After the kids in the Advanced Class finished getting excited, they settled down and started today's training.
It was already February. The first monthly exam had just ended, and there were still two months left before finals. The next monthly exam wouldn't be a team battle.
Watching Hyuga Hinata, Yamanaka Ino, and the others training, Kitazawa suddenly thought of Yakushi Kabuto's group.
Ever since they joined the Anbu, he hadn't really checked on them.
Kitazawa rubbed his chin.
If nothing unexpected had happened, the three of them should have all learned the Rasengan by now, so it was about time to teach them some new jutsu.
With that in mind, Kitazawa left behind a shadow clone and headed to the Anbu base with his real body.
"Kitazawa."
Konan, who was sitting on the sofa, stood up and greeted him.
Kitazawa turned midway, abandoning his original path toward the desk and walking straight up to her.
He reached out and took off Konan's Anbu mask.
A cool, beautiful face came into view.
"I told you before, didn't I?"
Kitazawa handed the Anbu mask back to her. "When it's just the two of us, you don't need to wear this."
"Sorry."
Konan nodded. "I'll be more careful next time."
"Sit."
Kitazawa instructed casually.
Konan sat back down on the sofa.
"How's business for Akatsuki lately?"
Kitazawa put both hands on her cheeks, gently kneading them.
Watching the cute expressions that appeared as her pretty face was squished between his hands, he couldn't help but grin.
"Overall, it's going smoothly."
Konan paused for a moment. "But we've run into some problems with the rainwater business."
"What kind of problem?"
Kitazawa absentmindedly asked while enjoying the feel of her face in his hands.
"Competition."
Konan endured the strange sensation on her face and said, "From Sunagakure."
"Where are they getting rainwater from?"
Kitazawa raised an eyebrow.
"Sunagakure copied our model and built a water pipeline network."
Konan explained, "Their water comes from the Land of Rivers."
"So they're buying water from the Land of Rivers?"
Kitazawa asked thoughtfully.
Well, it made sense that copycats would show up. "Water-selling" sounded lame, but it was actually insanely profitable.
On top of that, Sunagakure was poor to begin with. After seeing the Land of Rain making a killing off the Land of Wind, of course they wouldn't be happy just watching from the sidelines.
Especially since Sunagakure was in the Land of Wind—that was their turf.
As for drawing water from the Land of Rivers, that was reasonable too.
First, the Land of Rivers shared a border with the Land of Wind, so it was close.
Second, the geography of the Land of Rivers was complicated, full of mountains and rivers, and had plenty of water.
"I had Akatsuki's members investigate."
Konan shook her head. "They're not buying it. They're directly drawing water from rivers that no one manages."
"That's actually pretty smart. Cuts out the cost."
Kitazawa let go of her face, sat down next to her, and asked, "What's their sales strategy?"
"Same as ours."
Konan replied, "Bulk water sales plus building a drinking water brand."
"Looks like Sunagakure's finances really are in a bad way."
Kitazawa couldn't help but laugh.
It was understandable, though. In the original timeline, Sunagakure had so little money they directly allied with Otogakure to try to wipe out Konoha.
But in the current situation, it would be much harder for Sunagakure to find a partner.
First, Konoha was now far too strong—there was him, Tsunade, Orochimaru, and other powerhouses on top of what the village already had.
Second, Otogakure now belonged to Konoha, and Kirigakure was Konoha's ally. That left Sunagakure with only Iwagakure and Kumogakure as possible partners.
But working with those two villages was the same as bargaining with a tiger.
What if Iwa or Kumo turned around and took out Sunagakure instead?
Since war wasn't the way forward, and the Land of Rain was making a fortune selling water, Rasa naturally slammed his hand down on the table and said, "We'll sell too."
They didn't have rain, but they had plenty of ninja and a full puppet corps. Being porters was no problem at all.
"For now, we still have the first-mover advantage. They can't match us yet."
Konan changed the topic. "But they do have one edge—they know the Land of Wind better and have already secured a lot of clients."
"Over time, it's hard to say who'll come out on top."
Kitazawa thought for a moment. "But given how big the Land of Wind is, it can definitely support both of your businesses at the same time."
"Mm."
Konan looked at him. "We're thinking of starting a price war to maintain our advantage."
"Price war is one option, but it only treats the symptoms, not the cause."
Kitazawa mused.
Konan silently thought, just as expected.
She'd guessed Kitazawa would have a better idea.
"Aren't you going to ask?"
Kitazawa met her amber eyes for a few seconds and asked.
"What should we do?"
Konan froze for a second, then asked.
"First, tell the Land of Rivers about this."
Kitazawa reached out and poked her cheek.
Konan thought about it and immediately understood.
Once the Land of Rivers found out Sunagakure was using their rivers to make money, there was no way they'd be okay with it.
Even if they agreed in the end, they'd definitely demand Sunagakure pay to purchase the water.
That would instantly raise Sunagakure's costs.
If they got dragged into a price war, they'd be at a disadvantage.
"Second, you can fight a price war, but you can't keep prices permanently low."
Kitazawa continued, "Pick specific dates and run promotions."
After that, he explained some of the common promotional tactics from his previous life.
Discounts, lotteries, membership cards, and so on.
Konan listened, eyes widening.
She was especially impressed by the membership system—it could tie customers to their business in the long term.
"Third, publicity."
Kitazawa paused. "You can keep doing your regular advertising like before, but on top of that, you should add unconventional methods."
"Unconventional?"
Konan's face showed curiosity.
"Like endorsements and sponsorships."
Kitazawa chuckled. "Just like the marketing Ocean Heart Jewelry did previously in Konoha."
"You mean asking the wife of the Wind Daimyo to be the spokesperson?"
Konan immediately understood.
"She's suitable for jewelry, but not for water."
Kitazawa thought for a moment. "Use TV and movie actors instead."
As he said that, he remembered that famous actress from the original story—the one popular across the entire ninja world, Fujikaze Yukie.
Her real name was Koyuki Kazahana, a princess of the Land of Snow in exile.
That was from the movie "Ninja Clash in the Land of Snow."
In the original story, Kakashi and Naruto helped Koyuki reclaim her country.
Kitazawa narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
He figured he could take advantage of that.
If he helped Koyuki restore her kingdom, she'd definitely agree to be their spokesperson for free.
And he could use the opportunity to give his students some real-world experience.
[Current Mission: Help Koyuki Kazahana reclaim the Land of Snow.]
[Mission Reward: Ice Release: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals.]
[Accept?]
Kitazawa couldn't help but laugh.
He'd been worrying about not having time to train Ice Release.
Now it was perfect—no training required, and he'd get one of the most useful Ice Release techniques right away.
The fact that a Land of Snow mission rewarded Ice Release wasn't surprising, either.
The ninja there could use "Ice Release."
Of course, it wasn't true Ice Release.
The Land of Snow was covered in snow everywhere, and what they used was a special technique that leveraged the environment.
In simple terms, their "Ice Release" was controlling snow, while Haku's Ice Release was actually creating ice from chakra.
"Still, TV and movies only reach so many people. The main focus should be sponsorship."
Kitazawa pulled his thoughts back. "You can run lots of festivals."
Even though the ninja world had TV and movies, they were expensive—only middle and upper-class citizens, ninja, and nobles could regularly consume that kind of entertainment.
Festivals were different—everyone could participate.
"Thank you."
Konan felt that she'd learned a lot from just this one conversation.
Looking back now, the only thing she'd thought of was a price war. Compared to Kitazawa, she was clearly out of her league.
"It's nothing."
Kitazawa waved it off. "I'm taking half the profits anyway."
He got a share of the money and increased Konan's favorability at the same time. It was the definition of a win–win.
Well, win–win for him. He won twice.
"Sunagakure is one of the Five Great Villages."
Something occurred to Kitazawa, and he reminded her, "You need to be careful if they get desperate and resort to extreme measures."
"Mm. I'll be careful."
Konan wasn't all that worried.
Akatsuki was strong enough as it was, and they had Nagato with the Rinnegan—a god-tier existence.
Seeing how relaxed she was, Kitazawa more or less guessed what she was thinking.
Fair enough—a single Sunagakure really couldn't do anything to Akatsuki.
In the original story, Akatsuki was the big bad that dared to take on the entire ninja world.
"I'll give you half a month off. Go handle this."
Kitazawa thought it over and generously announced.
"Thank you."
Konan said gratefully.
"So how are you going to thank me?"
Kitazawa blinked at her.
Konan froze.
She fell into thought.
Honestly, she didn't know how to repay him. She already had a pile of unpaid favors she was still working through.
"What do you want?"
Konan looked at him, her tone cool. "I'll do my best."
Something sparked in Kitazawa's chest, and he slowly leaned toward her.
Watching him get closer and closer, Konan's body unconsciously went a little stiff.
Since she didn't move away, Kitazawa leaned in and kissed her on the forehead.
Konan felt the warm touch and her eyes unfocused for a moment.
"You're not going to react at all?"
Kitazawa coughed lightly.
The way she was acting made him really want to tease her more.
But he still held back. Their relationship was in a very delicate place.
"I…I should go. See you next time."
Konan stood up and left the office.
The door clicked shut.
Konan pressed a hand over her chest.
Her heartbeat, which hadn't sped up in a long time, was suddenly racing a little.
She touched her forehead blankly, then vanished from the spot.
Kitazawa sat down at his desk and picked up a pen.
Yakushi Kabuto, without question, was perfect for learning Yang Release Chakra Mode.
With his talent, he'd probably manage it.
Uchiha Izumi also had a ready-made technique waiting for her—the Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique.
She had the Sharingan, so she was well-suited to this A-rank jutsu.
The only tricky one was Aburame Torune.
First, because he was still young.
Second, because most of his strength came from his poisonous insects, the Rinkaichū.
Kitazawa tapped the desk with his pen. Before long, he had an idea.
He figured he could imitate the Bee Bomb Technique of the Kamizuru clan and create a Rinkaichū Bomb Technique.
Rinkaichū were poisonous bugs—dead or alive, the toxins in their bodies wouldn't degrade.
Making them explode would add another advantage over ordinary Rinkaichū: a wider attack range.
For example, detonating them high above the target so they rained down poison.
Time skipped ahead to the afternoon.
A moment later, someone knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Kitazawa looked up toward the entrance.
"Kitazawa-sensei."
Yakushi Kabuto, Aburame Torune, and Uchiha Izumi came in.
"The reason I called you here is simple—I'm going to teach you a new jutsu."
Kitazawa nodded.
"Thank you, Kitazawa-sensei."
The three said in unison.
Kitazawa handed each of them a scroll.
Kabuto opened his and his pupils instantly shrank.
As an exceptionally skilled medical ninja, he knew exactly how valuable Yang Release Chakra Mode was.
Torune and Izumi, by comparison, weren't quite as shocked.
"You'll follow my shadow clones for training."
Kitazawa created three shadow clones in one go and had them take Kabuto and the others to a nearby Anbu training ground.
He himself headed for the place where mission reports were stored in the Hokage building.
Soon, he found the mission report related to the Land of Snow.
Back when Kakashi was still in the Anbu, he'd carried out a mission in the Land of Snow.
At the time, he had run into Kazahana Dotō, who murdered his brother and seized power as the new daimyo of the Land of Snow.
Kakashi rescued the daughter of the previous daimyo, Kazahana Sōsetsu—Kazahana Koyuki.
To escape Dotō's pursuit, she changed her name to Fujikaze Yukie and became a movie actress.
The official who escaped with her was a Land of Snow minister named Asama Sandayū, who became her manager.
When Koyuki grew up and Sandayū decided the time was right, he contacted Kakashi and prepared to retake the Land of Snow.
With Kakashi, Naruto, and the others' help, they pulled it off. Koyuki became the new daimyo of the Land of Snow.
After reading the mission report, Kitazawa nodded.
It matched his memory of the plot pretty well; there weren't any major deviations.
He stood there, thinking.
Should he send Anbu to contact Asama Sandayū, or have Kakashi, the old acquaintance, approach him?
In the end, he chose the former.
Sandayū's only goal was to restore the country. As long as someone could help him do that, he'd gladly accept their aid.
Kitazawa put the report back and left.
He didn't rush to find Sandayū, though.
He planned to use this as the mission for the next monthly exam.
Half a month passed quickly.
March arrived.
Kitazawa still hadn't mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, but he had learned Ice Release: Ice Rock Dome of Magnificent Nothingness.
As for Wood Release: Cutting Technique, he was still a bit short.
He'd spent some of his time researching the World-Ending Arrow.
In the Hokage's office…
Kitazawa raised his hand and knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Tsunade's voice came from inside.
She sounded authoritative, but the moment she saw it was Kitazawa, her façade instantly crumbled and she slumped lazily in her chair.
"What do you need?"
Tsunade leaned back and asked.
"I'm taking you out to have some fun."
Kitazawa smiled.
"The casino?"
Tsunade shot upright.
It was so sudden her clothes bounced and the outline of her body practically jumped.
"Nope."
Kitazawa's eyelid twitched. "I created a new archery secret technique and I want you to take a look."
"Boring."
Tsunade pouted.
"What if we go to the casino after you watch it?"
Kitazawa walked up to her. "How about that?"
"That I can agree to!"
Tsunade perked up, stood, and said, "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
"In such a rush—do you even know where we're going?"
Kitazawa grabbed her hand.
"You said you wanted to show off a bow technique. Can't we just go to the training grounds?"
Tsunade asked, baffled.
"The training grounds are too small. Not enough space."
Kitazawa shook his head.
Tsunade blinked.
Konoha's training grounds were already built huge, factoring in the number of ninja and the range of ninjutsu. The longest diameter was over a hundred meters.
Normally, almost no ninjutsu had a range beyond that.
But for an archery secret technique, exceeding a hundred meters was actually pretty reasonable.
"Then where are we going?"
Tsunade came back to herself and asked.
"The desert in the Land of Wind."
Kitazawa replied.
"That far?"
Tsunade stared at him.
"The desert is vast and deserted. No one will be around."
Kitazawa explained.
"You make a fair point, but after watching, will we even have time for the casino?"
Tsunade jabbed her elbow into his waist, annoyed.
"Don't you know me by now?"
Kitazawa kissed her on the cheek, then leaned in to whisper in her ear, "I already had Katsuyu-sama go to the desert ahead of time."
"That's more like it."
Tsunade didn't care about the kiss and hurried him instead. "Then have her use Reverse Summoning already."
Kitazawa nodded and performed the Summoning Technique.
They needed to leave one split-off Katsuyu clone in Konoha, after all.
Space distorted around them, and Tsunade and Kitazawa were pulled into the desert.
"Tsunade-sama."
Katsuyu greeted politely. "Kitazawa-sama."
"Kitazawa, let's see it."
Tsunade's interest was piqued. "I want to know just how powerful this bow technique of yours really is."
She knew Kitazawa's temperament. If it were just the Spiral Arrow or Burst Arrow, he wouldn't make such a big deal about it.
She was the Hokage, after all; she had plenty of work to do.
Even though the Spiral Arrow and Burst Arrow were strong, they weren't worth dragging her all the way into a desert just to watch.
Kitazawa took out the Astonishing Bow.
He'd been researching the World-Ending Arrow all this time, but hadn't fired it for real yet.
It wasted a huge amount of chakra.
Only now that he was confident enough did he plan to use it for real once.
And it'd be boring without an audience, so he dragged Tsunade along.
World-Ending Arrow!
Kitazawa drew the bowstring.
In an instant, the Astonishing Bow began to tremble.
Tsunade's gaze snapped to his hands.
Even without sensory jutsu, she could feel the terrifying chakra gathering.
What kind of bow technique was this?
A hint of anticipation flashed in Tsunade's eyes.
Once the chakra reached its limit, Kitazawa released the string.
A Yin Release arrow shot out, striking a boulder a thousand meters away.
Boom!
The entire desert shook as if an earthquake had hit.
Under the terrifying wave of chakra, the sand exploded upward like a sea, surging over a hundred meters high.
"A Tailed Beast Bomb?"
Tsunade's jaw dropped.
This World-Ending Arrow wasn't any weaker than an ordinary Tailed Beast Bomb.
The only exception was the special Tailed Beast Bomb of the Nine-Tails.
Because the Nine-Tails had so much chakra, its Tailed Beast Bombs were much stronger, and it could fire them in rapid succession to devastating effect.
"Not bad."
Kitazawa nodded. "It's a World-Ending Arrow I modeled after the Tailed Beast Bomb."
"The Dragon Vein really is comparable to a tailed beast."
Tsunade sighed.
With her experience, she could instantly see the origin of the technique.
The deciding factor was the Dragon Vein, not Kitazawa himself.
"The only downside is that the Dragon Vein sealed in the Astonishing Bow can't recover. Every use drains it."
Kitazawa said with a trace of regret.
"You can't have everything both ways."
Tsunade rolled her eyes. "Even if it doesn't recover, there's enough to last you a very long time."
"That's true."
Kitazawa smiled. "So, how do you rate the World-Ending Arrow?"
"It's absolutely perfect."
Tsunade praised. "With this, Konoha basically has two jinchuriki."
As Hokage, the stronger Konoha was, the happier she felt.
And even better, this extra "jinchuriki" was Kitazawa.
She could feel her retirement drawing closer and closer.
"Not just two."
Kitazawa corrected her. "Hinata and Neji's bows can do the same thing, though the cooldown is much longer."
Satori and the Zero-Tails weren't as good as the Dragon Vein. Using their power once probably meant needing a year or so to recover.
But as always, having something was better than nothing. In a life-and-death situation, they could completely flip the script with a World-Ending Arrow.
Tsunade's eyes lit up. She couldn't help but think of the Second Great Ninja War.
If they'd had these three bows back then, the casualties would've been much lower.
Same for the Third Great Ninja War.
"Let's head back."
Tsunade came back to herself. "With a commotion that big, Sunagakure ninja will be here soon to investigate."
"It's fine."
Kitazawa wasn't bothered. "They'll never guess the real cause."
"I'll have my clone use Reverse Summoning."
The Katsuyu beneath their feet vanished.
Moments later, they felt a familiar pull.
They stopped resisting, their bodies blurred, and they were back in the Hokage's office.
"Thank you, Katsuyu-sama."
Kitazawa looked at the slug on the desk and bowed slightly.
"It's my duty."
Katsuyu's voice was gentle. "If you need anything else, just call me."
With that, she released herself and returned to the Shikkotsu Forest.
"Compared to Ryūchi Cave and Mount Myōboku, the Shikkotsu Forest's contract creatures are much more respected."
Kitazawa sighed.
"You can say that in front of me," Tsunade added after a pause, "just don't say it in front of Jiraiya. Still… I think you're right."
"Tsunade-sensei."
Kitazawa pulled her into his arms and kissed her.
Tsunade instinctively struggled, but soon her body relaxed and she leaned into him, responding eagerly.
Kitazawa could easily feel the warmth and weight in his arms.
After a while, they separated.
"What's with you all of a sudden?"
Tsunade caught her breath and glared at him.
"Your reward."
Kitazawa said with a straight face, complete nonsense.
"Fine. Now that I've seen the bow technique, we're going to the casino."
Tsunade gave him a kick and pushed him away.
"Let's go."
Having gotten his fill, Kitazawa naturally had to go along with her.
Otherwise, it wouldn't stop at just one kick.
"There's something I need to tell you."
Once they left the Hokage building, Kitazawa said.
"What is it?"
Tsunade gave him a quick glance and slowed her pace a little.
"It's about the Hidden Rain."
Kitazawa said directly, "According to our investigations, Hanzō is already dead. The ones controlling the village now are Akatsuki."
"What?"
Tsunade stopped in her tracks. "Are you sure?"
The impression Hanzō had left on her back then was way too deep. It was hard to believe someone like him would just die quietly without a sound.
"Yeah."
Kitazawa nodded firmly. "It's absolutely true."
"Akatsuki…"
Tsunade frowned. "Why does that sound so familiar?"
"Jiraiya-sama."
Kitazawa reminded her.
Tsunade remembered instantly.
Jiraiya had taken in three students in the Hidden Rain, and those three had founded Akatsuki.
"But didn't they die?"
Tsunade asked, confused.
In the original story, it was mentioned that a toad from Mount Myōboku had brought Jiraiya a scroll saying that Nagato and the others were dead.
"It might be called Akatsuki, but we can't be sure who its members actually are."
Kitazawa shook his head. "We're still digging into the finer details."
"Got it."
Tsunade exhaled.
The two of them arrived at the casino.
Kitazawa sat next to Tsunade as usual. Instead of watching her gamble, he focused on his own training.
Today's target was the Flying Thunder God Technique.
Kitazawa closed his eyes and felt the faint presence of space around him.
He was still stuck on the first stage of training.
Meanwhile, in the desert of the Land of Wind…
The gigantic crater left behind by the World-Ending Arrow remained, its bottom lost in shadow like an abyss.
Howling winds echoed through it.
A floating mass of sand drifted in from afar, carrying a young man upon it—Rasa, the Fourth Kazekage.
With Magnet Release, he could fly, even if he had to rely on sand to do it.
When Rasa looked down at the crater, his expression grew grim.
This clearly wasn't a natural disaster—it was man-made.
He could still sense the residual chakra in the air.
Rasa frowned.
For a crater this large, he could think of only two possibilities.
Either the person had Magnet Release or Earth Release, or they were a jinchuriki.
Otherwise, he couldn't imagine a ninja causing such devastation.
But what was their goal?
Rasa glanced around. There were no traces of battle.
Was it meant to intimidate Sunagakure?
"Kazekage-sama!"
A figure approached from the distance and stopped below him.
"Yura, what are you doing here?"
Rasa lowered himself on the sand platform.
Yura was an elite jonin of Sunagakure.
In the original story, he was controlled by Sasori and turned into a sleeper agent. During Sasori and Deidara's mission to capture the One-Tail, Yura killed plenty of Sunagakure ninja.
"Our water pipeline isn't far from here."
Yura answered. "I heard a huge explosion just now and rushed over."
Rasa suddenly thought of one possibility.
Could this crater have been created by the Hidden Rain to intimidate Sunagakure?
After all, lately the Hidden Rain and Sunagakure had been competing over the water business in the Land of Wind.
"Kazekage-sama, what's going on with this crater?"
Yura asked curiously. "Did you make it with your Magnet Release?"
A small number of Sunagakure's jonin knew that Rasa "dug for gold" in the desert.
Yura was one of them, so he instinctively assumed this crater was the result of Rasa mining.
"No."
Rasa shook his head. "I just got here myself."
"If it wasn't you, who else has this kind of power?"
Yura's eyes widened.
Most ninja couldn't even dream of making a crater like this.
"I suspect it was the Hidden Rain."
Rasa thought for a bit, then warned, "We need to increase the security around the water pipelines."
"Would the Hidden Rain really dare?"
Yura was taken aback. "We're much stronger than they are."
"Their leader is Hanzō."
Rasa said in a low voice. "He's not someone to underestimate."
"Hanzō hasn't been heard from in ages. For all we know, he's dead."
Yura guessed.
"Highly unlikely."
Rasa shook his head. "Every spy we sent to the Hidden Rain vanished without a trace. Only Hanzō could pull that off."
Among the ninja he'd sent were jonin-level ones.
But the Hidden Rain had always been able to accurately sniff them out and kill them.
Having both power and methods—who else could it be besides Hanzō?
In most ninja's eyes, Hanzō was a warlord on par with the Five Kage.
In the Second Great Ninja War, he had led the Hidden Rain against Konoha, Sunagakure, and Iwagakure in a massive battle.
He hadn't won, but he'd earned a terrifying reputation.
Especially the story of him taking on Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru at once, defeating them, and naming them the "Legendary Sannin." That tale was known across the entire ninja world.
"And the fact that the Hidden Rain dares compete with us over the water business shows they're not afraid of us."
Rasa added. "Only Hanzō would have that kind of confidence."
"So we're just going to let them be?"
Yura asked reflexively.
"For now, we don't even know who made this crater."
Rasa said after some thought. "Let's make money first. If the Hidden Rain really does start a war, we're not afraid."
The only person in the Hidden Rain he worried about was Hanzō.
But once things reached the point of war, he'd have to worry about Iwa and Konoha and the other villages taking advantage.
Especially now that Konoha was absurdly strong and had another terrifying Wood Release user.
The next day, a new week began.
With March's arrival, the temperature in Konoha had risen noticeably.
Walking down the street, Kitazawa could feel the long-lost warmth.
Winter had finally passed into spring.
It was Monday, so he didn't need to go to the academy.
Kitazawa planned to head to the Anbu base to train Flying Thunder God, and also to see if Konan had returned.
There was one more task.
He needed the Anbu to look into Koyuki Kazahana's whereabouts.
She was a famous movie star across the ninja world, so it would be easy to find her. Kitazawa didn't bother sending Uchiha Itachi on such a trivial mission.
A task that simple didn't deserve someone of Itachi's level.
When Kitazawa opened the office door, he found Konan sitting on the sofa.
"Kitazawa."
Konan immediately stood up.
"When did you get back? Why didn't you tell me?"
Kitazawa smiled.
"Last night."
Konan explained. "It was late, so I didn't want to disturb you."
"I see."
Kitazawa walked up and pinched her cheek. "So, how did things go these past two weeks?"
"Pretty smoothly."
Konan was already used to his pinching. Her tone didn't change. "We still need some time to see just how effective it'll be."
"Good."
Kitazawa nodded. "If anything comes up, let me know."
"Mm."
Konan answered softly.
Looking at her, Kitazawa suddenly had a thought.
Would Sunagakure and the Hidden Rain end up going to war over the water business?
After all, Sunagakure didn't know that Akatsuki was behind the Hidden Rain.
They probably thought they were much stronger than the Hidden Rain and held the advantage.
Thinking it through, even if they did go to war, it wouldn't affect Konoha directly.
The priority for him was still increasing his own strength.
If they were strong enough, another village war would actually be very good for Konoha.
Because then Konoha would have every reason to intervene.
"Go call Reiyō for me."
Kitazawa held out his hand. "I have something for her to do."
"Okay."
Konan stood and walked to the door. She suddenly remembered something and put her Anbu mask back on.
A moment later, Reiyō knocked and came in.
"Investigate Fujikaze Yukie."
Kitazawa thought for a second. "Report back to me next Friday."
Next Friday would be the second monthly exam for the Advanced Class.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sama."
Reiyō bowed slightly and left.
Kitazawa fell into thought again.
This time, he planned to bring Haku to the Land of Snow.
With Ice Release, Haku would get a natural buff in that environment.
As for the other two candidates, he was a little torn.
But this time, he wasn't taking Sasuke or Naruto.
The main villain of this movie, Kazahana Dotō, wasn't that strong.
It was the very first Naruto movie, and the power levels were nowhere near as inflated as the later ones.
But it did have things worth copying—like railroads and airships.
Kitazawa wanted to bring both technologies back, so he could overhaul Konoha, or even the entire ninja world, down the line.
After a moment of thought, he finally settled on Yamanaka Ino and Inuzuka Kiba.
Two weeks flew by in training.
A new week came. Thursday.
Today was the first day of the Advanced Class's second monthly exam, which meant the theory test.
Kitazawa didn't show up. He only went to the academy the next day—Friday.
At 9 a.m.
The Advanced Class was already assembled, talking about the practical exam teams.
Kitazawa was discussing team assignments with Hiruzen and the others.
Once they settled on the final lineup, he stepped before the class to announce the groups.
"Nice!"
Ino's face lit up. "Kitazawa-sensei is leading our team again!"
"This is my chance!"
Kiba clenched his fist.
Neither Haku nor Ino was stronger than him.
He could totally go all-out and aim for first place.
If Naruto or Sasuke were his teammates, he wouldn't dare think like that.
Haku nodded seriously.
By now his strength was about jonin level, and he was getting closer and closer to his dream.
He still couldn't join the Anbu yet, but with Kitazawa leading this time, he needed to give it everything he had.
"That's all for the team assignments for this practical exam."
Kitazawa paused. "The top eighteen students can go find your assigned instructors now and head out."
The rest would stay with Umino Iruka for a traditional practical exam.
"Kitazawa-sensei!"
Ino bounced her way over to him, golden fringe swinging over her forehead.
"Kitazawa-sensei, what rank is our mission this time?"
Kiba couldn't wait to ask.
"Call it S-rank."
Kitazawa thought for a moment.
Kazahana Dotō was a jonin, and his three subordinates were around special-jonin level.
On top of that, they had special chakra armor that gave them solid defense and boosted their chakra.
"S-rank?"
Kiba puffed his chest out. "Just wait and see how I perform!"
"Don't be so sure."
Ino put her hands on her hips.
Haku didn't say anything, but he nodded.
Kiba blinked in confusion.
You guys aren't usually this fired up…
Both Haku and Ino were strong. If they got serious, the outcome was anyone's guess.
"All right, let's get moving. We're headed to the Land of Earth this time."
Kitazawa ruffled Ino's hair.
"An S-rank mission in the Land of Earth? Is it related to the Third Tsuchikage?"
Kiba asked curiously.
"No way."
Ino shot back immediately. "If the Third Tsuchikage was involved, it wouldn't be 'S-rank' anymore."
"True."
Kiba scratched his head. "So who's the target this time, Kitazawa-sensei?"
"We'll talk about that later. First, we need to find our employer."
Kitazawa chuckled.
"Huh?"
Kiba was puzzled. "What's that supposed to mean? Did our employer go missing?"
"Have you heard of Fujikaze Yukie?"
Kitazawa asked.
"No."
Kiba and Haku answered together.
"I know her!"
Ino said quickly. "My dad took me to see one of her movies."
"What's a 'movie'?"
Haku looked confused.
He'd never seen one, so he had no concept of it.
Ino hurried to give him a rough explanation.
"Kitazawa-sensei, why are we looking for a movie actress?"
Kiba's eyes suddenly lit up. "Are we going to film a movie?"
"You don't have any acting talent. What would you be filming?"
Kitazawa laughed. "She's our employer. She's shooting in the Land of Earth. Once we find her, we'll know what the mission is."
"Still, it'd be pretty cool to be in a movie."
Kiba said dreamily. "Then every ninja in the world would know my name."
"If you become powerful, you'll be famous across the ninja world anyway."
Kitazawa gave him a look.
"Kitazawa-sensei is already a living legend!"
Ino said with shining eyes.
"Now you're just making it hard for me."
Kiba shook his head. "There's no way I can ever match Kitazawa-sensei."
"I never said you could."
Ino hugged Kitazawa's arm and shot Kiba a smug smile.
"…"
Kiba's mouth twitched, but he couldn't come up with a retort.
"Pick up the pace."
Kitazawa gently pulled his arm away and flicked Ino on the forehead.
"Yes, Kitazawa-sensei!"
Ino replied, beaming.
~~~
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