Why would you call someone "sensei" right now!?
Biwa Juzo froze awkwardly. It was his first time handling a diplomatic mission, and it was already a mess—he was late, and now he barged in yelling "sensei."
He was totally ruining Kirigakure Village's image.
"No choice, I guess."
Shisui scratched his head and gave a helpless smile.
"If I've done something wrong, let the law punish me. Don't make me suffer like this instead."
Biwa Juzo sighed and walked forward after Hozuki Mangetsu, who had already dashed ahead.
"Well, given your background, there's probably no other way but to pay for it with your life."
Shisui still had that friendly smile, gently reminding Biwa Juzo that he used to be a rogue ninja.
"Can you stop bringing that up every time?"
"…"
What's with these three!?
All the students and teachers were stunned by the sudden entrance.
They had all been waiting seriously for the Fifth Mizukage, and then these three just barged in like this—what even was that?
"Sorry, I'm late! Forgot something. This thing keeps blocking my view."
"I really don't like clunky stuff like this."
Hozuki Mangetsu showed a row of sharp shark-like teeth in his grin, but he was clearly speaking to Hatake Satoru.
Tugging at the Mizukage hat on his head, it sounded just like a student casually complaining to a teacher. The two of them seemed really close.
"Huh?"
"What's going on? Do they know each other?"
"Wait… why is *that guy* the Fifth Mizukage's teacher?!"
The students down below looked at the teachers and Sarutobi Hiruzen standing in front. They weren't shouting in shock yet, but the mood was tense.
The teachers around them, however, couldn't hide their shock anymore. Even though the students were watching, they started whispering in surprise.
At a time like this, shouldn't you be saying that kind of thing to the Hokage?
And why is my brother the Fifth Mizukage's teacher!?
This is so weird!
And looking at how this guy is just laser-focused on Hatake Satoru, Kakashi suddenly remembered how Tenzo had acted like he was under some sort of spell back then.
Now that he thought about it, all these guys seem to be like that.
They say he's a teacher, but isn't he really just brainwashing people? How did he even manage to get the *Fifth Mizukage* like that!?
Kakashi grumbled to himself about the scene in front of him. But since he was standing next to Hatake Satoru, he could clearly see the side of the Mizukage's face under the hat.
It was a young face, even more refined than the Fourth Hokage's. He actually looked younger than Hatake Satoru.
"This is the Fifth Mizukage…?"
Kakashi and Sarutobi Hiruzen muttered in disbelief.
"Come on, take it off already. Everyone's gonna know who you are now that you've shown up anyway."
"And stop talking only to me."
Hatake Satoru crossed his arms and leaned back a little, tilting his head at Hozuki Mangetsu.
"Oh, right… sorry, I got too excited when I saw you."
Hozuki Mangetsu yanked off the Mizukage hat that had nearly covered his whole face, revealing a face that looked way too young and delicate compared to the people around him.
"No way… that's the Fifth Mizukage?!"
"He looks way too young! He doesn't look like a Kage at all!"
"Do people in Kirigakure really trust a kid like that?"
Naruto and Sasuke's eyes went wide, and even Sakura—who usually didn't care much about this kind of thing—was clearly surprised.
And judging by how the Mizukage was acting, it seemed like he had a lot to do with Hatake Satoru.
No way that guy just sat around during the years he disappeared.
Sasuke pushed down his shock and looked over at Hatake Satoru, who was standing there smiling, like none of this had anything to do with him.
This Mizukage… honestly, if he said he was just here to take the Chunin Exam, no one would even question it!
"Why is the Mizukage such a young pretty boy? If you think about it, even Zabuza looked more serious than him."
Naruto couldn't help mumbling as he looked at Hozuki Mangetsu.
Mangetsu didn't seem that much older than him, and Naruto had always dreamed of becoming Hokage. Now it looked like the Mizukage was the real winner in life.
"Being Mizukage isn't about looking scary. My brother—"
Before Suigetsu could finish, Haku quickly covered his mouth.
This kid talked way too much. Who just blurts out their family background right at the start? The first thing out of his mouth is always "my brother this" and "my brother that."
"Well, that's true… In that case, maybe I'll be Hokage really soon!"
Naruto didn't seem to catch the second half of what Suigetsu said. He just looked up at Hozuki Mangetsu with total confidence.
Orochimaru, disguised as a jonin from Otogakure, was standing among the teachers.
He glanced at Hatake Satoru, who was chatting politely with the Mizukage up front, and his brow twitched slightly.
That kind of obvious eyepatch—there's no way he could forget those two brothers.
He had even come back once just to look into Hatake Satoru. The situation back then was urgent, so he didn't get the chance to fight him properly.
But from the few moves they exchanged, he had already gotten a good sense of Hatake Satoru's strength.
So, he ended up becoming the Mizukage's teacher, huh...
He had to admit—this guy was definitely talented.
"We're really sorry, Lord Hokage. We're not very familiar with the layout of Konohagakure, so it took us a bit longer to find our way here."
"Hopefully it didn't mess up the rest of the exam for the students."
Shisui and Biwa Juzo gave Sarutobi Hiruzen a brief explanation for why they had arrived late.
"It's no big deal. There's still time anyway."
"I'm just surprised that the Fifth Mizukage is such a young guy."
Since the Mizukage was here to build ties between the villages, Sarutobi Hiruzen wasn't going to let something small like this cause tension.
He nodded slightly while puffing on his pipe, clearly thinking about something.
The Fourth Mizukage had always been a bit mysterious, but back then, during wartime, people still had some idea of what he looked like.
Sarutobi Hiruzen had met Karatachi Yagura a few times before. He had always looked like a small, young boy.
But Karatachi Yagura just looked young—when it came to strategy and thinking, he was always calm, even a bit cold.
So it wasn't really surprising that someone like him could lead Kirigakure during the Bloody Mist era.
Sarutobi Hiruzen really wanted to believe that Hozuki Mangetsu only looked young because of his baby face too.
Yeah, right.
No matter how you looked at it, Hozuki Mangetsu just seemed like a normal young guy whose personality matched his age.
"He ended the Bloody Mist era, changed the whole system, and turned Kirigakure into the most popular village in the Land of Water."
"And all of that was decided by this one teenager?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen glanced at Biwa Juzo and Shisui as well. They didn't seem much older either—probably his right- and left-hand men.
What on earth happened in Kirigakure during all those years they were under the radar?
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