"I'm not really troubled about anything in particular," Feiyu said, blinking innocently. "I just don't know what the battlefield situation is like. When are we supposed to be deployed? I don't want to go in blind and end up as a martyr."
He spoke so casually that Sarutobi Hiruzen's eyelid twitched violently. Beside him, Kakashi inhaled sharply.
Was this guy insane?
Who directly asked the Hokage about classified military intel? And phrased it like that?
Hiruzen cleared his throat.
"Information regarding the war is classified. You two are still Chunin-level genin. We cannot disclose details to you yet."
"However," the Hokage continued with a gentle smile, "if you wish to take the examination to become tokubetsu jōnin, I believe both of you would pass easily. Interested?"
"No thanks," Feiyu refused instantly, even before Kakashi could react. "At my age, becoming a tokubetsu jōnin would make me a giant target. Staying a genin is safer. Enemy shinobi won't take me seriously—at worst I'll face a few Chunin."
Kakashi stared at him speechlessly.
Feiyu's logic… actually made sense. Uncomfortably so.
Konoha had fewer than a hundred full jōnin. Even the Hokage had to be chosen through a vote among them. Every jōnin possessed real authority and could form their own faction if they wished.
Tokubetsu jōnin, on the other hand, had the title but not the rights. No voting power, no political weight.
They were elite fighters—nothing more than high-ranking muscle.
The rank existed primarily to keep strong independents out of upper leadership.
Feiyu had zero interest in being promoted into a meat grinder.
Especially now that he shared a squad with Asuma. As long as he remained where he was, he wouldn't be assigned dangerous missions. But if he became tokubetsu jōnin, Hiruzen would absolutely deploy him aggressively.
The Hokage's forehead tightened visibly. Even though he already knew Feiyu's personality from Asuma, experiencing it firsthand was another matter entirely.
This boy's fear of death clashed violently with the entire shinobi culture.
"Feiyu," Hiruzen sighed, "a shinobi who always runs away cannot truly grow. Only by facing challenges head-on can you become strong enough to be safe."
"Oh?" Feiyu tilted his head. "So if someone becomes the strongest shinobi… they're safe?"
"Of course," Hiruzen nodded. "The stronger you are, the safer you—"
"Then why is it that none of the Kage in the Five Great Villages die of old age?"
Hiruzen: "Σ(っ°Д°;)っ"
The Hokage froze mid-sentence.
Feiyu simply looked at him, expression calm.
After a long, defeated silence, Hiruzen finally gave up. He offered a few perfunctory words of concern and quickly excused himself.
Once he was gone, Kakashi let out a breath he'd been holding.
"Feiyu, you're insane. You actually mocked the Hokage to his face!"
Feiyu shrugged.
"Mocking him is better than blindly letting him send me to the front. Right now, the war is just starting—anyone deployed now is basically cannon fodder."
If he'd allowed Hiruzen to sweet-talk him, he'd probably be marching toward the battlefield tomorrow.
Life and death were on the line—who cared about titles?
"But you can only delay so long," Kakashi said quietly. "Eventually, we have to go."
"Then I'll delay as long as possible," Feiyu replied. "Shinobi wars peak early. After the first few months, the intensity drops. Going later is safer."
"You're not worried the Hokage will get angry? He could make your life very difficult."
Feiyu snorted.
"If he tries to assign me some suicide mission like assassinating an enemy commander, I'll just defect."
Kakashi's jaw dropped.
"Defect!? That's not something you joke about!"
"I'm serious," Feiyu said calmly. "With Sakumo's soul, I already planned for the worst. Honestly, with my current strength, being a missing-nin would be safer than being thrown into the war."
It was true.
Elite jōnin-level missing-nin were rarely hunted unless they posed a major threat. The ones constantly hunted were weaker missing-nin—mid-level fighters with no leverage.
And genin?
If they faked their death properly and didn't know vital intel, no village would waste manpower chasing them.
That was why Feiyu dared speak so casually in front of the Hokage.
Worst case, he'd simply disappear.
He doubted Konoha would dedicate resources during wartime to pursue a disposable Uchiha who the clan barely acknowledged.
Kakashi stared at him, stunned.
"Feiyu… you can't just say things like that."
"True," Feiyu nodded thoughtfully. "When I leave Konoha, I'll write a resignation letter. Something like: 'The world is vast, and I want to see it.'"
"…I've never heard of a shinobi resigning."
"Heh."
Feiyu's smile turned cold.
"Of course not. Shinobi can't resign. They can't retire either—not unless they become disabled. Otherwise, they work until they die."
"Even academy graduates start at twelve or thirteen. Ordinary people can't legally work until fourteen."
"You start killing at thirteen, and if you're lucky, you might survive fifty or sixty years until the higher-ups pity you and let you retire with a broken body."
He looked at Kakashi.
"Tell me, Kakashi—does being a shinobi seem reasonable to you?"
Kakashi opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Before today, he had never questioned the shinobi system. Everyone lived like this. No one complained.
But hearing Feiyu lay it out so bluntly, he suddenly realized how brutal it truly was—how thoroughly the system consumed every shinobi's youth, body, and life.
"…When you say it like that, it really does sound miserable."
"Most shinobi brainwash themselves into believing they're tools," Feiyu replied dryly. "Tell me—if that's not miserable, what is?"
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