokage furrowed his brow.

If Obito had led Shisui into this, it was understandable. But if this was orchestrated by Uchiha Fugaku, it could mean trouble.

Lighting a cigarette, he deliberated carefully.

Another possibility came to mind: Kanda Kyoichi.

Reports had reached him that Shisui and Kyoichi had been spending more time together since Kyoichi became a teacher. There was even mention of the two sharing a meal at Ichiraku Ramen.

Could it be his doing?

Not impossible.

The Hokage retrieved an ANBU report from two days prior, detailing observations about Kyoichi:

"Possesses remarkable physical resilience and recovery ability. Utilizes Shadow Clones to accelerate training. Practices swordsmanship in his courtyard, possibly using notes on Second Hokage Tobirama's Konoha-style sword techniques."

From their observations, it was evident:

While Kyoichi's physical condition wasn't as monstrous as the First Hokage's, it was comparable to Tobirama's.

Without a doubt, he carried Senju bloodline traits.

As for the swordsmanship notes—

Kanda's family was closely tied to the Second Hokage, after all.

The Third Hokage sighed deeply.

He had never imagined that, even after the Senju clan's apparent extinction, someone would awaken their powerful constitution anew.

Of course, such a revelation was both exciting and worrisome.

If Shisui's behavior change was indeed due to Kyoichi's influence, it would be a welcome surprise, demonstrating that this descendant of the Senju still carried the Will of Fire.

After much thought, the Hokage added a name to the list of jonin candidates: Kanda Kyoichi.

---

For the next two days, Kyoichi had no classes.

On the third day, when he returned to school, he overheard two teachers chatting in the office.

"Sigh, I don't know what's gotten into Shisui recently. He's started coming to class late."

"Must've picked it up from Obito."

"Probably. Every time Shisui's late, Obito's right there with him."

Shisui's tardiness?

Kyoichi was surprised, then his expression turned odd.

Even tardiness? Did Shisui really pick that up from Obito?

Unbelievable.

He had told Shisui to observe, not to imitate Obito's behavior entirely.

"Kyoichi, your class is first period today. If those two are late again, don't go easy on them. The first time you're lenient, they'll keep pushing it."

"Got it. Thanks for the advice, Ishimura-senpai."

Kyoichi nodded.

As class time approached, he picked up his materials and headed to the classroom. Before he reached the door, two figures darted past in a blur.

Though they moved fast, every teacher in the office, all of whom were at least chunin, saw them clearly: Shisui and Obito.

"Uh..." The office fell into an awkward silence.

Those two had been late to other classes all week, but for Kyoichi's class, not only were they on time, but they arrived early.

The teachers who had thought Shisui was "going astray" suddenly realized that he simply didn't care for their lessons.

Ishimura Takashi stared at Kyoichi as he left, then slumped onto his desk, visibly dejected.

"Kyoichi's just a temporary teacher. How is he more popular than me?"

"Don't take it so hard, Ishimura-sensei. They're just a couple of kids..."

"No, you don't understand. I've been teaching for over a decade, and I've seen countless students graduate under my guidance. Now, a substitute is outperforming me. It's crushing!"

The other teachers fell silent.

Ouch.

Outside, Kyoichi, who overheard everything, couldn't help but smirk.

What can I say? I teach practical stuff. They don't.

When he entered the classroom, the students were already seated, sitting upright and attentive.

"I saw Obito and Shisui using the Body Flicker Technique to rush to class today. Very impressive. So here's the plan: we'll start with a quick test of the Clone, Transformation, and Substitution techniques. If everything looks good, I'll teach you the Body Flicker Technique."

The classroom erupted with excitement.

But not everyone.

A significant number of students hadn't yet mastered the basics.

Kyoichi scanned the room and smiled. "Don't get too excited. Since this is a mixed-age class, I'm looking at the overall progress, not just individual performance. Got it?"

"Yes, sir!"

Rin, Kurenai, and other senior students immediately understood.

If too many students lagged behind, the entire class would have to wait to learn new techniques.

Realizing this, some of the more advanced students started thinking about how to help their peers catch up.

By the time they broke into practice groups, most of the talented students had paired up with those struggling, including Obito.

Meanwhile, Kyoichi's attention was drawn to one student: Hayate Gekkō.

Hayate was quick to grasp the concepts, but—

"Cough, cough... When using the Transformation Technique with the Clone Technique, pay attention to chakra allocation and hand seal speed. Cough... Try mastering tree climbing first. I'll teach you."

That cough... Man, it's intense.

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