Uzuki Yugao.
In the original storyline, once she graduated she entered the ANBU and rose to the rank of Special Jōnin thanks to her mastery of Konoha-style swordsmanship. The girl many fans jokingly remember only because "Hayate died because Hayate was Hayate" was, of course, her boyfriend—Moonlight Hayate himself.
But now that she had been accepted as Orochimaru's disciple—even if only as an extra pick—it was enough to launch her straight into phoenix-on-the-branch territory.
A pity, really. In the original work she barely registered as more than a pretty side character. If she hadn't been attractive, most people probably wouldn't have remembered her at all.
The value of destiny depended on two criteria:
First, how important a character was in the original story.
Second, how drastically that character's fate had been altered.
At most, a character could yield one hundred destiny points for each "fate node."
Roughly speaking, fifty points came from the character's narrative weight, and fifty from how far they'd been pushed off their original path.
Yugao had contributed forty-nine points.
That meant her fate had been twisted almost to the extreme—she was already walking a road entirely different from the one she should have taken.
Uchiha Itachi, however, had only contributed eighteen. Clearly, even while becoming Orochimaru's apprentice, his core intentions hadn't shifted. For Konoha's sake, he would still choose extreme measures.
Orochimaru took Uchiha Itachi and Uzuki Yugao with him, and the ninja school's test wrapped up. Everyone headed home in the usual scatter—each to their own house and their own parents.
The moment Haruya reached the school gate, he spotted his guardian and nominal mother, Tsunade.
"Why are you half an hour late today?"
"Orochimaru-sama came to pick disciples, so the school ran a full round of tests," Haruya said, slipping his small hand into her larger one.
Tsunade froze for a couple of seconds.
Her thoughts had flickered back to Nawaki. After all, the last apprentice Orochimaru had chosen… had been her little brother.
Seeing her drift into silence, Haruya tilted his head up to check her expression—but his view was promptly blocked by a pair of mountains whose identities needed no explanation.
There was an old saying in his previous life: When a woman looks down and can't see her toes, she's one of the world's great beauties.
He hadn't expected to experience the reverse perspective firsthand.
Realizing he'd probably said the wrong thing, he opened his mouth to comfort her—but Tsunade scooped him up before he could speak, folding him into a soft, warm embrace.
Being held like that let him finally see her expression: a flicker of sadness.
Of course. He'd reminded her of Nawaki.
But that sorrow seemed to spill over onto him—turning into affection.
"Don't move," she murmured. "Just let me hold you. It'll pass."
Haruya immediately stilled, obedient as a plush toy.
A while later, Tsunade released him—although she still didn't put him down. She just carried him home.
Haruya kept quiet, bored, and occupied himself by watching the elegant line of her jaw shift with each step.
"You've been staring at me the whole way," Tsunade said, glancing down. "How do I look?"
The sudden question caught him off guard. He had no idea what answer she was fishing for.
Tsunade found his scrambled expression unbearably cute. She hugged him tighter, nuzzled his cheek affectionately, and whispered, "Thanks. I feel better now."
Her warm breath tickled him, and Haruya shivered.
"I'm going to check whether Shizune's finished cooking," she said, finally setting him down and giving him a quick head-pat.
Haruya sighed with relief, flopped onto the sofa, and turned on the TV.
How to describe it? The show was painfully bland—but decent enough as background noise.
After a while, Tsunade and Shizune emerged with dinner.
"I'm starting!" Haruya declared, clapping his hands.
The cafeteria food at the academy was mediocre at best. He'd had Tsunade's rice balls that morning, which were fine, but tonight's dinner was the real restorative feast. Obviously he had to eat like someone recovering HP in an RPG—meat included.
After dinner, it was time for his usual Wood Release practice. Shizune slipped back to her room to study medical techniques. Tsunade stayed in the hall, half-watching TV, half-watching him through the window in case something went wrong.
Haruya sifted through the ninjutsu scrolls and eventually chose his next technique: Wood Release—Wooden Shield Dome.
A defensive jutsu that raised a ring of wooden pillars which bent inward to form a dome—full 360-degree protection, no blind spots.
"Haruya, want an apple?" Tsunade called. "I'll slice one for you."
"Okay," he answered between hand seals.
But several minutes passed… and she still hadn't returned.
Wiping away sweat, Haruya hopped to the window for a quick look—then froze before dashing into the hall.
Tsunade was hugging herself, trembling violently.
Haruya immediately spotted the blood smear on the fruit knife.
He grabbed a cloth and wiped it clean.
Ninjas tended to be high offense, low defense. Tsunade was no exception—unless she activated her unique jutsu. A tiny cut and a glimpse of blood was enough to trigger her hemophobia.
Not knowing what else to do, Haruya gently patted her back.
"Don't be scared," he whispered.
Tsunade lifted her head with effort. When she saw him, she pulled him straight into her arms.
Haruya was immediately engulfed by waves of… softness. He went quiet. Mostly because he couldn't move.
It took a long time before her trembling stopped.
Haruya stretched his stiff body. "Sister, you should rest."
Instead of letting go, Tsunade clutched him even tighter.
She clearly hadn't fully recovered from the shock.
Haruya sighed inwardly. What else could he do? Just endure it.
Then, without a word, Tsunade stood up, still holding him, carried him into her room, laid him in her bed, and tucked him in.
"Eh?"
Haruya was stunned.What was this development?
Tsunade turned off the light, climbed in, and used Haruya as a human pillow.
Within minutes, she was breathing peacefully.
This is torture, Haruya thought. I've become Yahiko.
But in the end, the patient's needs outweighed everything. He'd endure it for one night.
By early morning, Haruya woke with a sore back.
Tsunade was a messy sleeper—one arm around him, one leg over him, her face buried into his neck. For a brief while, he'd felt wrapped in gentle softness… but several hours of the same position was brutal.
"Sister," Haruya whispered.
She stirred slightly—then hugged him tighter and rubbed her cheek against him like a kitten.
"Just let me sleep a bit longer…"
"…"
He couldn't withstand her weight forever. So he used his ultimate move: he hugged her neck and murmured pitifully, "Sister… I'm hungry."
Tsunade's eyes snapped open. "I'll make you rice balls."
Haruya slipped free at last.
He dressed, washed up, and felt reborn.Last night had been the ultimate survival challenge.
After breakfast, he headed to school.
His seatmate, Uchiha Itachi—normally incapable of skipping class—was absent. Every student was jealous.
Not because he got a day off, but because he now had Orochimaru's personal tutelage.
Haruya, who knew the truth, felt no envy whatsoever.
Calling it "tutelage" was generous… and optimistic.
Soon it was Saturday again—July 7th.
Haruya transferred all his chakra into a wood clone, then spent a handful of destiny points to send the clone out to track the legendary Akatsuki organization.
His plan to rescue Karin and her mother officially began.
And for those wondering how Tsunade managed to cut herself with a fruit knife—don't ask. Just accept that this is the Welfare Department's doing.