Dusk.
Konohagakure, the Hokage Tower.
“Cough.
That’s the situation.”
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, set down the documents in his hand.
His white hair was slightly disheveled, and a pipe was clenched between his teeth as he looked at the young shinobi standing before him.
“What do you think, Naraku?”
The young shinobi, Shihōin Naraku, scratched his slightly messy short black hair.
A relaxed smile spread across his handsome face.
“Since you’ve already made your decision, Lord Hokage, I have no objections.”
“This works out perfectly.
I can finally take it easy.
I’ve been swamped with work in the Medical Department, and it’s exhausting.”
“Heh.
Not so fast.” Hiruzen puffed out a cloud of smoke.
“You’ll still be in charge of the Mortuary Unit and the Veterinary Rehabilitation Unit in the Medical Department.
I’m confident you can handle them.”
Damn it!
Naraku kept smiling on the outside while cursing inwardly.
They were taking away Medical Division—the division with the most authority and the fattest budget—and handing him a mortuary and a veterinary clinic instead.
What a slap in the face.
“Then who’s taking over Medical Division?
That division is extremely important to Konoha.
We can’t afford even the slightest mistake.”
It wasn’t that Naraku looked down on everyone else in Konoha.
The reality was simply that no one was better suited to run the Medical Department than he was.
Whoever took over would inevitably do a worse job.
As Tsunade’s direct disciple, Naraku was unquestionably the most qualified person for the position.
Besides, Before he was reincarnated into the world of Naruto, Naraku’s family had run a hospital.
He was intimately familiar with all things medical.
That’s right.
Naraku Shihōinwas a bona fide transmigrator!
Though perhaps “transmigrator” wasn’t quite accurate.
Reincarnator would be more fitting.
Or maybe both at the same time!
In his previous life, Naraku had lived a normal life until an accident took it.
In this life, he was born as a member of the Shihōinclan, one of Konoha’s many shinobi clans.
Like all the other children in the village, he entered the Ninja Academy because of his talent for ninjutsu.
No one knew that the moment ShihōinNaraku successfully molded his first trace of chakra, memories of his “previous life” began to awaken.
Naturally, all his memories of the Naruto world came rushing back as well.
Unfortunately, despite being a transmigrator and reincarnator, Naraku discovered that he hadn’t been blessed with the standard cheat—a system.
He was disappointed.
Still, after dying unexpectedly in his previous life, simply having the chance to live again was already a blessing.
Even if the world of Naruto was incredibly dangerous!
Since he was already here, he might as well make the best of it.
However, as Naraku gradually grew older, he discovered that he wasn’t completely without a cheat.
Perhaps because he had lived two lives and his soul had effectively been strengthened by the experience, his spiritual energy and soul were exceptionally powerful.
A stronger spirit meant more chakra.
After all, chakra was composed of both spiritual and physical energy.
Combined with Naraku’s outstanding chakra control and learning ability, these talents quickly established him as one of Konoha’s most renowned prodigies.
At the time, the only young shinobi who could rival his fame was Hatake Kakashi.
That was also why ShihōinNaraku had been accepted as Tsunade’s direct disciple.
But now, after taking over Medical Division from Tsunade and turning it into a thriving organization, ShihōinNaraku was being forced to give it up.
“Elder Homura Mitokado and Elder Koharu Utatane will be taking over Medical Division.
They already manage the funds allocated to the village by the Land of Fire, so their involvement should benefit the unit’s development as well.”
Hiruzen’s answer immediately made Naraku suspicious.
Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane certainly wielded considerable authority in Konoha, but neither of them knew the first thing about modern medical ninjutsu.
Well, that wasn’t entirely true.
Koharu Utatane had once been an excellent medical ninja herself.
But that was in the past.
Naraku had been in charge of Medical Division for years.
Between the increasingly sophisticated medical facilities and the numerous medical techniques he had developed, the unit had grown into something far beyond what Koharu could manage now.
Times had changed.
As if he could see the doubt on Naraku’s face, Hiruzen took another puff of his pipe before continuing.
“Oh, Jōnin Hachiya will also be assisting the two elders with management.”
“Hachiya Ao?”
“Yes.”
Naraku understood.
Seeing that Naraku had figured out what was happening, Hiruzen continued.
“Medical Division is of great importance.
To prevent any unforeseen problems…”
“Jōnin ShihōinNaraku, effective today, you are hereby appointed Deputy Director of Konoha’s Medical Department!”
Tch.
Naraku didn’t care about that appointment in the slightest.
The Deputy Director had virtually no real authority.
Hiruzen was merely giving the Medical Department an extra layer of protection in case anything went wrong.
“There’s more…”
Knowing Naraku had taken a loss, Hiruzen intended to compensate him.
After all, Naraku was also firmly aligned with the Hokage faction.
“Jōnin ShihōinNaraku, you will also serve as ANBU Deputy Commander, with command over thirty-seven ANBU operatives!”
What the hell?
Had this old man lost his mind?
The entire Konoha ANBU numbered only around seventy people—and that figure even included the members of Root who had already been forcibly disbanded!
Naraku would command thirty-seven of them.
That was more than half the ANBU!
Naraku frowned and looked at Hiruzen’s smiling face.
“Actually, I…”
Before he could finish, a crisp notification sounded beside his ear.
[Ding!]
[Promotion System activated!]
[Promotion System Rule No.
1: Lottery Mechanism…]
[Promotion System Rule No.
2: Infinite Duplication…]
…
[Promotion System Rule No.
97,003: Promotion…]
[Promotion System Rule No.
97,004: Demotion…]
…
[Congratulations, Host, on successfully becoming Deputy Director of Konoha’s Medical Department…]
[Congratulations, Host, on successfully becoming Deputy Commander of the Konoha ANBU…]
[…You have received seven lottery draws!]
[As part of the Host’s Newcomer Gift Pack, you have received five additional lottery draws!]
[Total remaining lottery draws: twelve!]
[System tip: Ten consecutive draws have a higher chance of producing extraordinary items!]
…
A barrage of system notifications rang in Naraku’s ears, bringing the words on his lips to an abrupt halt.
“Hm?”
Hiruzen stared at ShihōinNaraku with a puzzled expression.
Naraku’s entire demeanor had changed.
He suddenly looked like a man shouldering an immense responsibility, his expression serious and resolute.
“Understood!”
“I’m willing to follow your orders, Lord Hokage!”
“From this day forward, I will devote myself wholeheartedly to serving Konoha and contributing everything I can!”
“I absolutely will not disappoint everyone!”
“Huh?”
Hiruzen stared blankly at Naraku.
The dissatisfaction and laziness that had been written all over the young man’s face just moments ago had completely vanished.
What had just happened?
Was he getting old enough to lose his memory?
Of course, seeing how excited Naraku was, Hiruzen was quite pleased.
“If you’re willing, then that’s settled.”
“As long as nothing goes wrong in the Medical Department, pay more attention to the ANBU.”
“You’ll have quite a few people under your command, so mistakes may happen.
But make sure every mission is completed perfectly.”
Hiruzen gave Naraku a meaningful look, as though reminding him of something.
Under normal circumstances, Naraku would have immediately picked up on the hidden meaning behind those words.
But right now, his mind was completely occupied by the sudden appearance of the system.
He had no time to think deeply about what Hiruzen was implying.
After waiting all this time, the standard package for transmigrators and reincarnators had finally arrived.
A Promotion System?
Could this system really be based on rank and position?
Naraku desperately suppressed his excitement and continued listening to Hiruzen’s long-winded instructions.
After a while, Hiruzen watched Naraku leave with an almost buoyant stride and couldn’t help but wonder.
“Does Naraku really like the ANBU?”
The ANBU were essentially an elite force made up of Konoha’s finest shinobi.
But because of the danger and secrecy involved in their missions, there actually weren’t many people who liked serving in the organization.
To ordinary villagers, the ANBU inspired far more fear than admiration.
Hiruzen had initially assumed Naraku would refuse to join the ANBU.
He certainly hadn’t expected the exact opposite.
“Good evening, Lord Naraku!”
“Good evening, Lord Naraku!”
“Thank you for your hard work, Lord Naraku!”
After leaving the Hokage Tower, ShihōinNaraku received respectful greetings from nearly every shinobi he encountered along the way.
Being a powerful Jōnin alone wouldn’t normally earn someone this much respect.
The real reason was that Naraku had spent years in charge of Medical Division.
Over the years, he had treated and saved countless shinobi.
Everyone remembered their debt to the man who had once saved their lives.