Every Hokage had their own personal guard, the Kage Guard Squad. Their members might not always be the strongest individuals, but they were undoubtedly the most loyal to their Kage within the entire village. So, when Shiranui Genma, Namiashi Raido, and Yamashiro Aoba entered the private room in Seigetsuen and saw the familiar faces gathered, a strange sense of anticipation inexplicably welled up in their hearts.
"Over here!" From a table relatively close to the center, Gekko Hayate waved at the three newcomers.
"You're looking well," Shiranui Genma remarked with a slight smile, observing Hayate's healthy complexion. The four of them had all been part of the Fourth Hokage's personal guard and knew each other's situations intimately. Hayate's bloodline sickness had been a persistent worry for all of them. Even the Fourth Hokage himself had only been able to slow its progression, not cure it.
"The Fifth Hokage truly is the founder of our village's medical system, to be able to even treat a bloodline sickness!" Namiashi Raido said, clicking his tongue in amazement.
"Ahaha..." Gekko Hayate scratched his head with a laugh. Some things were just hard to explain. For instance, he couldn't tell his old friends right now that Lady Tsunade had only managed to delay the onset of his illness; the one who had truly cured him was his former disciple, who was no longer in the village.
"Everyone, please forgive the delay. Lord Shikaku was unexpectedly summoned by the Fifth Hokage to handle some urgent matters," Yamanaka Inoichi announced as he walked in, his gaze sweeping across the room. "But he should be able to resolve everything within half an hour at most. Please wait a little longer!"
The assembled shinobi exchanged glances, not out of resentment for their host's tardiness—after all, Nara Shikaku was renowned in Konoha for his punctuality, a stark contrast to a certain silver-haired, perennially-lost-on-the-road-of-life individual. They were simply curious about what could have prompted the Fifth Hokage to urgently summon Shikaku.
"What happened?" Akimichi Chouza asked his friend Inoichi in a low voice as the latter took a seat.
"It's because of the Akatsuki," Yamanaka Inoichi's voice sounded in Chouza's mind via telepathy. "Kumogakure's Two-Tails Jinchuriki has been captured by them. Just a little while ago, the Fifth Hokage received a formal request for aid document from Kumogakure."
Akimichi Chouza maintained excellent control over his facial expression and replied mentally, "Shouldn't matters concerning the Akatsuki be handled by the Shinobi Squad?"
"The intelligence network allocated to the Shinobi Squad by the Five Great Villages can't pinpoint where the Akatsuki are hiding the Jinchuriki. Kumogakure probably got anxious and sent out aid requests to all major villages directly."
"Based on existing intelligence, aren't the Tailed Beasts supposed to be sealed sequentially? Besides, the Seven-Tails probably won't revive for some time yet. Why are they in such a hurry for the Two-Tails?"
"Perhaps it's because their own interests have been directly affected," Inoichi replied, shaking his head slightly. There was too little confirmed information. "For the past year, the Five Great Villages have never stopped searching for the Akatsuki's Tailed Beast hiding locations, but what have been the results?"
"The Shinobi Squad speculates that the Akatsuki might be hiding the captured Tailed Beasts in some alternate dimension. Judging from the current situation, this speculation is highly probable."
"Finding an alternate dimension without coordinates is hardly simple," Chouza thought, shaking his head. Across the entire shinobi world, those who had mastered space-time ninjutsu were few and far between.
As the group conversed amongst themselves, Nara Shikaku finally entered, accompanied by a young man. When the attendees saw the youth's face, their expressions ranged from confusion and shock to suspicion.
"What's going on?" Gekko Hayate was among the shocked.
"I think I roughly understand why Shikaku and the others only invited us, the Fourth Hokage's old guard, to this dinner," Shiranui Genma said, biting the senbon in his mouth, his eyes filled with an incredibly complex emotion.
"What are your thoughts?" Namiashi Raido asked, propping his chin on his hand with an intrigued expression.
"Let's see what he has to say," Genma replied.
"My apologies for keeping everyone waiting," Nara Shikaku said with a slight bow, expressing his regret.
"Shikaku, don't waste time on such trivialities," Shiranui Genma interjected. "Introduce the young man behind you. I believe most of us here are more curious about his identity."
Nara Shikaku smiled faintly and stepped aside, leaving the stage to the youth behind him. The young man took a light step forward, his gaze meeting everyone's without a trace of fear.
"Interesting," a satisfied smile touched the corner of Shiranui Genma's lips.
"Don't flatter yourself. What's your strength level compared to his?" Gekko Hayate retorted good-naturedly.
"I don't mind," Genma shot back. "Unlike some people who can't even see the back of their own disciple."
"You're just jealous," Hayate chuckled.
"My name is Namikaze Naruto." Naruto gave a simple self-introduction, but it was like a stone dropped into a calm lake, stirring up a thousand ripples. The room instantly erupted in a commotion. The surname "Namikaze," for others, might just be a symbol of a bygone era. But for them, this surname was their former faith, the person they had once fought and strived for.
"We are all adults here, so I won't waste words on pleasantries," Naruto said, getting straight to the point. "Support me to become the Sixth Hokage. And I will help you reclaim what rightfully belongs to you!"
Yamanaka Inoichi's expression changed slightly. He was about to stand up and speak when his friend, Chouza, placed a hand on his arm, holding him back. "This is not what we agreed upon! If these words are overheard by the wrong people, it could easily cause problems!" Inoichi's mental voice was laced with urgency.
But unlike him, Akimichi Chouza appeared quite calm. He subtly gestured towards Nara Shikaku, who was standing in a corner, looking perfectly composed. "Trust Shikaku. He hasn't said anything, so it certainly won't be a problem. Besides..." Chouza's gaze swept across the room, taking in the emotionally stirred faces of the Fourth Hokage's old guard. "...the effect is excellent, isn't it?"
Yamanaka Inoichi paused, sensing the instantly uplifted atmosphere in the room, and nodded slightly in understanding.
"Genma, what are your thoughts?" Namiashi Raido asked. Genma was the strongest among their old foursome, and they usually deferred to his judgment in such situations.
"I've been a Special Jonin for over ten years. Before I retire, I want to get rid of the 'Special' part of that title," Shiranui Genma stated. Although a Special Jonin was still a Jonin, their status and authority within the village were far inferior to that of a full Jonin. If the Fourth Hokage hadn't met with that accident, with his years of meritorious service, Genma should have been promoted to Jonin long ago. But no matter how many times he submitted his promotion application, the reply was always the same—"Still under assessment!" "Still under assessment"—what bullshit! Did they take him for a three-year-old? It was all because of his past; his identity as a member of the Fourth Hokage's Guard Squad prevented him from joining any faction. Without the support of a family clan or a political faction, his "assessment period" was likely to last a lifetime. Now that he finally saw a glimmer of hope, how could he not seize it? Not just for himself, but for his future children as well.
Shinobi like them, from commoner backgrounds, could only rely on the village if they wanted to acquire good ninjutsu. But the village didn't belong to one person alone; things weren't given to you just because you wanted them. You needed to contribute to the village, and only then would the village entrust you with its ninjutsu, or teach it to your next generation. The difference between "Special Jonin" and "Jonin," though it seemed like just one word, meant a world of difference in the quality of ninjutsu they could pass down to their descendants. Unless it was a self-developed jutsu, a Special Jonin could only pass down B-rank techniques obtained from the village, while a full Jonin could pass down A-rank techniques. Not everyone was a Kakashi, capable of developing A-rank ninjutsu in their early teens.
"I am willing to support you!" Having thought this far, Shiranui Genma slowly raised his right hand.
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