[Hokage's Office]

The atmosphere was tense. Everyone there was nervous.

"I thought he could only use real illusion in a more indirect way, like creating lightning or something..." One of them said, breaking the silence.

Although the crystal ball made no sound, everyone in that room was highly capable of reading lips and knew the contents of the conversation and what Aizen had said when explaining about his real illusion.

"Just needing someone's blood to have control of their life in your hands..." Another Jonin added, "That's scary."

"Hokage-sama... Shouldn't we deal with him now before he becomes a threat to the village?"

This question from one of the Jonins made the Hokage look at him coldly.

"Of course not!" Hiruzen slammed his fist on the table and said slowly, with a serious tone: "I know you're scared of his talent and even I didn't know he had already developed a way to use his real illusion so effectively and with such a low level needed to put it into action. However, he is still a citizen of Konoha and someone who loves his village, I see the fire in his heart! Just look at what he has already done for the village and you'll understand that he's not a threat to us, but to our enemies!"

"I agree with Hokage-sama," said Kurenai, who spent more time investigating Aizen because of his talent with genjutsu. "As far as I know, he's a very kind boy who helps everyone close to him. Just look at his classmates, who were initially scared, but soon put their fear aside when they realized it was Aizen who could do this. Do you understand what that means?"

"But, Kurenai, can't he just be pretending to be kind?" Asuma asked, skeptically.

"What are you saying, Asuma?" Kurenai shook her head. "You've been out of the village for so long, so you don't understand. But anyone who knows a little about Aizen knows how kind he is. Since he entered ninja school, he spared no effort when one of his classmates needed help. He didn't even isolate or restrict any of them, like Sasuke or someone like Naruto. He helped them, gave them tips, and you can see the result of that involvement for yourself."

Silence prevailed once again.

Even though they had heard all this, it was hard to deny that it didn't rid them of thoughts that he might be dangerous.

Hiruzen broke the silence: "Cough, I understand your insecurities, but just observe him if you're wary of him. But, I must warn you, don't try anything funny against him, or I won't let it slide, understood?"

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"Yes!" They all had to agree, though Asuma seemed a little dissatisfied.

━━━━

[Aizen's POV]

Time flowed slowly but steadily, soon almost all of my classmates dueled each other, but no one challenged me.

And, Sasuke challenged Hinata.

The duel ended faster than everyone expected, and the winner left everyone stunned.

Going against me made others underestimate Hinata a bit, since, although she had shown a lot of her current strength, from their point of view, she didn't seem to surpass Sasuke. However, when the duel started, Sasuke lost in less than 5 minutes.

"I still can't believe Sasuke lost so quickly to Hinata..." Ino muttered beside me.

"Is it that hard to believe?" I said with a smile. "Actually, it's very easy if you think about it. Anyone who isn't fast or skilled enough won't be able to dodge all the arrows shot by Hinata. So, again, is it hard to imagine?"

Ino fell silent, pondering, then she said: "Mm, I see. Putting it that way, yes, especially if Hinata can get to a high place like a tree, the fight is practically won by her."

"Very well, everyone, the class ends here. You can all pack up and go home now," interrupted Iruka, ending everyone's conversation.

"Finally over!" Naruto exclaimed.

Others were not as expressive, but I could see that they were also looking forward to ending the day, especially those who had been hurt a bit while dueling someone.

As we went to get our things in the classroom, I noticed that some of them were still a little cautious around me. However, it only lasted a short time.

The moment I gave tips to one of them, soon others started asking me for tips to improve, especially those who lost in the duel or even those who, even though they won, it was by very little and didn't want to be surpassed, like Ino, who barely beat Sakura.

The fact was that, now that they knew how powerful I was and yet I was willing to give some of my time to give tips, helping them improve, made me realize that their gratitude towards me had increased.

At some point, I realized that I was becoming stagnant. Although they were still grateful, I understood that it was a situation similar to giving a gift to a friend.

The first time, they would be grateful to you, the second time, they would be happy, the third time, they were expecting to receive something, the fourth and so on, they would feel they deserved to receive a gift and, if you stop giving something that was now 'theirs', they might even get upset and think you're taking something that belongs to them.

So, I need to be careful when doing this, to not let them believe that my help is something they deserve and it's my obligation to do it.

Now, I could see that they understood that once again. Understanding that I didn't need to do this, but I did it because I wanted to help them, especially when I reaffirm by saying that we are friends and that's why I help them.

When they heard that, even someone as stoic as Sasuke showed some emotion.

━━━━

[January 11th - Thursday]

I wake up with the strange and familiar notification in my mind. Opening my eyes, I see the book floating open in front of my eyes.

"64 weekly coins have been credited."

Sitting on the edge of the bed with my feet off it, I think: "Mm, this is the highest value I've ever gotten."

A smile forms on my lips. After checking my page, I mentally store the book and leave my room in a good mood.

━━━━

Chapter 39 is already released on Patreon!

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