Peerless Squad Is Formed

The spring breeze was faintly chilly. The sky was a clear blue, cloudless as far as the eye could see.

Across the boundless plains, patches of green were beginning to appear, and the vast forests were budding with fresh leaves.

All things were coming back to life, brimming with vitality.

Time passed slowly, and before long, three days had gone by.

"My name is Shin'nosuke Sarutobi. I'm proficient in Earth, Fire, Water, and Wind Release, and I'm passable at Taijutsu and Genjutsu. I like curry and hate fish and cilantro. I look forward to working with you all."

After finishing, he foolishly rubbed the back of his head and let out an awkward laugh.

This man was the Third Hokage's eldest son, Shin'nosuke Sarutobi, the Jonin leading Shimura Bing San's team.

"Hyuga Go. Chunin. Specialties: Taijutsu and reconnaissance. Possessor of the Byakugan Kekkei Genkai. That's all."

Hyuga Go wore a green Chunin vest. His formerly shoulder-length hair had been cropped short, and a deep scar peeked out beside the Forehead Protector on his brow, along with a faint green Sealing Jutsu formula.

After speaking, Hyuga Go stood quietly where he was, nothing like the lively boy he had been at the Academy.

Shin'nosuke Sarutobi looked at the other two and felt a terrible headache coming on. Seriously, even if his dad were leading this team, he'd find it a headache.

The other girl said listlessly, "Uchiha Yue. Specialties: Genjutsu, Fire Release, and Medical Ninjutsu. One-Tomoe Sharingan." Then she yawned again and said no more.

This was the girl who had helped Bing San out of a jam the first time. Her older brother, Uchiha Feng, had long since joined the Konoha Military Police Force.

Shin'nosuke Sarutobi looked at Bing San, whose face was brimming with despair. Bing San sighed and shrugged helplessly. "Shimura Bing San. You all know me already—the Land of Wind's target."

"Ahh, I figured as much. We're all old friends, so let's skip this pointless stuff, okay?" Uchiha Yue said, yawning again.

Here's how it all came about. Thanks to the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen's, strategy, our "Peerless of the West, Shimura Bing San" had proudly graduated from the Ninja Academy ahead of schedule—with no exams required.

To make the most of Bing San's role as a target, the elders held a "friendly discussion" (Danzo: "You damn monkey, die, die, die..." Jiraiya: "Aaaah! ヽ(*.>Д<)o゜"). As a result, Shimura Bing San not only became the Peerless of the West, but also got his own flag, which was then publicized.

They had originally planned to send Bing San to the front as a commander in name only. But since Jiraiya had been beaten badly enough to end up in the hospital, they'd reluctantly made him the "absentee" commander at the front, a general stationed in the rear.

That was how Bing San ended up at the third line of defense, the Kikyo Mountain camp, where they raised his banner.

In the end, thanks to the joint efforts of a certain Danzo and Orochimaru, this "commander" was assigned a six-person ANBU squad, a six-person Root squad, and a regular four-person squad for protection.

And at Danzo's insistence, Bing San's Jonin team leader became Shin'nosuke Sarutobi.

(The main reason was that Danzo feared that, if the fighting went badly, the Third Hokage would send Bing San to his death to raise morale.)

As for his teammates, they were Hyuga Go, the best at reconnaissance among his former classmates, and Uchiha Yue, who excelled at Genjutsu and Medical Ninjutsu.

After finishing, Bing San felt utterly hopeless. For one thing, just looking at the team setup, Shin'nosuke Sarutobi was doomed to die. And the other two hadn't appeared in his memories at all.

Don't assume every Hyuga is Hinata or every Uchiha can pilot a giant robot. They were just extras.

"Ugh." Bing San sighed and sat right down on the ground. Hyuga Go stood there stiffly, neither moving nor speaking, as if ignoring all three of them.

Shin'nosuke Sarutobi scratched his head. "Um, how about we go have a nice meal to celebrate the formation of Team Sarutobi?"

As soon as he said it, he regretted it. Where were they supposed to find a nice meal in the camp?

Uchiha Yue wiped away a glistening tear from her yawn and said, "That name's so tacky. I don't want it.

"If there's nothing else, I'm going back to work on my Medical Ninjutsu."

Bing San also thought it was tacky and sounded awful, so he said, "Why not just call us Team Whatever Number? Yours is so tacky I can barely bring myself to say it."

Hyuga Go: (ー`ー)

In truth, Shin'nosuke Sarutobi hadn't come here just to protect Bing San. He was also the real commander of the third line of defense, responsible for passing information to Orochimaru's forces on the first line and Danzo's forces on the second, distributing supplies, providing medical aid, and sending mobile support.

The fighting had already begun up front. With the Sand shinobi surging forward, Orochimaru's forces were now defending against them head-on.

Danzo's forces on the second line of defense had also been deployed to prevent the Sand shinobi from infiltrating and causing trouble. The battle was raging fiercely.

Just then, the door opened. In walked the younger Ino-Shika-Cho trio: Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Choza. Their team leader, Torifu Akimichi, was with them as well.

As soon as he entered, Shikaku, dressed as a Chunin, teased, "Why is our esteemed commander sitting on the floor throwing a tantrum?"

The other two smiled good-naturedly. Shikaku had been Bing San's classmate and desk mate at school.

Although Shikaku was a full five years older than Bing San, the two had gotten along quite well.

After all, Bing San had absorbed the memories of an adult.

When Shin'nosuke Sarutobi saw them arrive, he seized the chance to get himself out of this awkward situation.

He hurried over to his savior, Torifu Akimichi, and called out warmly, "Uncle Torifu, you're finally here!"

Torifu Akimichi was a big, burly man with small eyes, a flat nose, and a fierce-looking face. Despite his appearance, he was a kind man.

He patted Shin'nosuke on the shoulder. "Been waiting long, Shin'nosuke?

"We ran into a little trouble on the way and got held up. Here, this is the scroll your father sent for Bing San. And from now on, our team will be protecting you."

With that, he tossed Bing San a scroll about the size of a thumb.

While the two adults were talking, Bing San had wandered off with the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, laughing and chatting. They completely ignored the two adults.

Uchiha Yue waved and turned to leave.

Hyuga Go: (ー`ー)

Unlike Bing San, who had given up entirely, Hyuga Go stood there dutifully, waiting for his captain's orders.

When Uchiha Yue reached the door, she suddenly stopped and said, "Since we're all here temporarily to protect that troublesome guy, let's call ourselves the Peerless Squad. You know, Peerless of the West, Shimura Bing San!

"By the way, your name has bothered me for ages. It sounds like a serial number. Are your elders hopeless at naming people?"

Then she turned and left, completely ignoring everyone's reaction.

Shikaku: "Ah, women are such a hassle."

Choza: "Huff, huff." (The sound of him chewing on a pig's trotter.)

Inoichi: (ーー゛)

Hyuga Go: (ー`ー)

Shin'nosuke Sarutobi: Σ(°△°|||)︴

Torifu Akimichi: o(￣-￣)

Shimura Bing San: ()