"I'm done reading. Can we gather these people now?"
Jiraiya separated the two piles of files and placed them on Sakumo's desk.
"Not many people here, huh?"
Sakumo picked up the thinner pile and flipped through it, finding only ten profiles.
"It's not about numbers, it's about skill!"
"I also feel a bit awkward taking too many from your side."
Jiraiya gave a boyish grin, genuine or faked.
It was lucky he was talking to Sakumo—he could still rely on their rapport.
If it were Kawaki, three names would've been a miracle.
"Haha, everything I do is for the village."
"No such thing as poaching here," Sakumo replied with a grin, that selflessness was his signature move.
Selfless dedication was practically his brand.
"You're too kind, Big Bro Sakumo," Jiraiya added, giving a thumbs-up, his smile growing wider.
After all, asking for help wasn't shameful!
"Flatterer."
A cutting voice interrupted as Kawaki rolled his eyes.
He was deliberately being a pain.
The contrast made Kawaki come off as cheap by contrast.
Jiraiya ignored him completely, not even glancing at Kawaki.
"That's fine. Let's check if any of them are currently out on missions," Sakumo said agreeably, directly ignoring Kawaki.
"Good."
Under Jiraiya's watchful eyes, Sakumo took out the most recent mission list and began cross-referencing.
"You're in luck—they're all free."
"So should I call them in now?" Sakumo put down the document and looked at Jiraiya.
"Perfect!" Jiraiya said eagerly, wanting to wrap this up ASAP.
"Don't rush—it's hot."
Kawaki chimed in with another disapproving remark.
"I like it hot—who asked you?" Jiraiya snapped back, no longer able to tolerate the bastard.
"Blast your cursed tortoise spirit—see how you keep eyeing my students then."
Kawaki dropped all pretense now, revealing his true nature outright.
His face contorted with ugly defiance.
Not one of them is leaving my side. Keep dreaming.
"I knew you were hiding something," Jiraiya shot back furiously, confirming his suspicions hadn't been wrong.
"What? You wanna hit me? Go ahead!" Kawaki stood up, meeting Jiraiya's glare.
"Yeah? Hit me then!" Jiraiya didn't back down, both acting like children.
They locked eyes, hurling insults back and forth—it was turning into a full-blown stare-down.
"Enough, enough. Take this outside."
"Don't embarrass yourselves," Sakumo sighed, rubbing his forehead, a headache blooming.
Anyone stuck with this idiot younger brother turns out worse for wear.
Thankfully, there were no outsiders present, or this would've been humiliating.
After all, both Kawaki and Jiraiya were respected figures in Konoha.
"Today, since Big Bro is here, I'll let you off easy."
"Otherwise, I'd beat you so bad not even Makoto would recognize you." Kawaki spat those last words and sat back down.
The chair groaned ominously under his weight.
One more push and it might've shattered entirely.
"I fell for your crap," Jiraiya muttered, turning his head in disgust, done wasting time on Kawaki.
All he got out of it was irritation.
"Do you really want to fight?"
"I'll be the referee."
Sakumo couldn't help but laugh at their childish antics.
Kawaki and Jiraiya both let out a scoffing 'humph' before falling silent.
Silence settled over the office for a moment.
Then Sakumo called someone in, copied the list of personnel needing summoning, and handed it out.
"Summon all of them immediately."
Sakumo didn't specify what this was about. As head of the Anbu, he owed no explanations to anyone.
"Understood, Big Bro Sakumo."
The Anbu member was considerate enough not to ask questions, simply taking the list and leaving.
His only duty was to obey Sakumo's orders.
"So what's the next step?" Sakumo asked, since he wasn't sure about Jiraiya's plan.
"We can have a sparring match," Jiraiya said with a calm smile. He was confident he'd learn plenty through firsthand observation.
"That'll work well enough," Sakumo nodded. Since Jiraiya had things figured out, he didn't need to worry—just cooperate.
"I thought you had some brilliant plan—turns out it's just straightforward and brutal."
Kawaki sneered sarcastically, his tone laced with mockery.
"Why don't you stay quiet for once? Try saying less," Sakumo shot Kawaki a glare before Jiraiya could even speak. "Just wait and see how it plays out."
"You're really my actual brother?" Kawaki retorted, playing the family card. "Why are you siding with outsiders?"
"Big Bro Sakumo stands for justice, not family."
Jiraiya felt smug having someone take his side.
"I…"
Before Kawaki could mount a proper rebuttal, a knock cut him off.
"Come in."
As soon as Sakumo spoke, the same Anbu entered pushing the door open.
"Lord Kawaki, I've followed your orders precisely."
"Everyone on the list has arrived—I've already assembled them at the training field." He gave a slight bow, clearly taking the initiative.
"Good choice. The training field is suitable enough," Sakumo nodded in approval. It saved him from making further arrangements. "You may go now."
"Understood."
The Anbu left after receiving acknowledgment.
"Let's go take a look."
Sakumo stood up and gestured toward Jiraiya.
"Fine."
Jiraiya complied and started heading for the door.
At that moment, Kawaki set his teacup aside and stood up.
With nothing better to do, he figured he might as well watch the spectacle.
Without a word, Sakumo cast Kawaki a glance and walked ahead.
Soon, the three reached the training ground.
Ten Anbu stood lined in two rows while several other curious Anbu members gathered at the edge, equally interested spectators like Kawaki.
There were far more spectators than the ones officially assigned.
Kawaki immediately noticed an eight-man small group with golden-red hair.
None of them made the cut according to Jiraiya.
He left the trio and made a beeline toward them.
"Teacher."
"Brother-in-law."
"Lord Kawaki."
The eight of them referred to each other in various ways.
"Yeah, don't mind me."
"Same here—just having a bit of fun."
Kawaki smiled and stood among the others.
"What's going on here?"
"Big bro Jiraiya, what brings you to our Anbu unit?"
Nawaki knew Jiraiya well and was slightly confused.
"He got promoted and came here to handpick someone."
Kawaki didn't go into details and casually gave a brief reply.
"Their strength is nothing special."
Minato caught on right away. He'd already figured there must be some specific criteria.
Sometimes strength wasn't everything.
"That depends who you're comparing with."
Yahiko let out a bitter smile. In his eyes, these people's strength was decent enough.
But compared to Minato, it just wasn't good enough.
Throughout the Anbu division, very few people could earn Minato's approval.
Nagato remained as shy as always, playing well the role of a listener.
Lion and the other two wanted to speak up but held back—they came from different backgrounds, so they kept their doubts to themselves.
"Does that mean we're not good enough?"
Konan thought Minato was making fun of them. Her face was hidden behind a mask, so her expression was unreadable.
But from her tone, she clearly wasn't happy. Were they not outstanding enough?
"It's not entirely about strength."
"Besides, it's not like it's a good thing anyway. Just sit back and watch the show."
Kawaki affectionately ruffled Konan's hair.
"Fine then."
Pushing down a flicker of irritation, Konan turned her head toward Sakumo and Jiraiya.