**Chapter 49: Beloved Disciple!**

"Master!"

"Brother!"

"Brother Sougen!!"

Just as Sougen pushed open the office door, a chorus of greetings hit him in the face before he even stepped inside. Upon closer inspection, he saw that a bunch of little kids had invaded his newly renovated office. Instantly, he knew his nap time today was gone.

"Fujika, shouldn't you be in class at the ninja school right now?"

Sougen walked over and ruffled his sister's hair, then glanced at Naruto and... Sasuke, who were standing nearby. This puzzled him. It was normal for Naruto to skip class, but what was Sasuke doing skipping too?

"School is boring! They give us blunt shuriken to play with, and it's no fun at all," Fujika pouted, her small face filled with discontent.

"Fujika swapped out the blunt shuriken for real ones today, so the teacher made her stand outside until school is over. But she ran away," Naruto whispered, revealing the truth.

"Got it," Sougen replied knowingly, not too concerned.

During wartime, six or seven-year-olds would carry knives and head to the battlefield to kill. But now, ninja school had become so delicate that the students lacked the killing intent and ferocity a ninja should have. If they were sent to the battlefield, Sougen doubted even 10% would make it back alive.

In his opinion, training as a ninja should involve real weapons; those blunt toys were pointless.

Besides, Sougen personally taught Fujika how to use shuriken, so he wasn't worried she'd hurt herself. If she were that clumsy, she might as well give up on being a ninja and just stay home as a proper young lady.

"Okay, Sasuke, what's your excuse today?" Sougen asked, shifting his gaze to him.

"Uh..." Sasuke stammered, his face turning red.

Sougen glanced at Naruto, his little informant at ninja school, who didn't disappoint. Naruto quickly revealed Sasuke's exploits: After learning the Fireball Jutsu from his father, Sasuke couldn't resist showing off during combat class...

"...Did you blow up the school?" Sougen's eyes widened.

"No, no! Naruto, stop exaggerating. I just accidentally knocked down part of a wall. It was just a tiny bit, and the school is still standing!" Sasuke, flustered, argued with Naruto. Seeing Sasuke so lively, it was hard to imagine he'd grow into that dark, brooding figure in the original future.

"Fireball Jutsu? You learned it already?" Sougen blinked, only now processing the feat.

Learning the Fireball Jutsu at age five... well, it wasn't too surprising. After all, Sasuke was the reincarnation of Indra's chakra, and both he and Naruto had exceptional talents. In the original timeline, their potential had been wasted for various reasons, only blooming at fifteen or sixteen.

"My father taught me," Sasuke said seriously.

He couldn't help but smile when mentioning his father. To him, his father stepping down as clan leader was the best thing ever. Now, his father had more time to spend at home, and for the first time in Sasuke's memory, he saw his father smile. He even spent hours teaching him the Fireball Jutsu, something Sasuke could've never imagined before.

"Well done! But next time, when you use the Fireball Jutsu at school, aim for an empty field or the pond."

Blushing, Sasuke nodded in agreement.

Fujika, standing nearby, rolled her eyes. Despite skipping school together, she and Sasuke didn't get along. In fact, Sasuke had a better relationship with Naruto. Even though they were both Uchiha and Sasuke admired Sougen, that didn't mean they had to be friends.

Fujika thought Sasuke was too clingy, while Sasuke felt Fujika was too wild for a girl. They just didn't get along. On the other hand, Naruto was a social butterfly, able to play with anyone.

Oh, and besides Fujika, Naruto, and Sasuke, Sougen's one and only disciple was also there!

As for why they were all together… well, Kurama Tsumuyu, out of love for his daughter, had moved her into Sougen's house, hoping she'd recover faster.

This wasn't unusual. Among ninjas, the bond between a master and a true disciple was as close as that between father and son. True disciples not only lived with their masters for training but also, if the master were to die, would take on the duty of performing the funeral rites.

And so, the frail Kurama Yakumo moved into Sougen's house and naturally became familiar with Fujika. It was too early to say they were friends, though. Maybe when Yakumo could join in Fujika's mischief, they'd truly become friends.

"Alright, go play outside! Stop causing a fuss in here." After greeting each of them, Sougen waved the kids out. They were too noisy, and he still had important matters to attend to.

"Yakumo, how have you been feeling the past few days?" Sougen asked, pulling up a chair to sit in front of her.

He activated his Sharingan, carefully examining his disciple's condition and checking the stability of the seal.

"Much better! I even walked around the courtyard this morning and didn't feel tired at all."

Yakumo nodded vigorously.

"Good to hear. Looks like I'll have to study sealing techniques more," Sougen thought.

When it came to his disciple's problem, there were two possible solutions: One was to enhance Yakumo's physical energy, possibly by transplanting Senju or Uzumaki cells to balance her overwhelming spiritual energy. But he didn't have access to those cells, nor the technology to do it.

Though he could use Samehada, the sharkskin sword, to slowly strengthen her physical energy. 

The second option was to weaken her spiritual power, either by sealing it or siphoning it off. After careful thought, Sougen decided to try sealing part of her spiritual energy without using his Sharingan.

As for using "Kinohana Sakuyahime" to steal his disciple's potential and make himself stronger, Sougen wouldn't stoop that low. Her immense spiritual power was her greatest asset for the future.

In the end, Sougen chose a two-pronged approach. He would use Samehada to slowly boost her physical energy and study sealing techniques to temporarily lock away her excess spiritual energy.

Sougen formed hand seals, summoning Samehada, which was happily feeding in the Konoha prison.

(End of Chapter)