Seeing the two return, Shizune quickly stood up from her chair. She could tell at a glance that Tsunade's expression was off.
She asked cautiously, "Tsunade-sama, are you alright?"
Tsunade shook her head and instructed, "Shizune, go fetch Jiraiya. The faster, the better."
Shizune nodded, then quickly left the office.
After Shizune left, Tsunade looked back at Naruto, her tone much softer than before. "Naruto, I never imagined you had already reached this level. This process... must not have been easy."
Tsunade was the granddaughter of the First Hokage, growing up listening to stories of how her grandfather subdued Nine-Tails.
Nine-Tails's Chakra contained hatred accumulated over thousands of years. Even a Fuinjutsu expert like her grandmother, Uzumaki Mito, could only manage to barely suppress it throughout her life, never truly gaining Nine-Tails's willing cooperation.
Yet Naruto had not only done it, but the key was that he was only twelve years old.
Tsunade smiled as she looked at Naruto's expression, which showed he didn't think he had done anything extraordinary at all. Her laughter grew louder and louder until finally, she slammed her palm onto the desk.
"Excellent! Konoha has finally welcomed a second ninja who can rival my grandfather, and it's during my tenure as the Hokage. This is wonderful!"
Tsunade leaned all the way back in her chair, a look of unprecedented relief on her face.
She actually had a mountain of questions, such as how Naruto had reached an understanding with Nine-Tails, the Tailed Beast Ball at Root, and so on. But she didn't intend to ask.
With Naruto's current strength, let alone being a Jonin directly under the Hokage, taking over as the Sixth Hokage immediately would not be an issue.
With this in mind, she looked at Naruto with a smile and said, "Naruto, look at how strong you already are. When are you going to take over as the Hokage?"
Naruto smiled. "Granny Tsunade, I still need to train. Let's talk about becoming the Hokage in a few years. Besides, you've only just become the Hokage. How can you step down immediately? Most importantly, my companions haven't grown up yet."
Tsunade glanced outside the door and vaguely saw the shadow of Sasuke leaning against the wall. She remembered the group of Genin who grew up with Naruto, and it dawned on her immediately.
A meaningful smile appeared on her face. 'Oh. So he is cultivating his own team.'
"Granny Tsunade, what about Sasuke's matter?" Naruto asked.
Tsunade waved her hand and made the decision on the spot.
With Naruto, a powerhouse who could rival her grandfather, present, the risk of Sasuke going undercover with Orochimaru had dropped to an acceptable range. Even if Sasuke were truly led astray by Orochimaru, Naruto could forcibly drag him back from Otogakure.
She called Sasuke, who was at the door, to come in.
Sasuke pushed the door open and entered with a cold expression. His fingers clenched slightly at his trouser seams, revealing his inner tension.
"Hokage-sama."
Tsunade looked Sasuke up and down.
The last Uchiha in Konoha and the person Naruto was willing to stake all his chips to vouch for.
"Sasuke, I approve your mission to go undercover in Otogakure. You don't need to thank me, the person you should thank is Naruto. It was he who used his own reputation and strength to vouch for you."
Sasuke turned to look at Naruto, and Naruto nodded at him.
Tsunade pulled a blank mission scroll from her drawer and wrote down the mission appointment. Then she signed her name in the bottom right corner, and stamped it with the Fifth Hokage Seal.
She tied the scroll with a ribbon encrypted with a seal, and handed it to Sasuke. "This is the official appointment letter for an S-rank undercover mission. Your mission number and appointment record will be stored in the Hokage's direct archives, accessible only with the Hokage's personal authority."
"From the moment you leave Konoha, every move you make in Otogakure will be a classified operation of Konoha. Three years later, when the mission period expires, Hokage direct Jonin Naruto will be responsible for meeting you and bringing you back to the village."
Sasuke took the scroll with both hands and bowed solemnly. "Thank you, Hokage-sama."
Then, Naruto left the Hokage Office with Sasuke.
Not long after the two left, Jiraiya was dragged into the Hokage Office by Shizune.
Jiraiya rubbed his ear, which had been pulled red by Shizune, and complained, "Seriously, Tsunade, why did you call me over in such a rush? I just ran into a few decent ones outside..."
Seeing Jiraiya like this, unaware of such a major event as his student mastering Nine-Tails Chakra, Tsunade couldn't help but clench her fists and stand up from behind the desk.
Bang!
A dull thud echoed in the corridor, followed immediately by Jiraiya's scream.
"Ow!"
—
After leaving the Hokage Office, Sasuke couldn't help but ask, "Naruto, what was that Ninjutsu where you disappeared and reappeared with Hokage-sama?"
Naruto said nonchalantly, "Flying Thunder God Technique, a space-time Ninjutsu."
Sasuke's eyes widened, his voice trembling slightly. "Space... space-time Ninjutsu?"
Naruto patted Sasuke on the shoulder. "So Sasuke, you need to train well in the future. But since you are leaving, why not call everyone out for a meal tonight and have a get-together?"
Sasuke gripped the undercover mission scroll in his hand, remained silent for a moment, and then nodded.
"Alright, then I'll go call them first." Naruto said.
Sasuke went back to start packing his things, while Naruto notified the twelve rookies one by one.
"Treating everyone tonight, the location is that busiest barbecue restaurant in Konoha."
—
Time quickly reached the evening.
The barbecue restaurant was steaming, and more than a dozen people crowded around two long tables pushed together.
Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Kiba, Shino, Hinata, Sakura, plus Naruto, Sasuke, and Karin.
Team Guy arrived last.
Lee was pushed in on a wheelchair by Tenten and shouted, "How can one be late for a youthful gathering!"
Neji followed behind the two and glanced at Naruto, who nodded at him.
Shikamaru raised his glass. "Come on, let's toast Naruto with the first cup. He quietly jumped straight from Genin to Jonin, and even became a Hokage direct Jonin, without ever having been a Chunin for a day. This promotion speed can probably rank in the top three in Konoha's history."
After saying this, he downed a gulp of tea.
"What a drag. From now on, I have to call him Jonin Naruto when I see him."
Kiba held Akamaru, his tone filled with a competitive spirit. "Naruto, you are too much, becoming a Jonin so fast. Among us, only you and Shikamaru have shed the title of Genin, but Shikamaru is only a Chunin, while you skipped Chunin directly to become a Jonin."
Choji looked up from the barbecue plate, his cheeks bulging, and said vaguely, "Naruto is a Jonin now, so his mission pay must be more than ours. You must pay for this meal."
Naruto smiled. "I said I would treat you all, so I will definitely pay for this meal. Eat as much as you want."
Ino rested her chin on both hands, and stared straight at Naruto. "Naruto, shouldn't you give us an explanation about you being the son of the Fourth Hokage? Why didn't you mention a word about it before?"
As soon as Ino spoke, the people beside them all pricked up their ears.
Naruto smiled helplessly. "I only found out recently. After Grandpa Hokage passed away, Granny Tsunade checked my birth records in the archives, and that's how it matched up. I didn't know before either."
Sasuke frowned. "The son of the Fourth Hokage?"
Sakura hurriedly explained the announcement released by the village today to Sasuke.
After hearing it, Sasuke looked astonished, then looked at Naruto. "You..."
Ino nodded and didn't continue to press.
"Alright, no matter what Naruto's identity is, he is still the Naruto we know."
Ino glanced at Karin and asked, "Naruto, that red-haired girl was brought by you, right? Aren't you going to introduce her to us?"