Chapter 156 – Progress and Graduation
After leaving the Hokage's office, the three of them went to the Mission Hall to settle their rewards and register their completed missions.
Once everything was handled, they each returned home.
Inside the Hokage's office, however, Sarutobi Hiruzen took out another document.
It was a list.
The list of students who would soon graduate early from the Ninja Academy.
If Taichi had been there, he would have immediately recognized several familiar names among them.
Uchiha Obito
Nohara Rin
Might Guy
Yūhi Kurenai
Sarutobi Asuma…
Hiruzen stared at the names silently.
Among these students were future talents, members of powerful clans, and even his own youngest son.
How to divide them into teams in a way that balanced interests and satisfied all sides…
That was yet another headache.
After staring at the list for a while, Hiruzen seemed to recall something.
He opened a drawer and took out another file.
It was a ninja profile.
The photograph at the top showed Hatake Kakashi.
Hiruzen couldn't help shaking his head slightly.
Another troublesome one…
Perhaps it was karma for allowing rumors about Hatake Sakumo to spread earlier.
Now Sakumo's son had become a new headache for him.
---
In the original timeline, Kakashi's faith had collapsed after his father's death.
From then on, he became someone who cared only about missions, disregarding the lives of his teammates.
His cold and extreme attitude made him widely disliked.
No one wanted to be placed on a team with him.
But things were very different now.
This version of Kakashi had not fallen into that mindset.
He valued missions—
But he valued his comrades as well.
In every sense, Kakashi behaved like a model Konoha ninja raised under the Will of Fire.
The only thing people complained about was his terrible luck.
Since graduating from the academy nearly four years ago, Kakashi had already been assigned to ten different teams.
On average, he changed squads two to three times every year.
These teams were either destroyed during difficult missions—leaving Kakashi as the only survivor—
Or disbanded due to various circumstances that forced them to reorganize.
Over time, Kakashi gained an unfortunate reputation among the village's chūnin.
They called him…
"The Team Destroyer."
Because of that reputation, many squads were reluctant to accept him as a member.
---
Hiruzen looked down at Kakashi's mission record.
A-Rank Missions: 5
B-Rank Missions: 21
C-Rank Missions: 24
For someone who had only been a ninja for four years, this record was astonishing.
Originally, Hiruzen had even considered assigning Kakashi to Taichi's squad.
After all, Kakashi and Taichi had been classmates, and their relationship had been quite good.
But since Taichi's team had expressed that they didn't want a new member for the time being, Hiruzen had not mentioned the idea.
In truth, however, Hiruzen had misunderstood.
Taichi simply didn't want a fresh academy graduate joining the squad.
Such a newcomer would significantly lower the team's overall strength and struggle to keep up with their A-rank mission workload.
But if the candidate were Kakashi…
Taichi would most likely agree.
---
Meanwhile, Taichi himself had no idea about Kakashi's situation.
In his mind, Kakashi had already moved past the shadow of Sakumo's death and was probably carrying out missions happily with his team.
He couldn't imagine Kakashi's current circumstances.
It was both ironic and a little absurd.
Perhaps fate itself had decided that Kakashi was destined to end up on the same team as Obito and Rin.
---
Hiruzen stared at the list of names for a long time.
Eventually, following a vague sense of intuition, he finalized the team assignments.
Team One:
Hatake Kakashi
Uchiha Obito
Nohara Rin
Team Two:
Might Guy
Shiranui Genma
Ebisu
Team Three:
Sarutobi Asuma
Yūhi Kurenai
Aburame Shishin
The next generation of Konoha shinobi had officially taken their first step onto the stage.
__
After returning to Konoha, Taichi's life gradually settled back into a steady rhythm.
News of the war was mostly kept outside the village, but the sense of urgency had already been deeply etched into his heart.
Every morning, after finishing his early training, Taichi's main body would appear punctually at Konoha Hospital.
As an increasingly important pillar of the medical department, his standing there had grown higher and higher.
Especially after word somehow spread back to Konoha about his performance in the frontline medical camp, the respect he received had already surpassed that of an ordinary department head.
Yet all the praise did nothing to change Taichi's mindset.
His entire morning was devoted almost entirely to patients and hospital work.
From performing complex surgeries to guiding newly promoted medical ninja, he earned the respect of the entire hospital through sheer diligence.
This responsibility grounded him—it was his most direct way of contributing to the village.
At noon, he would usually have lunch with Nonō, chatting about the orphanage while they ate.
Afternoons, however, belonged entirely to his own improvement.
---
The training ground behind his house had changed drastically.
In the past, it had mostly been used for ninjutsu practice. Scorch marks from fireballs and wind blades could be seen everywhere.
Now, however, the place was filled with heavy stone weights, specialized training gear, and thick wooden posts.
The panel's harsh evaluation—your hardware is too weak—had stuck firmly in Taichi's mind.
So the moment he returned to the village, he prepared a full set of physical training equipment.
Every day he wore weighted gear.
During training sessions he added even heavier vests and wrist weights, pushing his body to its limits.
His afternoons followed the same routine:
Advanced Taijutsu training
Advanced Meditation
Advanced Swordsmanship
Strength training
Speed training
Every single day.
At the same time, he created four shadow clones, each immersed in studying different chakra nature transformations.
Fire, wind, water, and ice—his primary combat elements, both present and future—were his main focus.
Alongside them, he also trained chakra control and shape transformation.
By sunset, when Taichi finally finished the day's intense training, he was usually exhausted.
Every muscle screamed with soreness.
Fortunately, he was also an excellent doctor.
After forcing himself to swallow the high-energy supplements he prepared earlier, he would convert the last remnants of his chakra into Yang Release, using medical ninjutsu to treat his entire body.
Only after that would he release the shadow clones.
The memories of an entire day's training would flood into his mind at once.
It brought both overwhelming fatigue and deep satisfaction.
Physical improvement was slow and subtle.
But the panel provided clear feedback.
After a long period of accumulated training, his efforts finally produced a breakthrough.
Today, the system gave a notification.
---
After long-term intense training:
Constitution +1
Strength +1
Agility +1
Spirit +1
[Chūnin profession level has increased to Lv8.]
Attribute Point +1
Skill Point +1
---
During the day he exhausted his body.
At night, he accumulated knowledge.
Tsunade had left behind a massive collection of research materials.
On top of that, Taichi had exchanged mission merits for additional books and scrolls from the village archive.
All of it formed the foundation for his future development of genjutsu and sealing techniques.
Sometimes he even wrote letters to Tsunade, asking her questions—especially about sealing arts.
Among them, the technique he most wanted to learn was Yin Seal.
---
One morning, Taichi was walking toward Konoha Hospital as usual.
His daily routine had become so regular that every step felt almost mechanical.
He was already thinking about what kinds of patients he might encounter today.
Just as he turned a street corner—
A familiar flash of golden hair entered his vision.
"Senior Brother Minato!" Taichi greeted in surprise.
Minato stood by the roadside, wearing his usual gentle smile.
The direction he was heading was toward the Ninja Academy.
"Good morning, Taichi," Minato said warmly.
"You're heading to the hospital again?"
"Yeah. Helping out there every day is good practice for medical ninjutsu."
Taichi walked over and followed Minato's gaze toward the academy gate.
The place looked unusually lively today.
Even from a distance, the sounds of shouting and training exercises could be heard.
Taichi suddenly remembered something.
"Senior Brother… are you here to take charge of a new genin team today?"
"That's right," Minato nodded.
"Today is the day those students are assigned to their teams. I'm here to pick up my squad."
Minato's team…
Taichi's thoughts raced.
What about Kakashi?
Since Sakumo was still alive, would Kakashi still become Minato's student like in the original story?
Then the faces of several old friends appeared in his mind:
Guy.
Obito.
Rin.
A sudden urge rose in his chest.
He wanted to witness the moment when his friends officially stepped onto the path of ninja.
He hadn't seen them in a long time.
Without hesitation, he spoke.
"Senior Brother Minato—wait a moment!"
Before Minato could respond, Taichi formed hand seals.
A shadow clone appeared beside him.
"The hospital is yours today," Taichi told the clone quickly.
"Watch your chakra consumption. Don't disappear before noon."
"Understood."
The clone nodded to Minato politely and immediately set off toward the hospital without hesitation.
Watching the clone leave, Taichi turned back to Minato with a faint grin.
"Senior Brother… mind if this 'idle spectator' tags along?"
"I'd like to check on some old friends."
Minato watched the smooth coordination between Taichi and his clone with admiration.
He agreed without hesitation.
"Of course."
"Actually, quite a few of your acquaintances are inside."
The two smiled at each other and walked side by side into the Ninja Academy.
---
The noise inside was overwhelming.
Students shouted, training tools cut through the air, and teachers barked instructions.
Walking down the familiar hallway, Taichi soon spotted a figure in front of the classroom building.
That unmistakable silver hair.
A mask covering half his face.
If it wasn't Kakashi, who else could it be?
Taichi frowned slightly.
Why is he here?
Is he here to watch Obito graduate too?
Or… could it be that he still doesn't have a team and is about to be assigned to a group of fresh genin?
"Hey, Kakashi!" Taichi called cheerfully.
"What a coincidence. You here to watch Obito and the others graduate?"
He walked up and slung an arm over Kakashi's shoulders enthusiastically.
Kakashi had been happy to see him at first.
But the moment he heard the question—
His face darkened.
How embarrassing…
A chūnin like him… ending up in a squad with newly graduated genin.
He rolled his eyes with his trademark dead-fish stare.
Is my luck really that bad?
Am I really cursed as the 'team destroyer'?
His thoughts drifted anxiously.
I just hope I don't bring bad luck to Rin and Obito too…
---
Meanwhile, Minato stood nearby with a strange smile.
He looked from Kakashi to Taichi and back again.
He clearly wanted to say something…
But ultimately held his tongue.
Only then did Taichi finally realize.
"Kakashi…"
"You've been assigned to Senior Brother Minato's team, haven't you?"
Kakashi said nothing.
Taichi simply laughed.
"Congratulations."
"Senior Brother Minato is one of Konoha's top jōnin. You'll learn a lot from him."
He quickly changed the topic.
Now was definitely not the time to tease Kakashi further.
Though…
In the future, it would definitely become something he could tease him about for life.
The thought made Taichi's lips curl upward.
"Alright, let's go inside," Minato said, stepping in to save Kakashi.
"I still need to meet my team."
---
The three of them wound through the building until they reached Obito's classroom.
Inside, things had already quieted down.
Most students had been taken away by their assigned instructors.
Through the slightly open door, Taichi saw the nearly empty classroom.
Only a few students remained.
Among them—
Obito and Rin.
"Wait here a moment," Minato said with a gentle smile.
He pushed the classroom door open.
From outside, Taichi clearly heard Minato's voice.
"Uchiha Obito. Nohara Rin."
"Come with me."
The moment he finished speaking—
Cheers erupted inside.
"Ahahaha! Rin, this is great!"
"We're teammates after all!"
Obito exaggeratedly bowed toward her.
"Please take care of me from now on!"
Outside the door, Kakashi slapped his forehead.
Just imagining being teammates with someone this energetic gave him a headache.
Taichi leaned against the wall beside the door.
A knowing smile appeared on his face.
Seeing Kakashi's pained expression made him struggle to suppress his laughter.
A quiet snickering sound escaped him.
Kakashi shot him another deadpan glare.
---
Suddenly—
CRASH!
The sound of shattering glass echoed from inside.
Then came a chorus of surprised shouts.
Something had slammed violently into the sliding classroom door.
The next moment, a clumsy figure tumbled out.
Black hair.
Protective goggles.
A piece of broken window paper stuck awkwardly to his forehead.
Who else could it be?
Uchiha Obito.
Kakashi reacted instantly, grabbing Obito before he could fall flat on his face.
Taichi's eyelid twitched.
You two always pretend you hate each other…
But when someone's about to fall, your body moves before your brain even reacts.
---
The classroom door opened fully.
Rin stepped out, wearing a helpless smile.
"K-Kakashi!"
Obito immediately noticed who had caught him.
Then he spotted Taichi standing nearby.
His eyes widened with surprise.
"Ah… you guys are here too!"
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
He still hadn't realized that the person holding him up—
Was his future teammate.
Minato stepped out behind them.
He nodded toward Taichi and Kakashi.
Then he looked at Obito with encouragement.
"Are you ready?"
"Obito. Rin."
"Of course!" Obito declared confidently.
"It's the final test, right? I know how this works!"
"Yes, Minato-sensei," Rin replied seriously.
Taichi leaned against the wall, watching quietly.
Before his eyes—
The team bound by love, rivalry, and tragedy had finally come together.
History was repeating itself.
The only question was…
Would their future still end the same way?