Chapter 64: He will surely become a hero, won't he?
Tsukasa Kaede gathered his people at the Hidden Leaf Gate.
One by one, the fully armed team members stood before Tsukasa Kaede.
Among them were Akimichi Fujiki, a 24-year-old Special Jonin; Hyuga Iroha, a 15-year-old Chunin; Shibi Aburame, a 16-year-old Special Jonin; and Ibiki Morino, a 13-year-old Genin.
And 29-year-old Genin Might Dai.
Tsukasa Kaede adjusted the summoning scrolls at his waist, looking at his subordinates standing in a row before him.
These were all individuals whose names would be left in history, but they had not yet reached their peak.
Frankly, Tsukasa Kaede was very surprised to see the teammates assigned to him on the mission brief. The Village had truly put thought into it, and no Root ninja had infiltrated the team.
"It seems Danzo has some issues. He keeps saying he supports me, yet he can't even send in his own people. Given Danzo's personality, he might arrange a team of Root ninja to operate covertly."
Tsukasa Kaede understood in his heart that this so-called covert operation wasn't as simple as protecting Tsukasa Kaede's safety or obeying his commands. To be precise, when Tsukasa Kaede was winning the battle, these Root ninja would be his most loyal subordinates.
However, once the battle turned unfavorable, especially if Tsukasa Kaede was severely wounded or near death, this group of Root ninja would definitely swarm him, completely disregarding the lives of their comrades from the Village, and would only take Tsukasa Kaede away.
Then, taking advantage of Tsukasa Kaede's weakened state, they would apply a Curse Mark, Sealing Jutsu, or Mind Transfer Jutsu, among other Jutsu Formulas, to control him.
Of course, it was also possible they would be looking for an opportunity to kill Tsukasa Kaede, because Danzo still held a Forbidden Jutsu – Impure World Reincarnation.
Danzo couldn't learn it himself, but Orochimaru, who had embarked on the path of seeking Immortality, would definitely learn this Forbidden Jutsu. Perhaps these two were already thinking about the possibility of killing Tsukasa Kaede and then using Impure World Reincarnation to resurrect him.
Ultimately, he still had to be strong himself, and absolutely could not show any weakness, no matter what.
"What a hassle. To achieve the most perfect body, there's no way around those two, Danzo and Orochimaru."
This thought flashed through Tsukasa Kaede's mind, and then he shifted his attention to the subordinates before him.
"You are all elites of the Village. It is my utmost honor to be your Captain," Tsukasa Kaede said with a smile.
Just as the others were about to say something, Might Dai immediately gave a ninety-degree bow and loudly declared, "Yes! Honored by your recognition, I will certainly not fail your expectations, and I will display my youth on the battlefield!!"
"..."
"?"
Many who didn't know Might Dai exchanged confused glances, especially the teenagers. Seeing Might Dai's age and attire, and hearing him shout exaggerated words like "youth," a chill ran through their hearts.
Naturally, such thoughts arose: *Is such a teammate really reliable? Won't this strange guy get us killed?* "Might Dai, a famous Genin in the Village, I've heard of you," Ibiki Morino said coldly. "I hope you don't hold us back when we execute the mission. You're the only one among us who can't use genjutsu or ninjutsu, right?"
"N-no, I won't. Although I can only use taijutsu, I will definitely fight with all my might—"
"I'm not questioning you, just a simple reminder. Tsukasa Kaede-sama must have his reasons for choosing you. I won't question the decision of my superior."
Ibiki Morino didn't intend to waste time on Might Dai. His gaze occasionally drifted to the several summoning scrolls Tsukasa Kaede carried at his waist.
"Ibiki Morino possesses good interrogation and intelligence analysis capabilities. It seems Lord Hokage has already considered for me how to extract intel from the enemy's mouths after defeating them. What is your relationship with Morino Idate?"
"That is my clan uncle. Although our clan is a small Ninja Clan, we will also fight with all our might for the Village in all aspects." Ibiki Morino had a heavy mind.
This was normal. The man who would later become the head of the interrogation department couldn't have had a simple mind when he was young. Not that his heart was black, but he was definitely not simple.
Tsukasa Kaede glanced at him. "It seems you learned some things about me from Morino Idate. I haven't seen him for a while. I heard he got promoted."
"Yes, it is said that he serves as a senior researcher in a certain department, but I don't know which department specifically. It might involve the Village's secrets."
Ibiki Morino said in a deep voice, "My clan uncle highly regards you, saying your Jutsu is naturally suited for use on the battlefield. You should be the person most adapted to a war environment... Summoning countless living corpses to fight, being able to skillfully control them to use their ninjutsu from when they were alive, and even casting Space-Time Ninjutsu. Although I haven't witnessed it myself, just hearing about these things makes it seem incredible."
Tsukasa Kaede was a unique type of ninja; it was completely impossible to find another of his kind.
The others present also secretly nodded. Indeed, just imagining in one's mind the scene of Tsukasa Kaede casually summoning an army of corpses to charge, one could realize how explosive that scene would be.
If he were to fight enemies with a corpse army, while turning fallen enemies into living corpses on the spot and pulling them into the fighting ranks, growing stronger the more he fought...
"Under ideal circumstances, this Corpse Release Secret Technique is simply a large-scale Forbidden Jutsu, and that's not even counting the Space-Time Ninjutsu aspect. However, Tsukasa Kaede-sama, as far as I know, you don't seem to excel in Chakra..."
Akimichi Fujiki, who was Choza Akimichi's clan uncle, was also a very steady man, curiously trying to understand Tsukasa Kaede's intel.
Tsukasa Kaede smiled faintly. "It's natural for you to want to understand my situation. Kaedence we are all members of the same team, we should understand each other's abilities and strive to perform better on the battlefield... Actually, my physical condition has improved somewhat. Lady Tsunade gave me Chakra Stimulation Jutsu and Cell Division Jutsu. After completing my training, I no longer have significant problems with Chakra. This is also one of the reasons why Lord Hokage appointed me as a Special Jonin."
The few immediately showed expressions of realization, then their expressions turned strange.
Only then did they remember that this person before them, whose reputation was on the rise, a special ninja publicly praised as a "genius" by Elite Jonin Kato Dan, seemed to be a Medical Ninja, didn't he?
Learning ninjutsu like body stimulation and accelerated cell division should have been perfectly natural for a Medical Ninja, right?
But where would you find such a Medical Ninja, fighting with a large number of corpses and still able to utilize the corpses' power...
Tsukasa Kaede took out a summoning scroll from his waist and unrolled it in front of them, displaying the complex Jutsu Formula on it, specifically pointing to several "corpse" characters within it.
"Lord Hokage bestowed upon me the corpses of several Explosion Release Bloodline Limit Ninja. When these individuals were alive, they were elite figures of Hidden Stone Village, our mortal enemies. But now that they are dead, they are extremely reliable comrades on our side and will certainly be of immense help to us."
"Ah, that's indeed the case..."
"This... I feel like something's not quite right, but I can't quite put my finger on it."
"Tsukasa Kaede-sama is right."
The team members had strange expressions. Inexplicably, their somewhat anxious and restless hearts miraculously calmed down.
Following such a Captain, although it was their first time working together and they knew very little about him, it seemed... unexpectedly reassuring.
(end of chapter)