Becoming Jonin

Only after Hyuga Feng had gone some distance did Hiruzen Sarutobi turn his gaze to the corpse on the floor.

"Ah... so he was discovered after all." He sighed helplessly.

"Thank you for your efforts."

He turned the corpse over, revealing a hideous wound across its back.

"Traces of Fire Release."

He raised his hands and formed hand seals over the back of the dead man's head.

"Release-"

At once, lines of sealing script emerged from the corpse's head, gradually spreading outward.

A scroll slowly emerged from within.

Hiruzen Sarutobi took the scroll and frowned after reading its contents.

After pondering for a while, he called toward the door, "Someone come in."

The moment he finished speaking, a white-haired ANBU member appeared in the office.

"Lord Hokage," the newcomer greeted respectfully.

Although the ANBU member wore a mask, his voice sounded rather young.

Hiruzen Sarutobi instructed him, "Take this scroll to the Intelligence Division for decoding, then dispose of this corpse."

"Yes..." The ANBU member bowed.

He accepted the scroll with both hands.

Then his gaze fell on the corpse on the floor.

When he saw the dead man's face, his expression froze.

This is...

He shook his head. This was the Hokage's office. He pushed those thoughts aside and refocused on his assignment.

Forming hand seals, he sealed the corpse away again, then vanished with the Body Flicker Technique.

"There really has been so much happening lately."

"One thing after another."

His gaze shifted to Hokage Rock outside the window.

"I wonder if they've finished their mission..." His voice was full of concern.

"With their strength, a rogue ninja like that should be easy enough to deal with."

"And Jiraiya has already learned that mode."

"I imagine they'll be back to report their success soon!"

"Then I can rest a little easier."

His gaze moved from Hokage Rock outside the window to Konoha's gates.

Unexpectedly, that glance revealed three familiar figures.

After recognizing them, Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled. "Speak of the devil..."

He sat back down in his chair and waited for the three of them to arrive.

On Konoha's main street.

Jiraiya and his two teammates walked together toward the Hokage Building.

Only after entering the village did they finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"It took us two days of rushing to get back to the village."

"I'm absolutely exhausted," Jiraiya complained.

Tsunade nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. Once we've turned in the mission, we have to get together for a meal. We should bring Teacher Sarutobi along, too."

"Let's do it tonight!"

"How about my place?" Tsunade suggested. "My house is big, after all, and my grandmother makes delicious food."

"Yeah, sounds good. Your place it is," Jiraiya agreed.

Orochimaru, however, was not caught up in the joy of their successful mission.

His mind was still occupied with what had happened earlier.

Just who saved me?

He kept turning it over in his mind without finding an answer. Could it have been an ANBU member Teacher Sarutobi had sent to protect them?

Yes, that's possible. I'll ask him when we see him.

Jiraiya seemed to notice Orochimaru's gloomy mood, too.

"Hey... Orochimaru, stop dwelling on those memories you lost," Jiraiya said reassuringly. "I'll take you to the hospital for a checkup in a bit!"

Orochimaru glanced at him, then shook his head. "There's no need..."

Jiraiya was left speechless by his response. If Orochimaru would not accept his help, then so be it!

Before long, the three of them arrived outside the office.

Knock, knock, knock- Jiraiya knocked on the door.

A response soon came from inside.

"Come in..."

Hearing the sounds outside his office, Hiruzen Sarutobi's lips curved into a smile.

The door opened, and, as expected, his three students walked in.

"Teacher Sarutobi-"

At the sight of the figure wearing the Hokage's hat, all three greeted him together.

"Oh, have you three finished your mission?"

The three exchanged glances, then Orochimaru spoke. "Yes, Teacher Sarutobi. We've completed the mission."

After Orochimaru finished speaking, Tsunade handed Hiruzen Sarutobi a sealing scroll.

"Teacher Sarutobi, these are the rogue ninjas' bodies, along with the Kumogakure ninjas' bodies," Tsunade said.

Kumogakure ninjas' bodies?

Hiruzen Sarutobi was startled. How had a mission to hunt down rogue ninjas involved Kumogakure?

"Tell me exactly what happened during the mission first," he asked sternly.

"Here's what happened..." Jiraiya recounted the entire battle.

"He killed three elite Kumogakure jonin by himself?" Hiruzen Sarutobi exclaimed after hearing about Orochimaru's battle.

Has Orochimaru already become this strong?

He truly lived up to being his student.

But when he heard that Orochimaru had lost his memory, he could not help growing worried.

And he had suffered such serious injuries, too. If Tsunade and Katsuyu had not been there...

"Orochimaru, how are your injuries?" Hiruzen Sarutobi asked with concern. "And how is your memory loss? Do you need to visit the hospital?"

Orochimaru shook his head. "Thank you for your concern, Teacher Sarutobi. Thanks to Tsunade's treatment, my injuries have healed completely. There's no need to go to the hospital."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded. "As long as you're all right."

He opened the sealing scroll, and eight corpses immediately appeared inside the office. Four wore Kumogakure clothing and Kumogakure forehead protectors.

After examining the bodies and finding nothing amiss, Hiruzen Sarutobi sealed them away again.

"Whew-" He took a deep breath.

"Excellent. You completed the mission perfectly." Hiruzen Sarutobi was deeply pleased. The students he had trained had grown into powerful ninja, and he could finally breathe a little easier.

"You have what it takes to become jonin."

"Starting tomorrow, you will be Konoha's newest jonin-"

"Oh yeah-!" Jiraiya cried out in delight.

"Ahem..." Seeing Jiraiya's reaction, Hiruzen Sarutobi coughed a few times to signal that he had more to say.

"We're going to be jonin..." Jiraiya danced with joy as though he had not heard him.

Seeing him act like that, Tsunade irritably punched him.

"Stop making such a racket! Teacher Sarutobi hasn't finished speaking!"

Jiraiya rubbed the large lump on his head and smiled sheepishly.

"Ahem..."

"Since you've completed an S-rank mission, there will naturally be a generous reward."

"Tomorrow, each of you may choose two A-rank ninjutsu from the ninjutsu vault!"

Ninjutsu?

Orochimaru's eyes lit up at the word.

But only two? That seems a little stingy!