Last period on Monday.
When Umino Iruka heard the dismissal bell, he stopped lecturing. He patted the podium and said, "Don't go yet—hold on a moment. Your Kitazawa-sensei has something to announce."
With that, Iruka left the classroom—his class was over and he could head home.
Not long after, Kitazawa walked in. He had just met with Kosuke Maruboshi and Hatake Kakashi.
"In two weeks we'll have the term's second monthly exam," Kitazawa said from the podium. "So starting next weekend, we'll run the new-style practical exam."
"Kitazawa-sensei!" Uzumaki Naruto shot his hand up. "Does that mean we're getting new teams?"
"Mm." Kitazawa nodded.
"I hope I get teamed with Sasuke this time!" Haruno Sakura clasped her hands and prayed.
"I want Kitazawa-sensei as my team lead!" Yamanaka Ino pumped her tiny fists.
Beside her, Hyūga Hinata unconsciously pinched the hem of her jacket. She wanted Kitazawa to lead her too.
"Please don't let it be Kitazawa-sensei," Nara Shikamaru groaned—the exact opposite. In his view, Kitazawa's missions were terrifying: straight up against jōnin. He wasn't as strong as Uchiha Sasuke or Uzumaki Naruto; he could already see himself getting pummeled. Just thinking about it felt like a hassle.
"I wonder if I can be with Sasuke and Neji again," Naruto said, scratching his head.
"Probably not," Hyūga Neji replied, shaking his head. If you're reshuffling, making the same team again defeats the point—even if teaming with Sasuke and Naruto is great.
"Naruto, what's wrong with you?" Inuzuka Kiba demanded, wounded. "Did you forget your best bro?"
"Then I'll team with you this time!" Naruto said, suddenly sheepish.
"Neji, I hope we're together!" Tenten said, expectant.
"Quiet. I'm announcing the new teams," Kitazawa cut in. "Team One: Uzumaki Naruto, Uchiha Sasuke, and Haruno Sakura."
"Yesss!" Sakura literally hopped.
"Me with Sasuke again?" Naruto beamed.
"Why still Naruto?" Sasuke blinked—not that he disliked Naruto, but getting grouped together again after a reshuffle felt odd.
"So they only swapped out Neji. Doesn't feel much weaker. Are they gonna run into a jōnin again?" Ino tilted her head.
"Sakura's a medical-nin," Shikamaru thought aloud. "They probably won't face a jōnin this time."
Sakura knew Water Release, but she was still weaker than Neji overall.
"That depends on their team leader," Aburame Shino adjusted his glasses. "If it's Kitazawa-sensei, it could be jōnin again."
"Led by the Third," Kitazawa said with a smile.
"What?" Naruto's eyes went wide. "Gramps is leading us?"
Sasuke and Sakura were shocked too. Sarutobi Hiruzen might be retired, but a retired Hokage is still a Hokage—especially one with the title of "Strongest Hokage."
"Then we're basically getting the Legendary Sannin treatment," Sakura's eyes sparkled. Their lineup wasn't far off, either.
"Why do good things never happen to me?" Kiba was green with envy.
"I want the Third to witness my youth, too!" Rock Lee lamented.
"I still want Kitazawa-sensei as my team lead," Ino flicked her blonde fringe, firm as ever. She was all about the looks; Hiruzen was great, just not as handsome as Kitazawa.
"The Third as team lead, huh?" Shikamaru tugged at the corner of his mouth. "I take back what I said. That team's probably meeting a jōnin."
Shino nodded. With Hiruzen leading, just fighting chūnin would feel… off. Like bullying.
"Team Two: Yamanaka Ino, Inuzuka Kiba, and Tenten," Kitazawa continued. "I'll lead you."
"Let's go!" Ino broke into a grin. Her wish finally came true.
Hinata couldn't help feeling a pang. She'd had a hunch—since Kitazawa led her last time, odds weren't good this time.
"Neji, too bad we're not together," Tenten said, half happy, half disappointed—happy to have Kitazawa, unhappy to lose Neji.
"There's always next month's exam," Neji replied evenly.
"Looks like this team's counting on yours truly," Kiba lifted his chin, brimming with confidence. Ino and Tenten weren't at Sasuke's level, and at best even with him. If he performed, he could score high.
"As if it'll be that easy," Ino shot back. In front of Kitazawa, she had to put on a show and leave a good impression.
"That's the lineup for the next monthly exam," Kitazawa said after announcing the remaining four teams. "That's all for today. Head on home."
"Bye, Kitazawa-sensei!" The Advanced Class stood, said their goodbyes, and filed out.
Kitazawa didn't leave right away. He watched them go until only Hyūga Hinata remained.
"Hinata, did you need something?" he asked, walking over.
"I…" Hinata's words faltered. Under his gaze, she ducked her head.
"Next reshuffle, I'll be your team lead again," Kitazawa said, having guessed her thoughts.
Hinata's head popped up; her eyes shone bright again.
"You're really adorable," Kitazawa said, ruffling her hair.
Hinata flushed, flustered.
"I'll walk you back," he said, turning for the door.
Hinata followed happily. At the Hyūga compound, she waved and slipped through the gate, reluctant to part.
Watching her disappear, Kitazawa suddenly thought of his system quest to cultivate four close confidants. He'd finished half—Kurenai and Yakushi Kabuto met the criteria—but Aburame Torune, Uchiha Izumi, and Haku still weren't recognized by the system. He suspected their strength wasn't high enough yet. No rush, though—the reward was the improved Caged Bird Seal, which didn't affect his current power much.
Kitazawa headed home. At the door he remembered he still had to talk to Tsunade, so he went next door instead.
"Kitazawa-sensei," Karin said as she opened up.
He patted her head and stepped into the living room. Tsunade was sprawled on the couch with zero decorum, bare feet propped on the coffee table.
"Food goes on the coffee table," Kitazawa reminded her as he came closer.
"This isn't your house," Tsunade shot back.
"Anyone can correct bad manners," he said, dead serious.
"Blah, blah!" Tsunade huffed—she couldn't out-argue him. "I'm the teacher here!"
You'll regret that! flashed through Kitazawa's mind, but this wasn't the time or place, so he held his tongue.
"Clan Head Shikaku came at noon," he said, sitting across from her and glancing at her pale soles. "He says we can sign the treaty with Mist tomorrow morning."
"Finally done. That new Mizukage's not bad," Tsunade said. She hadn't gone to the talks, but she'd been briefed by Nara Shikaku. On the battlefield, Mei Terumi had shown solid ability; at the table, real skill.
"She's strong," Kitazawa shook his head, "but Kirigakure's rotted. It'll take decades to recover."
The Bloody Mist ran for two Mizukage, and with Uchiha Obito's meddling the damage was immense. Mei wasn't on Hashirama's level—she was a good Kage, not a miracle worker.
"There's one more thing," Kitazawa added, and explained the genin exchange between the villages.
"Good idea," Tsunade arched a brow. "But bad timing. She's running into one of Konoha's 'genius booms.'"
Konoha had had booms before—Kakashi, Asuma, Obito, and Kitazawa's generation, for example—but Sasuke, Naruto, and Neji's cohort was outrageous. Talent off the charts; several students already chūnin-class before graduation, and a never-before record of three students defeating a jōnin.
"They didn't do any scouting before issuing the challenge?" Shizune walked out just in time to hear that part.
"Who goes around scouting Academy students?" Kitazawa paused. "And they're the defeated side, in Konoha territory. They're not going to make aggressive moves."
"In any case, since she asked for it, let's show Mist what our new blood can do," Tsunade said with a sly smile. She couldn't see how Konoha would lose. Out of five bouts, they'd take at least four.
"Which five are you picking?" Shizune asked.
"Naruto, Sasuke, Hinata, Yakumo, and Neji," Kitazawa said without hesitation. Aburame Shino, Haruno Sakura, and Inuzuka Kiba were good, but they were a notch below Naruto and Sasuke.
"Should be fine," Tsunade smiled. "At their level they could take the chūnin exams already."
"They're still young, and there's no war. Let them study a few more years," Kitazawa suggested.
"Mm. We'll go with that," Tsunade agreed.
"Eating here tonight?" Shizune asked, seeing their business wrapped up. "I'll call Kurenai over."
"You stay," Tsunade told Kitazawa. "Perfect time to go over the medical forbidden technique—Body Revival."
She'd begun studying it, but even for her, medical forbidden arts were no cakewalk. It was a good chance to ask Kitazawa questions.
"Alright," he nodded.
After dinner, they talked for two hours before he finally went home.
Tuesday. 9 a.m.
The Hokage Building's conference room was packed—Mist ninja on one side, Konoha on the other, the two Kage at their heads, facing each other.
"Hokage-sama," Nara Shikaku said, handing two documents to Tsunade and Kitazawa. "These are the final versions of the treaty."
Kitazawa took one and read. There was a lot, but five key points:
First, Ao's Byakugan would be returned to Konoha. Reclaiming it wasn't just about the Hyūga clan's face—the eye itself was invaluable. Its 360-degree scouting alone posed a battlefield threat to Konoha's forces. If you can get such a weapon back, you do. Ao didn't like it, but he had no choice.
Second, Kirigakure would pay reparations. The amount would be based on Konoha's losses—death benefits for fallen ninja, consumed ninja tools and supplies, and more. In short, Mist would cover every loss Konoha incurred in this war, plus ransom to redeem captured Mist ninja.
Third, Mist and Konoha would establish cooperation, including many provisions for exchanging information and reopening ties. In plain terms, Mist would end its isolation and reconnect with neighboring villages—exactly what Mei did in the original story after becoming Mizukage. There was also a clause to share intel on the mysterious masked man—Uchiha Obito.
Fourth, the slice of sea Kitazawa wanted. After haggling, they fixed it to a patch between the Land of Waves and the Land of Water. The Land of Waves lies southeast of the Land of Fire.
In the original, Team 7's first C-rank mission was escorting the bridge builder Tazuna, when the shipping magnate Gato controlled the area. He hired Momochi Zabuza and Haku to assassinate Tazuna, which is why a green Team 7 ran into one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Zabuza.
A thought sparked in Kitazawa's mind. Gato was loaded and owned a shipping company—worse, he was no saint, and his outfit smuggled contraband. The Aburame clan's undersea exploration team would need maritime transport if they found resources.
Kitazawa decided on the spot: Gato would be his next target. He'd take Ino, Kiba, and Tenten to survey the Land of Waves. And a man like Gato, running such a big operation, had to have backers—maybe even the Land of Water.
Fifth, also Kitazawa-related: fees for Limb Regeneration surgery, tiered by rank—genin, chūnin, jōnin. Jōnin paid the most: from 5,000,000 to 10,000,000 ryō depending on the case. Losing both hands was the full 10,000,000, since you can't weave signs and can't keep being a shinobi.
Ten million ryō was astronomical. Sarutobi Asuma's black-market bounty was only 35,000,000 ryō—and over half of that was because he was the Third Hokage's son.
For an ordinary jōnin, forget 35 million; even 10 million was rare. And the difficulty difference was night and day—surgery cost Kitazawa nothing but chakra, while bounty hunting was betting your life and risking getting killed.
For chūnin, the price ranged from 1,000,000 to 5,000,000 ryō—still a lot. A minimum S-rank mission reward was 1,000,000 ryō; treating one chūnin equaled one S-rank payout. Total steal. Genin were under a million, adjusted to the injury.
No exaggeration: with Limb Regeneration, Kitazawa had just become the priciest medical-nin in the shinobi world. He'd gone from worrying about money to well-heeled, overnight.
When he finished reading, Kitazawa handed the file back to Shikaku. He had no objections—the treaty was a windfall for Konoha.
"Let's do it," Tsunade said, standing. "We can sign now."
"These are four originals—two for each side," Shikaku said, passing them to Tsunade. After she signed, he gave them to Mei Terumi, who signed without fuss.
"Here's to a good partnership," Tsunade smiled faintly, offering her hand.
"A good partnership," Mei replied, shaking it. Mist was bleeding out, but they'd bought a stable environment. With the Bloody Mist era over, she believed the village would regain its former glory.
"As for the genin exchange, I'd like to set it for the afternoon the day after tomorrow," Mei explained. "Our participating genin are still en route."
"No problem," Tsunade said with a nod. "I look forward to seeing Mist's prodigies."
"You will," Mei said evenly.
Signatures meant the talks were done—but the real work was just starting. The treaty set both Kirigakure and Konoha in motion. Kitazawa, too.
That afternoon he went to Mist's temporary quarters to operate—and raked in the price of one Sarutobi Asuma head in a single go. He performed surgery on four jōnin from Mist and made 35,000,000 ryō. He didn't get home until nightfall. Losing an afternoon for that payout was hardly a loss—and there were plenty more surgeries ahead.
The next day. Tomorrow was the genin exchange. After breakfast, Kitazawa headed to the Advanced Class, called in Uchiha Sasuke and the others, and brought them to his office.
~~~
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