"Lord Hokage... you're joking, right?" Ui asked, staring at the Third Hokage with a look of sheer bewilderment.
"I'm just pulling your leg."
Unfortunately, the Third Hokage was not the kind of man to say such a thing. He had no interest in playing pranks on his subordinates.
Thirty minutes ago, while Ui was deep in his chakra nature training, he had received the summon. Five minutes ago, the Hokage had explained the objective. Now, Ui was struggling to wrap his head around it. This feeling was tied directly to his upcoming mission.
The New Commander
"Ui, are your injuries fully healed?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked as soon as Ui entered the office.
"Completely recovered," Ui replied.
He knew the Hokage wasn't just checking on his health. In shinobi terms, that question translated to: Are you ready for deployment?
Technically, Ui had been fit for duty before he even reached the village. A high-burst combatant like him was usually kept on the front lines as long as possible. However, Ui was currently without a squad. Considering the efficiency of squad-based operations and Ui's own tactical blind spots, he had been sent back to Konoha to wait for a new team to be formed.
The Hokage took a long drag from his pipe, exhaled a plume of smoke, and nodded. "Good. I have a new mission for you... I intend to form a new squad centered around you and send you out on a specific assignment."
The phrase "centered around you" was simple: Ui was being given command. He was to be the captain of a four-man cell.
In a time of war, a Hokage's order is absolute. If Hiruzen suddenly decided to send Ui's team into the Raikage's office to steal a map—a suicide mission with zero chance of success—they would go, unless Ui planned on deserting the Leaf.
But the details revealed a lot. If Ui, a Chunin, was the captain, it meant there would be no Jonin in the squad. A Chunin commanding a Jonin was unheard of unless the Chunin had the tactical IQ of someone like Shikamaru. This was a team of Chunin and Genin, which implied the mission wouldn't be a Rank-S suicide run.
The Hokage handed Ui a file folder. Inside were the profiles of his new subordinates. Because of Ui's unique status and the identity of one of the members, the Hokage had decided to handle this briefing personally.
Ui opened the folder and read:
Ninja Registration: 010886
Name: Yamashiro Aoba
Rank: Chunin
Specialties: Genjutsu, Taijutsu, Summoning
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Ninja Registration: 010829
Name: Sarutobi Asuma
Rank: Chunin
Specialties: Ninjutsu, Taijutsu (Hokage's son)
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Ninja Registration: 010881
Name: Yuhi Kurenai
Rank: Genin
Specialties: Genjutsu
The profiles were thick, containing performance reviews from previous missions. All three were Ui's peers; Asuma and Kurenai had even been in his class. While they had more mission experience than Ui (who had spent much of his post-graduation time training under Kushina), they were still "new" in the grand scheme of the war.
Ui went silent. It wasn't because he was commanding the Hokage's son, nor was it the lack of a veteran Jonin. It was the composition. Looking at this lineup, he couldn't for the life of him figure out what they were supposed to be doing.
Asuma and Ui were combat-heavy, all-rounders. Aoba and Kurenai were Genjutsu specialists. What was this team's professional niche?
"Lord Hokage, what exactly is our objective?"
The Strategic Void
The Third Hokage pushed aside the paperwork on his desk and unrolled a map of the Land of Fire and its neighbors. He pointed to a specific region.
"We have concluded the war with the Land of Wind. Our western border is stabilizing, so we won't be stationing a massive force there anymore. The Land of Earth to the northwest is our next primary threat. They usually invade through the Land of Grass or the Land of Steam, so we are focusing our defenses there."
He moved his finger to the gap between these two major defensive zones. Before he could finish, Ui spoke the name:
"The Land of Rain..."
"Precisely," the Hokage said. "The Land of Rain was active early in the war, but their national strength is limited. They've retreated after two major defeats. Until now, they were suppressed by the dual pressure of the Sand and Stone fronts. But now that our forces have been pulled from the Sand border..."
"We believe that while Rain lacks the power for a large-scale invasion, they may attempt 'special maneuvers' during the peace treaty negotiations. We must increase our surveillance. We don't have the manpower for a full defensive line, so we are deploying twenty to forty scout squads to the border."
"You are one of them."
Ui was stunned.
Kamishiro Ui, Sarutobi Asuma, Yamashiro Aoba, Yuhi Kurenai...
There wasn't a single sensory-type ninja in the bunch. No Byakugan, no Inuzuka hounds, no Aburame bugs.
This squad was clearly cobbled together from whoever was available. In a war of attrition, perfectly balanced teams were a luxury the village could no longer afford. The Hokage would have loved to send a dozen Hyugas, but the reality of the front lines made that impossible.
Ui was essentially leading a "misfit" squad into one of the most treacherous, rain-soaked terrains in the world.