The Interval of Waiting

Time takes away the beautiful things, but it also soothes all the sorrows. It always tries its best to balance our lives, until everyone who has been adrift in the limited years becomes a numb lamb waiting to be slaughtered.

The day after returning to Konoha, Minato Namikaze found Kato Osamu. Although he was a little embarrassed, there was nothing he could do. Sitting next to Kato Osamu's small bamboo house, Minato Namikaze sipped his tea, and although he seemed to want to say something but hesitated, he slowly opened his mouth.

"Xu, there was something important I was supposed to do, but you know, the war is intense right now, so some things have to be postponed..."

"More importantly, Konoha must not descend into chaos..."

"I will definitely seek justice for what Root and Danzo have done, but not now..."

"Xu, I'm sorry to trouble you to wait a little longer..."

Kato Osamu's courtyard was already somewhat overgrown with weeds. He had only just learned of Tsunade's Kato Osamu, and although he wasn't quite sure of the specific reasons, she had taken Shizune, who would occasionally come to clean, with her.

Kato Osamu, who was carefully sweeping the yard with his tools, didn't react much to Minato Namikaze's voice. He never entrusted such matters to him; he would do what he wanted to do himself. He just needed something...

"Brother Minato Namikaze, there's no need to rush. For me, these past years have been enough. Being able to leave Root is already a great achievement. I don't want to hope for anything else. I only hope to learn more skills from Orochimaru- sensei..."

Mentioning Orochimaru seemed to make Minato Namikaze frown slightly. Orochimaru had done almost nothing on the battlefield in Mist Shinobi, and even indirectly caused the disappearance of one of the Hyuga Main House's Byakugan. Now, Orochimaru's situation in Konoha was not much better.

"Xu, don't you want to come with me to the Cloud Shinobi battlefield?"

Minato Namikaze glanced at Kato Osamu, pondered for Minato Namikaze, and tentatively asked Kato Osamu a question.

"Orochimaru- sensei's reputation has been terrible lately. The Mist Shinobi battlefield was supposed to be the weakest battlefield, yet he hasn't made any progress and has even made a major mistake..."

Kato Osamu put down his work and stood up. Although he was only fourteen or fifteen years old, he was already almost as tall as Minato Namikaze. He calmly looked into Minato Namikaze's eyes.

"But that's precisely why I must go to the Mist Shinobi Battlefield..."

"Because he is my teacher..."

Looking into Kato Osamu's clear eyes, Minato Namikaze slowly smiled. Kato Osamu hadn't become cold-blooded and ruthless because of his experiences in Root. A person who knows how to be grateful can't be too bad.

His efforts in considering Kato Osamu were not in vain.

"Very good..."

"I knew I hadn't misjudged Junior Brother Xu..."

Minato Namikaze slowly rose to his feet and wandered aimlessly through Kato Osamu's courtyard, his gaze involuntarily fixed on the teru teru bozu (a Japanese doll shaped like a teru bozu) gently swaying under the eaves, as if deep in thought.

"I can let you go to Mist Shinobi, but you have to agree to one condition..."

"Can..."

"Oh? Junior Brother Xu, won't you listen to what the conditions are?"

"No need. I'm not necessarily a person who always keeps his word, but what I do, I will definitely do."

"Hey... you kids, each one of you is more difficult than the last..."

Minato Namikaze shook his head helplessly. Kakashi Hatake, a problem child, was already enough for him to handle, and now there was Kato Osamu and half of Rin to deal with as well.

"Then I'll take that as a yes..."

"Now that you're Jonin, take good care of these children..."

"Um?"

Kato Osamu had considered all sorts of possibilities, but he never expected Minato Namikaze to try to keep him in this way. He couldn't help but look up at Minato Namikaze, who had a smile on his face.

"Is it some kind of bond again?"

"Yes... I will do my best to protect their safety..."

"Xu, you're not a bodyguard, you're their teacher..."

"These children will respect you and trust you as much as you respect Lord Orochimaru."

Minato Namikaze gently patted Kato Osamu's shoulder, looking at her Kato Osamu -blue eyes with a serious and earnest expression.

"You will become a good teacher who carries on the Will of Fire..."

Looking into Minato Namikaze's earnest eyes, Kato Osamu felt a slight unease for some reason. He nodded silently, but only let out a soft sigh.

"If... I could have met you all first..."

"That would be such a wonderful thing..."

Kato Osamu slowly lowered his head, obscuring Danzo face. He would never let Danzo go. He merely raised his head slightly, took a sip of tea, and sat down on the steps of the small bamboo building alongside Minato Namikaze.

Although the freshly brewed tea seemed slightly hot to the touch, the burning sensation that flowed down his throat and into his heart was one of the few intense heats he could feel.

The warm, red sun shone through the dreary trees onto his face, blurring his features that had never been exposed to sunlight before...

For some inexplicable reason, for the first time he felt a desire to face the light and receive its illumination...

"Alright, I'll try to become a Jonin leader..."

Minato Namikaze left Kato Osamu's bamboo house with a hint of satisfaction. Kato Osamu didn't know if he had done the right thing, but he had no one to confide in, so he could only slowly fix his gaze on the eaves.

Even now, he still feels somewhat out of place. He has broken away from his Root, has a free life, and seems to have endless possibilities, but why has he become even more silent?

The stream babbled through the jungle, moistening the surrounding air. Although it was late autumn, there was still not much cold. This was the greatest geographical advantage of the Land of Fire compared to other countries.

At the Konoha training grounds, Kato Osamu appeared for the first time as a Jonin a team.

However, this remote training ground was already countless times richer than the Sand Shinobi with its endless yellow sand, the Rock Stone Shinobi and Cloud Shinobi with their towering rocks, and the Mist Shinobi Land of a Thousand Islands.

Abundant lands naturally have larger populations, and thus tend to produce more geniuses.

The three people standing in front of Kato Osamu appeared to be among the most outstanding individuals born from this land, showing a hint of resolve for blood and fire even at a young age.

"Let me introduce myself..."

"Hi! Teacher, teacher, my name is Umino Iruka, I'm 9 years old, I like ramen, I hate, um... I hate green peppers, and my dream is to become a reliable ninja like Minato Namikaze."

"Teacher! I've heard of your reputation on the Stone Shinobi battlefield, I... I will definitely work hard!"

Iruka seemed very excited. After graduating from the Ninja Academy, the most likely outcome for a commoner ninja like him was to do odd jobs, accumulate merit points, and exchange them for two Ninjutsu.

Then, as he persevered, the optimal learning period passed, and his achievements in this life came to a standstill. Now, being able to meet a Jonin as his mentor, he is already incredibly lucky among his peers.

"Uzuki Yugao, 8 years old, skilled in swordsmanship, Taijutsu..."

With purple hair, Uzuki Yugao carried a long sword on her back, looking quite dashing. However, she was rather quiet and reserved, looking at Kato Osamu with a mixture of respect and curiosity.

"Itachi Uchiha."

Itachi Uchiha spoke softly, his gaze merely fixed on Kato Osamu. If it weren't for Fugaku Uchiha's request, he would never have come here. He understood his own identity; he was merely a pawn used by the Uchiha Clan to test the waters with those close to Minato Namikaze.

However, the proud Uchiha Clan would not allow mediocre people to tarnish their reputation, which is why they allowed themselves to appear here.

"Very good, I am Kato Osamu, and I will be your team leader Jonin from now on."

Kato Osamu nodded slightly. He didn't need them to make a move; his senses were already able to roughly judge their strength. Apart from Itachi Uchiha, Iruka and Uzuki Yugao were only Genin had just graduated.

He looked at Itachi Uchiha with some surprise; this youngest child was actually the strongest of the three.

According to the information in my hand, he was only six years old, yet he had already graduated when other children had just entered the Ninja Academy. He had even followed Fugaku Uchiha in the recently concluded war against Stone Shinobi and had already seen the blood of the enemy. No wonder he looked so fierce.

"Let's carry out the mission..."

"Meet here at 6 AM tomorrow. Mission objective: Support the Mist Shinobi Battlefield..."

Kato Osamu didn't say anything more and turned to leave. He could clearly see their strength, but some troublemakers always wanted to challenge authority.

"Kato Jonin, I want to challenge you..."

Do you know what you're saying?

Kato Osamu slowly turned around, simply watching the ignorant little fellow.

"There are no eternal strongmen, nor are there eternal weakmen. When a temporarily weakman understands the gap between himself and a temporarily strongman, he can catch up with that temporarily strongman at the fastest speed."

"That makes a lot of sense. Well then, I wish you the best of luck in surpassing me, this temporary powerhouse, soon..."

Kato Osamu simply stood still, while Itachi Uchiha lightly touched the ground and charged forward.

"Immature tactics... Uchiha Clan, huh? I hope you'll awaken your Sharingan soon..."

"Magic - The Right Place Technique!"

With Kato Osamu's current mental strength, he didn't even dare to use overly powerful Genjutsu on these children. However, he only added a little magic effect to the Genjutsu, which brought Itachi Uchiha's attack to an abrupt halt.

The running body instantly fell to the ground and turned into smoke, while the body on the tree where the real body was located suddenly fell from it and crashed heavily to the ground, but was still trapped in the Genjutsu.

"Itachi Uchiha!"

Just as Uzuki Yugao was about to provide assistance, Iruka took the lead and rushed over.

"Remember to take him home..."

Kato Osamu glanced at Iruka. This child inexplicably resembled Obito Uchiha somewhat. Minato Namikaze really did pick a good subordinate for him.

With a light tap of his feet, his figure disappeared from the training ground, leaving only Uzuki Yugao and Iruka anxiously patting Itachi Uchiha's cheeks, trying to wake him from the Genjutsu.

"That was incredibly reckless... That's the man known as the Blue Asura on the Stone Shinobi battlefield..."

"Oh?"

Uzuki Yugao clearly hadn't heard of this name before, and looked at Iruka with a hint of doubt.

"The ninjas from the Stone Shinobi battlefield just returned yesterday. Just you wait and see, Teacher Xu's name will resound throughout Konoha in a few days."

Iruka was also excited to have such a powerful teacher, looking at Uzuki Yugao with a hint of mystery.

"Hmph, boys are all so annoying..."