Jonin Captain

Yichen was not surprised that the village had assigned him to the same group as Shinohara and Tana.

When he heard that Taniya, Mubuki, and Fujino had been grouped together, he understood that the village also favored grouping people based on bonds.

The relationship between the three of them was obvious to everyone in the class.

But when Yichen saw Shinohara clearly wanting to laugh while desperately hiding it and pretending to be calm, he wanted to tease him.

Yichen poked Tana with a finger and said, "Don't be discouraged. Ikura and I are close, so our two teams can get together often."

"And you know Meikou. She rarely talks, and she doesn't look like she likes Ikura. As for that Uzumaki Yumi, it was Ikura's first time meeting her too. You still have a chance."

Sure enough, Shinohara, who had been imagining the future after being assigned to the same team as Tana just moments ago, immediately shot Yichen an angry glare.

After everyone had been assigned to their teams, they waited with their respective groups for their captains.

It was worth mentioning that being assigned to a Jonin Captain did not mean the captain and team members had a master-disciple relationship. They were actually only superiors and subordinates.

It was rare for captains and their subordinates to become master and disciple. Only when they discovered they were particularly compatible over the course of getting along would such a relationship form.

For example, Minato Namikaze's teacher in the original story was Jiraiya, but Jiraiya was not his Squad Leader Jonin.

In a team like Kakashi's, Kakashi and Sasuke had something of a master-disciple relationship.

But Kakashi and Sakura had no master-disciple relationship at all.

Kakashi and Naruto only became somewhat like master and disciple later on, when Naruto trained in Wind Release Chakra transformation and the Rasenshuriken.

Yichen was somewhat looking forward to seeing what kind of Ninja his Squad Leader Jonin would be.

Naturally, Yichen most hoped to meet a captain of the same type as himself, so that he might have a chance to take him as his teacher.

But the truth was that the entire Iwagakure did not have any Jonin of the same type as him.

There was no longer anyone in Iwagakure who could teach Yichen Sealing Jutsu as a teacher.

So the type of captain Yichen hoped for most was a powerful Jonin who could protect him and allow him to grow safely.

Rather than a teacher who could guide him.

Before long, the first Jonin entered. "Team One—Taniya, Mubuki, Fujino. Come with me."

Without waiting for anyone to react, he used the Body Flicker Technique and disappeared.

This was clearly a test for the three of them. They did not hesitate, exchanging glances and silently agreeing to compete before leaping out the window together.

The second Jonin entered and swept his gaze over everyone in the class, pausing briefly on Yichen and the red-haired Uzumaki Yumi.

Then he said, "Team Two—Ikura, Meikou, Uzumaki Yumi. Come with me."

With that, the Jonin walked out of the classroom, and Ikura's group immediately followed.

Yichen was a little surprised. He knew this man, and knew him well—he was the head of the Barrier Team.

In terms of Sealing Jutsu, he was one of the strongest people in the entire Iwagakure.

In terms of status, he was among the village's highest-ranking figures, beneath only the Tsuchikage and the advisers.

As a Jonin who had served as a primary sealing specialist during the Second Shinobi War, he was also extremely powerful.

The village had assigned such an important figure as Team Two's captain, which showed how much importance it placed on Team Two.

What surprised Yichen, however, was that Team Two's Jonin specialized in Sealing Jutsu. Did the village consider Uzumaki Yumi's potential to be even greater than Ikura's?

Not long after, a young man with a square face and a standard red Jonin uniform entered. He wore a somewhat simple and honest smile.

Looking at that face, which had only just shed its youthful immaturity, Yichen had a bad feeling. Isn't he way too young? He looks like he's only sixteen or seventeen.

Sure enough, the next moment, the other man spoke. "Team Five—Yichen, Shinohara, Tana. Come with me."

After saying that, the young Ninja walked out of the classroom. Though Yichen and the other two were surprised, they could only hurry after him.

In the blink of an eye, they arrived at a Training Ground. The young Ninja stopped first, then turned to face Yichen and the other two.

The three stopped as well. Tana stood in the middle, Shinohara on the left, and Yichen on the right. They faced the young Ninja and waited for him to speak.

The man seemed to be considering something. After thinking for a while, he finally said hesitantly, "Let's introduce ourselves first. I'll be your Squad Leader Jonin from now on. My name is Kitsuchi."

The moment he heard that name, Yichen's thoughts were sent flying.

No wonder that face had seemed familiar. It was Ōnoki's son, Kitsuchi.

He had become a Jonin at such a young age. No wonder he had been able to restrain the Outer Path Statue for a short time during the Fourth Shinobi War.

This is a massive backer.

Yichen did not hear what Kitsuchi said afterward. By the time he came back to himself, Tana and Shinohara had already finished introducing themselves.

Seeing that Yichen had zoned out, Tana gently nudged him. "It's your turn to introduce yourself."

"Huh?" Yichen still did not understand what was happening and looked at Tana blankly.

"Haha!" It was Kitsuchi's first time being a Squad Leader Jonin, and he had been a little nervous before. But Yichen's interruption made his nervousness disappear.

There was no need for Yichen to introduce himself. Kitsuchi said directly, "Yichen, right? I've heard of you. Your accomplishments in Sealing Jutsu are quite high. Although you've only just become a Ninja, you've already made many contributions to the village."

Both Shinohara and Tana looked surprised. After his surprise passed, Shinohara became indignant. "Damn it, has Yichen already become this famous without anyone noticing?"

Yichen scratched his head and said, "Captain, you flatter me. Haha, hahahaha."

Tana was speechless, while Shinohara loudly exposed him. "You say you're flattered, but what's with that smug expression on your face?"

Yichen looked at Shinohara darkly, thinking, Has this guy gone too long without being taught a lesson by my words? Is he getting itchy?

Kitsuchi did not mind such a trivial matter. "All right. As graduates of the Advanced Class, you became Ninja without undergoing an assessment. Now I need to understand your strength and see what kind of missions you can take on."

Kitsuchi was fairly satisfied with Yichen's group. Their records showed that all three had good grades, and after seeing them in person, he could sense that they already possessed the true will a Ninja needed.

In that case, as long as Yichen's group performed well enough, Kitsuchi could directly lead them in taking missions of relatively greater difficulty.

As he spoke, Kitsuchi beckoned to them. "Come. Attack me and let me see what you can do."

The moment Kitsuchi finished speaking, the prepared Yichen immediately drew three kunai and hurled them at him.

At the same time, he retreated and said to Tana and Shinohara, "Shinohara, restrain him from the front. Tana, feint. If necessary, the two of you can switch roles."

Neither of them objected upon hearing this. Both had undergone life-and-death trials arranged by their clan elders. They were not rookies like Naruto's group in the original story.

Knowing the importance of coordination when facing a Jonin, the two moved at once. Tana quickly slid to one side, then circled around toward Kitsuchi's rear.

Meanwhile, Shinohara deliberately charged toward Kitsuchi from between Yichen and Kitsuchi. As he ran, he used his body to block Kitsuchi's line of sight, covering for Yichen as he formed hand seals.

Seeing their coordinated attack, Kitsuchi smiled slightly. Rather than arrogantly standing still, he sidestepped toward the direction Tana was circling from, forcing her to widen the distance again.

At the same time, Kitsuchi looked toward Yichen, wanting to see his hand seals clearly. But Yichen had somehow produced a piece of cloth and draped it over his hands.

If Kitsuchi had observed carefully, he certainly could have discovered which seals Yichen was forming with such a petty trick. But Shinohara did not give him much time to observe.

As one of the strongest physical-type Ninja in the class, Shinohara launched a sweeping kick at Kitsuchi's waist the instant he closed in.

At the same time, Tana, who had been forced away from Kitsuchi, threw two Shuriken. One targeted Kitsuchi's body, while the other targeted the space behind him, cutting off his retreat.

But Kitsuchi did not retreat. Instead, he stepped forward and, before Shinohara had finished building momentum for his attack, reached out and grabbed the leg Shinohara had kicked at him. Then he surged forward another two steps, crashing into Shinohara and knocking him off balance, sending him tumbling to one side.

With one leg still held by Kitsuchi, the unbalanced Shinohara instantly lost the ability to resist.

Tana had not expected the situation to take such a sharp turn in an instant.

Although she knew their earlier coordination would not be effective against a Jonin, she had not expected Kitsuchi to break through it with such brute force. She wanted to salvage the situation, but the distance was too great for her to do anything.

She could only throw several Shuriken with all her strength, hoping to achieve an Encirclement to rescue Zhao effect.

Kitsuchi had long anticipated that Tana would throw Shuriken. He directly dragged Shinohara by the leg and shifted sideways another two steps to evade them. Then he lifted Shinohara by the leg, preparing to smash him into the ground.

But at that moment, as if sensing something, Kitsuchi's expression changed. He released Shinohara and immediately leaped into the air. The instant Kitsuchi left the ground, an earthen spike shot up from below.

The spike had come too late to harm Kitsuchi in the slightest, but it had saved Shinohara.

After Kitsuchi released him, Shinohara braced one hand against the ground and regained his balance in the blink of an eye. Then he twisted his body and landed on his feet.

The moment he steadied himself, Shinohara did not pause. He quickly retreated to Yichen's side.

At the same time, Tana, whose Shuriken had proven ineffective, also circled back to join them.

Meanwhile, Yichen's Earth Style: Earth Rising Spear had not ended. Earthen spears continued to erupt from the ground, spreading toward Kitsuchi's position.

But Kitsuchi's leap had carried him too far, and Yichen's Earth Style: Earth Rising Spear had a flaw: adjacent earthen spikes could not be spaced too far apart.

So it could only slowly spread toward Kitsuchi instead of reaching beneath his feet in a single burst.

When Kitsuchi saw the Earth Style: Earth Rising Spear nearing him, he rapidly formed hand seals, slapped the ground, and shouted, "Earth Release—Earth Splitting Palm!"

Starting from where Kitsuchi's palm touched the ground, the earth rapidly split apart. Irregular cracks raced toward Yichen's group.

Yichen was shocked. The moment Kitsuchi's Jutsu met his own, he instantly lost his connection to the Chakra sustaining the Earth Style: Earth Rising Spear.

Seeing the Earth Splitting Palm racing toward them at a speed countless times faster than Yichen's earlier Earth Style: Earth Rising Spear, the three immediately scattered to evade it.

But this time, Kitsuchi's target was Yichen, who had the weakest taijutsu among the three. He intended to use Yichen's disadvantage in speed to eliminate him first.

Sure enough, among the three retreating in different directions, Yichen was the first to be caught by the Earth Splitting Palm.

Fortunately, the Earth Splitting Palm was not particularly damaging. Yichen merely lost his balance and fell toward the ground.

But the experienced Kitsuchi would not wait for Yichen to fall. He charged toward Yichen at high speed.

Yichen did not have Shinohara's physique. Kitsuchi did not even need to attack him—if he was hit, he would basically lose his Combat Power.