**Chapter 3: A Ticket to the Realm of Powerhouses**
For a long time, the terrifying great war of the future and all sorts of dreadful crises made Reo constantly feel like he couldn't catch his breath. But at that time, he simply had no options.
In this Ninja World, the gap between people was even greater than the gap between a human and a dog. He knew this ten years ago.
Because back then, he had witnessed how Uchiha Itachi had stunned the Ninja Academy. Let alone his peers, even those older than him were no match for him at all.
Before drawing this standard Uchiha bloodline, Reo estimated that his strength wouldn't even be enough to beat the Uchiha Itachi of ten years ago, let alone the current Uchiha Itachi, who likely stood at the peak of Kage level.
If they met, it would probably be an instant kill!
Clearly, Uchiha Itachi's talent and degree of Mangekyo Sharingan development far exceeded that of the average Uchiha clan member. If not for his bloodline disease, it wouldn't be impossible for him to go a step further and reach the Super Kage level in the future.
Currently, Reo had only just obtained an admission ticket to the realm of the strong.
But it didn't matter; this was only his first draw. There would be countless opportunities in the future. He would definitely be able to draw more powerful Kekkei Genkai and Ninjutsu.
Among those standing at the peak of the Ninja World in the future, why couldn't he be one of them?
---
The night passed silently. The next day, Reo woke up early. Although only one night had passed, he still felt his chakra amount had grown again.
This feeling of constant growth without actively needing to refine it was truly wonderful.
Thinking back to the miserable days of painstakingly refining a tiny bit of chakra and having to use it carefully—what kind of human suffering was that?
So these children of ninja clans lived such good lives.
Thinking about it this way, discounting the Nine-Tails, how ridiculous must it feel for Uzumaki Naruto to possess a hundred times Kakashi's chakra amount at only twelve years old?
Although Hatake Kakashi was teased for having low mana, that was only relative to his strength level. His normal chakra amount surely far exceeded that of an ordinary Jonin. This showed just how astonishing Uzumaki Naruto's chakra truly was.
Early in the morning, Reo got up and went to meet his teammates.
Inside a breakfast shop, Reo sat upright at a table. In front of him, a boy with a middle-part hairstyle, about his age, was slurping down breakfast without any regard for his image.
This was his squad member who had been his teammate for three years, Aida Genryu.
His basic configuration was about the same as Reo's: equally obscure, a cannon fodder who probably wouldn't even show his face in the original work.
Beside Reo sat a beautiful girl, also about fifteen or sixteen years old. However, her eyes were clearly different from ordinary people's, looking like she had cataracts.
Anyone with a little common sense about ninja could recognize that this should be a ninja from the illustrious Hyuga clan.
Yes, this beautiful girl was also his teammate and a member of the famous Hyuga clan, named Hyuga Keiko.
Although she came from a prestigious clan, her talent was very average. After all, even in ninja clans, not everyone possessed sufficient ninja aptitude.
This was a standard three-man squad. When a middle-aged man with a scar on his face walked in, everyone in the squad was present.
This was their squad leader, Chunin Akai Akimoto, an elite Chunin who was unknown and had no fame.
Although in the original work, the Konoha 12 all seemed to be assigned a Jonin, in reality, this was a privilege only for the top students of each year. The vast majority of academy graduates only had an elite Chunin as their team leader.
Even during wartime, when manpower was tight, there were cases where newly promoted Chunin were assigned as team leaders.
In other words, if it were wartime, Reo could already serve as a team leader. But he certainly didn't wish to be born in wartime.
Because if it were wartime, his teammates would probably have been replaced once over, and even he himself might have died in some battle.
Although peacetime missions were boring, at least the danger level was greatly reduced.
"Sensei Akai!"
Reo and the others quickly stood up to greet him upon seeing him.
Akai Akimoto waved his hand, sat down, and then said, "I came here today to inform you of something. I've been promoted to Special Jonin!"
Hearing this, everyone was stunned for a moment.
A Special Jonin is a ninja who can already wrestle with an average Jonin in certain fields but falls short of an average Jonin overall.
However, although they hold the title of Special Jonin, they have indeed left the realm of Chunin and are considered bona fide Jonin, holding voting rights in major Konoha affairs.
"Sensei Akimoto is a Jonin? Doesn't that mean we are disciples of a Jonin now? That's awesome!"
Aida Genryu said with exaggeration.
After all, he knew very well that having a Jonin teacher versus a Chunin teacher made a clear difference for their future prospects.
"It's Special Jonin," Akai Akimoto said, patting Aida Genryu on the head.
"Then Sensei, doesn't that mean you're leaving?" At this moment, Reo suddenly realized something and spoke up.
"Yes. In our squad, you are already a Chunin and can serve as an independent squad leader. My duty as a team leader has been fulfilled. The higher-ups have transferred me to the Anbu. Today's mission will be led independently by Reo. Get used to the feeling of being a squad leader first," Akai Akimoto looked at Reo and said.
"But then we won't see you anymore, Sensei," Aida Genryu said very dejectedly.
"Idiot, Sensei was just transferred to the Anbu. We'll still be able to see him in the future," Hyuga Keiko retorted. "Being transferred to the Anbu means he's an elite ninja. This is a great thing."
Reo nodded. Although the Anbu's performance in the original work could be said to be unsatisfactory, it didn't mean the Anbu weren't formidable.
To enter the Anbu, a ninja must be at least at the elite Chunin level. There were plenty of Special Jonin and even Jonin-level ninja among them. They were a force directly under the Hokage.
It's just that becoming an Anbu at this point in time might not necessarily be a good thing. After all, it wasn't far from the first Chunin Exam after the graduation of the Konoha 12. If he happened to be too close to the Third Hokage then and got killed by Orochimaru in passing, that would be the end.
But he couldn't very well say right now that Orochimaru was plotting to attack Konoha and staying by the Hokage's side was the most dangerous place, could he? No one would believe him if he said that.
"Alright, I have to go report for duty. For future mission arrangements, you just listen to Reo."
Akai Akimoto didn't say much more. He directly delegated the squad's authority to Reo and then left in a hurry.