Capítulo 88: Chapter 88: The Special Assassination Tactics Squad!
On the stands, Nohara Rin, who had been cheering for Uchiha Obito, froze, her voice abruptly cutting off. "Obito... What is he doing?"
Kakashi couldn't help but snort, "Idiot!"
Everyone else was equally dumbfounded, especially Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, and their classmates.
They all knew Uchiha Obito's abilities well enough to know that he shouldn't be weak enough to be taken down in one hit. But this situation was simply... beyond words.
Shūichi also found himself at a loss, torn between laughter and tears.
He had kindly reminded Obito to get ready and not let Nohara Rin's voice distract him. Who could have imagined that Obito would try to form hand seals and use a Fire Style jutsu at such close range? Did he think he was the First Hokage, clapping his hands and summoning any jutsu he wanted?
"Winner, Might Guy!" Shūichi announced, a bit exasperated.
He had no idea that Obito had attempted to use Fire Style to redeem himself from his loss in the second team battle.
...
In a room elsewhere, a television screen clearly displayed the events unfolding in the exam arena.
Standing behind the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Minato Namikaze couldn't help but smile awkwardly as he watched Uchiha Obito lose in such a clumsy manner.
He had mentored two Uchiha before, and their personalities couldn't have been more different. Reflecting on the constant bickering between Obito and Kakashi, Minato realized how challenging this team was, far more so than his previous squad.
Still, Minato spoke up in Obito's defense, "Obito may be prone to mishaps, but he's actually quite strong. He's also very kind-hearted and strives to become Hokage. I believe he'll be an excellent ninja in the future."
The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, exhaled a puff of smoke and sighed softly, "An unpredictable ninja... He still needs much more training."
Minato quickly nodded with an embarrassed smile, "Yes, Lord Hokage. I'll make sure to guide him properly."
...
Back in the exam arena, the matches continued.
Shūichi Hoshita's eyes remained fixed on the fighters, not missing a single detail, ready to intervene if necessary to prevent things from getting out of hand.
In reality, however, he was mentally recording every move of the combatants, storing them in his memory palace as samples.
The number of Konoha villagers stored in his memory palace was growing, including even Danzo.
Now, with the addition of Kurenai Yuhi, Asuma Sarutobi, Nohara Rin, and other childhood friends, Shūichi was updating their versions in his mind.
These memories would form the foundation for Shūichi's future development of genjutsu.
The Sealing Technique - Memory Palace was initially intended to store the memories of Shadow Clones, but it had also become a cornerstone for Shūichi's plans to enhance his genjutsu—a plan he had conceived long ago.
...
"Kakashi Hatake, Might Guy!"
Before anyone realized it, Might Guy was stepping into the ring once again.
As Shūichi waved the flag, Guy and Kakashi clashed fiercely.
Although Guy wasn't entirely devoid of ninjutsu skills, his combat style was undeniably focused on pure taijutsu.
At this moment, Kakashi also refrained from using his newly developed Lightning Release jutsu, choosing instead to engage Guy in a taijutsu-only battle.
"This might be the most thrilling match of the third round," Shūichi thought to himself.
The second-best match had been between Asuma Sarutobi and a member of the Hyuga clan, with Asuma emerging victorious.
The son of the Hokage, whom Shūichi had recommended to the Daimyo, had already mastered the Wind Release chakra nature transformation. Among their peers, only Shūichi himself and Kakashi surpassed him.
"Still, relying solely on taijutsu is an incredibly challenging path."
Shūichi watched as Might Guy, exhausted and drained, finally collapsed.
"Kakashi wins!" Shūichi declared.
At 4 PM, the third stage of the Chunin Exams concluded successfully.
Shūichi brought the results sheet to the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, and bowed in respect. "Hokage-sama, Minato-sensei, here are the results from the third stage."
Hiruzen reached out and took the sheet. "Shūichi, in your opinion, who among them is ready to be promoted to Chunin?"
Shūichi pondered for a moment before replying, "Besides Kakashi Hatake, Asuma Sarutobi, Genma Shiranui, and Aoba Yamashiro all have sufficient strength and experience to be promoted."
Hiruzen nodded slightly but didn't immediately comment. Instead, he said, "Shūichi, you've worked hard these past few days. Take a couple of days to rest, and then report to the Anbu."
"Yes, Lord Hokage!" Shūichi responded.
...
"Shūichi!"
As soon as he exited the exam arena, Shūichi saw Shizune waving at him. He quickly walked over. "Shizune, what are you doing here?"
Shizune smiled and replied, "I didn't expect you to be the Chunin examiner. If I had known earlier, even if I wasn't taking the exam, I would have come to watch."
Shūichi couldn't help but laugh. "It's no problem. Next time, I'll ask the Third Hokage if I can be the examiner for the medical team's promotion exams."
Given that he was promoted to Special Jōnin through medical ninjutsu, it would make sense for him to be the examiner for the medical team.
The two continued to chat and laugh as they made their way to the Konoha Hospital.
...
Even though he was given two days off, Shūichi spent most of his time training, except for meals, evening strolls with Shizune, and sleeping. He was particularly focused because he was close to mastering an S-rank kenjutsu technique.
He hadn't used this year's "flash of insight" yet.
Last year, he had planned to use it to complete the S-rank kenjutsu technique, but since he had found a lead and felt confident in developing it himself, he instead used the inspiration on the Wind Release: Rasenshuriken.
This year, Shūichi planned to use his "flash of insight" at the end of the year to help Tsunade fully develop the secret technique for controlling chakra, bringing the Strength of a Hundred Seal to completion ahead of schedule.
Once that's done, he could start working on creating a Fire Release chakra cloak or a Fire Release chakra mode.
On July 27, Year 42 of Konoha.
At just nine years old, Shūichi officially joined the Hokage's Special Assassination and Tactics Squad—also known as the ANBU(Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai)!
Unlike the Root Division, which had its own separate headquarters, the Hokage's Anbu was based in an auxiliary building next to the Hokage's office.
Once again, it was Sarutobi Shinnosuke who escorted Shūichi.
"Shūichi, in the Anbu, we usually don't use our real names, so you'll need to choose a codename."
As they reached the equipment distribution window, Sarutobi Shinnosuke explained.
"Let's go with 'Flame,'" Shūichi chose his codename casually, then turned to the ninja behind the counter. "Excuse me, could you give me a tiger mask?"
"Sure," the equipment manager nodded and handed him a tiger mask.
Shūichi quickly thanked him, "Thank you!"
In addition to the mask, he received bracers, a long sword, a steel chest plate, and two tattoo stickers.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke smiled and said, "Tattooing the arms is a hallmark of the Anbu. I'll help you apply them."
After tattooing both his arms and putting on the equipment, they continued deeper into the building.
Shinnosuke continued to explain, "The Hokage's Anbu is typically organized into four squads, or four teams."
"Each squad is led by a squad leader, and under them are usually four smaller teams, each with four to five members."
Shūichi quickly calculated that with a minimum of four members per team, plus the squad leader, a squad would have 17 members. With four squads, the Anbu under the Hokage's direct command would consist of about 68 to 100 members.
And that's just the regular contingent.
"This is a considerable force, especially since everyone in the Anbu is an elite—at least an exceptional Chunin," Shūichi thought. "I wonder how many members Root has..."
Even though he had spent three months in Root, Shūichi had never figured out its exact structure.
But knowing Danzo's personality, he figured the Root's numbers wouldn't be much smaller than the Hokage's Anbu.
Before long, Sarutobi Shinnosuke brought Shūichi to a locker room.
Inside, four people were already waiting. None of them were wearing masks. There were three men and one woman, and the oldest looked to be no more than in their early twenties.
"Everyone, starting today, Shūichi Hoshita, codename 'Flame,' is now a member of our team," Sarutobi Shinnosuke introduced.
"Chōgan Akimichi, codename 'Force!'"
"Satoshi Nara, codename 'Deer!'"
"Shinichi Yamanaka, codename 'Mind!'"
"So it really is the Ino-Shika-Cho trio..."
Shūichi immediately greeted them, addressing them as "seniors."
The moment he saw these three, he had a pretty good guess. Their hair color, hairstyles, and Chōgan Akimichi's bulky build gave them away.
Moreover, these three clans had always been closely allied with the Sarutobi clan and the Hokage's lineage, and Sarutobi Shinnosuke was the Hokage's son.
After paying his respects, Shūichi turned his attention to the only female member. She appeared to be around Shinnosuke's age, likely around fifteen or sixteen. Could she be...?
As he pondered, the dark-haired woman smiled and introduced herself, "Chihiro, codename 'Seeker!'"
"I've heard Shinnosuke talk about you often. It's great to finally meet you."
Shūichi quickly bowed. "Seeker-senpai."
Finally, Sarutobi Shinnosuke smiled and said, "Codename 'Ape,' currently the leader of this third squad, and also the team leader."
"Shūichi, from today on, you're officially part of our team and the Anbu."
"Now, let's get suited up!"
Everyone quickly put on their gear and masks, then left the Anbu headquarters, heading out of the village at full speed.
After covering some distance, the team came to a halt. Sarutobi Shinnosuke removed his mask and said, "Before the mission begins, Flame, why don't you tell us what you're best at?"
This was a familiar routine. Shūichi nodded and said, "I specialize in Fire Release, Wind Release, and medical ninjutsu. I also have a basic understanding of Water Release, Lightning Release, Earth Release, and genjutsu."
His words left everyone except Sarutobi Shinnosuke and Chihiro visibly stunned.
They had heard of this youngest Special Jōnin and Chunin, but at his age, could he really know so much?
"Captain, let me test him out!" The large, muscular Chōgan Akimichi suggested.
But Sarutobi Shinnosuke shook his head. "Force, your style might not be the best for testing Flame's abilities. I'll do it myself!"
He then smiled at Shūichi. "Flame, you don't mind, do you?"
Under his mask, Shūichi felt a surge of excitement. "Not at all, Captain!"
(End of Chapter)
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