"You two... what's going on here?"
Sarutobi Biwako saw Tsunade and Kanda Kyoichi arrive together and instantly had a bad feeling about it—those two were always busy. If they'd made time to show up together, it probably wasn't for anything good.
"Ma'am, is Sensei home?"
"Uh-huh..." Sure enough.
The more enthusiastic the tone, the bigger the ask.
Biwako knew the drill. She didn't even bother asking what they were here for—just pointed toward the house and said, "You're just in time. He's inside bickering with Asuma again."
"Asuma's usually a pretty obedient kid. It's probably just a misunderstanding," Kyoichi said with a smile.
Biwako didn't know how to respond to that.
Sure, maybe Asuma seemed well-behaved in front of Kyoichi, but when it came to Hiruzen, he was as stubborn as a mule—once he made up his mind, there was no turning back.
He'd even gone as far as arguing and going cold with his father over it.
After all, ninja don't lack ways to make a living.
That was why Asuma dared to go toe-to-toe with the Third Hokage—
Worst case? He'd just move out.
"Go on in," Biwako said with a knowing smile. She didn't say much else. Both Hiruzen and Asuma had their flaws, but in her view, the root of it was simple—
They were both too free lately.
Back when they were busy with work, they barely had time to argue.
And even when they did, it wasn't this often.
"Thank you, Ma'am. We'll head in, then."
Tsunade bowed lightly.
Then she and Kyoichi slid open the door and stepped inside.
In the main room, Hiruzen and Asuma were playing shogi. One was huffing and puffing with a red face, while the other looked thoroughly bored and annoyed—it was the perfect picture of two people with way too much time on their hands.
Kyoichi took one look and instantly felt more confident about their visit.
"Lord Third."
"What brings you two here? Hah, don't tell me you've got something else you want this old man to step in and handle? The Uchiha mess?"
Hiruzen kept his eyes on the shogi board but turned with a chuckle.
That mindset...
Kyoichi nearly teared up.
Does the old man think his only remaining value is being pulled out to take the blame for things?
You're not Danzo, you know.
"As if we'd need you to step in for the Uchiha," Asuma muttered with a scoff.
Hiruzen paused, shot him a glare, and was about to scold him, but with both Tsunade and Kyoichi present, he held back. He dropped his shogi piece and said, "Let's talk business. I'm done with this. You, out."
Asuma was about to lose anyway.
But beating his own son didn't feel like much of an accomplishment, so Hiruzen was more curious about why these two had shown up.
No one comes to the Hokage's Hall without a reason.
Especially Tsunade.
If she called him "Old Man," it usually meant everything was fine.
But when she said "Sensei," there was definitely something up.
"No need. Asuma's a Chūnin now—having him sit in won't hurt. It's not like we're talking about a top-secret matter," Kyoichi said, stopping Asuma from tossing the shogi pieces and storming out.
Asuma didn't argue, and sat back down silently.
Then Tsunade spoke up.
"Sensei, here's the situation: You should already be familiar with the current state of the ninja academy—after all, many of the policies were implemented during your tenure."
"You mean the Chūnin Prep Class and the Chūnin Re-Education Class?" Hiruzen blinked, surprised.
He'd assumed Kyoichi and Tsunade had come with some sort of major political request—maybe to have him mediate with the Uchiha clan, get them to cooperate more, or pressure Fugaku into giving up his role as head of the Military Police.
But instead...
They wanted to talk about education?
…This…
He couldn't help but reflect. Had he gotten too caught up in scheming?
"Yes, based on Kyoichi's plans, the current shinobi academy system clearly no longer suits the present situation."
"Indeed, the academy system… Sigh, this is all my fault."
Sarutobi Hiruzen let out a heavy sigh.
It was his fault. During the war, the death toll had been so high that they'd had no choice but to send young children to the battlefield early for real-world experience—hoping they'd mature quickly to fill the gap in the mid-tier ranks.
Now that they were in peacetime, they had restored the original structure: enrollment at five years old, graduation at twelve.
But...
This created a huge disparity in rank among children of the same age group. Those who had graduated early were already chūnin, while their peers who stayed in school would start from genin.
In a sense...
It just didn't sit right.
Yet he didn't have a better solution.
After thinking for a while, the Third asked, "Kyoichi, do you have a plan?"
"I wouldn't call it a full plan. I just think the academy needs to be expanded and consolidated. After all, more and more students will be enrolling in the future, and the current scale simply isn't enough. Also, I'd like to incorporate shinobi into the broader education system."
Kyoichi said calmly.
"Oh?"
The Third straightened up. He knew it—if this was just about expanding the academy, they wouldn't need to come see him in person. That part they could've done themselves.
This was the real reason they came.
"Currently, genin are taught and led by jōnin. The advantage of that is tailored instruction, allowing jōnin to dig deeper into each genin's potential. Would you agree?"
"Indeed."
The Third nodded.
"You plan to abolish the jōnin squad leader system?" Tsunade furrowed her brow.
She'd assumed Kyoichi just wanted to expand and consolidate the system, maybe get the Third to help out. But now it sounded like he was proposing to change the entire structure—eliminate the long-standing three-man squad system led by a jōnin?
That was…
Unthinkable.
This jōnin-led team format had existed even before the founding of the village and had been in place ever since. Many personal and professional relationships in Konoha were rooted in the master-disciple bond.
Just look at Minato and Obito.
Kyoichi, Shisui, and Asuma—they were all products of this legacy.
Abolishing the jōnin-led team system would cause massive ripples.
"Asuma, you came up through the genin system. What's your take?"
Kyoichi turned to him.
"Me? Uh… Well, let me think. I feel like jōnin aren't always capable of everything. Some teams end up not suited to their assigned jōnin at all. And some less talented genin don't seem to get good guidance either."
Asuma thought of Kamizuki Izumo and Hagane Kotetsu.
Under Kyoichi's guidance, their skills and teamwork had improved dramatically. While they were still genin, they could now hold their own against an average chūnin as a team.
Before Kyoichi's training, they didn't stand a chance.
Another example was Ebisu.
He specialized in Fire Release, but his jōnin instructor, Shirakumo Hayama, was more skilled in Wind Release and kenjutsu. So post-graduation, Ebisu had focused on taijutsu and ninja tools. The only fire technique he had was the basic Fireball Jutsu.
Because Shirakumo…
Didn't know Fire Release.
The Third looked at Asuma but didn't scold him this time. He nodded slowly, his expression complicated.
"Anything else?"
"Well… uh… I'm not saying they're bad. Just that their teaching ability might not match their strength."
Asuma chose his words carefully—his teacher was right there, after all.
Kyoichi chuckled and said, "To be blunt: some jōnin are strong, but they're just not good at teaching. Minato said something similar to me yesterday."
"Well, that's true… Most jōnin did claw their way up through battles."
The Third understood perfectly.
Take Shirakumo Hayama, for instance.
He had served in the ANBU for years before becoming a standard jōnin. He had no teaching experience, so his instructional skills were naturally limited.
Since Kyoichi came to him with this, Hiruzen knew he must have a plan. He waited for Kyoichi to continue.
"So, I want to divide genin into two categories: those who graduated within the past year, and those who've been genin for over a year. The first group—within their first year—would only be allowed to take C-rank or lower missions. For them, we'll assign them to strong chūnin instead."
"What?"
Tsunade was stunned.
The clans would skin you alive!
The Third raised a hand to calm her, then thought for a moment and said, "You're proposing something like chūnin training classes and boot camps?"
"Exactly. We'll choose skilled educators from the jōnin and tokubetsu jōnin ranks to focus specifically on teaching these genin. Their time would be split evenly: half for study, half for D-rank missions."
"Half…"
Tsunade was still reeling.
Was that even allowed?
Unbelievable!
If she were a student, she'd want to beat Kyoichi up after hearing that.
Originally, that other half of the schedule could be used freely—for training or rest. But under Kyoichi's plan, new genin wouldn't have much downtime at all.
In fact…
She had a sneaking suspicion that even those D-rank missions were meant to be rest time.
Just brutal.
She couldn't help but pity the graduates, but as Hokage, she understood exactly how beneficial Kyoichi's plan was.
A more capable mid- and lower-rank shinobi force!
Genin would receive better education.
Chūnin would gain experience in team leadership.
And jōnin would be freed from team management…
A win-win-win.
"It's a solid plan. So who will be leading these teams of genin?"
"Young, capable chūnin—people like you, Asuma."
Kyoichi turned to look at him.
"Huh?"
Asuma was caught off guard, not expecting to be singled out.
But then it hit him—Kyoichi had asked them to start mentoring lower-year students.
"I get it now! You asked us to tutor them so we'd get used to leading teams, didn't you?"
Asuma was dumbfounded.
So… it had all been part of the plan?
His teacher was so… so… sly—
No, smart!
"That's one way to look at it. It's also a filtering process. Based on how you all perform as tutors, we'll know who's suited for leadership and who isn't."
Kyoichi explained further.
The Third, hearing all this, now fully understood.
No wonder they came to him!
Kyoichi's plan was solid. If executed properly, everything would connect seamlessly, creating a virtuous cycle within the village and continuously injecting fresh blood into each rank.
The only issue?
Running an academy like this would probably require just a little less effort than being Hokage. And this role couldn't be filled by just anyone.
The leader of this academy would need vast knowledge and sharp discernment—one to write textbooks and design lessons, the other to identify talent.
"Ah, I see now… You've come to rope me into doing the hard work."
"So will you do it?" Tsunade smiled.
"Of course I will! Why wouldn't I?!"
The Third answered without hesitation.
This kind of work—
Who else but me?
In the shinobi world, there may be someone who's the best in each individual element. But when it comes to mastering all five elements and their composite use, none could compare to the legendary Sarutobi Sasuke.
And now—
That person was the Third.
Among all of Konoha's current shinobi, he alone had the time and the ability to take this on.
Well… there was one other person.
But that guy always found someone else to do the work…
Never mind…
That brat really is busy.
"Then I'll leave it to you. Of course, I'll be offering some help as well."
"Wait—hang on, I still have a few details I want to ask about."
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