Dark Ops Reorganization

Konoha

At night, more than ninety Anbu gathered at the bottom of the steps in front of the Anbu building. Many of the Anbu Ninja were not wearing masks and seemed to be wondering why they had gathered, whispering among themselves.

With a screeching sound like grinding teeth, the Daimon of the Anbu headquarters opened, and the Fourth Hokage Uchiha Nara, and the Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen in his mouth, walked out of the brightly Anbu building. Naraku stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the Anbu team below the steps.

"Elite members of the Anbu, do you know why we've gathered tonight?"

Naraku gazed at the cold-blooded Anbu Ninja below the steps, gathered Chakra in his throat, and spoke in a deep voice.

The Anbu Ninja donned their masks and awaited their mission as the Daimon opened.

From the moment they joined the force, these ninjas always obeyed the orders and assignments of the Third Hokage. As the Hokage's direct subordinates, they wielded considerable power, having the authority to decide life and death.

Often, the tasks of the Anbu) are to eliminate all targets, apprehend suspects without legal procedures, or perform other missions assigned by the Hokage.

Faced with the Fourth Hokage's questioning, the Anbu team remained completely silent; not a single person answered, not even whispering among themselves.

Naraku gathered Chakra in his throat once more and said in a deep voice:

"Your failed mission to capture Orochimaru has caused serious losses to Konoha!"

Orochimaru, one of the legendary Sannin, possessed a wealth of Konohagakure intelligence and numerous Konoha Style Ninjutsu.

The leak of this intelligence and Ninjutsu will cause great damage and impact on Konoha.

It will allow Konoha Ninja to have their Ninjutsu easily countered by enemies when they go out on missions! It will allow those with malicious intentions to easily break through Konoha's defenses and barriers!

If these things happen, many ninjas and comrades will die! Many missions will fail! It will cause serious damage and pose a serious threat to Konoha!

And the root of all this is Orochimaru's successful escape from the pursuit of Konoha's Anbu!

As Naraku spoke, Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Third Hokage Naraku beside him, looked ashamed.

Although Naraku didn't utter a single word of reproach, as Orochimaru's teacher, the commander of the first action team for the capture mission, and the commander of subsequent capture missions, he bore an unshirkable responsibility.

Despite Naraku's reprimand, the Anbu Ninja remained standing, silent and without whispering among themselves. Their faces were hidden by masks, so their expressions were unknown.

Naraku looked down at the Anbu Ninja below, gave them a few words of instruction—it felt like he was talking to thin air, utterly pointless—and then solemnly issued the mission:

"From today onwards, I will personally lead the six divisions of the Anbu. There will be some minor adjustments. First Division, Ghost Fox Division Leader; Second Division, Ghost Fire Division Leader. From now on, you two divisions will be tasked with protecting the Third Hokage Lord."

The Third Hokage has made many contributions to Konoha, and his merits are immense. He has incurred the hatred of many enemy nations. I hope you will carry out your protection mission well and not disappoint me!

"Hi!" X34

The specific tasks were assigned to specific teams and individuals, and these people seemed to come alive, knowing how to respond.

"Okay, squad leaders of the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth squads, stay here. The rest of you, dismissed!"

"Hi!" X68

The masked Anbu Ninja seemed to be in a hurry to leave work. Dozens of them vanished in a few Body Flicker Technique, leaving only four people standing in front.

"Fourth Anbu, you should reorganize the Anbu well. I hope they can play an important role under your leadership."

The Third Hokage Sarutobi Hiruzen his pipe, his expression enigmatic. After exhaling a puff of smoke and delivering his words, he vanished with a single Body Flicker Technique.

Naraku waved to the four Anbu leaders below, then turned and walked into the Anbu building office.

The Anbu Building is the Anbu's overt stronghold in the village. As for how many of the Anbu's actual hidden strongholds are, that remains a secret.

Sometimes, two Anbu teams can combine to form an Anbu base, responsible for a specific area of affairs.

Upon seeing Naraku's actions, the four Anbu leaders below the steps Naraku onto the steps and followed him into the Anbu building.

"Shinichi, lead the way to the conference room."

Naraku addressed the four Anbu leaders behind him, and one of them strode forward to lead the way. Soon after, the five of them arrived at the conference room and took their seats.

Naraku wasn't very familiar with the Anbu office, so before giving Naraku Anbu instructions, the Third Hokage led him on a brief tour.

"Shiranui Shinichi, Uesugi No, Yanagikage Fujin, and Togei Raito —the four of you have made outstanding contributions to Konoha. After reviewing your files, I have gained some understanding of the hardships faced by the Anbu."

After the briefing outside the Anbu concluded, Naraku, who had taken over the four Anbu squads, became much more amiable and polite.

"Fourth Hokage, it's only right that we endure some hardship for the sake of Konoha."

After the four entered the office, they removed their masks and respectfully answered Naraku's questions. The other three also nodded solemnly.

Most Anbu units have code names, but in the Hokage's eyes, there is no difference between code names and real names. The Anbu is a unit directly under the Hokage's command, and the Hokage needs to examine and understand each member.

Many of the Anbu Ninja have other official positions or identities, and they only wear masks and hide in the shadows when carrying out secret missions assigned by the Hokage.

Even if the villagers knew these people's identities within the Anbu, due to the confidential nature of Anbu service missions, they would never know exactly who the masked person was when dealing with Anbu.

"You've worked hard for Konoha, but the Anbu are the vanguard in handling urgent missions, and their role is extremely important. This Orochimaru mission has served as a wake-up call for the Anbu."

Naraku paused for a moment, observing the expressions of the four Anbu leaders. He saw that they looked serious and were humbly accepting the Hokage's guidance.

Naraku slightly and continued:

"Therefore, the Anbu needs to be changed and reformed. The Anbu's squad structure will no longer exist. From now on, a squad of seventeen people will be formed, and a team of four people will be formed. Everyone, please remember the change in your status."

Even the Anbu should have the same standardized titles as other departments in Konoha to facilitate deployment.

"Understood!" X4

The four answered seriously, their demeanor distinctly different from that of ordinary Konoha Ninja, displaying a simple and cold style.

"Togei Raito, your child has reached the age to attend the Ninja Academy. Many of Konoha's ninja clans were founded by a single person who started and expanded the clan. I hope that in the future, Konoha's ninja clans can include the Kishiki Clan."

"Yes, sir!"

Togei Raito remained expressionless and quietly accepted the order.

Naraku and glanced at the other three squad leaders.

Shiranui, Yanagi, Uesugi are all minor ninja clans in Konoha, each with their own specialty Ninjutsu.

"Were the Anbu captains during the Third Hokage's era, and the famous Yuhi clan, both small ninja clans and commoners in their positions?"

When Naraku received this information about the Anbu, a unit directly under the Hokage, he was somewhat surprised by the structure of the Anbu personnel.

The Ino-Shika-Cho and some well-known ninja clans mostly served as members, squad leaders, or higher-ranking company commanders in the Anbu. They were mostly from small ninja clans or were ordinary people.