"What's with Kakashi? Wasn't that boxed lunch enough for him? Does he want to get tied up again?"
Sen grumbled lazily.
Naruto scratched his head and gave an awkward smile.
"Boss, Kakashi-sensei said this was important and everyone had to be there. If you don't go, he'll start complaining again."
"Fine. Let's see what that white-haired guy is up to this time."
With a casual wave of Sen's hand, the mountain of banknotes on the table vanished into his system storage.
He rose from his lounge chair, stretched luxuriously, and slowly followed Naruto downstairs.
Meanwhile.
In the top-floor conference room of the Hokage Building.
The atmosphere hung heavy as lead.
Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at the head of the table, his expression grave. He held a pipe but had not lit it.
The two senior advisors, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu, sat opposite him, brows furrowed as they stared intently at the Land of Waves mission report on the table, its edges curling from repeated handling.
After the recent "Kunai warning" incident, the Third had strictly forbidden Shimura Danzō from participating in any discussions concerning Sen, so he was absent.
But that did nothing to stop the other two advisors from voicing their concerns.
"Hiruzen, this is absurd!"
Utatane Koharu broke the silence first, her voice trembling slightly with agitation.
"Twelve! He's only twelve!"
"Advent of a World of Flowering Trees, over a hundred armed ronin killed instantly, the Demon of the Hidden Mist forced to retreat..."
She pointed at the alarming red text in the report, her hand shaking badly.
"With destructive power on this level, you're letting him waste his days in a Genin squad?"
Mitokado Homura pushed up his glasses, his tone exceedingly stern.
"This will seriously upset the balance of the village's mission system!"
"Sending