Sarutobi Hiruzen pondered for quite some time before continuing,
"Is it really that easy to get a single scratch card? And about these scratch cards…what sort of prizes do they typically yield?"
Kakashi answered truthfully,
"Lord Hokage, from what I know, a scratch card can potentially yield nearly any kind of reward. It's just that the odds of getting something really good are low; most of the time you end up with relatively ordinary items.
"For instance, the first time I used a scratch card, I got the jutsu 'Lightning Release: Lightning Ball.' The instant it was 'awarded,' I automatically learned it—even though I hadn't studied it before."
When Hiruzen heard this, his cloudy old eyes were filled with a look that said, "Kakashi, are you pulling my leg?" Even though he was a seasoned ninja used to all sorts of upheavals, something so bizarre he truly had never seen or heard of.
Kakashi knew his story sounded far-fetched. He simply told Hiruzen,
"Lord Hokage, let me scratch a few of these cards so you can see for yourself that what I'm telling you is accurate."
Saying this, Kakashi began scraping the silvery coating of one scratch card. Then both he and Sarutobi Hiruzen saw the words that appeared on the card:
[Soldier Pill ×1]
In the next instant, the scratch card itself turned into a single soldier pill, appearing right in Kakashi's hand.
Hiruzen: "?"
Kakashi: "?"
Hiruzen's head was full of questions—he was astonished by Senshi's methods. He truly never expected Senshi could do such a thing. And as the so-called "Professor of Ninjutsu," he genuinely couldn't comprehend how Senshi was pulling it off.
Kakashi, meanwhile, also had question marks swirling in his head, because it was his very first time drawing just a single soldier pill. But he didn't dawdle; he quickly started a second scratch. This time, he revealed a kunai.
Because they had just witnessed how miraculous the scratch cards were, Hiruzen was no longer quite as shocked as before. He carefully observed every step of Kakashi's use of the card, trying to see whether Senshi might have combined sealing techniques with space-time ninjutsu to accomplish something so incredible.
Wasting no time, Kakashi then took out three more scratch cards and scratched them in succession:
[3 Soldier Pills]
[Shuriken ×1]
[Explosive Tag ×1]
After scratching these three, Sarutobi Hiruzen was utterly stunned, and Kakashi was equally dumbfounded.
Hiruzen had not imagined Senshi's abilities could have reached such a level. He stared intently for quite a while and still failed to see anything. It made him, the so-called "Ninjutsu Professor," seem slightly unworthy of the title.
He'd already been deeply shaken when Senshi demonstrated an incredibly powerful Wood Release. But now he realized that even the unparalleled Lightning Release, that astonishing skill at instruction, and so on were only part of Senshi's repertoire. With minimal effort, Senshi could achieve such a mind-boggling feat.
Before long, Hiruzen noticed the main point: Kakashi had to earn two million ryō to get a single scratch card. Judging from what he'd just drawn, it didn't look worth it.
So Hiruzen immediately said,
"Kakashi, the prizes you got just now were basically soldier pills, shuriken, and explosive tags—ordinary stuff. If you earn two million in commissions just to get items like that, wouldn't that be a loss?"
Kakashi shook his head.
"Lord Hokage, Lord Senshi doesn't take any cut from his mercenary group's members. These scratch cards are all additional gifts from him."
Hiruzen: "?"
No commission share taken, yet giving away these magical scratch cards? Just what is Senshi aiming for?
He'd already heard a slew of unbelievable details from this conversation with Kakashi, and unbeknownst to him, Kakashi still hadn't finished reporting. Now, looking solemn, Kakashi continued:
"Lord Hokage, among the most remarkable aspects of these scratch cards is that you can get ninjutsu or chakra from them. If you draw a ninjutsu—regardless of whether you've trained in it before—you master it at once, and can use it proficiently. If you draw chakra, then your personal chakra volume increases immediately. It's quite astonishing."
This time Hiruzen was flabbergasted. It sounded too sensational. He hadn't even wrapped his head around it when Kakashi went on:
"Lord Hokage, I once reported that Naruto and Sasuke have been rapidly raising their strength by continually grinding missions. Noticing that their abilities were skyrocketing, I tried imitating them, but it did nothing for me."
"Now all the mysteries are solved. The reason I didn't benefit from the same approach is because I wasn't part of Senshi's mercenary group, whereas Naruto and Sasuke joined it a long while back."
Once Kakashi said that, Sarutobi Hiruzen recalled related work reports that Kakashi had submitted. A hint of realization flickered across his face: "So that's why those two kids worked day and night on commissions—because there were such benefits?"
Kakashi nodded earnestly and added:
"Yes, Lord Hokage. That's their primary reason. And based on my ongoing observations, neither has done anything detrimental to Konoha's interests. That only confirms further that Senshi's mercenary group doesn't harm us; as far as I know, he's never forced Naruto or Sasuke to do anything they were unwilling to do."
Hearing Kakashi's explanation, Hiruzen felt much less hostility toward Senshi's group. Kakashi, after all, had been watching Naruto and Sasuke for half a year. During that entire period, the two hadn't caused any problems, implying that the mercenary group—just as Kakashi described—likely posed no threat to Konoha.
Even so, Hiruzen was still skeptical about how a member of Senshi's group could learn an unknown jutsu instantly or expand their chakra capacity in a flash. He just couldn't imagine what technique might accomplish that. After hesitating, Hiruzen looked toward Kakashi and said:
"Kakashi, may I have one of these scratch cards?"
In a respectful tone, Kakashi replied:
"Certainly, Lord Hokage."
Saying this, he handed Hiruzen a card. Hiruzen took it and studied it out of curiosity, but gained no clues. With no other option, he tried scraping the silver coating—only to find that, for some reason, he, the renowned Third Hokage, could not scratch off the surface.
After a few tries, Hiruzen could only sigh.
"Senshi's methods really are inscrutable, truly unimaginable. I can't figure out how he's done it, but it appears that anyone who isn't the actual owner of the card can't scratch it open."
With that sigh of amazement, Hiruzen handed the card back to Kakashi.
"Kakashi, you scrape it instead. Let's see if you can draw some kind of special prize like a ninjutsu. I'd like to see how a scratch card can instantly teach one a new jutsu. If Konoha managed to master that technology, it would dramatically improve our strength."
Kakashi nodded. He began scratching away at the card Hiruzen couldn't open mere moments ago. This time, in Kakashi's hands, it worked easily—just like before. Hiruzen and Kakashi both took in the prize revealed:
[Chakra 1/5 Kakashi]
As soon as they read that, the scratch card vanished. In the next instant, a surge of pure chakra appeared inside Kakashi, boosting his total chakra reserves by one-fifth of Kakashi's entire level. From the start, Hiruzen had been carefully monitoring Kakashi's condition. When Kakashi's chakra leapt upward, the sight left Hiruzen so shocked that he couldn't even speak!
Hiruzen: "(ΩДΩ)!!!"
This time, his silence lasted a long while. When Kakashi won ration pills or kunai, he could at least accept the possibility of storing them somewhere through advanced sealing techniques. But a direct increase in total chakra?
Hiruzen truly couldn't fathom it. Senshi's mysterious powers left him fully convinced. The man truly was the black market's most accomplished mercenary with a 100% completion rate. It seemed there was nothing in the ninja world he couldn't do.
While Hiruzen was still filled with admiration, Kakashi prepared to offer some advice to his Hokage. In Kakashi's view, letting more Konoha shinobi join Senshi's group held tremendous benefits. Thus he said:
"Lord Hokage, from my half-year observation of Naruto and Sasuke and all the intel we've gathered on Senshi, having Konoha's ninjas join Senshi's mercenary group would greatly benefit our village's future. If many of our people joined, we might have many more ninjas like Naruto and Sasuke!"
Those words were like thunderclaps to Hiruzen's ears—enough to astonish him deeply. As soon as Kakashi finished, Hiruzen's entire being trembled with excitement.
Kakashi was absolutely correct: from all known intel, joining that group definitely produced more pros than cons. If that avenue could foster many more talents akin to Naruto, Sasuke, or even Musen and the others, then Konoha's prospects wouldn't be merely hopeful—they would be headed toward complete glory!
Thinking this, Hiruzen excitedly nodded and said to Kakashi,
"Indeed! You're exactly right! Konoha must move quickly to enable as many of our ninjas as possible to join Senshi's group! We must hurry! I suspect that right now Senshi is offering these scratch cards so he can expand his ranks. Perhaps such great perks won't last forever!"
Kakashi hadn't considered it quite so thoroughly—he felt that Lord Senshi's thinking didn't necessarily match normal logic. Still, he found Hiruzen's reasoning plausible: such a massive benefit might only be temporary. They had to press on.
As Kakashi silently pondered all this, Hiruzen finalized his plan,
"Let's do this. Kakashi, go find Senshi right away, ask him how we can get more Konoha ninjas to join his mercenary group. Meanwhile, keep a close watch over that group's developments. If anything arises that may harm Konoha, report to me immediately!"
Kakashi nodded firmly. "Understood!" Then he vanished with Body Flicker to find Senshi and handle the matter.
In attempting to locate Senshi, Kakashi discovered something awkward: whenever Senshi wanted to see Kakashi, Kakashi was easy to find; but if Kakashi wanted to see Senshi, there was no guarantee he could track him down. For example, Senshi wasn't at the inn where the Amegakure ninja stayed. Naturally the innkeeper wouldn't know where he'd gone, either.
While Konoha was figuring out how to proceed further, many other villages—large and small—were doing likewise. With the Chūnin Exam ended, each delegation returned home, ready to relay the most accurate, firsthand intelligence to their village and country leaders.
At Kumo delegation's temporary lodging, the Fourth Raikage was currently discussing cooperation matters with Senshi. Indeed, Kakashi couldn't find Senshi precisely because Senshi had accepted the Raikage's invitation to visit Kumo's residence.
Right now, the Fourth Raikage was regarding Senshi seriously,
"Lord Senshi, since the Chūnin Exam has concluded, would you be willing to come to Kumogakure for a thorough inspection?"
Both he and Kumo hoped to deepen previous ties with Senshi and embark on more extensive collaboration. Having once benefited greatly from Senshi's contributions, they knew his colossal influence could facilitate large-scale development—just as in Konoha these past days, endless high-ranking figures sought even a moment of his time. Because his schedule was packed, many had to be content with meeting a Wood Clone.
If Senshi went to Kumo now, the whole ninja world's attention would pivot away from Konoha to Kumogakure, generating numerous advantages for them. Yet while A was discreetly crunching the numbers, Senshi merely shook his head.
He believed the Raikage wouldn't try anything deceptive, but going for an inspection and proposing new collaborative efforts was bound to be cumbersome—negotiating commissions could take too long, and if Kumo's tasks turned out limited or too low-value, Senshi would be wasting his time. Besides, he saw clearly that Kumo nin wanted to leverage his influence for their village's development, likely dragging things out to keep him in the village longer—reason enough for him not to go.
After some thought, Senshi told Raikage A,
"A-bro, we've cooperated many times before, so you know me—I'm good at finishing missions, not issuing them. In Kumogakure's ongoing development, you'll surely face issues hard to resolve. If you list them all out—once you've compiled a full set—just send them all to me in one go."
"As for me traveling to Kumogakure for an inspection, I'll have to pass for now. With the Chūnin Exam done, I still need to take Amegakure's shinobi back home."
In so saying, he tactfully declined the Fourth Raikage's invitation, leaving A and his compatriots rather disappointed. Even so, they already had a draft plan for intensifying cooperation with Senshi. Once home, they'd convene the rest of the village high-ups, finalize details, and proceed to partner with him. For instance, they might send Omoi and Karui to attend Amegakure's ninja academy, or replicate that model in their own village, then ask Senshi if he could dispatch a Wood-Style clone as an instructor.
While Senshi was talking with the Fourth Raikage, many villagers of other nations were setting off home—some closer ones had almost arrived back by now. On Amegakure's side, Senshi and Karin's six-person squad had no plans to depart Konoha yet, but the rest of Ame's ninja had headed out. They would deliver extensive firsthand information about the exam to Nagato and Konan.
Since Senshi hadn't told Karin, Musen, and the others to get ready, they were still swamped with mission contracts in the Land of Fire's black market. Each two million ryō earned a scratch card. That reward was irresistible, so all eight youths were diligently piling up commissions.
As for Raimon Yukika and Raimon Hayate, while they also ground through missions, they couldn't help envying the main group. Although they, too, had represented Amegakure in the Chūnin Exam, they hadn't yet secured Headmaster Senshi's approval to join his mercenary corps. So the pair resolved to work even harder, striving to earn Senshi's recognition so that one day they, too, could gain a scratch card every time they made two million.
Land of Fire, Black Market Hall:
Hands on hips, Karin glared at the manager and said, "Why are there so few 'delivery' commissions? Did you assign those to somebody else?"
With a bitter expression, the manager replied,
"Karin-sama, how could I dare? Ever since you spoke to me about it, we've been saving all such commissions for you. You can ask them if you don't believe me!"
He glanced at several of the black market's record-keepers. Karin looked at them, and under her gaze, they quivered as they spoke in turn:
"Karin-sama, we've definitely kept every single transport mission our black market receives just for you."
"It's not that we have very few commissions of that type, it's that you complete them so fast."
"Yes, yes. Under normal circumstances, no one could finish so many in under ten days or half a month."
These record-keepers and the manager were all so deferential because they'd seen Karin display her Susanoo, then use Kamui Shuriken to slice the top off a small mountain. From that point, they understood: "Rules are set by the higher-ups, but our lives are our own."
For their own survival, they had to follow Karin's preferences. They passed her every single "courier" commission.
What Karin liked about these missions was simple: she opened Kamui, teleporting straight to any location, achieving near-instant deliveries. Regardless of the cargo's value or the distance, she could Kamui straight there. And because she had Mind's Eye of the Kagura, even if she emerged at the wrong spot, she could swiftly locate the recipient and deliver the goods. Already stronger than Naruto or Sasuke, discovering this money-making secret allowed her to hoard plenty of scratch cards, planning to eventually go on a big spree to see if she might get something interesting.
Back in Amegakure:
Besides Senshi, Karin, and the other six, every ninja Amegakure had sent to Konoha was back. Rumors of the Chūnin Exam's events had been circulating for some time, though hearing it second- or third-hand meant inaccuracies. Now, with these first hand witnesses, the entire village was in an uproar.
At the gates of the Amegakure Ninja Academy, countless parents awaiting their children were in animated discussion about the Chūnin Exam Konoha had jointly held with Sunagakure.
"This time, our Amegakure was really incredible! In the quarterfinals, out of the eight who advanced, five were ours!"
"Indeed! And apparently Karin-sama withdrew for unknown reasons—otherwise we'd have had six out of the eight!"
"I also heard that if Karin-sama hadn't bowed out, she would have placed first in the final round!"
All these parents, talking about the exam, were delighted, excited, filled with pride. The Five Great Nations plus every notable smaller village had participated, yet the quintet from Amegakure still managed to reach the top eight. In other words, they ranked among the top ten genin in the entire ninja world!
Not only these parents. Students and teachers throughout the Amegakure Ninja Academy were likewise chatting excitedly. Everyone was brimming with joy and pride. In effect, a small village's genin had outperformed all other villages except Konoha—that was a true achievement.
In the Lightning Release class, which Senshi taught, lessons had yet to begin. Students were chattering away about the Chūnin Exam:
"Raimon Yukika and Raimon Hayate really did us proud—our class, our school, even the whole Amegakure!"
"They sure did. Do you know what Kumogakure is famous for? Lightning Release ninjas. Yet this time, those two lightning geniuses they sent both lost to our people. One even lost to Snowflake!"
"Yukika-chan is awesome! No wonder I'm in love with her!"
"You'd better say that to her face and see if she doesn't beat you so badly you can't move."
At that, everyone roared with laughter. The Lightning Class became filled with cheerful energy.
Not only were these students excited—nearly every instructor at the Amegakure Academy was ecstatic, too. In truth, Amegakure could have done even better, maybe even claiming the championship, but there was no need.
Meanwhile, at the Uzumaki Clan's compound, Uncle Tuosen was likewise sharing the good news with everyone. The final outcome of the Chūnin Exam had become well known across the clan. Gazing at Haruko-chan and the others, Tuosen kindly said,
"Haruko-chan, Yūtai, from now on train harder. Your big brother Musen, big brother Lanyu, and big sister Lanwu got into the Top 8 this time!"
"That is something neither Kiri nor Iwa nor Kumo nor even Suna village's nin managed. Follow their example!"
"Also trust in Lord Senshi. After all, your brother Musen and the rest were once impoverished refugees, just like the rest of us. Yet under Senshi's guidance, they became so strong they could defeat the geniuses of four Great Nations!"
Once Uncle Tuosen finished, the young Uzumaki kids' eyes shone with hopeful, happy pride.
Atop the Rain Tower, inside Nagato's office:
Nagato and Konan had also learned of the exam's results. Nagato remarked with emotion,
"Who'd have guessed that besides having unbelievably powerful intel networks and a flawless mission success rate, Senshi would be so adept at training ninjas as well?"
"Musen's trio and the Raimon siblings were all just starving refugees in the beginning. If Amegakure hadn't taken them in, they might not have survived."
Konan nodded.
"From what we know of Senshi, Karin's mid-exam withdrawal was likely something arranged behind the scenes with Konoha. Otherwise, even Konoha's genin might have ended up fully trampled by Amegakure."
"Still, despite Karin's withdrawal, the village's performance is splendid. Unless something unexpected happens, the rest of the ninja world will surely send delegations to Amegakure to learn from us or to initiate partnerships."
Having said that, Konan pivoted topics:
"Which means, Nagato, you really need to hurry and finish clearing all the backlog of official papers and various reports. That'll free up your schedule so you can engage deeply with each visiting representative and discuss cooperation."
A moment earlier, Nagato had been wearing a contented smile, but hearing this from Konan, he instantly felt like his head was about to split open.
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— You can Read the Fanfic until Completion! This Fanfic is Completed in Patreon!