The early morning sun was unusually gentle, not its usual scorching self.
Right now, the entire village of Konoha was in a state of chaos. The child of prophecy, Naruto, reviled by the villagers as the fox demon, was jumping all over the place, having painted the Hokage Rock in a myriad of colors.
"You little brat! Just wait till I catch you, I'll break your legs!"
ANBU were everywhere, trying to catch Naruto. But due to the Third Hokage's orders, they couldn't hurt him, yet the little rascal was incredibly agile, giving them all a massive headache.
"Hehe." Kusuo watched this scene with a knowing smile.
[Current Role-Play Percentage: 90%.]
He was about to graduate. After these years of training, he had already unlocked more than a third of the template. Total Concentration: Constant allowed him to maintain his body's peak physical condition at all times, making him comparable to a jonin. He had also successfully unlocked the next two forms of Sun Breathing. Although the forms themselves didn't have a strict hierarchy of power, their applications were vastly different. The later forms had a qualitative leap in both range and power, especially with the system's enhancements.
It was almost time for Naruto to be tricked into stealing the Scroll of Seals, which would signify the beginning of the team assignments. It meant that his peaceful years of growing under the protection of the academy were coming to an end. Without the school as a cover, he would inevitably expose his true strength during missions. Whether for safety or for better training resources, the carefree days of practicing his sword with a beautiful girl by his side were over.
He was actually quite curious. With the addition of this "butterfly," himself, just how much would the team assignments change?
As Kusuo predicted, the Third Hokage was currently having an extreme headache over this very issue.
Kusuo was no ordinary person. First, his identity as a child of the Hatake clan meant that, by affiliation, he was firmly in the Hokage's camp, even though he himself had never declared a side. With Kakashi vouching for him, his character couldn't be bad.
Then there was his strength. Several months ago, when Hiruzen had accidentally learned that Iruka had been defeated by Kusuo, he was so shocked he nearly dropped his pipe. It was only saved by a nearby ANBU's quick reflexes.
"Twelve years old, and already able to defeat a chunin?" Even if Iruka wasn't a peak chunin, he was still an elite among them. He only taught at the academy because he disliked conflict and loved his students. "This level of talent... it's probably no less than Kakashi's, is it? As expected of a child of the Hatake clan." The Third couldn't help but nod.
The White Fang's suicide and Kakashi's subsequent fall had once left the Hokage's faction in a slump. For such a genius to suddenly appear now, how could the aging Third Hokage not be overjoyed?
"Hmm..." Lost in thought, he had already made up his mind about this year's student team assignments.
Time flew by, and the day of parting arrived. Many students came to the school grounds with feelings of nervousness and anticipation. The various jonin instructors were already standing there. Among them, Kakashi, widely recognized as the strongest, was engrossed in a book, not paying any mind to the arriving students.
Of course, Kusuo paid more attention to a man whose appearance was very chuunibyou and exaggerated: Might Guy. Who knew just how strong Might Guy truly was? Kusuo knew that if he were to open all Eight Gates, no one in the entire village would be his opponent. After all, when the Gate of Death was opened, Emperor Guy nearly kicked his way to the end of the series, beating the Sage of Six Paths Madara half to death. How powerful was that! In terms of taijutsu, Might Guy was undoubtedly the strongest.
Led by Iruka and the other chunin instructors, the students all gathered before the jonin. For this rare occasion, Kusuo had not used a shadow clone. He was holding Hinata's hand, walking openly in front of everyone.
When Kurenai Yuhi saw this, her charming red eyes widened considerably.
"Oh my, the little ones these days are getting bolder and bolder," Asuma Sarutobi said with a chuckle, a cigarette dangling from his lips. "But I like it!" Asuma looked at the young couple, who dared to show their affection so openly at such a young age, and grew more and more pleased. It reminded him of the days when he was pursuing Kurenai. "Ah, to be young is a wonderful thing!"
...
"We will now announce the team assignments!"
"Team 3: Choji Akimichi, Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara! Your instructor is: Kurenai Yuhi!"
"Team 7: Sasuke Uchiha, Sakura Haruno, Kiba Inuzuka! Your instructor is: Kakashi Hatake!"
What?!
What's going on? Team 7 was broken up? Aren't the two children of destiny supposed to be... well, destined to be together? What was the Third thinking, separating those two best buds? This was a change Kusuo had never anticipated.
"Team 10: Naruto Uzumaki, Hinata Hyuga, Hatake Kusuo! Your instructor is: Asuma Sarutobi!"
It's a mess. A complete mess! He never thought his existence would change so much. Not only was the original Team 7 dismantled, with the two children of destiny now going their separate ways, but even Team 10 had been reshuffled due to his inclusion.
But after a moment's thought, Kusuo suddenly understood the old man's intentions. First, regardless of Sasuke, Naruto's importance was beyond question. If he wasn't going to be guided by Kakashi, who was ostensibly the strongest, then using his own son, Asuma, to supervise him was very reasonable. Furthermore, a large part of it was because Kusuo's own strength was too outstanding. Having Asuma, the Hokage's son, as his jonin instructor could also win his loyalty. With this arrangement, the now-vacant spot with Sasuke had to be given to Kakashi as a form of compensation.
Rubbing his brow, Kusuo quickly accepted this new team assignment.
"This is great, Kusuo! We're in the same squad!" Hinata whispered from his side, extremely excited and happy. She never thought fate would be so kind as to put them on the same team.
Seeing Hinata, who had been a little resistant to him holding her hand so openly just moments before, now blushing with joy, Kusuo suddenly felt that this team assignment wasn't so bad after all. The temporary separation of the children of destiny certainly wouldn't affect the will of this world. Their bond wasn't something his little butterfly wings or the old Hokage's will could sever.
And of course, with his system, Kusuo was extremely confident in his own future strength.
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