On the seventh day after the order to disband Root was signed, a closed-door rank conferment ceremony was held in the Hokage Building. There were no spectator seats, no villagers cheering, and no Ninja Academy students lined up to perform. The only attendees were the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, Utatane Koharu, Mitokado Homura, Inoichi Yamanaka, Shikaku Nara, and two ANBU clerks responsible for recordkeeping. The Third said it was Senju Shinichi's own wish—not to make too much of it. Utatane Koharu snorted beside him. "A six-year-old says he doesn't want anything grand, and you actually listen to him." The Third did not respond. He merely wrote the four characters "Senju Shinichi" on the roll, then stamped it with the Hokage's seal.
Senju Shinichi, Special Jōnin of the Hidden Leaf Village, designation 012607, effective immediately.
When the Third personally handed him the green Special Jōnin flak jacket, Shinichi lowered his head to look at the neatly folded garment, then looked up at the Third. In his previous life, he had watched Kakashi Hatake wear one of these on a screen for over a decade. Later, when Naruto Uzumaki put one on, the comments had been filled with, "Where the dream began." Now, his own hands held this brand-new jacket, still carrying the faint scent of dye, its cuff stitching as dense as the work of an old nanny sewing shoe soles. An utterly inappropriate question suddenly came to mind—if Naruto found out he had gotten this green flak jacket, he would probably jump up and yell, "I want one too!" This time, though, he might add, "You look like you're wearing a cropped apron." Shinichi silently filed away the line Naruto might use to mock him in the future, then bowed without changing expression.
Watching him accept the flak jacket, Utatane