After the Ninja Trial, the Ninja School continued to operate as usual. The children who had fought in the Death Forest for three days did not have much rest, but their ninja training had instilled resilience, and the schoolwork was not overly demanding.
Minato did not pay attention to the theoretical courses in the morning. Most people in the Ninja School were speculating about the qualified candidates for the Ninja Trial, but the Hokage had not announced it, so no one knew for sure. Minato, Mikoto, and others who were given the order kept silent. Even Kushina, who was always loud, was surprisingly quiet this time. Minato was also pondering many matters related to the Ninja Trial, but even he could not sort everything out this time. Not only did the students not know, but even a Chunin like Shirota-sensei was in the dark.
"Minato, come out with me," Shirota-sensei called out after finishing the morning class.
"Ok." Minato, lost in thought, came back to his senses and followed Shirota-sensei out of the classroom. They walked into the teacher's office, where Minato immediately recognized the back of Uchiha Yoruki. The latter also glanced sideways at him, his black pupils filled with a complex mix of anger, determination, and other emotions. They had fought just the previous day, and Minato understood that with Uchiha Yoruki's pride, he would not easily accept defeat.
Minato did not feel threatened by Uchiha Yoruki because standing in the room was the chief examiner of the Ninja Trial, Hatake Sakumo. "It seems that both of you are in good mental states," Sakumo laughed, then looked at Shirota-sensei and said, "Shirota, I'm sorry to bother you, but for the sake of confidentiality, you can't stay here now."
Shirota glanced at Minato. Judging from the situation, these two children probably had a place among the qualified candidates of the Ninja Trial. Their excellence exceeded the scope of ninja school students. Of course, this was just his guess, and then he left the office.
Hatake Sakumo looked at the two young ninjas in front of him, while Minato and Uchiha Yoruki observed another woman leaning against the wall, her arms crossed as she looked at them. "In the Ninja test yesterday, both of you performed very well, which was recognized by all the village leaders," Sakumo said, trying to ease the atmosphere. Minato was composed; passing the test was not his ultimate goal—he wanted the recognition of the Sandaime. Uchiha Yoruki, on the other hand, was different. As the pride of the Uchiha, being defeated by Minato was hard to accept.
"Lord Sakumo, just say whatever you want to say. I think with your status, it is unlikely that you just want to praise us," Minato's eyes were slightly solemn. He had a hunch that Sakumo's appearance was not a good sign. Uchiha Yoruki also turned his gaze away from Minato and looked at Sakumo.
"Actually, I came here this time to announce the order of the Sandaime to both of you," Sakumo's expression became serious. Minato Namikaze and Uchiha Yoruki couldn't help but widen their eyes.
"The Sandaime ordered me, Hatake Sakumo, to be the captain, and Suzuka, Minato Namikaze, and Uchiha Yoruki to form a ninja team to go to the Land of Hot Springs to kill the Konoha traitor Shinzo Kuriyama!"
Sakumo announced the Sandaime's order without any preparation. The pupils of the two young ninjas couldn't help but shrink when they heard it. In the corner, Suzuka, with her arms around her chest, observed the expressions of Minato and Uchiha Yoruki with interest. Their reaction was expected.
"How can you let us two who are still students of the ninja school participate in a mission of this level?" Uchiha Yoruki came to his senses earlier than Minato this time. As a member of the Uchiha clan, he naturally knew much more about the classification of ninja tasks than most students. Although Minato had trained with Jiraiya for a year, he had not been taught much about the intricacies of missions that came after becoming a ninja.
When going to another country, if there are ninjas on the kill list, the mission definition must be at least A-level. Even Genin are not qualified to participate. It is a mission that only high Chunin and Jonin can perform. What's more, a traitor who betrayed the village and survived to this day must be very capable. The difficulty of this mission is definitely higher than A-level.
"S-level mission!" Uchiha Yoruki said, emphasizing the gravity.
"Why, are you scared?" Sakumo smiled faintly. Uchiha Yoruki paused before answering, "It's not that I'm scared, but it's extremely absurd to give such a mission to us who are still students. I'm questioning the authenticity of this mission."
There is no doubt that Uchiha Yoruki is a real genius. Regardless of the outcome between him and Minato, he already has all the most basic qualities of a ninja. It is reasonable to question the authenticity of the mission. After all, anyone who hears it will find it too absurd. Suzuka's eyes showed approval as she looked at Uchiha Yoruki.
Sakumo smiled, picked up a scroll on the table behind him, and threw it to Uchiha Yoruki. "I respect your right to question. Everything you want to know is in this scroll, but if you open it, it means you have accepted the mission, and it is impossible to give up."
The scroll contained a lot of information about Kuriyama and the Land of Hot Springs. It was a super-confidential file. Without special circumstances, even Jonin were not qualified to read it. Sakumo glanced at the two and said, "Don't blame me for not reminding you in advance. Think about it before making a decision. This mission is not a training exercise like the Ninja Trial. If you are not careful, you will lose your life."
Sakumo's tone became serious. No matter what, the danger of this mission is too great, and the two of them need to really risk their lives. At this time, Uchiha Yoruki's hand holding the scroll was also shaking slightly. After all, no matter how talented he is, he had never experienced life and death.
"I accept it." Just as Sakumo was waiting for their answer, Minato said lightly, then took the scroll from Uchiha Yoruki's hand, opened it directly, and began to read it. If it were someone else, they would definitely think that Minato was ignorant of mission risks and did not care about his life, but Suzuka and Hatake Sakumo could see from his clear eyes that it was not that he did not know—it was that he had no fear at all.
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