Upon seeing Kakashi in Anbu attire, he chuckled and said, "Kakashi, are you here to see the Hokage?"
"Hey, Genma, don't casually call out an Anbu ninja's name."
An Anbu ninja's identity needs to be kept secret; this should be common knowledge for ninjas.
Kakashi helplessly looked at the Konoha ninja in front of him.
Dressed in a Konoha Chunin uniform, about the same age as him, around thirteen or fourteen, named Shiranui Genma.
One of the three former subordinates of the renegade ninja, Uchiha Ruri, now reassigned to work at the Hokage Building and also a member of Minato's Shadow Guard.
"Haha." Genma chuckled awkwardly and said, "There's no helping it; your silver hair and the short knife behind you are too distinctive; anyone could recognize you."
"What about those documents?"
Kakashi looked at the items in the box.
"These are discarded documents. I'm going to handle them. Sorry, I'll be on my way."
"It's fine, go ahead with your work."
Kakashi watched as Genma left with the box, lamenting that Minato really lacked personnel.
It's not that he looked down on Genma, who had just become a Chunin, but Shadow Guard positions should not be filled by someone so newly promoted. It seemed he was more like there to do odd jobs than actual guarding.
As for the other two ninjas who were also part of Minato's Shadow Guard, they too were newly promoted Chunins.
Could he only select trusted subordinates from the new generation of ninjas? Kakashi felt a bit sorry for Minato's situation.
Arriving at Minato's office, he knocked, got permission, and entered to find three others already there.
Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, Akimichi Chouza.
Three Konoha Jonin with whom he had completed missions two years ago.
Though they were Jonin, their weight in the village was not to be underestimated.
They hailed respectively from the Nara clan, Yamanaka clan, and Akimichi clan.
These three clans formed an unbreakable alliance during the Warring States Era, advancing and retreating together, inheriting special abilities passed down through secret techniques, holding significant influence in Konoha.
Most importantly, these three clans had always been on good terms with the Yuanfei clan of the Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
Were they here at the behest of the Third Hokage? Kakashi wondered.
The internal conflicts within Konoha were far more intense than outsiders imagined.
And Kakashi felt that he stood right at the center of this intense storm.
When Kakashi arrived, Shikaku and the other two also glanced at him. Even though Kakashi wore a mask, others could immediately recognize him.
Silver hair, White Fang Short Knife, a sharp and unparalleled aura emanating from his small body—only Minato could confront it without being perturbed in this office.
"Well then, I'll leave what we discussed to you all."
Sitting on the chair that not long ago belonged to the Third Hokage, Minato smiled and said to Shikaku and the others.
"Rest assured, leave this matter to us, Lord Hokage; we will certainly provide you with a satisfactory answer."
Shikaku responded with a smile, then led Inoichi and Chouza out, closing the door.
After they left, Kakashi took the stolen classified scroll from his ninja tool bag and placed it on Minato's desk.
"Lord Hokage, the mission is completed."
This was only natural. Once at work, his mentor-student relationship with Minato ceased, leaving only a superior-subordinate dynamic, Hokage and Anbu.
Minato picked up the scroll, confirmed its contents, then rolled it back up and put it in the drawer.
"You did well. The scroll is intact. It's fortunate we resolved the issue before it became troublesome."
Minato sighed with relief, looking at Kakashi with an appreciative gaze.
"It's nothing; it was my duty."
"There is another important mission to assign you next. Do you accept, Kakashi? After completing this mission, I'll grant you a few days of leave."
"It's my honor, Lord Hokage."
Kakashi answered sternly.
It's likely because Minato had no one else to rely on that he was given such back-to-back tasks.
Even the Shadow Guard consisted of Chunins, and there were hardly any Jonin under him that he could trust completely.
"Here is the mission content. Take a look."
Minato handed a new mission scroll to Kakashi.
Kakashi opened it to verify the mission details.
"Land of Rain?"
Kakashi raised his eyebrow beneath the mask.
The mission location being the Land of Rain surprised Kakashi.
To be honest, Kakashi felt that many places in the Ninja Realm were extremely dangerous at the moment.
Apart from the Land of Demons, another would be the Land of Rain.
This seemingly declining country, even having lost its sovereignty, was secretly turbulent.
"Yes, I'm counting on you for this. Be careful; I sense it could be complicated. If anything seems off, aborting the mission is acceptable."
Minato seriously instructed Kakashi.
Kakashi nodded.
He was well aware of the dangers in the Land of Rain; encountering the Rinnegan would leave him only with escape as an option for survival.
He certainly didn't want to meet an early untimely death.
So, more explosive tags would be necessary.
◎
"So, the one who inherited the Fourth Hokage's title is the Yellow Flash?"
Inside a secret chamber in a cave, Nagato, after finishing his training, took a break and heard such news delivered by White Zetsu.
"Indeed, everyone was terribly surprised. Even Orochimaru was decisively defeated."