"What? The Uchiha clan broke into civil strife? And Danzo was caught by sensei and publicly tried in front of the Hokage Building?!"
Shisui was completely stunned by the news.
He'd guessed that Sensei had some kind of plan when he arranged for Minato Namikaze to stand in for him—but he never imagined it would go this far, stirring up internal chaos within the Uchiha.
And what's more…
Shimura Danzo—someone who had long held oppressive power over many clans—was now completely uprooted and dragged out for public judgment.
This…
Sensei, you're way too aggressive!
"So the reason we went to Amegakure was…"
Kakashi and Kurenai quickly caught on to the deeper reason behind their mission.
To lower the enemy's guard.
If both Kanda Kyoichi and Minato hadn't left the village at the same time, would Danzo and the Uchiha have dared to make a move?
No wonder they were told they could return to the village today.
"Exactly, it's just as you're thinking. And the reason I came here was to use the Flying Thunder God Technique to send Kyoichi back."
On the way back, Minato didn't keep secrets.
He shared parts of what had happened during the mission. Kakashi and the others were surprised at first—but by the end, they were simply numb.
Because with Kyoichi…
Nothing was ever truly unexpected.
For someone like Kyoichi-sensei, taking down Danzo? Piece of cake.
What worried Shisui now…
Just how chaotic had the Uchiha clan become?
And beyond that—
How foolish did those people have to be to resort to rebellion? Did they actually think they could leave the village safely?
Ridiculous.
He was desperate to return and find out what was really going on inside the clan.
Fortunately…
Everyone in the group wanted to get back quickly.
They made such haste that what would normally be a two-day journey from Amegakure to Konoha was completed in just one day—
Shisui was anxious because of his clan.
Minato was concerned about Kushina.
As for Kakashi and Kurenai…
They were just tagging along—and getting a decent workout.
Of course…
There were also some things Kakashi wanted to discuss privately with Kyoichi.
But Kyoichi didn't have much time.
He'd just finished dealing with the consolidation of the ANBU and Root forces. The Root operatives—including the infamous "A"—had been officially merged into ANBU, each given a proper name and registered.
As for "A," Kyoichi retained the name Yamato for him.
The others received their own names as well.
And it wasn't just Root—
Kyoichi was also involved in the orphanage situation. While Morita Shin oversaw most of the operations, Kyoichi personally met with Nonō Yakushi to explain his decision.
He would fund the orphanage and help its children become ninja.
The price?
"Once these kids become ninja, a portion of their mission earnings for the first five years will go toward repaying the village's support."
"Thank you so much!"
Nonō agreed without hesitation.
The condition might seem harsh on the surface, but it wasn't really. Being a ninja is a high-risk profession—especially for freshly graduated genin. And…
Not every civilian child becomes a genin.
In fact, children from the orphanage were statistically less likely to even qualify, and many who did might not survive long after graduation.
So for the village, that five-year repayment plan was more symbolic—a way to say that these supported ninja had "cleared their debts."
At least…
That's how Nonō saw it. But in reality, Kyoichi had run the numbers.
Those kids were willing to work hard. With the current educational structure, it wasn't that difficult to turn them into capable ninja.
Once they graduated, Konoha would still make some profit.
Not a lot, of course.
Just enough that the policy could be sustained long-term.
It was never going to be a major source of revenue for the village.
Still, Nonō left satisfied and grateful.
At the door, Kyoichi caught sight of Kabuto Yakushi—a sharp child, only four years old and already showing signs of brilliance.
"You seem unusually interested in this Kabuto kid?"
"According to reports from Mukai, when Morita Shin first approached the orphanage, only four-year-old Kabuto saw through his real purpose."
Kyoichi explained.
Tsunade thought for a moment before replying, "He's sharp—his instincts and perception are excellent. A born ninja."
"Exactly. No wonder Danzo was willing to threaten Nonō Yakushi to get him."
Kyoichi nodded.
Even he had to admit Kabuto's performance was surprising.
Skills and knowledge can be taught—but that kind of natural insight and adaptability? That's what sets geniuses apart from the average.
There was a reason Danzo and Orochimaru had valued him so highly.
But now…
Danzo was gone, and Orochimaru…
Well, even if he weren't "imprisoned," the man probably wouldn't want to leave anyway.
At the research facility, everyone was deep into their work.
Orochimaru had found his purpose there. As long as he had new research projects to engage with, he had no desire to leave.
Lately, his topic of interest was Sage Mode.
Kyoichi knew a bit about it—but he hadn't brought up the idea of "Curse Marks" to him.
Not yet.
He still couldn't think of a safe experiment that would both intrigue Orochimaru and keep him restrained. So for now, it was better to let him explore on his own.
After wrapping up most of the ANBU and Root matters, Kyoichi finally sat down for some tea and rest.
Now it was Tsunade's turn to be swamped with work.
Beside her…
Oriri was organizing paperwork.
Though…
With Kyoichi around, she'd get up now and then to pour him tea or help with other small things. Meanwhile, Tsunade—
Watched the two of them with a cold, deadpan stare.
"If you've got nothing to do, go outside. Don't just hang around and distract me from my work. Oh, and if Minato's back, at least give him a few days off. Don't… don't be so inhuman."
Tsunade sighed heavily.
Not everyone is like Kyoichi—overflowing with chakra and able to use shadow clones to work around the clock.
Try acting like a normal human being for once!
Kyoichi waved it off—Minato already had leave scheduled anyway.
Right now, Minato wasn't the priority.
Lately, Kazamatsuri Toshiki's Wood Release had made more progress. The speed at which he could accelerate rice growth had improved again, and he had also begun catalyzing the maturation of medicinal herbs.
Just yesterday, they harvested usable herbs.
According to the evaluation by the Nara Clan and Tsunade, when those herbs were processed into military ration pills, they retained about sixty percent of the potency of regular herbs.
Not perfect.
But...
As mass-produced medical supplies, this level of efficiency was already incredibly impressive. The other villages were likely just beginning their own reformations.
They were probably all short on military rations right now.
Toshiki alone—even with a team of "chakra batteries"—wasn't nearly enough. So, for now, Kyoichi's shadow clones would pause their training to help out in the mountains.
It couldn't be helped...
When there's a deadline, even Kyoichi had to pull overtime.
Aside from the military rations, what concerned him most was intelligence from Kirigakure. Right now, their ANBU had the most presence there—because it was highly likely that Madara was using genjutsu to manipulate someone high up in the village.
Judging from the canon timeline and the current situation in Kirigakure, the most suspicious figure was the "chronically ill" Third Mizukage, who never showed himself. Next, it would depend on how Yagura handled things.
That kid...
He better not get caught and controlled too.
Otherwise it'd be "buy one, get one free."
Kyoichi was mulling over these things as he stepped out of the Hokage building—only to bump into Minato and the others.
He paused in surprise.
"You guys sped up your return?"
"Ahem, well, everyone really wanted to get back quickly, so..."
Minato glanced at the group. His look said everything without needing to spell it out. Shisui was the first to nod in agreement, with the other two quickly following suit.
You don't mess with a jōnin who can use Flying Thunder God.
"Thanks for the effort. Go get some rest. I'll handle the debriefing."
"Much appreciated."
Minato smiled, gave a wave, and turned to leave.
But...
After a few steps, something occurred to him.
Wait a second!
Wasn't he doing Kyoichi a favor right now?
What the hell was he thanking him for?
"I'm taking my leave now. No more missions for a while, especially not ones outside the village! As for Kakashi... ahem, you and Obito, and Rin too—you'll be training with me nearby for a while."
Minato felt a little guilty.
Kakashi was one thing—he'd always kept an eye on him—but Obito and Rin, he had barely paid attention to. Kyoichi had probably spent more time mentoring them during this period than he had.
Time to step it up!
He silently vowed.
"Don't worry. No more external missions," Kyoichi replied firmly.
Minato was still the straightforward type. He only asked not to be sent out of the village.
What a workhorse.
Well...
Let him rest for two more days. Then Kyoichi could drop his next suggestion.
Shisui vanished soon after.
Earlier, he had been desperate to return to the Uchiha compound, but he still had to follow protocol to re-enter the village. Now that he had Kyoichi's go-ahead, no way he was sticking around.
As for Kurenai Yūhi...
"Sensei, I'll head home for now too."
"Go on."
Kyoichi waved her off.
Only Kakashi remained, staring at him.
"You didn't teach me anything!"
"Oh? Didn't you gain a sense of coordination during the mission?"
"I did, but that was..."
Kakashi trailed off mid-sentence.
"There you go then. From what Minato told me, you did well in Amegakure—started learning how to strategize with your teammates instead of trying to solo everything. Isn't that progress?"
"That's because Shisui and the others are all great tacticians."
It was just the two of them now, so Kakashi didn't hold back.
Obito and Rin were strong, sure—
But that was in terms of raw ability.
When it came to strategy...
Obito was practically rock-bottom, and Rin mostly followed orders rather than giving them.
"You don't know how to teach? Or do you expect every teammate to be flawless? Even Kurenai and Shisui had their weaknesses in the beginning. You can't expect every mission to start with a perfectly assembled elite squad."
Kyoichi's expression turned stern.
"Kakashi, nobody is perfect. The very reason a team exists is to compensate for each other's shortcomings—to combine your strengths and cover your weaknesses so that, together, you become a complete unit."
"Uh..." Kakashi was stunned, holding in a breath, unable to argue back.
Because...
Once again, he found himself convinced.
"Obito may be bad at strategy, but if you're patient and teach him with concrete examples, he'll take it in. And Rin—she's even easier."
Kyoichi looked him straight in the eye.
"If you just want to be an average ninja, then none of this matters. But if you want to be a top-tier jōnin, this is a required course."
"Yes, Kyoichi-sensei. I was wrong."
Because there are flaws...
That's why we need a team?
Kakashi bowed deeply, ashamed of his earlier mindset.
Now he understood—
Kyoichi hadn't been holding him to the standard of a chūnin. He had been judging him as a jōnin.
And that didn't discourage him—in fact, it fired him up.
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