Chapter 37: "Tools" and "Hokage"... (Part Two)
Early September. Konoha's higher-ups promoted a new batch of chunin as planned, most of them around thirteen years old.
The official announcement sent the village into a buzz. For most residents, the constant stream of talented ninja coming up through the ranks was the clearest proof of Konoha's strength.
Uchiha Obito had only made it through the written test before being eliminated in the second round, and he hadn't made peace with it. He was still grumbling about it on the way to that morning's mission.
"At this rate, by the time I make chunin, Kakashi will already be a jonin."
"And knowing my luck, I'll end up assigned under him and have to hand over half my pay..."
Nohara Rin was keeping an eye on the foot traffic along the street while scanning the buildings on both sides. Finding a lost cat wasn't as easy as it sounded, and the helpful old lady wasn't always around to assist.
"Kakashi apparently doesn't want us making chunin too early."
"Osamu mentioned the same thing over in the medical unit. They must know more than they're letting on. There's no reason to rush the exams."
"Obito, if money is tight, I can help you out. I don't need to replace my equipment as often, and Kakashi even gave me a medical kit..."
Everything before that last part went in one ear and out the other. The moment Kakashi's name came up with a gift attached to it, Obito's temper shot straight up and he started shouting.
"That sneaky pervert! So he did make a move after all!"
"Rin, I'll protect you! I had a present ready too, and he went and beat me to it, the underhanded creep!"
"..."
After that outburst, Inuzuka Hana, bandages wrapped around her head as usual, quietly put a little more distance between herself and the two of them. Everyone nearby was staring. It was genuinely embarrassing.
Rin hadn't expected that kind of reaction. She grabbed him by the arm and bowed apologetically to the people around them.
"Hana, let's get moving!"
"Obito, how many times have I told you, don't cause a scene in public."
Obito noticed her hand on his left arm and the color rose in his face. Everything he'd just been worked up about evaporated in an instant, and he thought to himself with quiet satisfaction.
Rin really does care about me more.
Close to noon, the three of them finished the mission and their jonin leader immediately rushed off.
"Are there really that many high-rank missions? Even our new captain's the same way."
Obito muttered as soon as they stepped out of the mission assignment building. In his mind, a team leader was supposed to actually care about the people they were leading.
"Word is the village has been taking on commissions from all the surrounding areas, so the jonin are all stretched thin."
Inuzuka Hana shared what she'd picked up from her seniors in the intelligence division. Obito wasn't really listening, and kept going without thinking.
"They promised us a proper instructor and we still haven't seen one. How are we supposed to learn any advanced jutsu at this rate?"
"Does the Uchiha clan have this problem too?"
Obito could only laugh awkwardly at Hana's question. He was practically invisible within his own clan. All he had were a few basic jutsu his parents had left behind.
Rin still had her medical unit internship to get to. She could see how much Obito wanted company, so she smiled and offered.
"Hana's heading to the intelligence division this afternoon. Obito, do you want to come to the medical unit with me?"
"Osamu will be running practical drills. He's already done a lot of high-rank missions, and that experience is worth a lot to us."
Obito almost said yes on the spot, then immediately pictured himself embarrassing himself in front of Rin and forced out a hollow laugh instead. He covered with a brag.
"Rin, don't worry about me. The clan's been giving me some instruction lately. I'll have my Sharingan awakened before you know it."
Rin didn't call him out on it. She kept smiling, full of energy as always.
"Don't push yourself too hard, Obito. Let's both keep at it!"
The moment the two of them walked away, the smile Obito had been holding up went with them. He stood there deflated, and the loneliness settled back over his face. The image of her smile came back to him and he whispered without meaning to.
"Rin..."
* * *
Kakashi had a habit of telling genin they lacked the talent for it to push them away, and the higher-ups didn't interfere. They simply assigned him squads with poor grades and kept his missions mostly at D-rank.
Furukawa Osamu's situation was the opposite. In the medical unit, he was effectively Tsunade's stand-in. Talented young medical ninja gathered around him naturally.
Some older chunin from ordinary backgrounds who were waiting out their careers also gravitated toward him. If Tsunade ever became Hokage, resources would flow into the medical unit, and that was worth positioning for.
Promotion was a long shot, but a pay raise was not entirely out of the question. The general mood was one of quiet optimism.
That evening at the training ground behind the hill, Furukawa Osamu landed from a jump and drove a downward strike that cratered the ground, then kept his eyes forward and called out without turning.
"Watch your opponent carefully. With your teammates covering you, there's more time to think."
"Gathering information mid-fight and identifying openings are part of a medical ninja's job too."
Debris scattered in every direction. Shizune, Rin, and the other medical unit members dove clear, and most of them hit the ground. The ones who managed to get back to their feet found Osamu already gone, and a moment later there were muffled sounds of impact from behind them.
Kanpo and the others grabbed their necks and dropped one after another. Rin spun around and drew her kunai on instinct, but the moment she swung, a sharp pain shot through her wrist.
Clang.
The kunai hit the ground. By the time Rin registered what had happened, Furukawa Osamu had already flicked her in the forehead. She had no way to resist, and went flying backward, rolling twice across the ground.
She cried out, and was just pushing herself upright when Shizune tumbled into her. Both of them screamed involuntarily and went down together in a heap.
The episodes Osamu privately called the blood-red nightmares had been fading. The experience absorbed through Gathering had been steadily working its way into instinct. His bladework had grown sharper and faster, and his application of chakra had improved again alongside it.
"That's enough, Osamu. No need to make it harder on everyone."
Tsunade, in her jonin vest, stepped in to call a stop. Rin, barely on her feet again, wasn't ready to give up. She hesitated, then spoke up.
"Tsunade-sama, we can keep going."
"Reflexes, perception, decision-making under pressure. A lot of that comes down to natural ability. You all know the three principles of medical ninja."
"My expectations were unrealistic before. There's no need to push yourselves past your limits. The medical unit is where your talents will actually be useful."
Tsunade's voice was gentle as she reassured the group. Shizune noticed that Osamu hadn't broken a sweat, and the discouragement she'd been feeling quietly shifted into something closer to admiration.
"Yes, Tsunade-sensei."
Treating injuries was its own form of healing practice. Once everyone had gone, Furukawa Osamu let out a quiet sigh.
"Sensei, there's always someone in the field who goes after the medical ninja first. Without a sensor-type teammate, you have no choice but to handle it yourself."
"If even a direct frontal attack is hard to deal with, getting hit from behind leaves only one outcome."
Experienced ninja never fought straight on. Between the instincts absorbed through Gathering and the accumulated weight of real missions, Osamu's natural tendency in a fight had shifted entirely toward putting himself in front of the group while ending things with a single decisive strike.
"You think I don't know that? Even when a medical ninja is captured, they're usually kept alive."
"There are abilities that can't be built through practice alone."
Tsunade snapped back with some heat. She'd just come from a jonin division meeting, and the calculating looks on the faces of those smiling advisors and investors had put her in a foul mood.
Furukawa Osamu moved alongside her, cutting off whatever lecture she'd been building up to, and looked at her with complete sincerity.
"Sensei, since everyone thinks so highly of you, why not become Hokage? I think you'd do it well."
A silence fell over her. Something passed across her face, as though a memory had surfaced. She looked down at Furukawa Osamu for a long moment, then turned her head and muttered under her breath.
"Jiraiya wants you for next month's mission. You and your team would be handling support and extraction."
"It involves a jinchuriki. You've read through the books at home. You know how dangerous that is."
Changing the subject like that, Tsunade was clearly rattled by the question. Furukawa Osamu let it go and answered with a smile.
"It's a good chance to build experience. I trust Jiraiya-sama."
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