Chapter 36: "Tools" and "Hokage"... (Part One)
Mid-August, Konoha Year 46. The recently graduated genin found themselves facing the Chunin Exams again.
As usual, team captains submitted nominations, while a handful of exceptionally talented ninja received direct recommendations from the higher-ups.
For ninja from ordinary families, the general feeling was that an early shot at the exams was a good thing. D-rank mission pay was too low, and after the team captain took their cut, most genin were left with barely enough to replace worn-out equipment.
So when the news came out, the younger ninja were buzzing. The ones who had graduated early this year were especially enthusiastic.
Might Guy had been nominated by his captain. He was happy about it, but also a little frustrated. The village's internal selection process placed heavy emphasis on squad performance, and his two teammates couldn't keep up with him.
Training Ground 44. Inside the Forest of Death, Might Guy stared wordlessly at his two teammates, who had already collapsed on the ground while he'd dragged them out here for extra training.
"Guy, we only just graduated. Do we really need to push this hard?"
Ebisu grumbled from the ground, having taken a hit from Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu. He had a clear-eyed sense of his own abilities and no particular desire to make chunin this early.
On the other side, Shiranui Genma was tied to a tree trunk wearing the expression of a dead fish. He'd done even worse, walking straight into a trap.
"It's hopeless, Guy! Our squad doesn't have a sensor-type ninja. This kind of matchup is just too hard for us..."
"You two are hopeless! Don't give up until it's actually over!"
Not far away, Might Guy stood in his green jumpsuit and forehead protector, staring hard at them. He moved his ears carefully, then sniffed the air, and muttered with growing impatience.
"Where is he?!"
Directly above Guy, hidden among the dense foliage of a massive tree, Furukawa Osamu hung upside down from a branch. He watched Guy losing patience and starting to yell, then cut the thin wire.
Whoosh.
The rigged trap sprang into motion. Kunai and shuriken drove straight down toward Might Guy.
Faced with the sudden attack, Guy instantly pulled out his nunchaku and knocked each one aside with a clatter of metal, then launched himself straight up toward the top of the tree.
"Fire Style: Flame Bullet!"
Furukawa Osamu released the jutsu at precisely the right moment. Caught in midair, Guy twisted frantically to dodge the fireball and crashed onto a thick branch, half scorched.
He was just gritting his teeth to push out more chakra and press the attack when Kakashi was already in front of him, having been ready for exactly this moment.
With cellular activation running, Kakashi moved fast, spinning like a top and driving one short blade strike after another. Guy could do nothing but scramble to keep up with the defense.
When Kakashi finally found the angle to slip around behind him and strike again, a worn-down Guy was forced to break away and create distance.
The two of them chased each other across the tree trunks until Guy managed to shake Kakashi and dropped back down to the ground, and then things shifted again.
"Aah!"
Guy sank into the earth up to his neck, just like Ebisu before him, with only his head sticking out.
Furukawa Osamu drifted into view in front of the three of them, took a moment to consider, and offered his assessment.
"Don't expose your back to an enemy."
"Your team captain shouldn't have nominated you so quickly. Making chunin this early might not be in your best interest."
Kakashi dug all three of them out with his usual flat expression, then said more than he usually would.
"C-rank missions have been getting more dangerous lately. Even if you make chunin, there won't be a jonin looking out for you in any special way."
"The village is accepting too many commissions. Something feels off about the situation."
Konoha this year had been taking every commission that came through the door without a thought to Sand's protests, accepting any rank of mission as long as the payment was there.
The jonin were stretched thin, and the lower-ranked work was being pushed down to mediocre chunin and inexperienced genin.
The two of them didn't say that part out loud in front of their friends. Beyond the mission volume, the other villages were stockpiling food and equipment, while Konoha was quietly building up its own reserves in a different way.
With localized skirmishes already flaring up, doing D-rank missions was honestly the safer option right now.
"Guy's right too, though! Even if you make chunin, becoming a team captain is a long way off. Even Osamu and Kakashi are still held back by their age."
Ebisu jumped in quickly. He had absolutely no desire to be sitting the exams this soon after graduating. Shiranui Genma was the same, and he added his own voice before Guy could dig in.
"Guy, we can wait until next year. I'll put more effort into missions in the meantime."
Guy rubbed his chin and eventually nodded. He wasn't afraid of the risk, but he had to think about where his teammates actually were.
"All right, fair enough. You're both right. My youth is only just getting started. I was getting a little ahead of myself!"
Normal graduation was at twelve, and these days most were finishing even earlier than that. Kakashi hadn't been thinking about any of this in his earlier years, but after enough high-rank missions, he had come to understand what the village was doing.
If the war went badly, every one of these early graduates would be sent to the front. Kakashi looked at Guy, who had already bounced back and was laughing loudly, and let out a quiet breath.
"Guy. You're not a tool. Don't die."
By evening, after eating enough at the barbecue restaurant to need help standing up, Guy was fully back to his usual self. He gave his own particular send-off at the door on the way out.
Kakashi waved him off, his mood quietly dropping. He turned to Furukawa Osamu and asked in a low voice.
"Osamu, you already knew all of this, didn't you? All that stuff they taught us, was it just meant to keep kids from asking questions?"
"War needs tools. Tools don't come with age limits or background checks."
Chunin at six. Kakashi had been genuinely proud of that at the time. Looking back now, the village had been setting an example, pushing young people to leave school as early as possible.
"Don't assume the worst about things that haven't happened yet."
"Whether you become a tool or not is your own choice. As for Shuichi's situation, there's nothing we can do about that."
"Maybe a Hokage could change things. You could always try."
Furukawa Osamu gave a simple answer and left it there. Multiple villages were now in open preparation for war. The reputation of Cloud's A and B combination had reached Konoha, and chunin had been briefed on it.
"Hokage..."
Kakashi looked up toward the Hokage Rock without thinking. In the dark, only the rough outlines were visible. The three carved faces on the cliff face were all swallowed in shadow.
* * *
Late night. Furukawa Osamu reached the door of his apartment and was about to put his key in when he turned toward a patch of darkness and spoke quietly.
"Orochimaru-sama. What brings you to my place?"
"Sharp as ever with that sensing. It seems Tsunade wasn't just talking after a few drinks. Osamu, aren't you going to invite me in?"
Orochimaru stepped out of the shadow dressed in his green jonin vest, and when Furukawa Osamu opened the door and gestured him in, a smile crossed his face.
Inside the apartment, Orochimaru took a brief look around. Furukawa Osamu put on a pot of cold tea, and had barely settled onto the couch before the invitation came.
"Osamu, would you be interested in researching the secrets of the soul together? It's the first step toward immortality."
Seeing the excitement on Orochimaru's face, Furukawa Osamu didn't answer directly.
"I thought Orochimaru-sama was preparing for the Hokage position. Tsunade-sensei seems troubled by it every day."
"Hokage? Hiruzen-sensei is still young. All those discussions going around the village don't mean anything."
"If you want to pursue the truth, eternal life is what matters. When it comes down to it, a ninja's power is everything."
When the talk turned to who would be the next Hokage, a subject the village had been debating for years, Orochimaru only smiled with contempt. Compared to eternity, the Hokage seat wasn't worth a second thought.
Furukawa Osamu didn't take that at face value. If a nomination came now, one of the Sannin was the obvious choice. Narrowing it further, it was a competition between Tsunade and Orochimaru.
"Trust me. You'll find this interesting."
Before Furukawa Osamu could ask another question, Orochimaru paused briefly and then slid a scroll across to him without any preamble.
Furukawa Osamu picked it up, and genuine surprise crossed his face.
"Soul Embodiment Technique? A forbidden jutsu?"
"It's only forbidden for ordinary ninja. The village has never stopped researching techniques like this. Most people simply don't have the talent for it."
Clearly pleased with the reaction, Orochimaru gave a satisfied smile and continued.
"If you agree, this stays between the two of us. Once you've mastered the technique, I'll need your help with certain experiments down the line."
"Your medical ninjutsu would also be a great asset to my research. Tsunade can't stop talking about you, and I trust an old friend's judgment."
He held out a second scroll. Furukawa Osamu didn't open it this time, and spoke with measured gravity.
"Mastering this technique could take a very long time."
The smile returned to Orochimaru's face. He showed no concern about the timeline at all, and looked back with clear anticipation.
"A pleasure working with you, Osamu. I really did see you clearly from the start."
"..."
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