Naruto: I Can Upgrade My Techniques Infinitely
Chapter 140: What Matters Most to the Village...

Chapter 140: What Matters Most to the Village...

Nara Kazuki curled his lip slightly. No surprise—the Fourth Hokage and his wife truly lived up to their reputation. But it did make sense. Minato’s love for Kushina was always sincere and fiery. Unlike the unreliable Jiraiya—clearly head over heels for Tsunade, yet constantly womanizing around the world. No wonder he died alone.

Thinking of that, Kazuki rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Should he help Jiraiya out? Maybe try to win over Tsunade for him? Would that count as a hidden achievement or something? If it did, that would be ideal.

"Kazuki, come to think of it... you’re not a kid anymore. Ever considered getting married?" Minato asked, eyes gleaming with genuine curiosity.

Kazuki’s mouth twitched. He turned to look at Minato—those eyes were deadly serious.

And that’s exactly what made it terrifying!

"Lord Fourth, I’m still young. I’m not considering stepping into that battlefield just yet," Kazuki quickly waved it off. He truly had no plans to get into a relationship—at least not until the shinobi world’s crisis was resolved and his own safety was assured. Love meant bonds, and bonds meant vulnerabilities.

Look at all those TV shows and movies—protagonists always got screwed because villains captured their lover, their kid, or some other poor sap, forcing them into traps, humiliations, or even brushes with death. Kazuki saw it clearly—he wanted no part in that.

"If there’s a girl you like, feel free to tell me. Back in the day, I was quite the lady-killer among shinobi," Minato said with a broad grin.

Kazuki gave a half-laugh and nodded. He understood Minato’s angle. After all, Minato was the Hokage. And for a hidden village, what mattered most... was population.

More people meant more ninja. More ninja meant an edge in war.

Just look at Iwagakure—after that failed attempt to set up the previous Raikage, they lost a huge number of shinobi. They were still trying to recover.

In the shinobi world, ninjas and high-level powerhouses were crucial. And a large population made them more likely to emerge.

Kazuki saw the world’s weird dynamics clearly. The shinobi world had shades of bloodline theory—hell, left unchecked, they might end up like those pureblood families from Harry Potter. Everyone knew: when two shinobi had a kid, there was a much greater chance that kid would also be a shinobi.

But when a ninja and a civilian paired up, the odds dropped. That’s why the major clans often intermarried, especially with other strong families.

Thinking that far, Kazuki suddenly froze.

A chilling thought struck him.

"Lord Fourth... are there families...?" Kazuki eyed Minato suspiciously.

Minato responded with a knowing smile.

Kazuki’s stomach dropped.

So it was true.

Honestly, he wasn’t that surprised. As he’d just thought: for villages, increasing population mattered; for clans, pairing strong with strong mattered even more. And Kazuki, as a confirmed kekkei genkai holder, had sky-high—

—breeding value.

Children of kekkei genkai users had a high chance of inheriting that bloodline. Sometimes even all of them did. So matchmaking Kazuki to secure his bloodline was perfectly logical.

Plus, he was already a confirmed jonin. Sure, he lacked some experience and hadn’t completed all the official assessments, but his strength alone was more than enough to qualify.

So, when Kazuki returned home, his uncle Suzaku greeted him with a wide smile and led him out to a courtyard.

There, Kazuki saw a girl.

A very cute, soft-spoken girl with a gentle aura. Honestly, she reminded Kazuki of a character from his past life—like one of those anime senpai types, maybe even a bit like that Mai-senpai from some romance show he used to watch.

Not identical in looks, of course—but the vibe, the delicate expression, that graceful posture—they matched.

"Kazuki, this is Akimichi Ren’ō. I heard you’re into literature, so she wanted to have a chat," Uncle Suzaku said with his usual easy-going smile.

Kazuki’s mouth twitched.

Literature?

Are you kidding me?

What were they supposed to talk about? A Bin? The Gatekeeper Grandpa? Maybe some scandalous tales of a certain Ms. Bai?

He’d be tossed out and blacklisted before the tea even cooled.

Kazuki glanced at Ren’ō. She gave him a polite, reserved smile, which eased his tension a bit. She probably didn’t want to be here either—just forced into it.

Still, Kazuki had to admit—he’d never expected the Akimichi Clan to produce such a beauty. It felt almost surreal.

His impression of the Akimichi was mostly tied to their clan jutsu, Baika no Jutsu (Expansion Jutsu)—a unique ability Kazuki had always wanted.

Why?

Come on. Expansion Jutsu.

If he could master partial expansion... he might just become Konoha’s number one doujin king.

Kazuki freely admitted to being a man of base desires. The moment Baika came to mind, the possibilities were endless. Still, the jutsu was a secret technique of the Akimichi Clan. Even if Kazuki was from the Nara Clan, there was no way they’d teach him.

Unless...

He married into it.

"Nice to meet you. I’m Nara Kazuki. What kind of books do you like?" Kazuki asked, resigning himself with a sigh. He sat down, planning to keep it casual, drop a polite "you’re a good person" when the time came, and wrap it up.

"You’re actually... a good person. Sorry."

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