Hajime Hoshita quickly finished skimming through all the files in his hands.
Aside from Yakushi Nono, there wasn't a single name he recognized.
All of the students in these files were between the ages of eight and twelve.
Yakushi Nono was ten. Namikaze Minato should be around eight, and Uzumaki Kushina as well.
He didn't see Namikaze Minato's file in his batch, and Hajime figured Shimura Daichi didn't have it either.
Hajime began going through the files a second time—this time more carefully—picking out the ones he thought had potential.
Then came a third pass.
Eventually, only fifteen files remained in his hands.
By that time, Shimura Daichi had already submitted his selected fifteen files to Danzo, who was reviewing them.
Once Danzo was finished, Hajime handed over his own chosen files.
Danzo accepted them and quickly picked out Yakushi Nono's file.
He had clearly noticed Hajime's reaction earlier.
After reading through her profile, Danzo looked up and asked, "Alpha, why did you choose her?"
Hajime immediately responded, "This child shows talent as a medical-nin. She has a gentle personality and gets along well with her classmates. However, her teachers describe her character as tenacious and strong-willed."
"Her role as a medical-nin, her gentle demeanor, and her inner strength—combined, I believe she would make an excellent spy."
A medical-nin... as a spy?
Danzo narrowed his eyes.
It was a bit extravagant.
But he had to admit—it was a solid plan.
Danzo nodded and set Yakushi Nono's file aside, then continued reviewing the others.
About thirty minutes later, ten profiles were finalized, including Yakushi Nono's.
Among them were both civilian and clan students.
However, none were from the Uchiha or Hyūga clans.
Even though students from those two clans had some of the strongest records, Hajime had skipped them entirely.
He didn't know if Shimura Daichi had selected any from those clans, but he himself had deliberately passed them over.
Once the selection was complete, Shimura Daichi was assigned to deliver the files to the academy head.
Next, the academy would arrange for early graduation for the ten selected students, after which they would begin specialized Root training.
Hajime followed Danzo out of the academy and headed to the orphanage.
Recruiting there was much simpler—Danzo directly chose fifty children in one go, without any screening.
He couldn't afford to be picky, nor was there time to be.
Looking at the confused faces of the children who'd been selected, Hajime sighed inwardly.
He knew... if even half of them survived the intense Root training, it would be considered fortunate.
And the worst part? It had been his suggestion to recruit from the orphanage in the first place. The guilt gnawed at him.
But soon, Hajime steeled his heart.
After all, wasn't he just like these orphans?
A tool striving to rise above the rest.
To become someone great.
Hajime swept his gaze across the children and thought to himself:
"The only thing I can do... is make them stronger."
"That's all I can offer…"
After returning to the Root base with the selected recruits, Hajime pushed away all distractions and resumed his training.
Whether it was Wind Release or Wood Release, there was still vast room for him to improve.
He saved his Wood Release practice for the evening.
For now—he focused on Wind Release.
In the forest, Hajime drew his sword, channeling Wind Release chakra into the blade as he attempted to further enhance its elemental transformation.
Thinner. Sharper.
Training was monotonous, and time flew by quickly.
By 8 PM, Hajime wrapped up his Wind Release practice. After dinner, he found an even more secluded spot to continue training his Wood Release, going until midnight.
Then—his status panel updated.
> Current Status: Swordsmanship Expert <
> Note: You are skilled—no, specialized in wielding a blade.
In this Status, your swordsmanship is at an expert level and you possess corresponding innate talent. <
> Refresh Countdown: 167:59:58
"What a great status!"
Hajime was thrilled, and he could feel the difference immediately.
He drew the katana strapped to his back—there was something mystical about it now, something ethereal.
It felt more natural in his grip, as if… as if he could sense the sword breathing.
All the sword techniques he'd practiced before suddenly came together in new, profound ways.
"Professional... Specialized... This must be jōnin level."
That was Hajime's personal assessment.
His swordsmanship before this had been decent, but not quite at the jōnin standard.
Shimura Daichi, for example, had always outclassed him in sword techniques.
But now, Hajime felt he could stand toe-to-toe with Daichi—someone who relied on kenjutsu as his primary combat style.
"Shame it only lasts seven days."
Hajime sighed inwardly, but then an idea struck him:
"If my swordsmanship is now instantly at the jōnin expert level… can I use these seven days to gain real, lasting progress?"
"Like learning new kenjutsu techniques. That way, even when this status fades, what I gain from training remains."
"With enough effort, maybe I can keep my sword skills at this expert level even after the status resets!"
With that thought, Hajime made a firm decision:
Tomorrow, he would apply to learn the Dance of the Crescent Moon, an A-rank sword technique.
Suppressing his desire to keep training right away, Hajime returned to rest.
The night passed uneventfully.
The next day, Hajime received the scroll for the Dance of the Crescent Moon from Danzo.
Leaving the Root base, he headed to a training ground, unrolled the scroll, and quickly skimmed its contents.
Hajime couldn't help but smile. "Doesn't seem too hard."
He read it several more times, memorizing every key point and subtle detail. Then he drew his blade and began training.
This technique had two critical components:
First – Shadow Clone Jutsu.
Second – Coordinated attacks from the real body and two shadow clones. The technique involves feints and misdirection, requiring perfect timing and angles.
He began by practicing the one-handed seal to create Shadow Clones—this alone was a valuable skill to hone.
That entire day, Hajime focused solely on sword training.
With the status bar refreshing every seven days, time was of the essence.
After all, he could be called for a mission at any time—he couldn't count on having a full seven days for uninterrupted training.
The next day, September 22, Year 36 of the Konoha Calendar.
Hajime once again led a team on a mission.
As they left the village, Inuzuka Ryo couldn't help but ask, "Captain, Tsunade-sama's team is a jōnin squad. Do they really need us to guard them?"
Although Ryo considered himself an elite among chunin, he was well aware of the gap between himself and full-fledged jōnin.
Yes—this mission had them following behind Tsunade's squad.
Her team had been assigned to travel to the Land of Hot Water to rendezvous with shinobi from the Sky Ninja Village.
Their objective: to retrieve the person responsible for attempting to steal Konoha's secret techniques—someone whom the Sky Ninja had "surrendered."
This was the result of Hiruzen Sarutobi's formal questioning of the Sky Ninja Village.
But both sides knew very well that this so-called "mastermind" was likely just a scapegoat.
As far as Danzo was concerned, such insincerity from the Sky Ninja could not be trusted.
Moreover, sending Hajime's squad had another hidden purpose…
(End of Chapter)