Chapter 276 Beating the Life Out of Someone

“Lord! I just want to ask one thing: is my Aokawa… still breathing?”

The Old Lady’s voice was trembling like a candle in the wind. Her withered, bony hands gripped Minato Namikaze’s wrist with surprising force, her nails even digging into the fabric of his sleeve.

She desperately wanted a definitive answer, yet she had an instinctive fear of hearing what that answer might be.

The surrounding crowd, which had been cheering, quieted down slightly at this heart-wrenching inquiry.

Many gazes turned toward her, filled with sympathy and a touch of pity.

In this day and age, a Ninja returning in one piece was lucky; those who didn’t return were simply victims of fate.

Minato Namikaze hadn’t even had a chance to respond yet.

“Pfft—”

Standing beside him, a Jonin with a face full of stubble and a cast on his arm couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing.

He likely agitated his wound, as he grimaced while laughing, making for a rather strange expression.

“Old Lady, you’re overthinking it.” The Jonin waved his uninjured hand, his tone a peculiar mix of admiration and speechlessness. “More than just breathing? He beat the life out of the enemy. Your grandson was practically bouncing around the Battlefield.”

“Ah?” The grief on the Old Lady’s face froze.

Her mouth hung open, and unshed tears remained in her clouded eyes. She stood there, dumbfounded.

Aokawa? My grandson who never studied properly… beat… beat the life out of someone?

Minato Namikaze gave his companion a helpless look before turning back, his smile as soothing as a spring breeze.

He took the old woman’s trembling hands in his, bending down slightly so his gaze was level with hers.

“Elder, though my comrade’s words were a bit blunt, he didn’t lie to you.”

His voice was warm and reassuring, every word acting like a soothing balm. “Rest assured, Aokawa is not only alive, but he is doing very well!”

“The reason he didn’t return with the main force is that there’s still some cleanup work on the Front Lines. It’s a more important mission assigned by the Village, and it requires him specifically!”

Requires him specifically.

To those in the know, the weight of those words was incredibly heavy.

Minato Namikaze straightened up. He keenly sensed that the surrounding gazes, which had initially been curious or even mocking, were now filled with scrutiny.

As an excellent leader, he knew exactly when to build momentum.

He cleared his throat and intentionally raised his voice, letting his penetrating words echo before the main gate.

“That we were able to repel Kumogakure with such minimal cost during the Land of Hot Springs campaign and protect our home is due in no small part to your grandson, Aokawa. He played a vital role and his contributions are immense!”

Minato Namikaze paused, his gaze sweeping over Hyuga Fū’s similarly stunned face before falling back on the Old Lady, every word ringing with conviction:

“He is a well-deserved hero! Moreover, he is the youngest and most outstanding Ninja of this generation in Konoha, having broken the record for the fastest promotion from Genin to Jonin.”

Silence.

A deathly silence.

In that moment, it felt as if even the morning breeze had stopped flowing.

On both sides of the main gate road, whether it was the aunties carrying vegetable baskets, the idlers snacking on melon seeds while watching the show, or the neighbors who had just been pitying the Hyuga Clan for losing a son—everyone was frozen in place.

A few seconds later, it was like a drop of water falling into boiling oil.

BOOM—!!

The crowd exploded.

“Jonin?! Did I hear that right? A thirteen-year-old Jonin?!” A stout uncle in an apron stared with eyes wide as saucers. His vegetable basket hit the ground with a thud, and several potatoes rolled out.

“Good heavens… that Aokawa kid? The quiet one who was always shooting arrows by the river?”

“What do you mean ‘quiet’! That’s called being a hidden talent! I always said this kid had a heroic air about him since he was little. See? I was right!”

“By the Six Paths Sage, skipping three Ranks? That’s a first for Konoha, isn’t it? Even that Genius Kakashi is only a Chunin, right?”

“The smoke must be rising from Hyuga Fū’s ancestral graves! To raise a Jonin son…”

The discussions surged like a tsunami. Gazes filled with shock, envy, jealousy, and flattery acted like spotlights, instantly illuminating the previously unremarkable mother and son.

Hyuga Fū was trembling all over. Not from fear, but from excitement.

His lips quivered. He wanted to say something, but found his throat incredibly dry.

Jonin… his son, who had been disobedient since childhood and always tinkered on his own, had actually become a Jonin?

That was a height he hadn’t dared to dream of in his entire life!

At the center of the storm, the Old Lady was actually the first to come to her senses.

“As long as he’s alive… as long as he’s alive…”

She patted her chest and let out a long breath. Her hunched back seemed to shed a thousand-pound burden.

She didn’t quite understand the specific meaning of ‘Jonin’ or Ranks; she only knew it meant he was a high official, and that her grandson was safe and had performed a great service.

“That brat!”

Light returned to the Old Lady’s clouded eyes. This time, tears really did fall, but they were tears of joy.

Wiping her tears, she couldn’t help but grumble with affectionate reproach, “He didn’t even send a message back. He scared his granny to death… really scared me to death! When he gets back, see if I don’t take a Cane to his backside!”

She tremblingly released Minato’s hand, wiped her sweaty palms on her clothes, and revealed a simple, pure smile. The wrinkles on her face seemed to glow.

“Lord, thank you. Thank you so much.”

Though the Old Lady didn’t understand the strict hierarchy of the Ninja world, she knew the blonde young man before her was a good person, a hero just like the Hokage.

“That child has been mischievous and headstrong since he was little. He must have caused you trouble.”

The Old Lady thought for a moment, and feeling that words alone weren’t enough, she rubbed her hands together awkwardly. “Um… Lord, when Aokawa returns, I’ll have him bring you some of my homemade Pickles. They aren’t much, but please don’t look down on them.”

As soon as those words were spoken.

The mouths of the nearby Ninja twitched frantically.

Sending Pickles to the famous “Yellow Flash”?

This Old Lady… was truly the first since the founding of Konoha.

However, Minato Namikaze showed no sign of impatience.

Instead, a deeper smile spread through his azure eyes, one of genuine pleasure. “Alright.”

He nodded firmly. “I’ll look forward to tasting your cooking then. Make sure to add plenty of chili; I heard Aokawa mention that your Pickles are legendary.”

With that, Minato Namikaze bowed slightly to the two of them once more before turning away. His golden hair traced a brilliant arc in the sunlight as he hurried to catch up with the main force ahead.