Chapter 75: Jonin Recommendation
Liumu's trio ended up staying in the Land of Rain for an extended period.
During this time, Jiraiya, as Yahiko's former teacher, was frequently dragged to the newly established Ninja Academy to lecture the children of the Rain. Haku's profound understanding of Bloodline Limits, particularly her Ice Release, became a valuable source of advanced knowledge for the fledgling village's curriculum.
Only Liumu, when Yahiko invited him to share his "expertise" with the students, refused outright with what he considered impeccable logic.
"I'm still a child myself! How am I supposed to teach them?"
At seven years old, Liumu was younger than some of the older students in the academy, who ranged from five or six to eight or nine. The idea of him standing at a lectern was absurd.
Teach what?
Ninjutsu? He could barely use the basics.
Genjutsu? His came prepackaged from a template; he couldn't explain the principles.
Taijutsu? His "style" consisted of ending fights with one punch—hardly a teachable methodology, and a sure way to lead children astray.
Eventually, Yahiko, unable to persuade him, gave up and let Liumu roam the village as he pleased.
One day, a small toad messenger suddenly appeared before Jiraiya, puffing out a scroll. Seeing Jiraiya's focused expression as he read it, Liumu guessed it contained news from Konoha.
He was right.
After reading, Jiraiya's face grew solemn. With only Liumu and Haku nearby, he spoke in a low voice. "Tensions are rising on the Fire Country's borders. There have been several skirmishes with Iwagakure forces recently. Even Kirigakure seems to have agents sniffing around our borders."
"What are you getting at?" Liumu asked directly.
Jiraiya let out a long, weary sigh. "What else? It means certain parties are getting restless, testing the waters."
Liumu mentally calculated the timeline. The full-scale Third Shinobi World War was still four or five years off. Obito, Rin, and Kakashi hadn't even graduated yet. These current conflicts were minor, regional disputes—the lingering embers of the Second War, flare-ups of retaliation between the great nations. While concerning, they weren't yet the conflagration to come.
"Oh, right," Jiraiya added, as if remembering something. "You're a Chunin now. After the last mission, your senior brother Minato, along with Akimichi Chōza and Aburame Shibi, submitted formal recommendations on behalf of their respective clans to have you promoted to Jonin."
"Jonin?" Liumu was genuinely taken aback. "Are they sick? Why would they recommend me?"
For Liumu, the ninja ranking system had one clear purpose: dictating mission assignments. Lower-ranked ninja were constantly sent on missions under someone else's command. Jonin, however, were assigned to various critical posts within the village according to their skills—command, teaching, administration. Look at future Kakashi, forever doomed to be a genin-team instructor.
In contrast, as a Chunin and the personal disciple of a Sannin, Liumu enjoyed considerable freedom. He wasn't forced into ANBU, nor was he burdened with the village's routine mission quota. It was a perfect, low-responsibility position.
Becoming a Jonin would ruin everything.
"I don't want to be a Jonin!" Liumu sprang up from beside Haku, his brow furrowed. "I refuse. Don't cause trouble for me."
"How is this causing trouble?" Jiraiya snapped, though his tone quickly softened. "But you don't need to worry. I've already put a stop to it."
Liumu: "..."
It turned out that after returning from Loulan, Minato, along with Chōza and Shibi—deeply impressed by Liumu's pivotal role—had formally proposed his promotion. The criteria for Jonin were different from lower ranks, focusing on proven capability in high-stakes situations. In both the Kiri and Loulan missions, Liumu had demonstrated power far exceeding typical Chunin, even Jonin, levels.
For Konoha, promoting someone so young and with so few officially logged missions was unprecedented. However, with the strong backing of the Akimichi and Aburame clans, the Third Hokage had been on the verge of approving it.
At the final moment, Jiraiya had intervened.
Beyond sharing the Third's misgivings, Jiraiya believed Liumu was still too young, lacking the steady judgment and comprehensive skill set expected of a Jonin. Liumu had graduated at five, become a Chunin at six. Promoting him to Jonin at seven, no matter his raw power, felt reckless. A fine blade needed repeated tempering. Liumu's growth had been meteoric, and Jiraiya feared such rapid ascent would breed arrogance, leaving no time for the crucial mental and experiential honing every genius needed.
"Teacher Jiraiya, that is the wisest decision you have ever made!" Liumu exclaimed happily, grabbing Jiraiya's arm and giving him a hearty, grateful pat on the shoulder.
"Agh! You little brat!" Jiraiya yelped, clutching his shoulder with a pained expression. "You nearly dislocated it!"
Liumu: "..."
Ever since absorbing the massive Dragon Vein energy in Loulan, his fine control over his Saitama-template strength had become… erratic. While his system stats hadn't changed noticeably, miscalculations like this were happening more often.
Has my control gotten worse? Or… have I simply gotten stronger, and haven't fully adjusted yet? He pondered the unsettling thought.
That night, with Konan and Haku asleep on either side of him in the guest quarters, their breathing soft and even, Liumu retreated into his consciousness.
He needed to consult the system.
"Great System, I currently have the Taotie's Gluttony within me. It directly devours any summoned creature or beast template. Can't you do something about that?"
[Ding. The templates within this system follow a hierarchy of power. The Taotie template is ranked among the Primordial Devourer-Beasts. The Sky Fox template is classified as a Sage Beast. Naturally, the lesser cannot survive the presence of the greater.]
"So you're just going to leave it like this? What's the point of me drawing a beast template if it just gets eaten?"
[Ding. Within the system's template compendium, there exist psychic beasts of comparable fame and tier to the Taotie. Should the host draw such a template, there would be no concern of it being subsumed.]
Liumu: "..." Well, that was… vaguely helpful. And entirely dependent on insane luck.
(End of Chapter)
✨If you're enjoying this story, consider supporting me on Patreon —
Patreon.com/TofuChan
💕Patreon members get early access to chapters, bonus content, and voting power on future ideas.💕
Every bit of support helps me write more and faster. Thank you so much for reading! 🥰
Bonus Chapter For Every 100 Power Stones
Lets hit the goal of 200 Patreon Members now for 5 Extra Chapters 💕