"Phew, finally done."
Ren put down his pen and let out a long sigh, looking at the neatly stacked documents in front of him.
These were all relatively unimportant documents, simple but tedious. To avoid wasting time and energy, it was perfect to hand them over to Ren.
"Uncle Fugaku, do you need any help?"
Ren turned his head to look at Fugaku, who was still reviewing, and asked softly.
"No, I'll be done soon. You should go see if Minato needs any help."
Fugaku stopped writing and looked at Ren, then nodded slightly before lowering his head to continue working. The two large stacks of documents beside him were mostly finished, so it seemed he indeed didn't need help.
"Alright!"
Ren nodded, picked up the completed documents from the desk, and placed them on the conference table. There was a dull thud, making quite a noise.
Minato's hand paused, and he looked up at Ren.
"My apologies, Brother Minato, I'll be gentler next time."
Ren looked at Minato, whom he had disturbed, scratched his head, and said sheepishly.
"It's fine, I'm almost done here too."
Minato shook his head, glanced around, and then said softly.
"You should rest for a bit. Once we're done with these, we can have dinner."
"Alright."
Ren suddenly found himself with free time. With nothing to do, he picked up a book from the table, intending to read for a while to pass the time.
"Land of Fire Chronicles?"
Ren looked at the large characters on the cover and subconsciously read them aloud.
Upon opening it, the book described the local customs, traditions, and topography of various regions within the Land of Fire. These were quite new to Ren and sufficient to pass some time.
Just as Ren was getting engrossed, a lunchbox suddenly appeared, blocking his view. Ren was startled and looked up to find Minato standing beside him, smiling at him.
"Let's eat first, stop reading."
"Alright."
Ren put the book down and closed it, took the bento box and chopsticks from Minato, and began to eat heartily.
Although the taste was ordinary, it was much better than the bland Soldier Ration Pill. So the three of them ate with relish.
Just then, the sound of the tent flap being lifted came from the entrance. The few of them looked back and saw that it was the guard from the entrance who had walked in, carrying an eagle.
"Lord Minato, the messenger eagle has returned."
As the guard spoke, he extended his hand forward. The eagle flew from his hand and, in the blink of an eye, landed on the conference table, folding its wings, its hawk eyes looking at Fugaku and Minato from side to side.
"Alright, thank you."
After the guard left, Minato unrolled the scroll from the eagle's leg. As soon as he removed it, the eagle spread its wings and flew outwards. Ren quickly stood up, hurried to the entrance, and lifted the flap to let the eagle fly out.
There were designated resting areas for these animals within Konoha Camp. After completing their missions, they would automatically return to their resting nests to rest and await orders.
"Is it from the Village, Brother Minato?"
Ren returned to the table and sat down, looking at the scroll in Minato's hand, and asked with some anticipation.
"Don't rush, let me take a look first."
Minato finished speaking and began to read. Ren took this opportunity to quickly eat his meal. While he was eating, Minato had already finished reading and handed the scroll to Fugaku. When Ren finished eating, Fugaku also put down the scroll at the opportune moment, and the expressions on both their faces became a bit strange.
"What's wrong, Brother Minato?"
Ren turned to Minato and asked curiously. Minato picked up the scroll from the table, handed it to him, and chuckled.
"See for yourself."
"Hmm?"
Looking at the two somewhat strange people in front of him, Ren's face showed a hint of doubt. After taking the scroll, he began to read.
There weren't many words on it, and Ren finished reading very quickly. When he put down the scroll, his expression also became a bit strange, and he murmured softly.
"What does the old man mean by this?"
Aside from some instructions from Hiruzen Sarutobi to Minato, he did not reject Ren's application for promotion to Jonin. Instead, he issued a so-called promotion mission.
In tomorrow's counterattack, Ren's performance in this mission would determine whether he could be promoted. Then, Fugaku and Minato would evaluate his performance, send the results back to the Village, and finally, Hiruzen Sarutobi would decide whether to promote Ren.
Fugaku crossed his arms and chuckled, looking at the somewhat lost Ren.
"I have no problem with this. You'll mainly be acting with Minato this time. Do your best, Ren."
"Alright."
Although Ren was a bit puzzled, he was not afraid of this so-called promotion mission. After all, his strength was evident; how could a Jonin assessment mission possibly stump him?
"Don't worry, Ren, your strength is almost catching up to ours. Don't worry too much about the assessment. Tomorrow, your own safety is paramount."
Minato raised his hand and placed it on Ren's shoulder, smiling.
"You've worked hard today. Go back and get some good rest. Leave this to me and Senior Fugaku."
"Alright."
Ren didn't refuse. Half a day of rest was good to relax his mind and make some pre-battle preparations.
After walking out of the command tent, Ren did not stop but returned directly to his own tent. He sat on the bed, closed his eyes, and sank his consciousness into the Tailed Beast space.
At this moment, Isobu and Chomei were chatting in the Tailed Beast space. Upon seeing Ren suddenly appear, Chomei was the first to greet him.
"Ren, you're here."
Isobu, on the other hand, just nodded without speaking. Ren knew his quiet nature, so he skillfully went to Isobu's head, sat down cross-legged, and spoke.
"Brother Chomei, I'm here to learn from you. Can you teach me your scale powder technique?"
Currently, he didn't have any Ninjutsu that could obstruct the enemy's vision. Originally, the Second Hokage's "Dark Travel Technique" would have been an excellent choice, but he hadn't had the opportunity to see the Sealing Jutsu at the time. So, for now, he could only learn the Scale Powder Technique as a temporary measure.
Ren secretly resolved that the next time he returned to the Village, he would definitely get the Sealing Jutsu from Hiruzen Sarutobi. He had been coveting many forbidden jutsu on it for a long time.
"Alright."
Chomei did not refuse. After a moment of thought, he agreed.
"First..."
Chomei explained very seriously, Ren listened very attentively, while Isobu simply closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Just like that, when Ren opened his eyes again, the sky outside had already darkened. In Ren's perception, the night patrol team had already begun to move around and patrol within Konoha Camp.
"And just like that, the day is over."
Ren murmured as he took a Soldier Ration Pill from his waist and threw it into his mouth, beginning to chew. Although it was tasteless, it was truly convenient.
Ren just wanted to fall asleep quickly to welcome a beautiful tomorrow.