S-Rank Mission

Yet with his Three-Tomoe Sharingan, he still possessed the baseline strength of a Jonin, and since Itachi was a genius to begin with, he had mastered a fair share of genjutsu and ninjutsu, so his elite Jonin strength was beyond doubt.

Plus, having once possessed the Mangekyō Sharingan, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan under his use would undoubtedly perform better than that of an ordinary three-tomoe clansman.

So Itachi truly was a fine choice.

Even heading to the perilous Kirigakure, Takuya believed Itachi possessed the ability to look after himself.

Even if he could not defeat the enemy, fleeing was certainly enough.

Itachi did not hesitate much and agreed straight away.

"I'll go."

"Mm."

Takuya nodded and stroked his chin; Itachi lacked infiltration experience, so perhaps he could find someone to show him the ropes.

At that moment, a figure flashed across his mind.

It was from the intelligence submitted earlier today by Aburame Ryoma, the new head of Root, regarding the files on Root's personnel.

Among them, a curvaceous figure surfaced in his mind.

Perhaps the two of them would make a good combination.

Takuya said, "Tomorrow you will come with me to the Hokage Building, where I will give you the details of the mission target and introduce you to another partner."

"Understood, Father."

Itachi's expression remained calm as he accepted the order.

An unremarkable night quickly passed amid the bickering of Sasuke and Naruto.

Early the next morning, the Uchiha family gathered once more to eat breakfast.

Naruto stuffed his mouth full, feeling immensely happy.

"Eat slower, Naruto, don't choke."

Uchiha Itachi said with a smile.

Sasuke let out a soft huff and muttered, "Let him choke, so he learns his lesson and won't dare eat like this again."

Naruto mumbled something unintelligible, and while his pace slowed down a fraction, he still ate at lightning speed.

Mikoto looked slightly worried as she poured a cup of warm milk and placed it next to Naruto.

Sasuke glanced over and demanded discontentedly, "Kāsan, is there no milk for me?"

Mikoto apologized, "I'm sorry, Sasuke, we're out of milk at home, so you'll just have to drink water. Mother will go out and buy some later."

Sasuke wore an expression as unsightly as if he had eaten shit.

"Mikoto, we're heading out."

Takuya, Itachi, and Sasuke and Naruto, who were carrying their schoolbags, bid farewell to Mikoto in the entryway and strode away.

Since they were heading in the same direction, the four of them set off together.

After watching Sasuke and Naruto enter the Ninja Academy, Takuya and Itachi headed toward the Hokage Building, arriving in less than five minutes.

Reaching the third-floor hallway, they saw a long-haired figure standing outside the office door from a distance.

Takuya curiously walked over, eyeing her up and comparing her to the woman in the photographs from the files he had reviewed yesterday.

"You must be the Wandering Miko, Yakushi Nonō?"

Wearing glasses and an intellectual aura, Yakushi Nonō looked at the dignified man before her, realizing he must be the newly appointed Fifth Hokage mentioned by Aburame Ryoma, and hurriedly bowed respectfully. "Yes, Lord Hokage."

"Mm, come in."

Takuya pushed the door open, and Itachi politely indicated ladies first.

Yakushi Nonō recognized Uchiha Itachi, having seen him a few times back in Root, and without standing on ceremony, she nodded amicably and followed him into the Hokage's office.

Itachi walked in last and closed the door.

Takuya said indifferently, "Nonō, regarding the order to recall Kabuto, I have already tasked Aburame Ryoma with handling it."

Yakushi Nonō's eyes lit up. She had constantly worried about Kabuto, who was dispatched by Danzo to serve as a spy in enemy nations. Initially, she had rejoiced that Danzo was dead and she would no longer be bound by him, but she never expected Aburame Ryoma to seek her out last night to inform her that the Hokage wanted her to run an errand. At first, she had agreed out of helplessness, but upon hearing that the Hokage was willing to recall Kabuto from abroad, she became overjoyed.

The worries that originally weighed upon her heart largely dissipated.

As long as Kabuto could return safely, stepping back onto this perilous path of a ninja was of no great consequence.

"Thank you, Lord Hokage. Even if it costs me my life, I will strive to complete the mission entrusted to me by Lord Hokage."

Yakushi Nonō spoke with a resolute gaze.

Uchiha Itachi stood nearby with a calm expression, showing no reaction upon hearing these words.

"It's not that dramatic; I'm not sending you to your deaths."

Takuya waved a hand.

Yakushi Nonō actually believed these words, subconsciously glancing at Uchiha Itachi standing off to the side.

She knew her partner for this mission was Uchiha Itachi, and Uchiha Itachi was the son of the current new Hokage.

The fact that Uchiha Itachi was allowed to participate meant the danger level of this mission could not be excessively high.

"Here is the file on your target for this mission. Have a look."

Takuya tossed over a dossier with a photograph attached to it, featuring a very distinct and striking trait—a mouth full of sharp shark-like teeth.

It was precisely the file on Kisame.

Yakushi Nonō respectfully took the file with both hands from the desk and, without even looking at it, handed it first to Uchiha Itachi.

Uchiha Itachi calmly accepted it, read through it, and handed it back to Yakushi Nonō.

Takuya gave a light cough and said, "This mission is classified as S-rank. If you have no issues, you may depart now."

"Yes." X2

Yakushi Nonō and Uchiha Itachi answered in unison and swiftly left the Hokage's office.

At that moment, an ANBU operative entered to report, "Lord Hokage, the Nara advisor says the ceremony is about to begin, and requests that you prepare to head over."

"Mm, let's go."

Takuya calmly stood up, picked up the brand-new official haori and Hokage hat hanging on the coat rack, and strode out of the room.

He draped the haori over his shoulders, the characters for Fifth Hokage embroidered across the back.

Today was the third day, the day of the Hokage Ceremony.

The streets bustled with coming and going crowds, every face beaming with laughter and cheer.

Meanwhile, the major hidden villages successively received intelligence that Konoha had changed its Hokage.

Sunagakure.

Kazekage Building, Kazekage Office.

"Lord Kazekage, something major has happened in Konoha. Uchiha Fugaku, the Fierce Eye of the Uchiha Clan, led a rebellion."

The Fourth Kazekage Rasa curiously raised his head. "Oh? And the outcome? Was Fugaku suppressed by that old geezer Sarutobi Hiruzen?"

Baki swallowed hard. "No, Fugaku succeeded. Sarutobi Hiruzen was killed, and Fugaku became the new Fifth Hokage."

Rasa shook his head. "Sarutobi Hiruzen grew old and could no longer keep Uchiha Fugaku in check; he deserved to die if he couldn't handle it."

A gloating expression surfaced on his face.

Baki wore a similarly agreeing expression.

Seeing the Kazekage stand up and walk over to the window, Baki hastily called out to stop him.

Rasa, whose feet had already gathered sand in preparation to leave, paused. "Is there something else?"

Baki said, "Lord Kazekage, Konoha was already quite vulnerable, and now they've lost an old-guard Hokage like Sarutobi Hiruzen. Should we—?"

Rasa raised an eyebrow, pondered for a moment, and shook his head. "Forget it. Konoha only lost an old man and didn't suffer any losses from a civil war; we wouldn't gain any advantage."