"Night, your mission was carried out excellently. Lord Danzo asked me to deliver these to you," said Mizuiro as he handed two scrolls to Takuya.
Takuya accepted the scrolls calmly, nodding without saying a word. In Root, there was never a need for unnecessary conversation.
Mizuiro disappeared promptly after delivering the scrolls to avoid compromising Takuya's undercover identity.
Once Mizuiro's presence had fully vanished from his perception, Takuya returned to his room and unrolled both scrolls.
One scroll contained instructions for a Fire-style jutsu—the Great Dragon Fire Technique.
The other was a commendation and new orders from Danzo himself.
Danzo first praised Takuya for swiftly integrating into the ninja academy, proactively completing his mission with impressive efficiency. As recognition, Danzo rewarded him with this powerful Fire-style technique.
However, Danzo quickly reminded him not to become complacent, instructing him to continue his current approach at the academy. He specifically tasked Takuya to keep a close eye on Uchiha Shisui, while also monitoring other Uchiha students whenever possible.
Finally, Danzo dangled a carrot, promising that if Takuya maintained his performance, Danzo would arrange for his promotion to Special Jonin and secure him an influential position at the academy.
After reading the scrolls, Takuya ignited them with a small flame in his hand, quickly reducing them to ashes.
"Special Jonin? A key position?" Takuya chuckled lightly.
The original owner of this body might have eagerly fallen for Danzo's flattery and empty promises, but Takuya himself had no such desires.
The Fire-style jutsu was one he already possessed, and he had zero ambition for promotion.
He felt no excitement—only amusement.
Takuya intended to begin his training while his shadow clone studied, but quickly realized he'd exhausted every ninjutsu-related book in his house.
Thinking for a moment, he decided to visit Konoha's central library.
Established during the Second Hokage's era, the library housed a wide variety of books, including some basic D- and C-ranked ninjutsu. Naturally, higher-level jutsu or forbidden techniques weren't accessible, and borrowing even basic ninjutsu was expensive.
But Takuya didn't care much about that. He wasn't looking for ninjutsu scrolls—rather, he wanted references on sealing techniques, specifically binding curse seals.
Learning jutsu from his teaching system was significantly faster, but removing the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal on his tongue was something he needed to solve himself.
Though less sinister than the Hyūga clan's Caged Bird Seal, having someone else's curse mark on him still felt uncomfortable.
As he walked through Konoha's busy streets, Takuya felt strangely detached.
It had been over half a month since he transmigrated into this Naruto world, yet this was the first time he'd ventured outside in person. Usually, even grocery shopping was handled by his shadow clones.
Because of his precarious identity and the dangers inherent in this world, he'd been reluctant to expose himself. Only now, after weeks of accumulating jutsu and chakra, did he feel somewhat safer from sudden, unforeseen threats.
Arriving at the library, he presented his ninja ID booklet to the attending ninja guard, which verified basic information like his name and identification number.
This library was exclusively for ninja use.
The guard scanned the booklet briefly, nodded approval, and let him enter.
Just as Takuya prepared to browse for materials, a familiar figure approached—a blond-haired man with a gentle, affable smile.
Sensing Takuya's gaze, Minato Namikaze glanced up as well. The two men politely nodded at each other as Takuya entered and Minato exited.
Immediately, the system's details flashed into Takuya's mind:
『Name: Minato Namikaze』
『Chakra: 40,000』
『Potential: S』
『Evaluation: Killing Jonin is as easy as chopping vegetables—one extra glance might make you explode』
Externally, Takuya remained completely calm, but internally, he was utterly stunned.
This was the first time he'd seen someone with chakra levels exceeding ten thousand—and Minato had a whopping forty thousand, equivalent to eighty six-year-old Shisuis.
The evaluation was equally terrifying—casually killing Jonin like it was nothing.
At this point in time, Minato hadn't yet earned his moniker as the "Yellow Flash." He was currently perceived as simply a capable Jonin. Ironically, his sensei, Jiraiya of the legendary Sannin, was far more famous and considered a likely Hokage candidate.
Yet Takuya thought about it carefully—this evaluation wasn't exaggerated. Minato, who had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, genuinely could eliminate most Jonin effortlessly.
A ninja of such speed had an unmatched advantage over weaker opponents.
"If only Minato already had a son in the academy," Takuya lamented inwardly. That would have been a perfect chance to befriend him.
He genuinely wished to establish a friendship with Minato—not only because Minato was powerful but also because he was highly skilled in sealing techniques.
Cursed marks were essentially a specialized branch of sealing jutsu.
With an expert like Minato advising him, removing the Cursed Tongue Seal would become significantly simpler.
As for Kushina Uzumaki, her status as the Jinchūriki was far too sensitive. Takuya preferred not to involve himself with that potential danger.
After selecting two books on sealing techniques and three miscellaneous ones, Takuya completed his registration, paid the fee, and left the library.
In Konoha's Nankyo Forest, Takuya was training his students in preparation for their upcoming exams.
"You two haven't forgotten your promise, right? Tomorrow's theory test—you must pass," Takuya reminded Obito and Might Guy.
"Of course! Sensei, if we fail, punish us however you like!" Obito said confidently.
Though most of their training sessions focused on practical jutsu, they'd just done a previous year's exam paper as practice. Obito scored thirty points.
Based on past experience, that was comfortably above passing.
In Konoha's ninja academy, the passing mark was half the class average—usually around fifty points. He felt secure.
"That's right! If we fail, we'll run eight hundred laps around Konoha!" Guy declared energetically, having also just scored thirty points.
"And not only will I pass theory, but I'll also take first place in the practical exam!" After training diligently under Takuya for weeks, Obito felt confident enough to completely dominate his former self.
"I won't give up first place that easily!" Guy retorted competitively.
Takuya smiled without comment. Knowing the overall skill level of the fourth-year students, he doubted Obito or Guy would secure first place easily. There was a student from the Hyūga clan in Class 4-1 who was already quite formidable.
Although that Hyūga student's potential was rated only A, Obito had yet to awaken his Sharingan, and Guy hadn't learned the Eight Gates yet—their true potential remained unrealized.
Takuya didn't voice this, though—after all, their levels were still low enough that anything could happen.
Glancing at Shisui, who quietly read nearby, Takuya knew one thing for sure: Shisui would unquestionably claim first place in both theory and practical exams for his grade.
If allowed to compete across different grades, Shisui might even be first in the entire school.
"I wonder if the system will reward me if my students do well on their exams," Takuya mused internally.