'Thinking about it, being a chūnin in Konoha isn't so bad.'
With his current status and income, compared to his previous life, he was undoubtedly a high-level employee in one of the "great corporations" of the Five Great Shinobi Nations. Moreover, he was the kind of valuable employee who wouldn't be easily fired but would be worked to death. The only downside was that, just like those office workers, there was a risk of sudden death, except here that risk was ridiculously high.
'But I don't want to die prematurely. I have to work hard to master more ninjutsu. The ninja world is too dangerous. With only the three basic techniques and a C-rank Water Prison Jutsu, I don't feel safe at all.'
This body only possessed an innate affinity for Water-style chakra. Thanks to his strengthened mental power, his chakra control was decent.
'If I could develop a second chakra nature, I could solve my severe shortage of ninjutsu. But the problem is, how do I do that? I have no idea. Damn the ninjutsu monopoly. No matter where you go, you can't escape the monopoly and class consolidation. In the end, it all comes down to bleeding yourself dry working for Konoha, accumulating merits to exchange for a tiny crumb of power.'
For the children of Konoha's clans, the path was very different, and he was well aware of the preferential policies they enjoyed. He had a perfect example on his own team: Inuzuka Ryo, from a branch of the Inuzuka clan.
Although the Inuzuka aren't an elite clan like the Uchiha, they are still a recognized ninja family with their own benefits. The most important of these is access to ninjutsu. Ryo could easily learn his clan's secrets, techniques that were incredibly useful and far beyond the reach of any civilian. He didn't need to kill himself on missions to earn merit points.
The Inuzuka clan's techniques not only grant great combat power but also formidable sensory capabilities. In ninja battles, where a single kunai can take down even a Kage, intelligence is everything. To master information about the opponent is to master their life. The presence of Ryo, a sensory-type ninja, on a cannon-fodder squad like his was a total anomaly.
Logically, a clan ninja like him should never have ended up here. But, once again, the wisdom of his ancestors proved useful. He acquired Inuzuka Ryo thanks to a short sword from the Land of Wind and a "friendly exchange" with a logistics officer from the Nara clan.
The sword itself was no treasure, but for the ninja of the impoverished Sand Village, it was a luxury. While Konoha at least gave its fallen a funeral stipend, the Sand ninja bled and cried for almost nothing in return. Getting a custom-made Sand ninja sword, with a small notch he'd added himself to give it a touch of "history," had considerable value.
Of course, a simple sword wasn't enough to get the attention of a Nara clan officer. Even if some ordinary chūnin tries to suck up to them, these high-level strategists wouldn't even deign to look at them. They were extremely realistic.
The real reason he was able to make contact was his background as a Sarutobi clan vassal. This, by default, placed him in the Third Hokage's faction, a faction that the Nara clan, as part of the Ino-Shika-Chō alliance, discreetly supported.
That subtle political connection was what got him a relatively safe patrol mission in the Land of Rivers instead of being sent to the meat grinder in the Land of Rain. The Nara officer simply looked at his record—several teams wiped out under his command, but he always survived—and likely thought he had decent survival skills.
For the Nara officer, temporarily assigning a sensory ninja like Ryo to his team was a meaningless move. But for the Umino squad, it was an event that could change their fate.
Keeping Ryo on the team permanently was his next challenge. Ryo was obedient and easy to command, but his ultimate loyalty was to his clan. He could be transferred at any moment. However, the solution came from the newest and most unassuming member of the team: Chōmi.
Chōmi was a twelve-year-old girl, chubby and cheerful, standing barely 1.3 meters tall. As a civilian ninja, she had no surname, but she possessed a rare affinity for Thunder chakra. She was optimistic, kind, and had a strong heart. In less than half a day after joining the team, she had completely won over Ryo's partner, the ninja hound Akimaru.
And in less than a week, Inuzuka Ryo himself, who seemed so strict and formal, had fallen for her, following her around like a puppy. Sometimes, Sasuke thought that behavior must be a side effect of the Inuzuka's beast-imitation techniques.
Unfortunately for Ryo, Chōmi's heart already belonged to another team member: Tekudo, a man even more stout than she was.
Tekudo was another of his old subordinates, a capable general he had carefully selected after his previous team was wiped out. Tekudo's talent for ninjutsu was average; he knew the three basic techniques and nothing more, despite having affinities for both Fire and Earth chakra.
The reason he chose him was simple. Tekudo had mastered a powerful secret technique, one that surpassed almost any other in terms of practical utility: the Money Escape Jutsu.