The next day, early morning.
In the large open space in Konoha Gate, thousands of ninjas were now standing in neat rows.
Most ninjas were of good quality, but they were not well-trained soldiers after all, and their whispers among themselves inevitably made the large open space around them quite noisy.
At the front corner of the line, three or five ninjas were gathered together talking.
"Hey, did you hear? Our team leader this time is that genius Jonin, Hirakawa Shin'un."
"Huh? The one who's good at using Lightning Release? If I remember correctly, that kid's only thirteen years old."
" The Lord Hokage is comfortable letting a kid lead the team?"
"That's right, no matter how talented that kid is, he's still young, and his strength is mostly just hype from recent battles. He can't really..."
"Sizzle~"
Suddenly, a faint crackling sound of electricity came from somewhere, interrupting the conversation.
Then, a third person suddenly appeared in this gossipy group of three to five people.
"What are you saying? Let me hear it too!"
Shin'un appeared in the center of the crowd at some point, and asked a few ninjas who were gossiping around him with a blank expression.
Shin'un had silver-white hair, used Lightning Release, and appeared to be quite young. Several Konoha Ninja immediately guessed his identity.
The leader of the Chunin turned pale Chunin he and several Genin were caught red-handed for talking nonsense.
"I..."
The group looked at each other, their mouths opening and closing, but they didn't know what to say.
Looking at the group of people in front of him, Shin'un took a deep breath and said:
"We're about to leave Konoha for the battlefield, and instead of doing a final check of your ninja tools and equipment, you have time to gossip about me?"
"You couldn't even detect me getting close just now. How many lives do you have to die on a real battlefield?"
Having witnessed Shin'un's phantom-like speed, the ninjas knew that this genius Jonin's strength was not just talk. The leading Chunin immediately pulled the Genin around him Genin apologize.
"I'm sorry, Jonin Hirakawa."
Seeing the people bowing and apologizing to him, Shin'un lost the will to continue making things difficult for him.
He shook his head and left, leaving behind only a few Konoha Ninja breathed a sigh of relief.
In the center of the front of the formation, there was a temporary rocky platform created using Earth Release.
Shin'un walked to the side of the platform, bent his knees slightly, and leaped onto the platform.
There are already eleven Jonin waiting here.
These eleven Jonin, who served as the commanding officers assisting Shin'un in leading a thousand-strong force to the front lines, have been informed that Shin'un was promoted to Elite Jonin yesterday.
Upon seeing Shin'un, they gathered around one by one, respectfully reporting the situation.
"Report! The First Battalion is all present!"
"Report, the Second Battalion is fully assembled!"
"Report! The Third Battalion is fully assembled!"
"..."
Shin'un certainly couldn't manage a thousand-strong force alone to travel to the Land of Rain. These eleven Jonin essentially became Shin'un Shin'un's subordinates temporarily, helping him manage and command the thousand-strong force.
Apart from one Jonin responsible for relaying Shin'un's orders, ten Jonin each commanded over a hundred ninjas.
Below these ten Jonin, there are command ranks responsible for managing fifty and ten people respectively.
Of course, this simple command structure is temporary. After arriving in the Land of Rain and meeting Nara Shikahito, the responsibilities of these Jonin charge of management will be reassigned.
"Report, all ten squads are present!"
Hearing that the entire thousand-strong team had arrived, Shin'un nodded in satisfaction. The ninjas' time management was indeed impeccable.
"Ten minutes later, proceed in formation to the Land of Rain!" After memorizing the faces of the ten Jonin in front of him, Shin'un gave the order.
"Yes!" the ten Jonin answered in unison, and then immediately disappeared in Body Flicker Technique.
Only the female Jonin responsible for relaying Shin'un's orders remained around.
Shin'un looked the female Jonin up and down, then asked, "What's your name?"
"My name is Shirai Rei," the seemingly very young female Jonin replied.
Nodding, Shin'un said, "I'll be free of trouble these next few days after arriving in the Land of Rain."
"You're too kind." Shirai Rei waved her hand, a smile appearing on her face. "Just as your duty is to lead this thousand-strong force to the Land of Rain, my duty is to assist you in management."
"Okay." Shin'un nodded, then looked at the thousand ninjas standing in front of the platform.
Although the ten Jonin had left the platform and informed the ninjas that they would be departing in ten minutes, the ninjas were still in a state of chaos.
"It's so noisy." Shin'un frowned and asked Shirai Rei, who was standing next to him, "Are they always like this?"
Shirai Rei shook her head. "No."
After saying that, Shirai Rei glanced at Shin'un and said, "They can judge people too."
"Oh~" Shin'un. So these ninjas underestimated him because he was too young. "I understand."
No wonder. Although there are some differences between ninjas and soldiers, the Konoha ninja army should not be so undisciplined.
Shin'un took a few steps forward and arrived at the edge of the platform.
Shin'un scanned all the ninjas before him, then looked at Shirai Rei. "Cover your ears."
"Okay." Shirai Rei was taken aback by Shin'un's strange command, but seeing that Shin'un didn't seem to be joking, she obediently covered her ears.
Upon seeing Shirai Rei immediately obey her command and cover her ears, Shin'un nodded in satisfaction.
Regardless of his abilities, I find it very comforting that my adjutant completely obeys my orders.
Returning his gaze to the large group of ninjas before him, Shin'un covered his ear with his left hand and placed his other hand in front of his chest to begin Hand Seals.
After two or three seals, a fine current began to swirl between Shin'un's right hands.
Then, Shin'un raised his right hand above his head and snapped his fingers.
Lightning Release: Thunderclap!
"BOOM!!!"
A deafening roar of thunder exploded, covering half of Konoha and silencing all other sounds.
A few seconds later, as the thunder subsided, the thousand ninjas finally quieted down and all looked at Shin'un standing on the high platform.
"Install..."
Just as Shin'un was about to shout at the top of his lungs, Shirai Rei suddenly handed him a megaphone.
Shin'un glanced at Shirai Rei with surprise, wondering where she had pulled out the megaphone.
A strange thought flashed through his mind, and Shin'un took the megaphone and began to address the many ninjas below the platform.
"Quiet down, all of you!"
"Now, give me one last check of the ninja tools and equipment you're carrying."
"Nine minutes later, everyone will depart in order of line!"
Realizing that the thunder had come from Hirakawa Shin'un on the high platform, the ninjas immediately showed respect. Upon hearing Shin'un's order to inspect the ninja tools, they all shut their mouths and began to check them.
Seeing that his Lightning Release: Thunderclap had worked, Shin'un returned the megaphone to Shirai Rei with satisfaction.
Lightning Release: Thunderclap was a result of an accident that Shin'un obtained when he was developing Lightning Release: Lightning Snake.
Although it has no offensive power, it can create deafening thunder with very little Chakra consumption.
Feeling that this special Ninjutsu might be useful in special circumstances, Shin'un recorded the accident and named the corresponding Ninjutsu Lightning Release: Lightning Release.
Unexpectedly, this Ninjutsu came in handy today.