However,
It's easier said than done.
After receiving Danzo's message last night, Konoha's top combatants had already been dispatched to the front lines.
Of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru and Jiraiya had gone to reinforce the defense against Kumogakure. Since Danzo was present on the front facing Kusagakure and Iwagakure, Tsunade's dispatch there had been temporarily postponed.
As the greatest Medical-nin of this era, her role coordinating the entire medical system from the rear was far more crucial than fighting on the front lines.
Unless the frontline forces suffered catastrophic losses, it was unlikely she would be sent.
Minato was temporarily exempt due to training his new team. Furthermore, with his speed, he could reach any front quickly if needed later.
But even with these two, victory wasn't assured.
In a random encounter, perhaps. But in a formal duel... Hiruzen looked once more at Ryuji and Karura's files, especially their abilities and records, and felt his headache return.
In a one-on-one duel with set parameters, the opponents' abilities gave them a significant advantage.
"Haaaah..."
Hiruzen refilled his pipe, lit it, took a deep drag, and slowly exhaled. Feeling slightly better, he spoke. "We can't completely exclude the Uchiha from participating. That would be treating their honor as dirt, and they would never accept it. So, the Uchiha must field at least one participant. The other two..."
Here, Hiruzen's gaze swept over Minato before continuing. "Will be Tsunade and... Kohinata Mukai."
Minato was momentarily surprised, then understanding dawned. "Indeed. Having Tsunade-sama face Ryuji is sound… her fists can likely breach his armor. Kohinata Mukai's abilities are a hard counter to close-quarters combat, making him the perfect choice to handle Gin. However..."
Minato looked at Hiruzen, puzzled. "We can roughly guess their lineup from their personnel. But how do we ensure the match-ups we want?"
"Cough..."
Hiruzen raised a fist to his mouth and coughed lightly. "Well... we'll simply draw lots. Fate will favor Konoha."
"Huh?"
Minato's eyes widened.
Then he understood. Rigged lots.
…
Ding-ding-ding-ding!!!
With the ringing of the bell, the clamor of students and the sound of chasing footsteps in the corridors erupted. The parents waiting outside for their children stirred slightly, and the quiet campus transformed into a hub of noise.
Ryuji and the Sunagakure's delegation's teachers also emerged from the stream of people, heading back.
Summer rain came and went quickly.
The morning's downpour had given way to blazing afternoon sun. The puddles on the roads were almost completely dry.
Ryuji walked at the front with Karura, inquiring about the day's observations.
"After listening to classes all day, I can feel a distinct difference between Konoha's and Sunagakure's educational approaches."
"Oh? Tell me."
"First, regarding content. Perhaps due to the rain, all classes today were indoors. I felt... they place far too much emphasis on general academic subjects. Classes related to Shinobi, like code-breaking, make sense. But mathematics, classical literature, geography, chemistry... There's so much content I don't understand the relevance to being a Shinobi."
Here, Karura couldn't help but smile wryly. "Honestly, even though I'm a teacher, when it comes to general academic knowledge, I'm probably inferior to the top students here."
"Ah."
Ryuji opened his mouth but found himself at a loss for words.
Even in his past life, watching the Anime, he had never understood this aspect. Especially when online forums claimed that a Konoha's Chunin had academic knowledge equivalent to a university or even graduate student level, his mind had simply gone blank.
While a Shinobi needed a broad knowledge base, surely the requirements weren't that high!
In Sunagakure, academic classes only covered knowledge essential for Shinobi, with puppeteers studying a bit more.
Was Konoha's Ninja Academy really trying to train everyone as potential Hokage?
However, claiming it was useless was also absurd.
Even modern militaries in his previous world valued higher education; there were certainly benefits, even if the exact reasons weren't always clear.
Moreover, while the Shinobi Academy taught a wide range of subjects, the depth wasn't extreme… roughly at a middle or high school level. Further learning was expected through self-study during missions.
So, there wasn't much to critique.
After all, creating new Ninjutsu also relied on knowledge.
Not everyone had the talent to invent techniques, but a higher baseline of knowledge meant such talents were less likely to be missed.
Looking at the Boruto era, Konoha had even developed Scientific Ninja Tools. Given another few decades or a century, Shinobi might not even need to learn traditional Ninjutsu.
So, knowledge was undeniably important.
"Cough... Regarding that, I'm not an expert either. You and the other teachers should observe and learn for a while longer. Then, combine it with Sunagakure's environmental and social conditions to develop a suitable educational system for our village."
"Yes, sir. We will complete the task."
"No need to rush. Tomorrow's schedule is different. Let's return to the residence and regroup with the others first."
"Alright."
…
Around 5 PM, as the sun began to set in the west.
Apart from the twenty interns assigned to night shifts at the hospital, everyone had returned to the residence.
Ryuji gathered everyone in the conference room.
"...So, that's the situation."
After explaining the duel scheduled for tomorrow, Ryuji surveyed the room, taking in everyone's reactions.
Some looked worried, some excited, some indifferent, some hesitant... Depending on personality and perspective, each person reacted differently.
Ryuji nodded and continued. "I initiated this duel for three reasons: first, to settle the grievance; second, to deter any further provocations; third, to gauge Konoha's current strength. Therefore, tomorrow's participants will be me, Gin, and..."
Ryuji's gaze first landed on Kuro. But remembering Kuro had zero combat experience, he shifted his attention to Karura.
This young woman was only nineteen, with a slender build and a perpetually gentle smile. To anyone, she appeared utterly harmless.
Yet, she was the third Shinobi in Sunagakure, after the Third Kazekage and Rasa, capable of using Magnet Release, and possessed astonishing Chakra Reserve.
However,
Despite Karura's strength, her personality was too soft, too kind-hearted. She wasn't suited for combat.
"...Kuro will take the third match."
"Yes, sir."
Kuro responded calmly. Karura, however, looked stunned. The others began to murmur amongst themselves.
Gin was acceptable; though rarely seen in the village, most knew of her as a formidable fighter. But Kuro... Ryuji had created him only days ago. Few knew him, and no one knew his capabilities.
After a moment's hesitation, Karura spoke up. "Ryuji-sama, I mean no disrespect to Kuro-sama, but tomorrow's duel concerns the village's reputation. Wouldn't it be better if I participated?"
"No. Kuro's strength is also considerable."
Ryuji stated with a serious expression. Meanwhile, he thought to himself: 'If he can't win, we'll just have Aka take over remotely.'