studiobondurri Chapter 305: Class 7 Makes its Appearance
Chapter 305: Class 7 Makes its Appearance
The Hokage's office.
Minato Namikaze pushed open the door and entered. Hiruzen Sarutobi was sitting behind his desk smoking, and the ashtray was full of cigarette butts.
"Lord Hokage, mission accomplished."
Minato Namikaze placed the mission report on the table and briefly recounted the journey to Loulan. From arriving in the ancient kingdom to being received by the Queen, from entering the underground palace to completing the seal, they encountered no obstacles throughout the entire process.
"That easy?" Hiruzen Sarutobi exhaled a puff of smoke, his brows furrowing slightly.
He quickly relaxed. Although he was quite surprised, the money was in hand and the task was completed. Other matters were no longer their concern, so there was no need to worry about them.
"Yes, it went almost unrealistically smoothly," Minato Namikaze said truthfully. "But the seal is indeed complete, and the dragon vein energy has stabilized."
Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded, not asking any further questions. "In times of war, a successful mission is never a bad thing. Thank you for your hard work. The village is short-handed lately, so take a couple of days off and be on standby."
"Yes." Minato Namikaze bowed and was about to leave when there was another knock on the office door.
Hiruzen Sarutobi greeted him, "Come in."
Kakashi Hatake pushed open the door and entered, followed by three fellow ninjas from the same period: Obito Uchiha, Rin Haruno, and Kagami Hyuga. The four of them stood in a row, and Kakashi stepped forward.
"Lord Hokage, Team 7 reporting for duty."
Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his pipe and glanced at the four people's faces.
Kakashi has just been promoted to Jonin and is the most outstanding graduate of this year.
Obito and Rin are both genin, and Hyuga Kagami is a chunin. The four of them together are considered the elite of the new generation.
"Kakashi, from today onwards, you will be the class representative of Team 7."
Kakashi was silent for a moment, then lowered his head and said, "Third Hokage, I am still young, and I am not capable of leading a team of Jonin."
For some reason, Kakashi Hatake instinctively resisted the idea of becoming a Jonin leader. In fact, he never wanted to leave the Anbu, but the war situation outside was becoming increasingly tense.
All departments have begun to deploy high-ranking Jonin to the battlefield. Yes, even though Konoha is now facing only two opposing forces, and is even cooperating with Amegakure, it is still struggling to cope.
The main reason is that they have suffered too many losses of high-end combat power. In addition, Takigakure has been selling various medicines outside in recent years, which has led to the current high average quality of ninjas.
Although they didn't acquire many advanced ninjutsu, their physical condition improved and their resistance to toxins increased.
Simply put, ninjas in the past had very low defense and low health; they could be killed by ordinary kunai. But now, ninjas need to be hit in vital areas, and even if they are injured and continue to lose health, their health bars are very thick.
Although the genin of Konoha also underwent similar changes, the ninja population of Konoha was already quite large, so this was not a strengthening for Konoha, but rather a disguised weakening.
This is why the Third Hokage had to implement the four-year graduation policy ahead of schedule, sending these outstanding juniors to the battlefield for training.
"Why?" The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, frowned slightly.
"I'm too young and inexperienced, and..." Kakashi glanced at his companions behind him, "I'm not good at teamwork."
Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled. When he smiled, his wrinkles gathered together, making him look like a kind old neighbor, with a gentle and benevolent expression.
He began, "Kakashi, one cannot live in the past forever. Only when you let go of your shackles and embrace new things can you truly appreciate the beauty of life. That's why I asked you to try accepting others. Because we unite with one another, wherever the leaves fall, the fire continues to burn..."
After saying that, Hiruzen Sarutobi steered the conversation back to the main topic: "Kakashi, do you know why I chose you?"
Kakashi shook his head, indicating that he didn't know.
"Because you are capable and responsible. If you're not good at teamwork, then learn to be good at it. Konoha needs young blood and needs to break down the old systems. This is a decision I've thought through carefully."
That's right, you are an important member of my team to break the ninja clan's blockade, and you are also the foundation I will cultivate for the commoner ninjas of Konoha in the future.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had pretty much made his point clear, but he didn't say it outright; instead, he hinted at it in a subtle way.
Before Kakashi could say anything more, Obito muttered from behind, "You're being dramatic... You made me a Jonin, and you're complaining?"
The two didn't get along even back in school, because one was a genius and the other was a loser.
Now that one of them has become the team leader while the other remains an ordinary genin, this gives Obito Uchiha a peculiar feeling.
After all, that was a Jonin leading the team. He didn't want such a strange master-disciple relationship as a teacher and student.
"Shut up." Kakashi didn't even turn his head, displaying the authority of a teacher.
Obito rolled his eyes, secretly flicked the middle finger behind his back, and thought to himself, "One day I'll pin you down and beat you up."
Nearby, Haruno Rin gently tugged at Obito's sleeve, while Hyuga Kagami stood expressionless to the side, like a transparent person.
"All right."
Kakashi Hatake finally nodded: "I can try to accept it..."
Before he could finish speaking, a dark figure flashed into the office.
The ANBU ninja knelt on one knee: "Lord Hokage, urgent intelligence."
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at the others, and finally nodded, saying, "Speak."
An ANBU ninja reported: "There's unusual activity in the Land of Water. Kirigakure appears to be gathering forces, and their target may be Konoha."
Instantly, the atmosphere in the office froze, and Hiruzen Sarutobi's smile vanished, replaced by the coldness he had hidden for many years.
He asked again, "Is the intelligence accurate?"
"More than 80% of the time, traces of the Hidden Mist's activities have been discovered at the border outposts, and at least three squads have already infiltrated the Land of Fire."
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, walked to the window, and looked out at the village. The streets were bustling with people, just like usual, but the atmosphere of war was quietly approaching.
"Sigh, summon the Jonin for a meeting."
-
Fifteen minutes later, the long table in the conference room was filled with people.
Koharu Utatane and Homura Mitokado, the two advisors, sat on either side of the Hokage, their expressions solemn.
Hiashi Hyuga, representing the Hyuga clan, sat on the left, while Fugaku Uchiha, representing the Uchiha clan, sat on the right. The other Jonin took their seats in order, with Minato Namikaze sitting towards the back.
Hiruzen Sarutobi repeated the information.
"The Hidden Mist Village's move at this time is clearly intentional," Koharu Utatane said first. "They want to take advantage of our weakened state after the great battle."
Mitokado Homura chimed in, "Hiruzen, we can't let them succeed!"