"Good morning, Captain."
"Morning."
Inside the Third Division's command office, Senju Hikaru returned the greeting with a faint smile, giving the ANBU in front of him a brief nod.
Today was his first official day as a division commander, so he had arrived earlier than usual.
Last night's discussion with Senju Shōma still lingered clearly in his mind.
Hikaru could vividly remember the old man's reaction when he heard the news—how he had burst into laughter, laughing until tears slid down the corners of his eyes.
It was the release of decades of suppressed emotion.
For Shōma, the shock ran deep. He had never imagined that the boy who once refused to step onto the battlefield would rise this far within ANBU.
But Shōma had also remained rational.
He knew very well that Hikaru's achievements had not come without cost.
After all, it was Shōma himself who had pushed Hikaru into ANBU back then. If Hikaru harbored resentment, it would have been understandable.
Because of that, when the discussion turned to sending Senju clan members into ANBU, Shōma showed rare restraint—he even stated upfront that fewer people would be fine.
That alone earned Hikaru's approval.
He had no intention of stuffing large numbers of clan members into ANBU. That would be courting disaster.
More importantly, Hikaru had clearly sensed something else: concession.
Shōma was yielding.
That was why Hikaru firmly insisted on one condition—he had to personally evaluate the candidates first. Anyone who couldn't pass ANBU standards wouldn't be entering, period.
The old man hadn't liked it, but he accepted it.
Given Hikaru's current position, caution was unavoidable.
"The clan's situation is starting to change along with my standing in ANBU…"
Hikaru flipped through the Third Division's reports, silently assessing the implications.
He didn't yet have a full grasp of the Senju clan's internal state—but that wouldn't remain the case forever.
The clan needed him now.
And if his momentum continued, taking real control of the Senju clan wasn't impossible.
Even if their numbers were dwindling and their most prestigious figures had long left Konoha, the hidden assets of the Senju were still there.
Assets Hikaru had never stopped thinking about.
"But that's for later. Right now, the priority is handling the people I'm bringing in."
He shifted his attention to the Third Division itself.
And frankly—
The situation was worse than he'd expected.
Nine squads in total.
Three had been virtually wiped out during the Sasori incident.
The remaining squads weren't much better.
This was legacy damage—casualties from high-risk missions were unavoidable.
At present, only Squad One and Squad Six still had full personnel. The others were either severely understaffed or functionally nonexistent.
With the division so fragmented, Hikaru hadn't even bothered calling everyone together yet.
"It's a mess."
He rubbed his temples.
A full division should have thirty-six operatives.
He didn't even have fifteen.
"Well… starting from scratch isn't entirely bad. At least I can cultivate my own people."
That was the only way to frame it.
Training operatives was expensive—time, energy, and resources. Some wouldn't survive the process at all.
Ideally, Hikaru would have preferred ready-made tools: reliable operatives he could deploy immediately for high-difficulty missions to rapidly accumulate merit.
Reality had other plans.
"Rookies it is, then. Everyone starts somewhere. And if rookies die on missions, my liability is lower."
Setting the reports aside, Hikaru looked up at the ANBU still standing nearby.
This was Trout, a squad captain within the Third Division, a shinobi highly proficient in Water Release.
As a division commander, Hikaru now had access to the full dossiers of everyone under his authority—unless someone's background had been deliberately obscured.
After all, Hikaru himself was something of a "black file" within ANBU.
"Trout," Hikaru said casually, "go to headquarters at noon."
"Yes, Captain."
"We're critically short on manpower. Visit logistics and select the best candidates you can find."
"Understood."
"And one more thing," Hikaru added lightly. "Submit a request to transfer Hatake Kakashi from the First Division."
"Kakashi?" Trout frowned slightly.
Inter-division transfers were usually handled directly by division commanders.
And Kakashi's reputation… wasn't exactly stellar.
Talented, yes—but isolated, difficult, and pushed into ANBU early due to Minato's influence.
Still, Trout nodded. "I'll try."
"You'll succeed," Hikaru said with a smile. "The Minister would rather deal with you than me."
Trout hesitated. "…I don't quite follow."
"Ask around about what happened at headquarters recently," Hikaru shrugged. "You might understand. Or you might not. Either way—go."
Once Trout left, Hikaru leaned back and stretched.
Promotion from squad captain to division commander marked a shift—from frontline execution to command and coordination.
Mission allocation, patrol rotations, pursuit operations, and liaising with headquarters would now take precedence over direct combat.
That said, Hikaru knew better than to underestimate the risks.
Division commanders still led critical missions personally.
Namuki's death was proof enough.
Power remained the foundation.
"Strength is still everything. Without it, you're disposable."
Hikaru was clear-eyed about that.
Even now, his advantage lay in overall capability, not raw endurance.
Without Sage Arts, Kakashi wouldn't be his equal—but prolonged combat would still strain Hikaru's chakra reserves.
"Speaking of which…"
He summoned his system interface.
And froze.
Name: Senju Hikaru
Rank: Elite Jōnin (Chūnin classification)
Bloodline Development: Basic (Senju Secret Arts)
Seeds:
Jōnin-Level Chakra Quantity Seed (99% mature)
Advanced Earth Release Seed (95%)
Advanced Water Release Seed (95%)
Fruits:
Intermediate Sage Arts Fruit
Unique Task: Become the true Big Boss of the Shinobi World
Progress: 10%
(Task progress increases seed maturation speed)
"…What?"
Hikaru stared.
Task progress boosts seed maturation? Since when?
His chakra seed had jumped to 99%.
Advanced Earth and Water were close behind.
Joy surged—followed by unease.
Becoming a division commander had advanced his unique task from 1% to 10. The rewards were massive.
But it also highlighted a glaring truth—
He didn't fully understand his own system.
Fourteen years, and he'd only scratched the surface.
"Looks like becoming Hokage isn't optional anymore."
Hikaru exhaled slowly.
Hokage meant influence. Influence meant momentum. Momentum meant accelerating the unique task.
And Hokage would open doors—alliances, resources, even reshaping hidden organizations.
The Intermediate Sage Arts Fruit hovered before him.
The boost from the basic version had already been terrifying.
This one?
It wouldn't disappoint.
The only concern was chakra consumption.
Even now, Sage Mode duration was limited.
Intermediate Sage Arts would burn through chakra even faster.
"So be it. I'll fight in bursts."
Hikaru clenched his fist, a grin forming.
"Hit hard, disengage instantly. If I can't kill them—I leave."
With Flying Thunder God, escape was never the problem.
"…And who knows," he mused, "maybe my chakra fruit will mature tomorrow."
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