Unlike ordinary protagonists who took the heartwarming route and wanted to bare their souls to everyone, Soji kept the people in his social circle neatly categorized.
Director Inoue was a textbook example of a "surface friend."
When it came to allies who joined forces temporarily for purely mutual benefit, the boy never let personal feelings interfere with his usual conduct.
At first glance, this "mutually useful" relationship seemed cold, cruel, and lacking in human warmth. In practice, though, it was the most efficient kind of cooperation, with the clearest division of responsibilities.
After all, their backgrounds and positions would always limit their plans for the future...
A loosely aligned community of shared interests could hardly withstand either party's determination to make the other's life difficult!
Rather than "holding nothing back" and wasting time on every minor disagreement, it was better to "set disputes aside and work together," keeping each other's opinion of the other above "friendly" but below "close."
That expanded the range of things they could trade, while an equal exchange of favors left room for trust to grow. Their everyday give-and-take offered far more practical flexibility than so-called "total transparency" or "frank and open discussion."
Of course, viewed from another angle, this plug-and-play partnership also made it easier for either side to stab the other in the back at any moment, severing ties as soon as their immediate goals were met!
But Soji and Director Inoue were still in the honeymoon phase of their partnership. They wouldn't need to worry about that sort of calculation for another three or four years, so he set the matter aside for now.
Aside from surface friends, Soji also needed "supporters" he could show off publicly, to foster an official image in keeping with Konoha's mainstream values and the Will of Fire.
So he used the resources he'd acquired from Director Inoue to help Erina, Todo, and Teacher Motochika.
With friends like these, with whom he needed to build long-term, stable relationships, the boy naturally couldn't keep such strict accounts as he did with Inoue Hisahide...
So he chose to build up a debt of gratitude.
—Having lived two lives, he'd truly mastered the little tricks of doing favors in hopes of repayment!
How should he do them a favor?
How big should the favor be?
How could he give his target a graceful way to accept it?
How should he set their expectations?
These were techniques that could only be understood, not explained. They were as numerous as the stars and impossible to pin down, and in practice, there was no single rule that worked for everyone.
How close or distant, how deep or shallow—the boy controlled it all.
Of course, with his current resources and abilities, he wasn't like those womanizers who cared only about sex, casting a wide net and hoping to catch plenty of fish.
If anything, he was more like an eight-legged arthropod quietly weaving its web, adjusting its strategy to every tiny vibration, ensuring its prey grew ever more entangled in a sweet dream until it finally fell into his grasp.
Thus, his approach was more about responding to opportunities as they arose. It required not only carefully crafted scenarios but also a target willing to play along.
So, to ensure a good experience, when Soji sensed that Nara Motonari still had more to say, he decisively halted the pointless small talk and turned the spotlight back on his increasingly overlooked teacher.
The latter took the cue and continued explaining the situation.
"All right. Now that we've wrapped up the preparations for the mission, we should discuss the mission itself."
Nara Motonari clapped his hands to get Team Five's attention, then added more details. "This is an escort mission. We may encounter enemy shinobi trying to stop us along the way, so it's been classified as a B-rank mission.
"Although this may be somewhat dangerous for Genin who've only just graduated, all three of you were top students at the Ninja Academy. So I won't give you any special consideration just because this is your first mission."
"Teacher Motochika." Soji raised his hand, deliberately playing along.
"Go ahead. What is it?"
"Since this is an escort mission, I'd like to know exactly how many guards will be taking part."
"Good question, Soji. Since the border clashes haven't yet escalated into a full-blown war, Konoha has a relatively limited force to draw on. Including Team Five, we expect to send three squads to provide security for this mission."
Teacher Motochika understood that, as one of the medical staff assigned to support the troops, Soji probably already knew the size of the escort force. He was asking despite knowing the answer so his two teammates could quickly get to the point.
So Teacher Motochika held up three fingers as he answered, directing his words mainly at the other two students.
"Will the other two squads each have a Jonin leading them?" Erina immediately followed up.
"Dream on~ The construction of Jingu Forest Field Hospital is taking place entirely within our borders. If you were the Hokage, would you assign that many veteran shinobi to the mission?"
"Does that mean you're in charge of the whole operation, Teacher Motochika?"
The chubby Akimichi Todo seemed a beat slow to catch on, but there was clear excitement and admiration in his voice as he spoke... Soji didn't miss that detail.
That suggested the Ino-Shika-Cho clans really were exceptionally close. Even the ties between different generations were far stronger and warmer than those between ordinary shinobi.
"If a clash breaks out, I'll be responsible for combat-related arrangements. But Director Chosokabe will handle the administrative side of things during transport."
"Oh! The director of Konoha Hospital is going with us, too?" Erina turned to ask Soji.
The boy smiled and nodded, confirming it. "Yes. The old director has always led from the front."
"That's great! If anything goes wrong, we'll have an expert there to handle it right away!"
"Well... I think it'd be better if we didn't end up in a situation where he has to step in."
"True..." Erina tapped her head with one hand and deliberately made an exaggerated face.
But before she could crack another joke and lighten the mood, Soji had already steered the conversation back to Teacher Motochika. With the information from Director Inoue as a foundation, just as Teacher Motochika had guessed, Soji's earlier questions had all been meant to draw out more information.
But he really did have other unanswered questions he needed his teacher to address.
"Now that the size of the escort and the mission's objective are settled, all that's left is to plan our route... Teacher Motochika, would it be possible to share some details before we set out?"
"Oh? It's rare for you to take an interest in this sort of thing."
"It's just a personal concern of mine." Soji gave a slightly sheepish smile, then continued, "We have limited manpower, and transporting the medical supplies will take a long time. I thought we should at least know the route we'll be taking."
"Very well. Since we're about to set out, there's no harm in telling you a little...
"After considering the cargo volume, safety, and other factors, the convoy will leave Ota Castle to the west and follow the Amber River straight to Jingu Forest."
"I see. So we should be prepared for a naval battle if it comes to that... Thank you for the advice, Teacher!"
Although the mission wasn't taking place under wartime emergency conditions, classified matters like the route were still normally discussed with caution.
As the commander of the escort, Nara Motonari was responsible for planning the route. In theory, for safety's sake, he shouldn't reveal it until the last possible moment.
But first, they were already at the point of no return, and the time to assemble and depart was fast approaching.
Second, each of the three students before him had a special background, so they couldn't be treated as ordinary people.
And third, all of Soji's careful moves had already established a basic level of trust among the four of them.
So after weighing things up, Motonari decided to share this important information with the three youngsters ahead of time—something he normally wouldn't have done.
—That also neatly justified Soji's earlier move to use Director Inoue's connections to get their equipment loaded onto the transport.
Under the pretext of arranging the equipment transport, the boy openly got in touch with Inoue's people. As well as sorting out the four of them bringing their ninja tools, he returned the favor by sharing the latest details about the mission with the calculating director.
They'd shared what each had to offer and returned each other's favors. Only now could they call it a successful deal.
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