The sun was setting over Konoha Village, painting the sky with a faint golden glow.
Inside the Hokage's Office, the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, was busy processing stacks of mission reports.
Beside him stood Hatake Sakumo, the captain of the ANBU—Konoha's covert operations unit—reviewing the documents related to ANBU resource allocations and personnel assessments.
"Sakumo," Hiruzen said between puffs of his pipe, his voice calm but weary, "that boy, Leo—he's officially joined the ANBU now, hasn't he?"
"That kid?" Sakumo nodded. "Yes, I've already assigned him to the unit. But since he's still young and lacks field experience, I've made him an ANBU trainee for now."
"An ANBU trainee?" Hiruzen chuckled softly after a brief pause. "That's not a bad idea."
Leo's strength was indeed remarkable, but at the end of the day, he was still just a child—brilliant but untested.
And in a place like Konoha, filled with so-called prodigies, true growth came only to a rare few.
The Hokage understood this well.
Ordinary shinobi received few resources; they had to earn every scrap of support through dangerous missions.
But the ANBU was different—it was a nest of talent, composed only of the elite among elites.
Sakumo took a sip of tea before replying, "Geniuses often come with arrogance, Lord Hokage. It'll be good for him to have his temperament honed. No need to worry too much."
He hadn't met Leo in person yet—most of what he knew came from reports and rumors, tales of a prodigy whose skill was far beyond his peers.
But in Sakumo's eyes, a "genius" was merely someone slightly stronger than average.
To truly earn his acknowledgment, the boy would have to prove his worth.
That's why, despite Leo having joined the ANBU more than a week ago, Sakumo hadn't bothered to meet him yet.
He wanted to observe first—to see what kind of character Leo truly possessed.
Suddenly, bang!
A masked ANBU operative appeared in the room in a puff of smoke, dropping to one knee before them.
Unlike ordinary shinobi, ANBU never used the door. Their every movement was swift and silent—efficiency was their creed.
Both Sarutobi and Sakumo looked up immediately.
"What is it?" Sakumo asked, his tone calm but commanding.
"Captain, Lord Hokage," the masked ninja reported respectfully, "the ANBU trainee Leo is currently engaged in a Dark Ranking Duel at ANBU Headquarters. He has achieved ten consecutive victories, and the duels are still ongoing."
"What?" Sakumo's eyes widened slightly. "A Dark Ranking Duel… and Leo?"
The Dark Ranking system had been Sakumo's own creation—a brutal ranking mechanism designed to train and identify exceptional talents within the ANBU.
Only the most gifted shinobi in the village—and sometimes even in the entire Five Great Nations—could place on that list.
And this boy, who had joined only days ago, had already won ten matches in a row?
"Are you certain?" Sarutobi exhaled a long stream of smoke, his expression thoughtful.
"I wouldn't dare deceive the Hokage," ANBU said quickly. "The entire ANBU is in an uproar right now."
"Heh…" Sarutobi chuckled, shaking his head. "That kid really doesn't let people rest easily. Wherever he goes, chaos follows."
Sakumo's expression, however, turned serious.
"Lord Hokage, I'll go take a look."
"Go," Sarutobi said, waving his hand. "I'd like to see how you handle this, Captain."
In the next instant, both Sakumo and the messenger vanished in a flicker of Shunshin no Jutsu.
Konoha ANBU Headquarters – Duel Grounds
By now, over several dozen ANBU operatives had gathered—a rare sight in such a usually silent place.
Normally, the ANBU operated in near-total isolation, rarely socializing, but tonight's scene was filled with murmurs and excitement.
On the field, a fierce battle raged.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
A masked ninja wearing a brown, stone-patterned mask slammed his palms to the ground.
The earth trembled violently as the ground cracked open, debris scattering everywhere.
Moments later, a massive earth dragon burst forth from the ground, roaring as it coiled in the air before diving downward like a falling mountain.
It was a B-rank jutsu—on the weaker end of that level, but still deadly.
"Perfect!"
Leo's eyes flashed.
"Armament Haki: Hardening: Monster Strength Spiral Impact!"
Using Geppo (Moonwalk), he launched himself into the air.
His arm darkened to metallic black as he drew it back, steam hissing from the seams between his clenched fingers.
"BOOM!!"
His punch slammed into the dragon's head with thunderous force.
The impact radiated outward in dark red sparks, like black lightning cracking through space.
Crack—crack—crack!
The dragon's stone body shattered in an instant, though its natural earth defense still held—barely.
The masked earth-natured ninja smirked.
"Too impulsive, kid. In the air, you have no footing. Once you fall, you're finished—"
"Moon Step!"
Before the sentence even ended, Leo's foot struck empty air—and he stepped upward again!
Each step created a faint swirl of air pressure as if he were walking on invisible stairs.
The opponent's eyes went wide. "What—what kind of technique is that!?"
"Armament Haki: Iron Fist!"
Leo vanished in a blur, appearing above the dragon's weak point.
He came crashing down from the sky like a meteor, his blackened fist striking the creature's "seven-inch" vital spot.
BOOOOM!
The dragon split cleanly in half under the overwhelming power of his enhanced strike.
"Soru!"
In the blink of an eye, Leo appeared before his opponent.
By the time the other ninja sensed the gust of wind, Leo's fist was already at his mask's edge—one inch from shattering it completely.
"I—I surrender!" the man gasped.
Silence followed.
Then came the whispers.
"That's thirteen wins in a row…"
"Who is this guy!?"
"There was no such name on the Dark Ranking before!"
"At this rate, he's invincible below jonin level…"
All around, ANBU members looked on with awe and respect.
In the ANBU, hierarchy was simple—strength ruled all.
Leo exhaled, checking his mission tracker:
Experience – 7200 / 10000.
He was about to leave when the crowd suddenly parted.
A tall figure with silver-white hair stepped forward, his mere presence drawing silent reverence from every ANBU present.
It was Konoha's White Fang—Hatake Sakumo.
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