“You two, come in.”
The Great Elder Sōen’s voice came from inside the office.
The two pushed open the door and walked in.
Uchiha Sōen sat upright behind a large wooden desk, dressed in a dark clan robe with the Uchiha fan crest embroidered across his chest.
He appeared to be around sixty years old, with neatly combed gray hair and a stern expression.
“What business do you two have with this old man?”
His gaze swept across the pair.
Shinsuke stepped forward without hesitation and got straight to the point.
“Great Elder, I’d like to apply for promotion to Jonin.”
Immediately afterward, he focused his eyes, and three tomoe slowly began revolving within them.
Only after seeing Shinsuke’s Sharingan did a faint smile appear on Great Elder Sōen’s usually stern face.
“Hm…
You’ve awakened the Three Tomoe…”
“Very good!”
After pondering for a moment, he slowly rose to his feet.
“The war situation is becoming increasingly tense, and our clan has already suffered considerable losses, so having one more Jonin is always a good thing.”
“In that case, come with me.
I’ll take you to see Lord Hokage and have you participate in the Jonin evaluation.”
As he walked toward the door and passed Inabi, who was still standing there in a daze, his brows furrowed and his tone suddenly turned cold.
“What are you still standing there for?
Have you finished your patrol mission?”
Hearing those words, Inabi instinctively shrank his neck.
“Yes!
I’ll go right away!”
With that, he ran off at full speed.
…
On the way to the Hokage Building, Sōen remained silent for a long time before suddenly speaking.
“What do you think of Shimura Danzō?”
Shinsuke answered without hesitation.
“Danzō is a man with an overwhelming lust for power, and he is hostile toward our Uchiha Clan.”
That wasn’t a lie.
If Danzō hadn’t constantly stirred up conflict behind the scenes, the relationship between the Uchiha and Konoha might never have become so strained.
“I see…”
Sōen glanced at him but said nothing further.
Before long, the two arrived at the Hokage’s office.
The office was filled with drifting smoke.
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, sat behind his large desk.
At that moment, he had a smoking pipe between his lips while reviewing scrolls in his hands.
“So it’s Sōen.
I was just about to convene Konoha’s high level meeting.
I didn’t expect you to come on your own.”
He looked up at Sōen.
“What brings you here?”
“It’s about this child’s promotion to Jonin.”
As he spoke, Sōen pointed at Shinsuke standing behind him.
Understanding the situation, Shinsuke immediately stepped forward and respectfully bowed to Hiruzen.
“Uchiha Shinsuke greets Lord Third Hokage.”
Hiruzen nodded at him.
“Uchiha Shinsuke…
I’ve heard of you.
You’re an outstanding young shinobi.”
Hiruzen motioned for an ANBU member beside him to retrieve Shinsuke’s file as he flipped through it.
“Hm…
Your mission record is also excellent.
However, we’re currently at war, so arranging a Jonin evaluation immediately may prove difficult.”
Sōen calmly replied,
“This child has already awakened the Three Tomoe Sharingan.”
Hiruzen’s eyes sharpened as his gaze shifted toward Shinsuke.
Understanding the cue, Shinsuke revealed his Sharingan once again.
“I see…”
Hiruzen set down his pipe and pondered for a moment.
“In that case, I shall make an exception and promote you directly to Jonin without the examination.”
Shinsuke was inwardly astonished.
The authority of the Hokage was truly immense!
After all, the promotion process for Jonin had always been extremely strict.
A Jonin already represented the primary combat strength of every great nation.
Even though each of the Five Great Nations maintained roughly ten thousand shinobi, the number of Jonin in each village still did not exceed one hundred.
Even powerful clans like the Uchiha and the Hyūga had fewer than ten Jonin each.
That alone demonstrated just how valuable a Jonin truly was.
Shinsuke dared not be disrespectful and hurriedly said to Hiruzen,
“Thank you very much, Lord Third Hokage!”
Hiruzen waved his hand before turning toward the people behind him and giving an order.
“Summon the heads of every clan and all Jonin currently within the village.
Convene Konoha’s high level meeting.”
The moment his words fell, two masked ANBU shinobi suddenly appeared behind him where there had previously been no one.
The two respectfully saluted Hiruzen.
“Yes, Lord Hokage!”
They then vanished once again.
Only then did Hiruzen turn back toward Sōen and Shinsuke.
“Let’s head to the meeting room first.”
Sōen did not refuse and simply nodded before following Hiruzen outside.
The two began discussing the village’s affairs.
Although Shinsuke followed behind them, his attention was no longer on their conversation.
That was because the system notification announcing the completion of his mission had already sounded in his mind.
[ Ding!
Congratulations, Host, on completing the mission!
Reward: Lottery Draw ×1.
Would you like to use it immediately?
]
Without the slightest hesitation, Shinsuke immediately replied in his mind,
“Draw immediately!”
The moment the thought flashed through his mind, a lottery wheel appeared before him.
Beneath it were the reward probabilities.
[ D Rank Reward: 40%, C Rank Reward: 50%, B Rank Reward: 10% ]
The wheel spun several times before gradually coming to a stop.
[ Ding!
Congratulations, Host, on obtaining a B Rank Reward: Basic Medical Ninjutsu Mastery (Includes B Rank Ninjutsu: Chakra Scalpel).
]
Seeing the reward, Shinsuke couldn’t help but feel delighted.
He had actually hit the ten percent chance!
Immediately afterward, countless pieces of knowledge related to medical ninjutsu flooded into his mind.
They included the structure of a shinobi’s body, diagrams of the chakra pathway system, wound treatment, and much more.
Even better, the knowledge came with a ninjutsu.
B Rank Ninjutsu: Chakra Scalpel.
This technique concentrated chakra into the hands to form an invisible blade capable of precisely cutting muscles and chakra pathways.
Whether used in combat or for treating injuries, it was an extremely practical technique.
More importantly, it required absolutely no practice, because just like the medical knowledge he had received, it had been directly imprinted into his mind.
It felt as though he had practiced it countless times already.
At this point, he could already be considered a qualified medical ninja.
Looking at the generous reward he had just received, Shinsuke couldn’t help but look forward to the next lottery draw.
As though hearing his thoughts, the system immediately issued another mission.
[ Ding!
New Mission Issued: Cultivate together with a talented female ninja.
]
[ Notice: Talent evaluation includes multiple factors such as appearance, figure, strength, reputation, Kekkei Genkai, and more.
]
[ Mission Reward: Unlock the System’s Many Children, Great Fortune Module!
]
‘Many Children, Great Fortune Module?’
‘This system is really taking a wild approach…’
While he was still thinking, the group had already entered the meeting room.
Not long afterward, the heads of the various ninja clans began arriving one after another.
The Jonin of Konoha also took their seats, and the atmosphere gradually became solemn.
Soon, Konoha’s entire high command had assembled.
Hiruzen walked to the main seat with a serious expression.
“Since everyone is here, I won’t waste any words.
I’ve gathered you all today to discuss our response to the war.”
As he spoke, an ANBU shinobi behind him unfurled a map of the shinobi world.
Hiruzen then turned toward Shimura Danzō beside him.
“Danzō, explain the current situation.”
Shimura Danzō stood up and walked toward the map.
His right eye and right arm were wrapped in bandages, his face gloomy, and his voice low.
“Since the beginning of the Third Shinobi World War, our Konoha Village has been fighting continuously against Sunagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure, and we’ve suffered extremely heavy casualties!”
“The battlefield on the eastern front against the Land of Water suffered an overwhelming defeat.
Hyūga Hideshu, the battlefield commander, was killed in action, and even the Byakugan was taken by the Land of Water.
It is nothing less than Konoha’s greatest humiliation!”
Upon hearing this, Hyūga Hiashi’s eyelid twitched, and the veins around his eyes bulged slightly.
Danzō acted as though he hadn’t noticed and instead turned his gaze toward Uchiha Sōka with obvious implication.
“In this old man’s opinion, these so called great clans are nothing more than empty names.”
Sōen’s expression darkened, but he remained silent.
Just as Danzō was about to continue his criticism, an ANBU shinobi suddenly appeared behind Hiruzen and interrupted the meeting.
The ANBU member handed a scroll to Hiruzen.
“Lord Hokage, the latest report from the front lines!”
After reading through it at remarkable speed, Hiruzen’s pupils abruptly contracted.
After a long silence, he slowly raised his head and spoke to everyone in the meeting room with a heavy tone.
“Everyone…
I have an extremely tragic piece of news to share.”
“The current head of the Uchiha Clan has fallen in battle against Kumogakure’s army!”