Kitahara Kaede locked the doors and windows, then wedged a strand of hair into the crack of the door as a silent alarm.
After confirming that no one was around, he sat back down by the bed and moved his thoughts.
A screen of light popped up.
[Please allocate your initial attribute points, Host. Total: 20 points.]
[Available options: Talent, Family Background, Appearance, Luck.]
[Note: The maximum for a single attribute is 10 points. Your attributes will determine the direction of your "life script."]
Four options. Twenty points.
Kitahara Kaede did not hesitate.
Talent—10.
Maxed out.
He knew the rules of the Naruto world far too well.
Everyone shouted about the Will of Fire and equality, but in the end, what truly mattered was bloodline limits and birth.
What did hard work from soone without talent amount to on the battlefield?
Delivering a free kill to the enemy.
If he wanted to beco soone's unforgettable first love, he first had to be strong enough for others to look up to.
If he charged forward to take a blade without enough strength, that wasn't a heroic sacrifice.
That was blocking soone's view.
Appearance—8.
Since he was aiming to be a white moonlight, his face was a hard requirent.
The sa life-saving grace would get very different reactions depending on appearance. If you were ugly, it was "I'll repay you as an ox or horse in my next life." If you were handso, it was "I'll give myself to you."
Family Background—2.
He did not need to be a direct heir of so prestigious clan. Ideally, he would be from a declining household whose ancestors had once been powerful.
As long as he had an identity that made things convenient, that was enough. Maybe he could even inherit a few ninjutsu techniques.
Luck—0.
When his finger pressed down, he did not hesitate for even a second.
Luck was a life-saving charm for others.
For him?
It was a negative modifier.
The worse his luck, the harsher his fate.
The harsher his fate, the more tragic his death.
And the more tragic his death—
the deeper she would rember him.
Heaven envied talent. Beauties died young. Longing unfulfilled. Love ending only in death.
A perfect match for his profession.
[Talent: 10 / Appearance: 8 / Family Background: 2 / Luck: 0]
[Confirmation complete. Loading—]
The light screen flashed, and lines of text began to scroll.
[The ninja world has only just stabilized. The First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, suppresses the era with his might. On the surface, Konoha Village is peaceful, but undercurrents are stirring.]
[Identity generated: Young Master of the Hagoromo Clan. Your clan once allied with the Senju during the Warring States Period. Now, with its numbers dwindling, it has been absorbed into Konoha.]
[Your na is: Hagoromo Kaede.]
[With the mories of an adult and max-level talent, you have obtained the genius script. You walked at one year old, refined chakra at two, and learned ninjutsu the mont you were taught.]
[Year 13 of the Hokage Era: Tsunade is born.]
[Fast-forwarding ti—]
[You are four years old. Tsunade is three.]
[Senju Hashirama calls a high-level eting. As the head of the Hagoromo Clan, your father brings you to the Senju estate to attend.]
[The first chapter officially begins.]
His vision changed.
Light poured in, making him narrow his eyes.
The air carried the faint fragrance of wood. Beneath his feet was a polished floor, smooth to the touch, so real that it hardly felt like a simulation.
A four-year-old body.
His hands had shrunk by a full size, and he was kneeling behind his father.
The last line of text was still lingering in his mind.
[Year 13 of the Hokage Era: Tsunade is born.]
Tsunade.
The granddaughter of Senju Hashirama, the future Fifth Hokage, and one of the "Legendary Sannin."
The system's aning was very clear.
This ti, his target was Tsunade.
He cald himself and quietly swept his gaze around the room.
More than a dozen clan heads were seated on both sides of the main hall.
The seat of honor at the front was empty, though tea had already been poured.
Tsunade was not there.
That made sense. A three-year-old child would not appear in a eting hall.
Kitahara Kaede withdrew his gaze and obediently lowered his head.
No rush. He would observe the situation first.
About the ti it took to drink a cup of tea later—
"I won! I won again! Hahahahaha!"
A burst of laughter ca from outside the hall.
The voice was childish and soft, but full of energy. It was clear enough to be heard even through the corridor and half the courtyard.
Imdiately after ca the clattering sound of dice rolling across a table.
Kitahara Kaede lifted his eyelids and looked through the open side door of the main hall.
Inside the pavilion, Senju Hashirama was sitting cross-legged on the ground, both hands spread open, his face filled with misery.
"I lost again… How is that possible…"
Sitting across from him was a little dumpling of a child.
She wore a white dress and had a golden ponytail sticking up. A whole pile of copper coins and snacks was stacked on the table in front of her. She leaned back, her chin practically raised to the sky.
Three-year-old Tsunade stood with her hands on her hips.
"Grandpa is so dumb! Again!"
Kitahara Kaede glanced at Hashirama's hand.
He had lost on purpose. The way he was throwing the ga was completely undisguised, practically written all over his face.
The First Hokage.
The man who could press the Nine-Tails into the ground and grind it down.
And right now, he was sweating bullets because he kept losing at dice to his granddaughter.
"Again, again!" Tsunade reached out for the dice.
Hashirama was just about to take them when several Senju elders hurried over from the other end of the corridor, their expressions not looking very good.
Hashirama's smile faded halfway, and he stood up.
"Little Tsunade, Grandpa has to go handle sothing."
Tsunade imdiately hugged his leg.
"You just can't handle losing! Cheater!"
"Grandpa really has sothing to do—"
"Liar!"
Tsunade's mouth flattened, and her eyes reddened.
Hashirama lowered his head and looked at her, clearly wavering.
This man had faced Tailed Beasts and Uchiha Madara, yet now, with a three-year-old girl hugging his leg, the corner of his mouth softened.
But the elders had already arrived before him and whispered sothing.
Hashirama sighed and gave the maid a look.
The maid stepped forward to coax her, but Tsunade refused.
After both coaxing and pulling, they finally managed to pry her off the First Hokage's leg.
"I don't want to—let go—Grandpa, you big bad guy—"
Her crying voice twisted several tis before gradually fading into the distance.
Hashirama rubbed his temples and walked toward the main hall with the elders.
The various clan heads rose and followed.
Kitahara Kaede's father also stood and straightened his clothes.
"Father."
Kitahara Kaede tugged at his sleeve.
"It's stuffy inside. I'll go sit outside for a while."
His father glanced at him and nodded.
"Don't go too far."
"Mm."
The eting room door closed.
The main hall emptied out.
Kitahara Kaede stood, walked through the corridor, and turned past a low wall.
Inside the pavilion, dice were scattered all over the floor. Copper coins and snacks were piled ssily across the table.
He walked over, picked up one die, placed it in his palm, and was just about to put it back on the table—
"That's mine."
A voice ca from behind him, still carrying a nasal tone.
Kitahara Kaede turned around.
Tsunade was standing at the corner of the low wall.
Her eyes were red, tear tracks still hanging on her face, and even the tip of her nose was red.
But her mouth was pressed into a straight line as she stared at the die in his hand.
Clearly, she had broken free from the maid and run back here.
Kitahara Kaede looked at her and handed the die over.
"It's yours."
Tsunade quickly walked over, snatched it away, and clutched it in her hand.
Then she took half a step back and sized him up from head to toe.
After she finished looking him over, she wrinkled her nose.
"Who are you?"
"My father ca to see your grandfather," Kitahara Kaede said. "It was stuffy inside, so I ca out to sit."
Tsunade tilted her head and looked at him for two seconds.
It was as if she was trying to judge what background this strange boy, half a head taller than her, ca from.
Then she lowered her head and looked at the die in her hand.
Then she looked at the now-empty pavilion.
Then she looked up at Kitahara Kaede again.
Suddenly, her spirits returned.
"Do you know how to play dice?"
Kitahara Kaede shook his head slightly.
"Not really," he said in a serious tone. Then, after a pause, he added, "Will you teach ?"
Tsunade froze.
Ever since she could rember, it had always been Grandpa teaching her.
No one had ever asked her to teach them anything before.
Her eyes lit up at once.
…
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