Chương 12: Shadow and the Ladder

"Thank you for the meal, Senpai. I'll go now." Itachi hadn't taken a share of the stolen fortune. He said he hadn't contributed to bringing it in, and it was not a part of the payment terms they'd originally agreed on. He only took the twenty thousand ryo promised for the mission itself. Shuji covered the Yakiniku bill in return. As dusk grew darker, Shuji rubbed his stiff shoulder and started thinking about going back to continue his training.

Then, a person wearing an animal mask silently appeared from around the corner.

"The Hokage requests your presence." The ANBU's voice was completely emotionless. Shuji scratched his head, resigned, and glanced up at the fading light. This felt exactly like getting pulled back in for overtime in his old life. He fell in behind the Anbu, his shape swallowed by the thickening dark. Inside the Hokage's office, the last of the sunset painted the room a warm gold. Hiruzen Sarutobi stood with his back to the door, the hem of his Hokage robes stirring in the breeze.

At the sound of footsteps he turned, slow, smoke curling up from his pipe and drifting through the shaft of light.

"You handled this mission well. Good work." The Third's voice was gentle, but his eyes, worn down by decades of seeing everything, stayed sharp. He drew the pipe from his mouth and let out a thin trail of smoke.

"You flatter me, Hokage-sama."

"No. I'm telling the truth." Hiruzen walked over to his desk and tapped his pipe against the edge, knocking some ash loose.

"You never showed this kind of talent when you were doing border patrol." He then changed the subject.

"Shuji, what do you think of the boy, Itachi?"

"Exceptional talent. Well beyond his peers."

"That boy has no teammates left now. Neither do you." Hiruzen's voice dropped a shade.

"The two of you have partnered well so far. Might as well keep it that way."

"As for filling out the squad, I'll find suitable people." Shuji's brow creased slightly.

"Given my situation, I'm not sure I qualify to lead a squad." Under Konoha's usual practice, an arrangement like this only went two ways. Either he took command as a squad leader with two genin under him, or he got bumped up to chunin, even jonin, with the squad's missions starting straight at B-rank.

"This was Itachi's own wish." Hiruzen's gaze drifted past Shuji, out toward the settling dusk.

"He doesn't want to team with genin again..." He didn't finish, but Shuji already understood. The boy who'd watched a teammate die didn't want to live through that a second time.

"If you'd rather not, I understand completely." Hiruzen blew out a smoke ring, fingers tapping the desk.

"Putting genin on high level missions isn't really appropriate. It wouldn't be fair to either of you." The office fell quiet for a moment, nothing but the faint sound of burning tobacco. Then Hiruzen stood up, the wide sleeve of his robe sweeping in an arc.

"With that being said," the man who'd governed this village for decades wasn't going to force the issue. He turned back, something sincere in his eyes.

"I'd like you to think it over carefully." The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

"If you decline, there are people inside the Uchiha clan willing to take Itachi on missions instead." He paused, something complicated crossing his eyes.

"But if it can be helped, I'd rather the Uchiha children not spend their whole lives with their horizons limited to the clan." Shuji asked carefully, "What does his father think? What's the clan's position on this?"

"Fugaku won't object." Hiruzen's tone stayed even.

"Then I have no objection either." The lines at the corners of Hiruzen's eyes eased, something like relief showing through.

"Just what I'd expect from... Shuji. How's Lady Touka doing these days?"

"She's well." Shuji's answer was brief. Hiruzen nodded and pulled a somewhat aged file from a drawer. Shuji caught a glimpse. It was his own record. Right in front of him, the Third picked up a pen and began writing on it.

"You won't need to take on new missions for a while."

"You should also start preparing. There's the matter of your promotion to jonin."

"Jonin?" This time Shuji was genuinely caught off guard. Jonin carried real weight in Konoha. They were the true core strength of the village, second only to the Kage. In theory, every jonin held the qualification to compete for the Hokage's seat. That was exactly why the rank was never handed out easily, and why the numbers were kept tightly limited. Looking across Konoha's history, shinobi who made jonin in their teens could be counted on one hand. Kakashi Hatake. Might Guy. Neji Hyuga, further down the line.

Beyond raw talent and meeting the standard, their promotions almost always carried some special circumstance behind them, or some enormous sacrifice. Kakashi's father, White Fang, died under circumstances nobody could fully explain. Might Duy fought himself to death saving his son from the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Hizashi Hyuga volunteered to die in his brother's place to avoid a war. There was always an element of compensation and quiet appeasement in how the village handed out these promotions.

"Special Jonin, that is." Hiruzen added at exactly the right moment, interrupting Shuji's thoughts. Shuji relaxed. Special Jonin was a separate rank. It wasn't given to people who were excellent at everything. Instead, it was given to someone who had Jonin-level ability in one particular area or possessed a rare skill the village couldn't easily replace. Examples included powerful sensory abilities, advanced medical ninjutsu, or exceptional skill in sealing techniques.

A Special Jonin had less authority and status than a full Jonin but ranked above an ordinary Chunin. They were usually sent on specialized missions or asked to serve as experts. This kind of arrangement also avoided the arguments about seniority that could arise if someone were promoted to full Jonin.

"Understood." Shuji accepted it, calm. Special jonin suited him better anyway. Higher mission access, better pay, and far fewer day to day command duties. Exactly what he wanted. Hiruzen slid the file back into the drawer.

"Someone will notify you about the promotion process. You'll need recommendation letters from two active chunin or jonin, and you'll have to pass an assessment. The test will be built around your specialty." He looked at Shuji, something pointed in his gaze.

"With your ability, that part won't be a problem. As for the recommendations..." Shuji understood exactly what he meant. His parents had died on the battlefield. His mentor jonin was lost in the Nine Tails incident. His teammates on the border squad had died on the Kumo front. The people best suited to write him a recommendation were all gone. If Shuji couldn't find anyone in time, Hiruzen could easily find someone willing to sign for him instead.

"I'll take care of it myself." Shuji spoke up first. Touka-sama would know how to reach a few Senju clan members living quietly under other names. They'd taken new surnames and folded into Konoha long ago, but as former pillars of the clan, more than a few of them still held chunin or jonin rank. He'd run into some of them at New Year gatherings over the years. Getting a recommendation from one of them wouldn't be difficult. Hiruzen gave a small nod.

"Go on, then. Prepare well. Once the squad's filled out, I'll have the Anbu notify the two of you."

"Understood." Shuji bowed and turned to leave. Outside the Hokage Tower, the lamps of Konoha had already come on. A cool evening wind blew through, carrying off the last traces of pipe smoke clinging to him. Promotion to special jonin. The title itself didn't mean much to Shuji. What actually satisfied him was everything that came with it: more freedom, access to missions that mattered, and a much more money.