Noah advanced head-on, but Jiraiya opened his mouth and exhaled a violent blast of fire that completely engulfed him.
—Poof!
Noah's body dissipated into smoke. A clone.
Jiraiya looked up instantly.
From above, Noah was diving straight down. Jiraiya reacted without hesitation and spat a stream of toad oil directly at him. The liquid glistened in the air, thick and dangerous, capable of paralyzing on contact.
Before it could reach him, a water bubble enveloped Noah, and the oil slid off the liquid surface without touching him.
Jiraiya frowned.
He had carefully observed Noah's previous fights and knew that if he allowed his opponent to get close, close-quarters combat would be a bad idea. Taking advantage of the moment his attack was neutralized, he quickly retreated and gained distance.
Then he shook his head.
His white mane fluttered and began to grow unnaturally, lengthening and undulating as it advanced toward Noah like a serpent, seeking to trap him.
Noah dodged by a narrow margin. His hands closed around the hair mid-motion, and with a clean spin, he hurled Jiraiya through the air.
While airborne, Jiraiya shook his mane again.
Thousands of strands instantly hardened and transformed into needles, falling in a lethal rain upon Noah.
—It's decided! This is the end!
At that range, the Thousand Hair Needles Technique was practically instantaneous. There was no time for hand seals or elaborate defenses. Noah should not have been able to react.
But contrary to Jiraiya's expectations, Noah smiled and his figure vanished in a flicker.
An instant later, he reappeared above Jiraiya, just as the latter began to descend.
—That is…!
The pipe slipped from Hiruzen's mouth as he abruptly stood up.
The jutsu Noah had just used left no room for doubt. It was the Flying Thunder God Technique, the signature technique of his teacher Tobirama Senju. A high-level ninjutsu, famous not only for its lethality but for how nearly impossible it was to master.
Earlier, when Noah had caught Jiraiya's mane and thrown him into the air, he had left something inside the mane without Jiraiya noticing.
A kunai marked with the Flying Thunder God seal.
Noah appeared above Jiraiya and delivered a brutal kick that slammed him into the ground. The sand gave way with a dry crash, forming a small crater.
Kunai in hand, Noah began to descend rapidly.
Then, a thick cloud of smoke burst from the bottom of the crater.
From it emerged a giant leg that tried to catch him mid-air.
—So now we're playing kaiju… huh?
Noah threw the kunai to the ground and vanished in a flash. He reappeared at a distance and, without wasting time, formed a summoning seal.
A second colossal leg descended with crushing force, but this time it was stopped dead.
An enormous tail, covered in reddish scales, coiled around it violently.
This time, it wasn't Hiruzen who was surprised.
Orochimaru, observing the fight, narrowed his eyes.
Noah had also signed a contract with the snakes of Ryūchi Cave… just like him.
Before the astonished gaze of the onlookers, a giant toad and a colossal serpent materialized on the battlefield, dominating the scene with their mere presence.
—Garaga —Noah said calmly—. Take care of the toad.
Paying no further attention, Noah fixed his gaze on Jiraiya, who was struggling to his feet, visibly dazed.
Jiraiya looked at Garaga and stood still for a moment.
He had summoned Gamabunta purely out of reflex. He had no real intention of taking the battle to that extreme.
Seeing his opponent with a summon of the same level finally convinced him.
Sighing, he raised his arm in surrender.
He wasn't stupid.
With the Flying Thunder God Technique, Noah was practically untouchable. Even if, by some miracle, he managed to snatch away one kunai, who could guarantee Noah didn't have another… or several more?
Both dispelled their summons, and the battlefield fell silent once more.
—It was a good fight —Jiraiya said, extending his hand.
Noah shook it and smiled.
—Likewise.
Although he had lost, Jiraiya had nothing left to prove. His strength and experience had been made clear to everyone. His promotion was still assured.
As for Noah…
He no longer needed to prove absolutely anything.
After a few more rounds, the results were decided without delay.
Thirty names were finally selected, and with their confirmation, the jōnin promotion evaluation officially came to an end.
Although Jiraiya had lost to Noah, he managed to win his next match, thus securing his place among the chosen.
Once the evaluation was over, the Hokage specially summoned Noah and a few other winners whose faces were unfamiliar to him.
In a separate room, Hiruzen watched them in silence as he slowly exhaled smoke from his pipe. Before him stood twelve newly promoted jōnin.
—The twelve of you —he said at last, in a calm voice— are among the most outstanding shinobi of your generation. You are also the future pillars of the Leaf Village. Therefore, in order to further strengthen your experience and power, I hope you will agree to join the newly formed ANBU department and become the cornerstone that protects Konoha from the shadows.
The previous war had left deep scars. The village urgently needed a new generation of high-level shinobi.
Almost all accepted without hesitation.
Each had their own reasons, ambitions, or loyalties, but the ultimate goal was the same: to protect the village.
Only Noah showed a strange expression.
—Did I just become the first generation of ANBU…?
The idea struck him as curious.
But having nothing better to do —and considering the access, freedom of action, and resources that came with it— he eventually nodded calmly.
The next morning, still early, Noah headed to the newly inaugurated ANBU headquarters.
After completing the entire recruitment process, he received his new ninja identification. From that moment on, he was officially a jōnin of the Leaf Village and, at the same time, an ANBU directly answerable to the Hokage.
After a brief formal greeting, the twelve new recruits were divided into three teams of four. As usual, Noah did not know any of his new teammates.
The composition of each team was carefully selected.
When his turn came to choose a mask, Noah tried several without much interest… until he picked one with a fox face. He liked it immediately. It vaguely reminded him of Kakashi's mask. Without further thought, he chose it.
He set aside those unnecessary thoughts and followed the others. Now in full ANBU uniform, the four of them stood before the Hokage.
Hiruzen observed them for a few seconds in silence. Then he nodded with apparent satisfaction.
—Good. The four of you seem full of energy —he said—. I hope you maintain that vigor. Before officially becoming ANBU members, you must pass a recruitment test. If you complete it successfully, you will receive special training.
He tapped the table lightly with his pipe to get their attention.
—Now, regarding your test mission —he continued—. Konoha has received information that the Land of Sky is spending an unusually large amount of resources on something we do not know about. I want you to infiltrate there and find out exactly what they are building and why they are doing it.
Noah remained still, but his gaze grew somewhat deeper behind the mask.
The Land of Sky.
The war had already been going on for nearly three months.
It was not yet an open war, at least not entirely. For now, it remained limited to small-scale skirmishes, infiltration clashes, and pinpoint attacks along the borders. However, the intensity was gradually growing, like a dark tide that kept advancing.
Noah already knew the final outcome.
Konoha would end up completely destroying the Land of Sky.