"How are you feeling, son?" Sarutobi Ishiwu asked with concern.
"I'm okay... just feeling kind of uncomfortable," Sarutobi Ryo replied.
He hesitated for a moment before asking, "When can I go home?"
Minako held his hand gently and said, "I asked the doctor just now. It'll probably be another two days. They want to keep you for observation before you can go home."
Sarutobi Ishiwu patted his wife's shoulder, signaling that his older brother wanted to ask something.
Minako frowned slightly, then stood up and stepped aside.
Ryo's gaze landed on the man standing at the foot of his bed—Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage. This man was in his prime, full of vigor, looking nothing like the old, frail man with age spots from the original series.
He radiated the aura of a true leader, brimming with confidence and strength, yet his eyes held a touch of genuine concern for Ryo.
"Ryo, I'm your uncle. Feeling better now? Can you tell me what happened? Did you feel anything strange in your body?" Hiruzen asked with a gentle tone.
"Uncle, I'm not really sure what happened. I just followed the method Dad taught me, tried it out, and..."
"I felt chakra for the first time. Then, it was like I got struck by lightning or something."
"Before I passed out, I could feel lightning all around me. Even though my body was numb, it felt... different," Ryo explained.
"Oh? How was it different?" Hiruzen asked curiously.
"It was like... the lightning felt familiar, like it was an old friend," Ryo said nervously, feeling a bit guilty for lying.
Hiruzen chuckled, "Familiar, like a friend? Haha, looks like you've made some pretty impressive friends."
"Get some rest. I'll take care of everything else. To the outside, we'll just say the kid got shocked from being too reckless," Hiruzen instructed.
"Got it, big brother," Sarutobi Ishiwu nodded.
"Thank you, big brother," both parents quickly expressed their gratitude.
After some small talk, Hiruzen turned and left.
Sarutobi Ishiwu looked at his son, his gaze sharp and penetrating, like he could see straight into Ryo's soul.
"Alright, spill it. Our clan's chakra training has never involved getting struck by lightning."
"Dad, I honestly have no idea what happened..." Ryo said awkwardly.
"Then why did you lie?" Sarutobi Ishiwu's tone turned serious.
"Enough! My son's hurt like this and you're interrogating him? What, you think he's some kind of criminal?" Minako snapped back, stepping up to defend her son.
"I'm telling you, it's the chakra training method you gave him! You said it was ancestral, but look at my son—he looks like he got hit by lightning! What, are the ancestors showing up just to zap him? It's his birthday, and look what happened! Boo hoo hoo…"
"Alright, alright, I won't ask anymore. I'll go buy you both some food," Sarutobi Ishiwu sighed. "Just now, the clan leader definitely noticed something. But we're family, so he gave us some space. You're a smart kid, Ryo. Don't do anything foolish," he said before turning and leaving.
Minako gently stroked Ryo's head and spoke softly, "Don't mind your dad. He's been training for so long, it's made him thick-headed.
The Third Hokage wouldn't mind things like this. In fact, the stronger you are, the happier he'll be.
Everyone's got their little secrets. If you don't want to tell anyone, then don't tell anyone.
Because if a secret is known by two people, it's not a secret anymore."
"I understand, Mom," Ryo replied earnestly.
At the Hokage's office, Hiruzen sat at his desk when the door swung open. Tsunade walked in and tossed a file onto his desk.
"Everything's normal. Sensei, you can see for yourself. Other than some extra-active cells, he's exactly what his parents said—he got a little shock, but he's fine. If there's nothing else, I'm heading out," Tsunade said casually before striding out.
Hiruzen looked down at the file for a while, his brows furrowed as he thought deeply.
Ryo ended up staying in the hospital for a full week before he was finally allowed to go home.
Once he got back, everything seemed normal. Everyone acted like the incident had never even happened.
One day, Sarutobi Ishiwu gave Ryo a test using chakra paper to determine his chakra nature.
The result? Lightning, Fire, and Earth.
Three attributes—not bad at all for a ninja.
Even though his chakra nature was determined, Sarutobi Ishiwu didn't teach him any jutsu. Instead, he made Ryo focus entirely on basic training.
"For you, training in ninjutsu is still too early. Right now, you should focus on building your body, eating well, and getting enough sleep.
You should refine your chakra, but don't rush it. You haven't even started school yet, and you're already miles ahead of the other kids.
Overtraining can mess up your body, limit your potential, and burn through your life force," Ishiwu explained.
Ryo accepted this advice without complaint and settled into a steady routine of training.
First, he would extract chakra. Then he'd practice with kunai and shuriken. Finally, he would run laps around Konoha.
A year flew by in the blink of an eye. Ryo, for one, was amazed that the damn system disappeared again.
But on the other hand, he made good use of the powers granted by the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, often using Lightning Chakra to toughen up his body.
Because of this, he was way taller than other kids his age—he looked like he was five or six, not four.
He didn't bother hiding his talent. With no one guiding him, he still figured out how to infuse Lightning Chakra into his weapons.
To the people who knew him, Sarutobi Ryo was seen as a little genius. So the family talked it over and decided to send him to school a year early.
After all, the regular ninja school curriculum was six years long. He'd have plenty of time to learn and make friends—friends who would one day fight alongside him. Better to get started early than waste time at home.
A month before school started, Sarutobi Ishiwu handed Ryo a scroll.
"I know you like Lightning-style jutsu, but my chakra natures are Fire and Earth. Your mom's not a ninja, so our family doesn't have any Lightning-style jutsu lying around.
But this scroll here? It's not Lightning-style, but it's a must-learn for every Sarutobi ninja. I think you're going to like it. Take it—as a gift for starting school," Ishiwu said warmly.
Ryo took the scroll with respect, opened it, and read the words: "Fire Style: Great Flame Technique."