The next day, at Team 10's usual training ground.
Shizune bounced over to Shinichi and Kurenai the moment they assembled, eyes sparkling like an excited little bird. "Hey, guys! Did you hear? Some samurai from the Land of Iron commissioned a mission in the village! He's super young, and he's supposed to fight our ninjas this afternoon at Training Ground Three!"
"Since we don't have any missions or training scheduled this afternoon, let's go watch! I've never seen a real Land of Iron samurai before. I wonder if they're all tall and built like the books say, with those long faces and super long swords on their backs."
She gestured with her hands to show an exaggerated sword length, her face full of pure curiosity.
Kurenai tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled gently. "I don't mind. The Land of Iron samurai have always been pretty mysterious. They rarely leave their country. Getting a close look at their sword techniques and fighting style should be eye-opening."
She had her own interest too. As someone who practiced both genjutsu and kenjutsu, Kurenai was naturally curious about combat styles from different traditions.
Shinichi put on an appropriately curious expression and nodded along. "It really is rare. The Land of Iron's sword path has its own complete system. It might focus on different things than the sword and taijutsu styles we ninjas train. I actually started with swordsmanship from the Land of Iron style that Mr. Yamashita taught me back then. After all these years, I'm pretty interested in seeing how their techniques have evolved. Watching could give me some good ideas."
"Then it's settled!" Shizune clapped her hands happily. "Let's head over early this afternoon and grab good spots! I heard a lot of people might show up."
That afternoon, the sky was a clear, deep blue with just a few faint wisps of clouds.
The autumn sunlight had lost its summer bite. It felt bright and gentle now, but standing in a crowd for a while still brought a warm, slightly stuffy feeling.
A breeze blew through the trees surrounding the training ground, carrying a touch of coolness, but it couldn't dispel the growing wave of excitement on the field.
Shizune had underestimated just how curious the villagers of Konoha were. Even though they arrived quite early, the best viewing spots around Training Ground Three were already packed with a huge crowd.
Villagers, off-duty genin, and even some chunin who didn't have duty had all gathered. The place was buzzing with noise, completely surrounding the large training field.
People craned their necks, chatting excitedly and staring toward the center, full of curiosity and speculation about this mysterious young samurai from the Land of Iron who'd paid a fortune just for a fight.
After all, this was the first time Konoha had ever taken on such a weird mission—someone actually hiring people to fight him.
"Excuse me… coming through…" Shizune pulled Kurenai along while Shinichi followed. The three of them had to squeeze through the crowd to reach a decent spot closer to the front.
They barely had time to steady themselves and get a good look at the two people facing off when the enthusiastic cheers from the crowd suddenly cut off, like someone had grabbed them by the throat.
Then—
Bam!
A figure flew backward from the center of the field and crashed hard onto the ground, kicking up a small cloud of dust.
The man wore Konoha's standard green flak jacket. He was slim-built and now curled up on the ground, face twisted in pain, struggling to get up.
A young, deep voice—clearly dissatisfied and full of wild arrogance—rang out across the entire field right after the impact. "What the hell?! Didn't I specifically request strong opponents, preferably jonin, in the mission request? How come they only sent a chunin? This level isn't even enough for a proper warm-up!"
The man on the ground—Gekko Ran—felt a heavy pressure in his chest and a metallic taste in his throat. He desperately wanted to shout back that he wasn't a regular chunin—he'd earned special jonin rank through his unique sword skills!
But the sharp pain and disrupted chakra left him unable to speak.
What?!
One of the village's seniors… lost?
And so quickly?
Shizune froze, then immediately stood on her tiptoes, trying to see into the field.
In the center of the training ground stood an exceptionally tall and muscular young man.
He looked about fifteen or sixteen, but he was built far more solidly than most adult ninjas. Dressed in simple dark samurai clothing, he carried the heavy, mountain-like presence of someone unshakable.
He held an unsheathed katana in his hand, the blade gleaming coldly as it hung casually at his side.
Beneath thick eyebrows, his eyes were shockingly bright as he scanned the noisy crowd. His face made no effort to hide how unsatisfied he was.
Apparently still not stimulated enough, he complained in a voice loud enough for everyone to hear: "If I'd known Konoha only had this level of skill, I should've gone to the neighboring Land of Wind and hired someone from Sunagakure instead. I heard they're pretty short on cash these days too."
Ugh!
This guy is so arrogant!
Shizune puffed out her cheeks. Even knowing he was the client, those words were way too provocative.
The Konoha crowd, after a brief moment of stunned silence, exploded like a lit powder keg with even louder noise.
"Kid, what did you just say?!"
"Where the hell did this wild samurai come from? You don't know your place!"
"Just got lucky in one fight and you're already acting cocky!"
"This is Konoha! You can't run wild here!"
"Don't you dare leave!"
The crowd was furious. Many hot-tempered villagers and young ninjas turned red in the face, pointing at Isshin and shouting. If not for the field boundaries and rules, some looked ready to rush in and tear him apart.
Shinichi stood among the crowd, his expression neutral, but inside he shook his head slightly.
These Konoha hotheads react fast and loud. Perfect. The atmosphere's getting nice and heated.
Seeing things getting out of control, the chunin in charge of coordinating the exchange mission wiped cold sweat from his brow and stepped forward, arms spread wide. "Everyone, please calm down! This is just a friendly spar! Wins and losses are normal in these things! Mr. Isshin, please be patient too… It seems we may have underestimated your strength. I'll report this immediately and make new arrangements!"
While speaking, he shot a meaningful look at his companion, who immediately body-flickered away—obviously rushing to the Hokage's office with an urgent report.
Hokage's Office.
The Third Hokage had just finished listening to the brief report from the coordinating chunin about how the first match ended almost instantly. His hand paused as he reached for his teacup.
"He lost in just two exchanges?" The Third raised his eyes, a flash of surprise crossing them.
It looked like his initial assessment of this Land of Iron samurai had been off.
He set the teacup down and thought for a moment.
Gekko Ran's quick defeat might have involved some underestimation or poor matchup, but there was no question the opponent was strong.
Since the client had specifically requested jonin, they should send a steady, reliable one. Someone who could properly test the samurai's depth while keeping the situation under control.
"Go notify Jonin Kawano Ayumu and have him head to Training Ground Three right away," the Third instructed the chunin.
Kawano Ayumu was an experienced jonin skilled in Wind Release with solid swordsmanship. He had a calm personality and good judgment—perfect for the job.
"Yes, sir!"
This should be fine now, the Third thought as he took a sip of tea and returned to his thick stack of paperwork.