Returning to the Village in Glory, Arrangements After Returning

The journey was fraught with danger but ultimately safe. It was Taiichi's first time leading such a large team, and he couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Although he was powerful, leading a large team required more than just the strength of a ninja. Leadership, organizational and coordination skills, and the ability to make on-the-spot decisions were all essential qualities.

Fortunately, he managed to bring the team back to Konoha safely.

From afar, Taiichi, with his excellent eyesight, could see the crowd gathered at the main gate of Konoha. In the distance, he could also Taiichi make out that the person leading the crowd was none other than the Third Hokage of Konoha.

A thought flashed through Taiichi knew what was going on—the village was welcoming their triumphant return as frontline ninjas! "Everyone!" Taiichi shouted from the front, drawing everyone's attention. "The Hokage-sama, the village leaders, and many Konoha are here to welcome us at the gate. Show the villagers what victorious warriors look like!"

"Oh!"

The crowd responded in unison, straightening their bodies and backs. Some of the seriously injured who could still move struggled to their feet, wanting to receive the blessings from the village on their own.

Seeing their determination to stand up despite the pain, the fellow ninjas admired them and offered their help, either supporting or leaning on them, so that the wounded patients who had sacrificed themselves for the village could fulfill their wishes.

The procession arrived at the village amidst the watchful eyes of the crowd. Amidst shouts of "Victory!", everyone stood tall and proud, accepting the inspection from the Hokage and the villagers.

At this moment, under everyone's intense gaze, Taiichi stepped forward, stood before the Hokage, bowed deeply, and loudly proclaimed, "Hokage-sama, Taichi Matsushita, leading 243 victorious ninjas from the front lines, has returned to the village to await your orders! Please give your instructions!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi taken aback, clearly not expecting Taiichi to speak in such a unique way. However, he quickly recovered, took two steps forward with a big smile, and patted Taiichi's shoulder heavily, making it clear to everyone that he and Taiichi were very close.

"Good, good, good." The three consecutive "goods" fully demonstrated Hiruzen Sarutobi's joy at this moment.

"And you too," he turned to look at the two hundred-plus ninjas in front of him, some of whom were still seriously injured but still standing upright.

"You are all outstanding, heroes of the village. As the Hokage, I am proud of the achievements you have made on the front lines."

Now that you have returned in triumph, this cheer from the villagers is the honor you deserve. Now, enter the village, heroes!

As soon as Hiruzen Sarutobi spoke, the villagers behind him erupted in a thunderous cheer, with shouts of "Hero! Hero!" rising and falling in waves.

Hiruzen Sarutobi, holding Taiichi's hand, led the group towards the village, with more than two hundred returning ninjas following closely behind them. Amid cheers from the crowd, they strode confidently through the gates of Konoha.

Inside the village, the streets were packed with people, and many ninjas were watching the excitement from the rooftops of the houses on both sides of the street.

However, their eyes also revealed boundless envy, as if they wished they were among those being cheered by the villagers.

"That ninja leader is so small! He's not even as big as my son!"

"What do you know? That's Lord Taichi Matsushita. He used to work at Konoha Hospital. He's the one who healed my severed arm."

"That ninja guy over there is so handsome, I really want to marry him!"

"Look, that's my son! My son is a hero!"

"Honey, I'm here! I'm here!"

Amidst the loud cheers, discussions and boasts could be heard from the crowd on both sides, but whatever they were saying, their focus was always on the two hundred or so ninjas walking in the middle of the road.

"No matter how long or how glorious the road, it will eventually come to an end, "Hiruzen Sarutobi said loudly as the group turned to face all the ninjas before arriving at the Hokage Building.

"Everyone, you've all had a long and arduous journey. Now, go home. You have two months of vacation. Use this time to reunite with your families and relax. Konoha's future depends on your support. Now, dismissed!"

Immediately, all the ninjas excitedly rushed to their families—wives, parents, and children. The injured ninjas were also taken to Konoha Hospital by designated staff.

After the crowd dispersed, only Hiruzen Sarutobi, two Advisor, and Taiichi remained.

"Let's go, Taiichi, to the office. Here are your arrangements!" Hiruzen Sarutobi looked at Taiichi with a loving expression, growing more and more fond of him. Not only was he powerful, but he also knew when to advance and retreat. If he weren't so young, he might even have a chance to compete for the Fourth Hokage position.

Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura also looked at Taiichi, their eyes filled with astonishment. This was the ninja who could kill Shukaku; they truly couldn't believe it.

Utatane Koharu was quite familiar with Taiichi, as they had been on missions together. Although Taiichi's strength was already considerable back then, it was nowhere near as exaggerated as it is now. It was unbelievable that Taiichi had grown to this level in just two years.

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Taiichi always maintained a respectful yet slightly friendly expression towards Hiruzen Sarutobi.

The four of them arrived at the Hokage's Office together. Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't keep them in suspense and went straight to the point, saying, "I imagine you're also curious as to why I transferred you back to the village from the front lines, right?"

Not only Taiichi was curious about this, but Jiraiya on the front lines was also curious, though he couldn't say it out loud.

"I will obey the Hokage-sama's orders. Wherever the Hokage-sama tells me to go, I will go!"

"Hahaha!" Hiruzen Sarutobi heartily, pointing at Taiichi his finger, "You little rascal, you sure know how to talk."

"Hokage-sama, these are all my honest thoughts; I didn't just say anything." Taiichi said solemnly, his true feelings hidden from everyone else.

"Alright, alright, you're sincere." Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't argue with him and directly gave the answer, "I brought you back for two reasons: first, to promote you to Jonin, and second, to have you stay and guard the village for a while."

Taiichi frowned slightly, looking at the Hokage with a face full of questions, hoping he would explain in more detail.

"First of all, your achievements are already sufficient, and it is only natural that you should be promoted to Jonin. As for the second point, a large number of ninjas in the village have been sent to the front lines, leaving the village quite vulnerable. Now that you are capable of defeating Shukaku, it is perfect for you to stay in the village during this special period, which can be considered an extra layer of insurance."

Taiichi nodded knowingly, happily accepting Hiruzen Sarutobi's explanation, but he only believed about 20% of it.

What stage are we at now? Is the village still internally vulnerable? Not to mention that the Hokage himself is always in the village, there's the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, and all the major clans have powerful ninjas. Why would we be afraid of an enemy invasion? Unless the enemy comes from within, that's just nonsense.

"By the way, is there anything you'd like to do during your time in the village?"

Taiichi was slightly stunned upon hearing this, not understanding what Hiruzen Sarutobi meant. What else could he do? He didn't have a specific position in Konoha. Now that he had been transferred back to the village, if the village didn't provide him with any assignments, he could just stay at home and train on his own. At most, he could go to the Konoha Hospital to help out again.

Hiruzen Sarutobi knew his words had misled Taiichi, so he explained, "Originally, I wanted to directly assign you a position in the village, but I thought I should ask for your opinion first. If you have your own plans, then of course we'll respect your wishes."

Taiichi looked enlightened, realizing that's how it is. He thought about his plans for the near future. Besides physical training, he had previously considered researching Sealing Jutsu and Genjutsu.

Leaving aside Genjutsu, besides the Bloodline Limit Family, the only other family in Konoha skilled in Genjutsu is the Yuhi family, and I don't have much contact with them. It seems that I can only explore Genjutsu techniques on my own for now.

As for Sealing Jutsu, there happens to be a place in Konoha where Taiichi can properly learn them.

"Hokage-sama, could you arrange for me to work in the Barrier Team?"

That's right, it's the Barrier Team. Although it's called Barrier, it's Barrier a part of Sealing Jutsu. And to maintain the operation of Konoha's massive and complex Barrier, the knowledge and information on Sealing Jutsu involved are exactly what Taiichi lacks.

"The Barrier Team?" Hiruzen Sarutobi an eyebrow, somewhat surprised. "I thought you'd go to Konoha Hospital, but you chose the Barrier Team instead. Can you tell me why?"

"There's nothing wrong with saying that." Taiichi scratched his head helplessly and gave his chilling reason. "When we fought Shukaku last time, I found that it was really too difficult to restrain such a large creature. They can destroy the world at any time, and they can't be dealt with by ordinary means."

So I wondered if it was possible to develop a Sealing Jutsu for single-person use. Even if it couldn't completely seal them, it would be good if it could just restrict their movements. Later, I consulted the materials left by Teacher Tsunade and found that the Uzumaki Clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains had this effect, but unfortunately it was a secret technique hidden in their bloodline.

However, this also gave me inspiration. I wanted to develop a similar Sealing Jutsu to expand my combat methods, and the Barrier Team could perfectly meet this need.

Listening to Taiichi's long-winded speech, Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyebrows were twitching, and even his eyelids were twitching involuntarily.

Listen to what they're saying! To develop a Sealing Jutsu specifically to deal with Tailed Beast, and targeting the Uzumaki Clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains at that? Is this what a genius's thought process is like?

Hiruzen Sarutobi thought back to his own past, when he was once hailed as a genius ninja. But clearly, the gap between geniuses is sometimes greater than the gap between a human and a dog. He never even considered researching Sealing Jutsu to deal with Tailed Beast.

Although he felt that the child's thinking was a bit out of the ordinary, he was the one who said it, and Taiichi had also put forward his idea, Hiruzen Sarutobi naturally couldn't go back on his word.

"Alright, since you've made your choice, I'll give you the chance."

After saying that, Hiruzen Sarutobi returned to his desk, picked up a pen and paper, and quickly wrote down a page of orders.

He handed the token to Taiichi, adding with concern, "That's enough for today. You just got back, so you need to rest well. The day after tomorrow, take this token to the Barrier Team; you'll be working there for a while."

Taiichi happily accepted the warrant, carefully folded it, and placed it in the inner pocket of his Ninja Tool Pouch. Then, with a face full of gratitude, he said to the Hokage, "Thank you so much! Hokage, you're so kind to me!"

"Hahaha! You little rascal, if I grant your request I'll be either Grandpa Hokage or Hokage-sama, right!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi was amused by Taiichi's reality, but he seemed quite pleased with it and showed no anger.

Once the laughter subsided, he handed Taiichi the promotion certificate he had prepared beforehand and said, "The documents for your promotion to Jonin are ready. You can handle the rest of the formalities yourself. Now, you little rascal, get out of here and don't disturb my work."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" Taiichi bowed deeply in thanks, then turned and scurried out of the office.

"It's truly enviable. He's become Jonin at such a young age, truly becoming a member of the village's upper echelons. Thinking back to when we were his age, were we Genin or Chunin?"

Mitokado Homura sighed, as if reminiscing about the past, or perhaps referring to something else.

Utatane Koharu gave Mitokado Homura a strange look, wondering why he was saying these things. She thought highly of Taiichi; he was steady in his actions and not arrogant despite his strength. However, she didn't express her opinion, leaving everything to the Hokage's decision.

In any ninja village, Jonin- level ninja is already a high-ranking member of the village. They not only have access to some non-classified information about the village, but can also offer their opinions on the village's development and major affairs through the Jonin Council.

Resolutions passed at the Jonin Council cannot be overturned even by the Hokage, and every Jonin has the same voting rights, making each Jonin's vote extremely valuable.

This is only in terms of political status. In terms of strength, every Jonin is one of the best among ninjas. It can be said that the strength of a village largely depends on the number of Jonin the village. They are the backbone of a ninja village.

Therefore, regardless of the village, they are extremely cautious when awarding the title of Jonin their Genin. Unless the strength and merits of the ninjas have reached the corresponding level, the village would rather retain the Jonin position than allow someone to fill it unqualified.

It's easy to see how important the Jonin is. This is the key reason why the title of Special Jonin was created. Because of the emergence of a large number of Chunin who didn't meet the requirements for Jonin, the title of Special Jonin was created to motivate them. It also gave these elite Chunin some hope.

However, Special Jonin is still not Jonin. Although their strength may be similar, their political status in the village is vastly different.

Mitokado Homura's words echoed in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind. Regardless of his reasons for saying those words—whether it was jealousy or caution— Hiruzen Sarutobi was not worried at all.

Taiichi's strength and achievements speak for themselves. If he hadn't intentionally suppressed them for a while, Taiichi would have been promoted to Jonin Taiichi ago.

As for the concern that Taiichi's contributions are Taiichi great, that's a matter for the future Fourth Hokage. Taiichi's current age won't affect him at all, which is why he likes Taiichi so much. Their closer relationship is beneficial to both of them.