Chapter 62
As expected, the two teams from Kumo had passed the test. However, at least Hiruzen could get some satisfaction looking at their dirty and haggard appearances. Of course, he would be happier if his genin didn't look the same.
"What is wrong with him?"
Out of sixteen genin that passed, there was one that looked like he crawled out of a grave. But that wasn't what caught Hiruzen's attention. It was his weird behavior — touching the ground, the walls, and even the other people as if to make sure they were real.
Well, there's bound to be some weird shinobi, especially from Amegakure. Still, hopefully, he won't infect his genin with his creepiness. Though aside from him, there were still the kunoichi from Takigakure and Sunagakure. Both looked like they were on their last legs.
"Why did you bring me a dead kid?" Hiruzen asked one of the ANBU who had a genin on his back.
"He was alive when the test ended," he replied as he dropped bloody genin on the ground.
"Bring him to the hospital, and have Tsunade clear him if he will be capable of further participation."
Well, it was already a surprising thing to see one of Kusagakure's genin go this far. But he guessed that was as much as they were capable of. If it's nothing major, he will be able to take the last test and maybe show more.
"Well, I would like to congratulate all of you. But I saw nothing that any of you should be proud of. So far, all of you have shown that you are stronger than your fellow genin. Sadly, that isn't what makes a chunin."
Activating a bullshit mode, Hiruzen was prepared to give a speech. As annoying as it was, it was something that was expected from him. The jonin from Kumo, Suna, and Ame were looking at him. So, he will give them one; it wasn't that important, so he just bullshit his way out of it.
"It isn't strength, intelligence, or speed that makes one a chunin. It is leadership. Some of you who are standing alone without your team — can you call yourself leaders? I think you know the answer, as you stand alone. And the rest of you — you did admirable work surviving together. But can any of you call yourself leaders? Did any of you do everything you could to survive this long? Or were you simply relying on your teammates' strenght and luck?"
Well, that should be enough. He questioned them and told them what was important. These chunin exams were starting to get to him. And they would only get worse from now on. If only there was something more he could do other than trust Shisui to win all the fights from now on.
Well, not many knew about Yamato, so maybe betting on him would probably get the most profit. Another team from Konoha had Hayate Gekko, Kotetsu Hagane, and Izumo Kamizuki. Within the team, they worked pretty well, with Hayate leading them. But Hiruzen didn't put much hope on them to win against the Kumo shinobi in the finals.
If only there were a way to make one of them stronger in a short time, so they would be the biggest underdog. He didn't need them to be as good as Shisui — just something that would get the others surprised. Sadly, he didn't see that happening.
"Ding!!! New quest. Take Hayate Gekko under your tutelage and make him the winner of the finals. Ding!!!"
Rewards: Random
Penalty: Random
Well, that was the most random quest he got so far. It was to the point where he wanted to ignore it. But that random penalty made him hesitate. It could be anything, and with his luck, it would probably be worse than he could even imagine.
Name: Hiruzen Sarutobi
Age: 56/83
HP: 100%
Chakra: 100%
Strength: 8
Speed: 8
Stamina: 8
Intelligence: 9
Charisma: 7
Ninjutsu: 8
Taijutsu: 8
Genjutsu: 8
Fuinjutsu: 8
Ninjutsu skills: Shadow Clone, Fireball, Body Flicker, Body Substitution, Transformation, Mud Slide, Fireball, Kirin, Ash Pile Burning.
Taijutsu skills: Shurikenjutsu (Advanced level), Drunken Fist (Advanced level), Bo-staff Mastery (Advanced level), Basic Taijutsu (Master level), Chakra Enhanced Strength (Novice Level), Parry.
Genjutsu skills: Bringer of Darkness, Temple of Nirvana.
Fuinjutsu skills: Negative Emotion-sensing, Explosive Tag, Sealing Tag.
Looking at everything he had, Hiruzen didn't even know what he could teach Hayate to win the finals. But why would the system give such a quest to begin with? Unless he was right that something would happen during it.
"Rest and prepare yourselves. In a month, you shall face each other. You will not only be showing your skills to us, but also to your village's leaders and many important people who might one day decide your village's future. I hope you will be prepared for it."
Hiruzen quickly finished it today. As he didn't want others to ask why, he didn't let these genin draw lots to determine who they would fight. With this quest, everything had changed. He needed to make sure that Hayate would get to the finals and win.
So, he would have to use some dirty tactics, since he didn't have the skills to teach Hayate to win on his own. Still, he couldn't make it obvious either, for the sake of Konoha's reputation and Hayate's self-esteem.
And there he went again, getting into troublesome situations. Hiruzen wanted to just retire already. Why the hell did he have to do so much? He was a senior citizen; he should just lie on the porch and enjoy the passing clouds.
"Sir?"
"Good timing, Shizune. Call Hayate to me once he has rested," Hiruzen instructed his most trustworthy assistant. "And get Tsume to make a detailed report of every genin's capabilities."
Before anything, he would have to rig the matches. Maybe luck hadn't abandoned him yet. With one out of the sixteen already out of commission, Hiruzen could pass Hayate on the first round. Then he would make his next match against someone weak or already exhausted.
But that wouldn't be enough. Why the hell did the system give such a weird quest? And without knowing what was riding on it, it made it even worse. He hated it, but there was nothing he could do about it but follow it and succeed.
…
Putting Kumo genin against themselves would probably look quite suspicious, and it would leave Hiruzen with too few opponents for his genin. In the end, they would have to fight each other.
"Hokage-sama, I came with the reports you asked for," Tsume announced herself to Hiruzen's office.
"Let me see," Hiruzen took over the reports. "You were responsible for Ken. What do you think of him?"
"Quite resilient, and quite lucky, but nothing too special. He probably is the weakest of the bunch. Though his poison bombs could be dangerous for anyone who isn't prepared."
"Good job out here," Hiruzen couldn't help but compliment her.
He saw how quickly those genin were humbled by her and the ANBU. They made those genin push to their absolute limits and exhaust everything they had. Even Shisui, probably the strongest of them all, barely survived. Though he could say the same for every single one of them.
"These kids think they can rest. From tomorrow onward, make sure that not a single one of them forgets that the exams haven't finished yet."
"Yes, sir."
If Hiruzen couldn't rest, then they wouldn't be able to either. It was probably petty, but it gave him a bit of satisfaction. And it would make the others participate not at their best, giving Hiruzen a better chance to succeed in his quest.
"I need a smoke."
Hiruzen quickly took out his pipe and lit it up. At times like this, he needed to calm down. All this thinking was giving him a headache. Once he relaxed a bit, he was finally able to think about what was important.
The system was just a nuisance at this moment. So, he would ignore it and do everything as he liked. He would train Hayate for this month as everyone gathered in the village. But not to win — rather, so he could get stronger.
In the end, it didn't matter if he succeeded in the quest. He needed to secure the village's future before anything else. So what if he got a penalty? If the system thought it could control him, it was wrong.
…
"Those idiots underestimated me because I was alone, and their boss thought he didn't need to run. So, I took him as a hostage first and told the rest to surrender. But rather than do that or fight me anyway, they ran away. It took me days to catch every single one of them."
"Very interesting," Hiruzen replied to his oldest son's story like he was listening to it.
He wanted to spend some time with his family. But with all the things going around, it was hard to put those thoughts to rest, even for a moment. Kazuki hated how much Hiruzen was smoking his pipe, so he did not smoke in front of him.
Still, he ate little and just sat at the dining table, lost in his thoughts. Even if he had accepted that those two were his family, and not just because the system said so, he still had no idea how he was supposed to act around them.
"Father," Asuma got Hiruzen's attention for a moment. "I have decided. After the Chunin Exams end, I will leave the village and join one of the Twelve Guardians."
"That's fine with me," Hiruzen wondered how much he should increase the price for his shinobi services. Fifty percent seemed a bit too much, but then again, if someone was hiring the best, money wasn't an issue for them.
"I am not a kid anymore. And you promised to grant me this much when I became a jonin. So, even if you deny my request, it is still within my power to choose my path. Not because I disagree with the village's methods, but I simply want to see other parts of what a shinobi is supposed to be."
"Good for you," Hiruzen could probably get away with increasing the price by fifty percent for A and S-rank missions. D-rank prices would be the same since they were done within the village. Then, for C-rank, fifteen percent should be appropriate, and for B-rank, thirty percent.
"It is my decision, and — wait, what did you say?"
"I see no problem with you choosing your path, Asuma. And I am in no position to tell you what to do or not. As you probably noticed, I was a pretty lousy father towards you. So, the least I can do is support you in your decisions. As long as you believe it is right by you, it is right by me, too. Just promise you'll come home from time to time, so I can be assured you're taking care of yourself."
"You weren't that bad," Asuma mumbled. "Thanks, I will make sure to make you proud."
Hiruzen only nodded as he thought of how to tax his shinobi. As despicable as it might be, Hiruzen was pretty much forced to start taxing them. Still, he couldn't do it without a reason. So, he would promise those shinobi free healthcare for them and their families, as well as free education for their children.
Maybe they wouldn't hate him much for it. But he would rather deal with angry shinobi under him than poor ones. The moment Hiruzen couldn't pay them, they would be susceptible to bribes.
And if he could tie them down using their families' health and education, maybe he would gain even more loyalty. At least it would be harder for them to betray the village.
Still, the first few months would probably be tough. Hiruzen expected that once the prices rose, he would be under a lot of pressure from all the nobles of this country. They would try to use the services of other villages to undermine him.
It would take at least a few months for them to accept it. And that was the best scenario. It could take over a year before Hiruzen saw any profit. So, he would need to get some money using other ways.
The village stored a lot of jutsu. And keeping them locked away was such a waste. Even though there was a danger of sharing them and being used against the village, Hiruzen had no choice but to sell them to the clans and other shinobi. Hopefully, it won't come back to bite him.
And that's why he would need to retire soon. With Danzo gone and after dealing with this crisis, a new Hokage was needed. He was getting too tired of all of it.
With Shizune already having worked so hard under him and knowing the ins and outs, it shouldn't be too hard to get Tsunade to take over. She seemed to have started to recover from her trauma slowly while working in the hospital. Maybe after another year, she would be ready.
"Hah, it is funny and quite impressive how you can think about work and still be part of the conversation," Kazuki said.
"What do you mean?"
"The dinner is over, Father," Kazuki replied. "You've been sitting here for ten minutes without moving. Or rather, you've been sitting like that from the very beginning. Can you even remember my story? At least you must have remembered that you let Asuma join the Twelve, right?"
"Of course, what do you take me for?" Hiruzen completely forgot about it.
"Well, I wanted to ask you something too. Since I didn't want to be hated by my little brother, I had to wait until he left. I want to join ANBU."
"Out of the question."
The ANBU had the highest mortality rate. As their missions were not only dangerous but also demanded utmost secrecy, if they got into a bad situation, there was no way to send any reinforcements. This wasn't something that Hiruzen wanted for one of his children — to die alone in some foreign land.
"Father," But Kazuki wasn't a boy who didn't understand such things, so his words had plenty of weight behind them. "I know you are worried about me. But protecting the village isn't just your responsibility. I gave it a lot of thought. And while I do enjoy doing missions, I want to do something more meaningful for the village and you."
"Not now, it is too dangerous for now."
"I know, and that's why it is the best time. Look at yourself, Father," Kazuki looked into Hiruzen's eyes like he was holding him down and wouldn't let go of this conversation. "You look haggard, your hair is turning grey at an alarming speed, and have you not noticed how thin you are becoming? You are killing yourself, and looking at you like that is killing me. So, let me help you the only way I know I can."
"I don't look that bad, right?"
Kazuki's silence was all the answer Hiruzen needed to hear to understand it. He really hadn't noticed how bad it had become for him. He simply wasn't given a chance of late to notice it. But now he could quite feel how much weaker he felt.
"I will not hold your hand," Hiruzen, in the end, could only agree with Kazuki. "You must pass the requirements for the position based on your skills. And I warn you now, from today onward, I am making them twice as hard."
A.N. As always, thanks for reading and supporting me, so I can continue writing without any concerns, and if you want more, up to 7 more chapters and 28 chapters in total with all my other stories, you can support me on pa treon. com \ ironwolf852.