"Yo—well if it isn't Black Flash!"
The moment Gojo Yoru stepped into the Hokage's office, he almost thought he'd wandered onto the wrong set.
Staring at Sarutobi Hiruzen's teasing face, Yoru's lips twitched. He forced a bitter smile and said, "Hokage-sama, please don't make fun of me. On my very first day at the border, I exposed critical intelligence and indirectly pushed our side into a three-front war. If I could choose, I wouldn't want this title—or this way of becoming famous—at all."
"This has nothing to do with you."
Hiruzen truly thought Yoru felt guilty, and immediately reassured him. "The Land of Earth's target was the Land of Fire from the beginning. Even if you and Tsunade hadn't been exposed, they would have created another opening, torn a hole in the border defense line, and declared war on us."
"Once two nations declare war on us, the third will never miss that chance. Three-front warfare was only a matter of time."
"On the other hand, although you and Tsunade were exposed, you drastically shortened the time we need to develop an antidote formula—and you injured the salamander. That means we don't have to fear an immediate strike from Hanzō on the Rain front for now, and it greatly boosted our morale. That's a major merit."
To encourage Yoru, Hiruzen produced the "secret weapon" he had already decided on and announced solemnly:
"Genin Gojo Yoru—given that you exceeded expectations in a high-level infiltration mission, assisted comrades in repelling a powerful enemy, secured our hope of cracking the salamander's poison, became a model for the new generation, and demonstrated excellent shinobi qualities— I hereby promote you specially in the name of the Third Hokage."
"Effective immediately, you are a Special Jōnin of Konoha. Ninja registration number: 007185."
The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
Yoru hadn't expected that "acting" a little would get him two ranks at once—jumping from genin to special jōnin.
Judging by Hiruzen's tone, if Yoru's overall qualifications were already at true all-round jōnin level, Hiruzen might have been tempted to elevate him into the actual jōnin tier of Konoha's high-level leadership.
This was one of the few "advantages" of war: it was easy to earn merits and become a hero—no exams needed, just special promotion.
More importantly, this kind of promotion rarely met obstruction or jealousy.
The battlefield was one of the fairest stages: if you had the ability, you could take what you wanted.
In canon, Namikaze Minato became Fourth Hokage largely by outperforming even veterans like Orochimaru and Shimura Danzō through his Third Great Ninja War achievements.
There weren't that many shinobi in the world who carried famous titles; each one was a powerhouse recorded in the ninja manuals of various nations.
Even among them, few names could match how loud Gojo Yoru's reputation was right now.
Merit, fame, and strength—if he remained "just a genin," it would actually provoke doubt and dissatisfaction among the civilian shinobi.
If even a figure who mastered a super S-rank technique and gained recognition from the shinobi demigod couldn't be specially promoted, then wouldn't civilian shinobi have no path upward?
Understanding that, Yoru straightened his posture and answered with equal solemnity. "Yes. Thank you, Hokage-sama."
Seeing Yoru "recover," Hiruzen showed a relieved smile, eyes full of appreciation and satisfaction toward this "grand-student."
Yoru didn't know that the information claiming he was only eleven and had already mastered Flying Thunder God was pushed along in the shadows by Hiruzen himself.
If Yoru hadn't been exposed and become famous, Hiruzen would have kept him hidden.
But since the name was already out, then he would push it to the loudest possible level—make Yoru the new generation's banner, the shinobi world's "model."
That was exactly why Hiruzen never placed Yoru in Anbu.
If the only goal were to hide him, nothing would be more suitable than Anbu.
Lighting the tobacco in his pipe, Hiruzen smiled. "Your file has already been upgraded. Once you step out, you can take your forehead protector and got a jōnin flak vest. Now tell me—what urgent matter brought you back this time?"
Yoru's next words made Hiruzen choke on smoke.
"Tsunade-sama's younger brother has died."
"Cough—cough…!"
Hiruzen coughed hard, face flushing red as he stared at Yoru in disbelief. "Y-you mean… Nawaki?"
"Yes."
At Yoru's nod, Hiruzen's gaze filled with incredulity.
"How is that possible? Wasn't Nawaki part of the support corps? Even if he stayed there, he was only rotating shifts with the on-duty support teams—either handling logistics transport or providing medical help. Scouting is the job of the reconnaissance teams and Anbu. He only needed to relay information. How could something happen to him? Was he assassinated by infiltrating enemy shinobi?!"
Even Hiruzen found it unbelievable—which showed just how absurd it was.
Yoru explained what happened. Hiruzen was left speechless.
He inhaled and exhaled smoke again and again. His brows knitted so tightly you could've crushed a fly between them. His mood had flipped completely from moments earlier.
He had considered the possibility that Nawaki died to enemy assassination—after all, anyone capable of infiltrating had to be at least special jōnin level.
But he never imagined Nawaki died to an explosive tag.
And it wasn't even "bad luck while following orders"—it was reckless: he rushed into a dangerous area without sticking with the unit, without staying behind superiors, and without even sending a shadow clone ahead to scout…
Hiruzen didn't know how to judge it.
If Nawaki had only been injured, Hiruzen would have exploded in fury and scolded him harshly.
But now that the dead were beyond scolding, Hiruzen could only remain silent.
Yoru spoke up. "Hokage-sama… do you want to go to Tsunade-sama?"
"If she had lost someone in a normal mission, I should," Hiruzen said quietly. "But this is wartime. Given my position, I cannot show special treatment."
"All shinobi who die in war will be buried and honored equally afterward, and their names will be carved onto the memorial stone."
"I regret Nawaki's death, but he too was a member of Konoha and must abide by these rules."
"As for Tsunade… she's already an independent jōnin. She will find her way out on her own."
With his mood sunk to the bottom, Hiruzen had no interest in small talk. He forced a smile and said,
"Go collect your flak vest. Your status is no longer what it was. Stay close to Orochimaru and learn well—improve your overall quality in preparation for your next promotion."
"I'll record your contributions on the battlefield. If you want to exchange merit for jutsu later, you can come to me anytime."
"Yes."
Yoru nodded, then turned and left the Hokage's office.
~~~
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