The Team Leader Was Actually the Third Hokage!

Watching Jiraiya sit on the ground to rest, exhausted to the point of collapse and too lazy even to straighten his clothes, the Third Hokage felt rather speechless.

Now that everyone had arrived, the Third Hokage had no intention of staying any longer.

"Ahem!!!"

That cough drew everyone's attention, including Jiraiya, who had been exhausted to the point of collapse. He sprang up from the ground and stood properly. No one knew who their teacher would be, and if they encountered one with a bad temper, things would be tragic.

"Hokage Lord?!"

Other than Hikaru, who had been mentally prepared, the other three stared at the Third Hokage in disbelief. A strange thought surfaced in their minds. Could the Third Hokage be their teacher?!

That shouldn't have been possible.

Yet there was no one else beside the Third Hokage, leaving Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru thoroughly confused. Even Hikaru was a little bewildered. Where was his teacher?

There were four of them. If three were assigned together, one would have to be sent elsewhere. But only the Third Hokage had come. What was going on?

Could the four of them be one team?

It wasn't as though such a situation had never happened, but it was extremely rare except under special circumstances. Three-person teams, with one support ninja among them, had basically become the standard arrangement. That was why Hikaru had never considered that four people might be placed together.

"Alright, children, come with me. Starting today, I, Hiruzen Sarutobi, will be your teacher."

Today, the Third Hokage was not wearing his Hokage battle robes, only ordinary casual clothes.

To be honest, the Third Hokage at this time looked like a very ordinary, even somewhat short middle-aged man. He had a brown goatee, and his head had not yet gone bald on top.

After saying that, the Third Hokage headed toward the Training Ground, leaving the others staring wide-eyed at one another.

This time, not only the others, but even Hikaru was dumbfounded. He had never expected the Third Hokage to place him in the Sannin's team. Hikaru had long prepared himself mentally to be thrown into a random team and become a drifter.

Who would have thought that he would end up being grouped together with the future Sannin?

The standard team now consisted of three people, but that was not absolute. Sometimes teams of four, five, or even six people appeared. Everything depended on the situation at the time; there was no fixed rule.

Though it was not absolute, such cases were far too rare.

He had never expected the Third Hokage to integrate him, Uchiha Hikaru, into the future Sannin. While shocked, Hikaru thought of the Sannin's future fame and felt the urge to complain. I'm not going to ruin the Sannin's legend, am I?

It wasn't that Hikaru's arrival would prevent the Sannin from reaching the heights they had achieved in the original story. Rather, because of his existence, the original legend of the Sannin might simply disappear.

No one knew whether something like that would actually happen.

Even Hikaru did not dare guarantee anything.

However, the Third Hokage had not assigned him to another team. Instead, he had placed him together with Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya, the Sannin. That brought Hikaru many benefits.

That one point alone was enough: their team leader was the Third Hokage!!!!

"Ha... hahaha, am I dreaming?"

Jiraiya gave two foolish, dry laughs and turned back to look at the others with great difficulty. Orochimaru merely snorted at this and could not be bothered with him as he followed after the Third Hokage.

Hikaru smiled. "You're not dreaming. It really is the Hokage Lord. Come on, we still don't know what kind of test awaits us."

"How pathetic!!"

After recovering from her shock, Tsunade curled her lip at Jiraiya and mocked him for making such a fuss. Although Tsunade herself had been shocked at first that the Third Hokage had personally come to take them on, after the shock passed, it was nothing much.

Compared to the others, Tsunade's horizons were exceptionally broad. The little princess of the Senju Clan was no empty title.

"Huff!!!"

"Huff!!!"

Jiraiya breathed heavily, chanting in his heart, I won't lower myself to your level! I won't lower myself to your level!!

What kind of test would they face? Would it still be a bell-grabbing exercise?

Hikaru left the field with Tsunade, while Jiraiya followed behind them. After being mocked by Tsunade and Orochimaru, he was fuming. Hikaru had no interest in dealing with that. What he cared about was what kind of test they would have today.

If it was still a bell-grabbing exercise, that would be a little troublesome. Two bells, four people competing for them!!! There simply would not be enough to go around. Although the bells were only a pretext, their true purpose was to teach them that they needed unity and needed to respect their teammates—their new teammates.

Grabbing bells, eating boxed lunches, tying someone to a log... Hikaru could only say that Konoha's tests were a little boring!!!