Morning light spilled across the rooftops of Konohagakure as Shinji walked toward the Hokage Tower.
Shinobi inside the tower stepped aside as he passed. Some whispered quietly when they recognized him.
Not because he was a jonin.
Because word had spread about his encounter with Orochimaru.
Shinji ignored the looks and climbed the final staircase.
At the top waited the Hokage's office.
He knocked once. "Enter."
The door slid open.
Behind the desk stood Minato Namikaze, the Fourth Hokage.
Minato smiled slightly. "Good morning, Shinji."
Shinji nodded respectfully. "Lord Hokage."
Minato gestured toward the center of the room. "Today is your first mission as a jonin squad leader."
Shinji crossed his arms. "I figured."
Minato chuckled. "You figured?"
"You didn't promote me to have me sit around the village."
"Fair point."
Minato turned and unrolled a map across the desk. "The mission itself is straightforward."
He tapped a point along the borderlands. "The Land of Rivers."
A region between major powers.
Always unstable.
"A Fire Country diplomat needs escort through this region. Recently caravans have been attacked."
"Bandits?"
"Possibly."
Minato's tone suggested otherwise.
"Possibly?"
Minato met his eyes. "There are reports of a powerful missing-nin operating in the area."
Shinji didn't react outwardly. But he listened carefully.
"The situation isn't confirmed," Minato continued, "but we have reason to believe it could be one of the rogue swordsmen from the Bloody Mist."
That was interesting.
The Bloody Mist had produced monsters.
Minato folded his arms. "I'm assigning you a genin squad for the mission."
Shinji raised an eyebrow.
"Permanent squad?"
"For now."
Minato smiled slightly. "I want to see how you handle leadership."
Shinji nodded once. "Understood."
Minato turned toward the door. "They're waiting outside."
Shinji stepped out into the hallway.
Three shinobi immediately straightened when they saw him. Shinji studied them for a moment.
The first was a tall boy with messy brown hair and an eager grin. The second was a girl with short black hair The third was a quiet boy standing slightly behind the others, The eager one stepped forward.
"J-Jonin Shinji!"
He bowed quickly. "We're honored to serve under you!"
Shinji blinked once. "Relax."
The boy straightened awkwardly. "Right!"
"They say Sunagakure has you listed as an A-rank threat."
Shinji shrugged. "Rumors travel fast."
The eager boy looked amazed. "So you've really fought other villages before?!"
Shinji started walking. "Yes."
The genin hurried after him. "W-Wait! Where are we going?"
"To the gates."
The girl frowned. "Already?"
Shinji didn't slow down.
"The mission started five minutes ago."
Outside the gates of Konohagakure, a small convoy waited. Two guards. One nervous diplomat.
The diplomat approached quickly. "You must be the jonin assigned to protect us."
Shinji nodded. "Yes."
The man looked relieved. "Thank the Hokage. We've heard rumors about this region lately."
Shinji glanced toward the distant tree line. "So have I."
The convoy began moving.
Hours passed as they traveled along forest roads.
The genin walked in formation around the wagons.
The eager boy whispered.
"So sensei."
Shinji glanced at him. "Yes?"
"Are the rumors about the Land of Rivers true?"
"What rumors?"
"That a monster is killing caravans."
Shinji answered calmly. "Most monsters are just shinobi."
The girl frowned. "That's not reassuring."
Shinji smirked faintly. "It's supposed to be."
They continued traveling until the sun began to set. Then Shinji suddenly stopped walking. The squad halted immediately.
The quiet boy noticed it too. "Blood."
The smell drifted through the trees. Shinji moved ahead silently. The others followed carefully.
They reached a clearing. And froze. A destroyed caravan lay scattered across the road.
Bodies Everywhere. Each corpse had been cut cleanly in half.
All sliced with terrifying precision. The eager genin swallowed hard.
"What kind of weapon does that?"
Then they heard it. A scraping sound. Metal dragging slowly across stone.
The squad turned toward the trees. A massive silhouette stepped forward from the shadows. Resting across his shoulder was a gigantic blade.
The executioner sword. Kubikiribōchō.
The man holding it grinned widely. Jūzō Biwa.
His eyes moved across the squad. Then stopped on Shinji.
His grin widened. "Well now"
He lifted the blade slightly. "Looks like I found something interesting."
The genin felt the killing intent immediately.
"Red eyes."
His grin grew savage. "Ah."
"You're that brat." "The one they're calling the Red Eye Reaper."
The genin slowly turned toward Shinji. Their jonin leader stood completely calm.
Jūzō chuckled. "Didn't expect Konoha to send someone famous."
He slammed the Kubikiribōchō into the ground.
"So"
His killing intent exploded outward. "Let's see if the rumors are true."
Shinji stepped forward slightly. Then spoke without turning. "Team."
"Fall back fifty meters."
The eager boy hesitated.
"But sensei"
"That's an order."
They obeyed immediately. Jūzō laughed loudly.
"Smart."
He lifted the massive blade onto his shoulder again. "You're protecting the kids."
Shinji finally activated his Sharingan. Scarlet eyes spun slowly.
Jūzō grinned wider. "Now that's what I wanted to see."
Shinji's voice was calm. "Let's finish this quickly."
Jūzō slammed the Kubikiribōchō forward. "Try it."
The ground cracked beneath his feet as he launched forward.
And the battle began.