Konoha, Uchiha Clan Land, Aomi's home.
"Big brother, what is this joint Chunin Exam and peace agreement all about?"
Shisui stared with his big eyes, pretending to think: "Why do I feel something's off?"
"It seems like they are probing the strengths and weaknesses of our village..."
Asuma sat beside Shisui, casually saying, "Of course, there's no peace between villages; all outsiders are bastards!"
"The old man said at home, there's definitely going to be a war, so I should just listen to Aomi!"
Shisui was instantly irritated, that damned Son of the Hokage always effortlessly spilling these high-ranking secrets...
He wants his big brother to praise his thoughts, does he need this jerk to undermine him!
"Asuma, shut up, I'm the one who's the real brother!" Shisui glared at the ever-visiting Asuma and said fiercely.
"Shisui, I don't deny you're Aomi's brother, but I'm the future Hokage Assistant!" Asuma stood his ground, head-to-head with Shisui, loudly retorting.
Meanwhile, Kakashi, Might Guy, and Might Duy simultaneously drank their tea as if they hadn't noticed anything.
This scene would always play out between Shisui and Asuma, and everyone was very familiar with it.
At this moment, Tsunade walked over, twisted the ears of both Asuma and Shisui, and looked a little dangerous—
"You two brats, I'm the Hokage Assistant, have you forgotten that?"
Shisui and Asuma looked pleadingly at Aomi, their eyes full of begging.
Tsunade's strength was simply too great; they were still poor kids and really couldn't bear the Senju Monster Strength...
But Aomi could only helplessly shrug:
"I'm just an ordinary Root Leader, and Teacher Tsunade is indeed the Hokage Assistant..."
Kakashi quietly munched on the senbei on the table, experiencing a revelation.
After Hatake Sakumo "died" once, his father seemed to have a personality change, becoming lively and optimistic, even a bit talkative, and made a lot of friends.
It's just that these friends made Kakashi a little uncomfortable.
A few days ago, the enthusiastic Hatake Sakumo allowed Kakuzu to stay at their home.
And during a dinner and drink session in the evening, Kakashi, who was there serving the meal, clearly saw this strange ninja he called "Uncle Kakuzu" waving black threads from his arms like snakes when he got angry!
And after noticing Kakashi's surprised expression, Kakuzu even jokingly showed him four huge masks on his back.
Kakashi was dumbfounded looking at the writhing heads inside the masks.
Hey, this must be a Kinjutsu!
His father, Hatake Sakumo, used to be in charge of confiscating illegal experiments, not even sparing Shimura Danzo and Orochimaru.
Yet, seeing Kakuzu scare Kakashi, Hatake Sakumo laughed heartily in a rather unkind way.
And after applying to Hatake Sakumo and Aomi, Kakashi joined the Root, witnessing all sorts of scenes that made his heart tremble.
And Hatake Sakumo nonchalantly left a comment:
"Techniques are good, it's the ninja using them that's the problem. But in Root, all the ninjas have the Will of Fire in their hearts, so some Kinjutsu aren't a problem."
"Kakashi, study well in Root, and if you don't understand something, just visit Aomi's place more often, even if it's just to mop the floor, it's fine."
After Hatake Sakumo finished, in Kakashi's bewildered gaze, he and the blood-dripping armed Kakuzu chatted happily and, shoulder to shoulder, once again headed out of the village for a mission.
And when Kakashi came to Aomi's house, he couldn't even get a chance to mop the floor.
Because just mopping, Might Duy would finish it by 4 a.m. while training...
No matter how hard Kakashi tried, he couldn't arrive at Aomi's house by four in the morning.
But Kakashi had fully understood one thing, in Konoha, the importance of social circles!
At Aomi's house, just raising his eyes he sees the Princess of Konoha and Hokage Assistant, the Son of the Hokage, information that ordinary Jonin can't even access, is casual dinnertime chat here.
And Aomi, even more terrifyingly, who manages the Root, seemed to be deciding the future direction of Konoha's wars, including the distribution of the village's resources.
Tsunade, the Hokage Assistant, seemed like just a researcher, tinkering with unknown toxins on the side.
But Aomi was laying out future battle maps, occasionally giving orders to Tsunade with an air of natural authority.
Yet Tsunade nodded along obediently, without a hint of dissatisfaction.
Kakashi couldn't help but reflect, if his father Hatake Sakumo had been a part of this circle earlier, never mind breaching the Will of Fire and ninja rules, killing an exposed Root member, what of it?
Under the influence of such an environment, Kakashi swiftly became corrupted, declaring seriously that he would serve as Aomi's Anbu Ninja and, unbeknownst to Shisui and Asuma, harbored grand ambitions—
Who said I, Hatake Kakashi, can't possibly become a future Hokage Assistant?
"Teacher Tsunade, forgive them, please..."
Aomi said with a smile, "But it's worth praising, Shisui, your guesses are spot on."
"This so-called peace agreement and joint Chunin Exam are nothing but preludes to the war, these ninjas sent from other villages will analyze the state of the village and collect various intelligence on Konoha."