"Thank you for your praise, Lord Third Hokage. I just worked a little harder than everyone else. It really has nothing to do with being a genius!" Ruri bowed to the Third Hokage with both hands, then spoke.
"What a modest kid you are! All right, sit down!" The Third Hokage took a puff from the pipe in his hand and said with a smile.
Ruri nodded, then sat on the sofa beside him. Looking at the Third Hokage's weathered face, he asked, "Lord Third Hokage, what exactly did you call me here for today?"
While the Third Hokage studied Ruri, Ruri quietly studied the Third Hokage before him as well. If not for the sharp gleam that occasionally flashed in the Third Hokage's aged eyes...
Ruri would truly have thought the man before him was an utterly ordinary old man, as ordinary as could be, rather than the "Professor of Ninjutsu" whose very name struck terror throughout the ninja world.
"It's nothing particularly important. I've already heard that you passed the test for early graduation you applied for this year! It's very gratifying to see the village raise such an outstanding ninja as you..." the Third Hokage told Ruri with a smile, his pipe between his lips.
"Calling you here today wasn't entirely without a purpose, though. I wanted to ask your opinion. Would you like to choose a Jonin instructor and join a squad to carry out missions next? Or would you rather join the Anbu and take orders directly from the Hokage? It's entirely up to you! I won't force you to choose either one!"
At this point, the Third Hokage suddenly recalled the secret report that had arrived from the front lines some time ago. The Cloud ninja of the Land of Lightning had recently begun