Four years passed in what felt like the blink of an eye.
Shanks was now eleven.
He sat alone at the small counter of his favorite bar, a half-finished bottle of sake resting in his hand, his red hair slightly messy and his expression flat.
Four years… and still no Chūnin Exams.
Every year the academy produced new shinobi, yet none of them progressed.
No tournaments, no promotions, no great announcements. Nothing.
The war… always "about to start."
The Hokage and his advisors had been on edge since the first rumors—Sunagakure, Kumogakure, Iwagakure, all preparing their armies.
Of course Konoha had to play it safe. No large events. No celebrations. Nothing that could be seen as letting their guard down.
Shanks snorted.
I should have known. Independent genin sounded nice at the time.
No sensei.
No teammates.
No sharing mission pay.
Freedom.
And sure, that freedom had been real. He took whatever missions he wanted, accepted assignments when he felt like it, and nobody protested.
But there was the reality:
D-ranks most of the time.
Occasional C-ranks if he felt motivated.
Money that barely lasted the month.
Whatever he earned usually disappeared at the bottom of a bottle—shared between him, Minato, and Minato's girlfriend. He didn't complain. Life had been peaceful.
Minato, however, had changed.
Promoted after a year. ANBU. Already close to captain level. And me… still here drinking like a bored ronin.
Shanks exhaled through his nose.
Minato was stronger now. Much stronger.
Enough that a one-on-one between them wouldn't end well for him anymore.
He grinned at the thought anyway.
Good for him.
He raised his bottle for another sip when—
"Akagame no Shanks. The Hokage summons you."
An ANBU appeared beside him in an instant—masked, silent, professional.
Shanks blinked once.
"…Now?" he asked, voice slightly blurry from the alcohol.
"Yes. Those were the orders."
Shanks paused, sighed, then set the bottle down and stood up.
"Alright. I'm coming."
He flickered away in a red blur.
Hokage Office
The office was quiet when he entered.
No advisors.
No clan heads.
Just Hiruzen sitting behind his desk, smoking his pipe and looking older than usual.
Shanks bowed lightly.
"Hokage-sama."
"Shanks," Hiruzen nodded. "Sit."
Shanks did, legs crossed, expression calm.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Hiruzen finally broke the silence.
"The situation has changed. The war… will begin within the month."
Shanks didn't react, at least outwardly. He had been expecting this.
Hiruzen continued:
"Kumo has increased military movement. Iwa is mobilizing. Suna is recruiting outside its borders. There is no avoiding what is coming."
Shanks shrugged lazily.
"So what do you need me for? Konoha has plenty of strong shinobi."
Hiruzen looked at him with a heavy stare.
"I know your views on war. And I know you would prefer not to be involved. But I am still asking. We will need you on the battlefield."
Shanks leaned back.
"I don't see why. Minato is going. The Ino-Shika-Chō generation is going. We have plenty of monsters already. You don't need me."
Hiruzen raised an eyebrow.
"Minato is going, yes. And you should go to support him."
Shanks scoffed.
"He doesn't need me. He's a big boy now. Honestly, he's stronger than me."
There was a short pause.
Shanks wasn't joking. He meant it.
Hiruzen sighed.
"We both know that isn't true."
Shanks opened his mouth to answer, but Hiruzen continued:
"Yes, Minato has more chakra than you. Vastly more."
Shanks nodded.
"Well—"
"Yes, vastly more," Hiruzen insisted. "He also has more formal ninjutsu training. More operational experience. But none of that makes him unreachable. Your bloodline is… exceptional."
He looked Shanks dead in the eyes.
"You alone could tilt an entire battlefield simply by being present."
Shanks' expression shifted—but only slightly.
He was listening now.
Hiruzen pressed on:
"Think of how many lives you could prevent from being lost. Not by killing. But by overwhelming the enemy before they even understood what happened."
Shanks went quiet—really thinking.
The pipe smoke drifted between them in still air.
After a moment, Hiruzen stood.
"But whether you think on it or not… you are going to the battlefield. That is an order."
Shanks straightened instantly, eyes narrowing.
"Hokage-sama—"
"We are finished," Hiruzen said, voice final. "You are dismissed."
Shanks looked at him, exhaled slowly, then stood and left without a word.
The door closed behind him with a soft click.
Hiruzen let out a long breath.
"The young… are never ready. Yet the world never waits."