39. Gaining Experience!

"You've actually become a Chunin already! I haven't even graduated from the Ninja Academy yet!"

At the entrance of the Ninja Academy, Kakashi leaned against the gate, relaying the news of his promotion to Chunin to Might Guy inside.

After all, in a sense, the two of them were comrades-in-arms in their opposition to Akiyama Shun.

"What about Akiyama Shun?"

Might Guy suddenly thought of something and hurriedly asked.

"He became a Chunin too. He was the champion. Oh, right, he also has a Kekkei Genkai—Ice Release. I suspect he's still hiding other things, too."

Kakashi responded calmly.

"Oh!! As expected of Akiyama Shun! This is the man worthy of my challenge!"

Hearing this, Might Guy suddenly ignited with passion, startling Kakashi, who still wasn't quite used to Might Guy's trigger point.

"A challenge? You haven't even fought him once, have you?"

Kakashi's sharp tongue didn't dampen Might Guy's enthusiasm; he seemed not to hear it at all, shouting about how he would "do one thousand handstand laps around Konoha today."

"What you need to do right now is hurry up and graduate from the Ninja Academy."

After leaving those words behind, Kakashi turned and walked away to continue his training.

He left Might Guy there, burning with intensity all by himself.

Hokage Office

"Sarutobi Hiruzen!"

Shimura Danzō pushed open the doors to the Hokage office with a "bang" and walked right up to Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Even if the other man said nothing, Sarutobi Hiruzen knew exactly what he was going to say.

"I will not give him to you."

With that single sentence, Sarutobi Hiruzen caused all the arguments Shimura Danzō had prepared to get stuck in his throat.

"Akiyama Shun has already revealed his Ice Release. He is even less suited for work in the shadows now. The Yuki clan has been wiped out; as far as the current Ninja World knows, Akiyama Shun is the only Ice Release user left. Do you think someone like that belongs in a place like Root?"

"Furthermore, Akiyama Shun currently has a great relationship with Jiraiya and Tsunade. Jiraiya has even become his student. If you were to bring Akiyama Shun into Root, what do you think that would make Tsunade and Jiraiya think? Oh, and by the way, Namikaze Minato has just learned a new ninjutsu called the Rasengan and is currently practicing combining it with the Flying Thunder God. You've seen it, haven't you? Training Ground 4 is full of craters caused by Minato's training, and that Rasengan was also created by Akiyama Shun."

"For the sake of Konoha, you had better calm down."

After warning Shimura Danzō with a cold gaze, Sarutobi Hiruzen waved his hand.

"Now, this Hokage has other work to attend to. Does the Hokage Advisor have anything else?"

Shimura Danzō left, and the door to the Hokage office received the treatment it deserved.

"Bang!"

After returning to Konoha, the first place Akiyama Shun visited was the home of Yuhi Shinku.

Akiyama Shun and Yuhi Shinku were lying in the courtyard, soaking up the sun. As for Yuhi Kurenai, she was still at the Ninja Academy.

At this moment, Akiyama Shun was closing his eyes, contemplating his future plans.

Now that he was a Chunin, the next step in the progression of ranks was to become a Jonin.

Once he reached Jonin, his monthly treasure rewards would increase to 4,200, and his daily check-in would be 140, totaling 8,400 per month—exactly 50 draws!

That was 2.5 times more than a Chunin!

But becoming a Jonin was troublesome. It wasn't like being a Genin or Chunin, where there were fixed exams that one could pass to rank up.

Promotion to Jonin was entirely controlled by the "Kage" of each village; it was a direct appointment system based on a ninja's long-term performance and comprehensive capabilities.

First, in terms of combat power, one had to have the strength to complete high-difficulty S-rank or A-rank missions. One also needed intelligence gathering and analysis skills, leadership, and then the most important thing: loyalty!

As for loyalty, Akiyama Shun had no worries at all. After he used Ice Release, Sarutobi Hiruzen didn't even ask a single question, which was enough to show his impression in the old man's eyes.

His loyalty rating was definitely maxed out!

As for his strength and other comprehensive abilities, Akiyama Shun was confident he could achieve them, so the rest was simple.

He just had to put in the time!

He would keep taking on those high-difficulty missions, letting the village's top brass and Sarutobi Hiruzen know that Akiyama Shun had perfectly met the conditions to become a Jonin, and he would naturally be promoted when the time came.

However, putting in the time wasn't something that could be resolved in a short period. In the original story, it took Kakashi six years to become a Jonin.

There was another, simpler way to become a Jonin, and that was to become a Special Jonin.

Simply put, a Special Jonin was a specialist.

Beyond the basic skills of ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu, if one possessed special skills in education, interrogation, or intelligence gathering, they were qualified to become a Special Jonin.

For example, Morino Ibiki and Mitarashi Anko from the original story were representative figures of this rank.

However, Akiyama Shun had no intention of becoming a Special Jonin.

The rank requirements were clear: what was needed was Jonin. Becoming a Special Jonin held no real use for Akiyama Shun.

"You don't need to be in such a rush. Becoming a Jonin is a long process. It took me over ten years to reach that rank, but your talent is excellent; you will certainly be much faster than me."

Yuhi Shinku spoke up at this moment.

"Don't worry, Uncle Shinku, I understand."

Seeing Akiyama Shun respond this way, Yuhi Shinku breathed a sigh of relief. He had truly been worried that Akiyama Shun might constantly take on missions unsuitable for him out of an eagerness to be promoted, which would not only make advancement harder but could also lead to him dying on a mission.

"It's a pity that my current duty is to act as an instructor for those Chunin and Genin, otherwise I could have taken you along to perform some high-difficulty missions."

There was a hint of regret in Yuhi Shinku's tone. Having known Akiyama Shun for so long, he had always known the boy possessed great talent, but he had never actually seen what Akiyama Shun's combat style looked like.

"It's alright, Uncle Shinku. I am grateful that you even had that thought. I will certainly be careful myself while performing missions."

After Akiyama Shun finished speaking, Yuhi Shinku checked the time and then stood up to leave: "You must be careful when performing high-difficulty missions. I have seen many people with great talent die on missions, and I do not wish for that to happen to you. Alright, it is time for me to work; don't wait for me for dinner."

With that, Yuhi Shinku used Body Flicker and departed.

After Yuhi Shinku left, Akiyama Shun sat up straight.

Lower Formation [Haku]

Upper Formation [Orochimaru (Sannin)]

This was the first time Akiyama Shun had equipped [Orochimaru (Sannin)], so he immediately began to organize his snake-style ninjutsu.

First, in the Naruto mobile game, the ultimate move of [Orochimaru (Sannin)] was to summon the Sannin to directly gang up on the opponent.

During that process, [Jiraiya (Sannin)] used Fire Style: Fire Tornado, but because this ninjutsu was not used by [Orochimaru (Sannin)] himself, Akiyama Shun could not obtain it.

Thus, the ninjutsu Akiyama Shun ultimately acquired were Snake Movement, Hidden Shadow Snake Hands, and Mandara Formation.

It was just a pity that Orochimaru during this period had not yet obtained the Kusanagi Sword.

After organizing his ninjutsu, Akiyama Shun also stood up, left Yuhi Shinku's home, and headed toward the Mission Assignment Hall.