A Sage's Pursuit of Power

Location: Konoha, Graveyard.

Kakashi stood in front of a tombstone, holding a bouquet of flowers.

Since his father's death, Kakashi had become increasingly withdrawn. There were few things in the village that he felt nostalgic for. One of them was the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze.

As his teacher and team leader, Minato was the most radiant and inspiring person Kakashi had ever known.

The ninja profession often involved bloodshed and darkness. But Minato was different; he was like the sun, always brightening the lives of those around him.

Footsteps approached from behind. It was rare for anyone to visit this place. Kakashi turned cautiously and then saw a familiar figure.

"Long time no see, Kakashi. I heard you were back in the village. I went to your house and when no one was there, I figured you'd be here."

"Aoba, when did you come back?"

"Just now."

"Good to have you back." Kakashi rarely engaged with others, except for Guy. He had few friends, but Aoba was an exception.

Years ago, when rumors against White Fang circulated in the village, Aoba was one of the few ninjas who stood by White Fang.

At that time, Kakashi was confused. He didn't know if his father was right or wrong. But he knew who was on his side.

This made Aoba one of the few people Kakashi could talk to.

"You seem... different."

Kakashi looked at Aoba's face, which was youthful and handsome, almost unchanged from memory.

But there was one difference: his right eye was covered by a tilted forehead protector.

"Your eye..."

"Had to pay a price when I ran into that reckless Raikage. Gave it my all and barely escaped."

"Surviving under the Raikage's pursuit is quite an achievement."

"Well, I gave him a little response—a single finger. Unfortunately, it didn't have much of an effect."

Aoba said this while placing the bouquet of flowers in front of the Fourth Hokage and his wife's tombstones.

"Let's go. Let's grab a bite to eat. I don't think I'll be in the village for too long. Let's call Guy and go for some barbecue. I've been craving it for years."

"...Alright."

At the Akimichi family's barbecue restaurant, Aoba, Kakashi, and Guy had already started eating.

"You know, the effects in the Land of Soup are practically nonexistent in the eyes of the Cloud Village's bandits. They cross the border as they please, and the Land of Soup doesn't dare to say anything.

But the Land of Fire is different. I was stationed at the border checkpoint. When they crossed the border, it was like declaring war. We had to fight to the death."

"I know. I've seen the border reports. The invasions by the Cloud Village have noticeably decreased in recent years. In the area you were stationed, there were almost no Cloud Village incursions. They were quite rampant before."

"Exactly. The Cloud Village is just like that—a group of thorough bandits. You can't reason with them at all. If you want to talk, you first have to beat them down."

Aoba's grievances with the Cloud Village over the years could be talked about for three days and nights. The Cloud Village had always taken advantage of Konoha's policy of concession, provoking them frequently.

As a stationed soldier at the border, it was his responsibility to deal with them. The higher-ups in Konoha could always use this as an excuse to hold him accountable if he didn't take action.

Thus, he had no choice but to go to war. Fortunately, he needed some substantial opponents to hone his skills. So, he used the Cloud Village ninjas as his training partners.

Over these years, he had developed his own unique combat system through real battles. He even earned the title of "Wind-Chasing Sword," meaning his sword was faster than the wind.

Aoba wasn't entirely satisfied with the title. There were many people faster than the wind in this world. But the title "Wind-Chasing Sword" sounded quite nice, so he eventually accepted it.

Interestingly, after Aoba unleashed his full power, Konoha had some internal issues. They even issued documents criticizing him for being too heavy-handed and damaging relations between the two countries.

Aoba dismissed such documents.

Although he had many casualties under his command, it was impossible to hold him accountable. He always killed opponents on the Land of Fire's territory.

That was his duty. From start to finish, it was the Cloud Village that provoked and crossed the border, engaging in various provocations. In the real world, any border violation would result in immediate gunfire from the opposing forces.

As his reputation grew, Konoha's voice quieted. They even recalled him.

He knew that this recall was likely for his promotion to Jonin.

Konoha was a militarized organization. The titles of Jonin, Chunin, and Genin were not merely titles. Most of the time, they also represented ranks and command order.

Jonin was equivalent to a high-ranking military officer, with natural command authority over Chunin and Genin.

Therefore, being promoted to Jonin was quite challenging. Strength alone wasn't enough. Leadership and comprehensive tactical skills were also required.

There were many special Jonin in the village, who could only meet part of the Jonin criteria and thus couldn't be promoted to full Jonin.

For Aoba, these were not issues. Over the three years, he had led a dozen Chunin and Genin at the border checkpoint, battling Cloud Village ninjas dozens of times.

He had killed three of their Jonin, sixteen Chunin, and several Genin. He even managed to save half of his comrades while being pursued by the Raikage. His combat power and comprehensive tactical ability were absolutely qualified.

In fact, if it weren't for the residual issues from Orochimaru, he should have been promoted long ago.

After the meal, as the three left, they were stopped by a masked Anbu member.

"Aoba Kamikawa, report to the Hokage's office immediately."

"Alright, it looks like this is where we part ways for today. Let's meet up again when we have time."

"Sure, let's have a sparring session at the training ground..."

This was something only Guy would say, and he said it with a loud voice. Fortunately, Aoba had anticipated this and used a Body Flicker Technique to leave the scene before Guy finished.

Kakashi was left to handle the situation alone. He really couldn't handle Guy's enthusiasm.

At the Hokage's office, he was surprised to see not only Hiruzen and the two old advisors but also a bandaged and eye-covered Danzo present.

"Hokage-sama." Aoba stepped forward to greet them.

"Yes, Aoba. You've worked hard guarding the border these years."

"It's all in service of the Will of Fire. There's no talk of hardship." Aoba's response was flawless. Hiruzen also nodded slightly, at least appreciating his attitude.

"The village is currently in need of capable individuals. There are two main tasks for your recall."