Kaede Kitahara paused, clearly caught off guard. Even he hadn't expected to be promoted to jonin—well, technically, Tokubetsu Jonin, the lowest rank within the jonin system.
It wasn't that he doubted his own strength.
It was just that he had only been promoted to chunin less than a year ago.
His own teacher, Akai Akimoto, had remained a chunin for years before finally being promoted to Tokubetsu Jonin.
And yet here he was, having held the rank of chunin for less than a year, already being elevated again. During wartime, that kind of rapid promotion wouldn't have been unusual—battlefield promotions happened all the time.
Hatake Kakashi had even jumped straight to jonin at the age of twelve, skipping Tokubetsu Jonin entirely.
But this was peacetime.
Seeing the surprise on Kaede Kitahara's face, the Third Hokage smiled faintly. The truth was, this promotion had indeed sparked some controversy. Under normal circumstances, promoting someone to Tokubetsu Jonin was well within his authority to decide alone.
But this time, the advisory council had unexpectedly raised objections.
He knew his two old friends wouldn't normally oppose him over something like this. The real hand behind it all was Shimura Danzō.
Using Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu as intermediaries, he had interfered with the decision.
It was obvious how much Danzō disliked Kaede Kitahara. Most likely, it stemmed from the repeated failures of his earlier schemes targeting him.
But the more Danzō pushed, the less Hiruzen was willing to yield.
There was only one Hokage.
And that was him—Sarutobi Hiruzen.
As for Danzō, he would always remain in the shadows as "Root," never stepping into the light.
Moreover, Hiruzen felt no guilt over this promotion. Kaede Kitahara's strength more than qualified him for Tokubetsu Jonin. His only shortcoming was his lack of seniority, but completing multiple S-rank missions was more than enough to make up for that. Most Tokubetsu Jonin would never accumulate that many S-rank missions in their entire careers.
"Thank you, Lord Hokage."
Kaede Kitahara bowed slightly.
"Additionally, as a reward for reaching jonin-level status, you may choose two techniques from this list to learn."
The Third Hokage produced a sheet of paper listing five jutsu.
This was standard practice in Konoha. Many civilian jonin acquired their techniques gradually through the village, rather than inheriting them from clans.
Kaede Kitahara took the paper and scanned it.
"Genjutsu: Bringer-of-Darkness Technique. Fox Sly Mind Skill. Taijutsu: Konoha Whirlwind. Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation. Water Release: Water Encampment Wall."
He looked them over carefully.
The first two were genjutsu. Bringer-of-Darkness Technique was an A-rank illusion, the highest-level technique on the list. It deprived the target of their vision entirely.
During the battle between the Hokage, the Second Hokage had once used this very technique to blind the Third, forcing him to fight by instinct alone.
Fox Sly Mind Skill, on the other hand, was a C-rank support-type genjutsu that trapped opponents in a looping maze, making them believe they had traveled far while steadily draining their stamina.
Konoha Whirlwind didn't need much consideration. It belonged to the same taijutsu series as the Leaf Gale Kaede Kitahara had previously copied with his Sharingan, and it paired exceptionally well with the Eight Gates.
Great Fire Annihilation was a B-rank Fire Release technique. In the original records, Uchiha Madara had unleashed it with overwhelming force, elevating what should have been a B-rank jutsu into something comparable to an S-rank attack. It had required a large group of ninja using Water Release simultaneously just to counter it.
For an average Tokubetsu Jonin, it could easily serve as a trump card.
For civilian ninja, even a B-rank jutsu could be considered a finishing move. A-rank techniques were out of reach for most unless they had some kind of background or connections. Only full-fledged jonin typically had access to them.
In this world, ninjutsu was a scarce resource—one of the most effective ways for villages to maintain control over their shinobi.
Once someone left the village system, their access to proper training in ninjutsu was essentially cut off.
That was why Hatake Kakashi's reputation for having copied over a thousand jutsu carried such weight.
The strongest among Konoha's younger generation—if he hadn't wasted his own potential, Sarutobi Hiruzen might have retired long ago.
The final option was Water Release, an element Kaede Kitahara had yet to explore. Water Encampment Wall could generate a defensive barrier even in places without water, functioning similarly to Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall.
After a moment's thought, Kaede Kitahara made his choice.
First, Bringer-of-Darkness Technique.
This A-rank genjutsu was something he was determined to obtain. With his Sharingan, he had a natural advantage when it came to casting genjutsu.
But he hadn't been able to fully capitalize on it.
After all, he wasn't a true member of the Uchiha Clan. Many of the genjutsu refined by the clan over generations were beyond his reach.
It was similar to Uchiha Sasuke.
It wasn't that Sasuke lacked talent in genjutsu compared to Uchiha Itachi, but rather that after the clan's destruction, he had no way to properly inherit those techniques.
Orochimaru himself wasn't particularly skilled in genjutsu either, leaving Sasuke to rely largely on the raw power of his Sharingan.
Kaede Kitahara found himself in much the same situation.
For his second choice, he selected Great Fire Annihilation.
Even though its rank wasn't particularly high, the memory of Uchiha Madara unleashing it with devastating power had left a deep impression on him.
"Lord Hokage, I've decided. I'd like to learn Bringer-of-Darkness Technique and Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation."
"Very well. I'll have copies of the scrolls prepared for you."
The Third Hokage nodded.
"You may go and get some rest. You've worked hard lately."
Kaede Kitahara didn't linger. He took his leave and walked out of the Hokage Tower.
Outside, members of his team and Team 7 were already waiting for him.
It didn't take long for them to hear the news of his promotion.
"Whoa, Brother Kaede, you're already a jonin?" Uzumaki Naruto's eyes went wide. "Does that mean you're about the same as Kakashi-sensei?"
"It's Tokubetsu Jonin, not full jonin. Kakashi-senpai is an elite jonin—two ranks above me."
Kaede Kitahara gestured as he explained.
"That fast?" Hyuga Keiko looked just as stunned. Given his strength, his promotion had only been a matter of time, but this was far sooner than expected.
He had passed the Chunin Exams ahead of them, and before they had even reached that stage themselves, he had already stepped into the jonin tier.
Even if it was the lowest level within that rank, it still meant he had fully surpassed ordinary shinobi and now qualified to lead missions.
"You've gotta treat us. No excuses."
Amakusa Ryuji spoke up immediately, grinning, though there was a hint of bitterness behind it. He was happy for his friend—but also a little exasperated.
You deserved something better, sure—but nobody said you had to be the best.
After agreeing to a meal the next day, Kaede Kitahara said his goodbyes. Everyone had their own homes to return to and didn't linger.
Only Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke had nowhere to go. Their houses were empty no matter how many times they returned.
So Kaede Kitahara simply dragged the two of them back to his place for dinner.
Naruto was already familiar with the Kitahara household, but for Sasuke, this was the first time he would actually stay for a meal.
When Fangko Kitahara saw her son return with two teammates, she immediately went out to buy ingredients.
While the neighborhood around them wasn't well-off, Fangko Kitahara certainly wasn't struggling. With the money Kaede Kitahara sent home each month, and their modest living expenses, she had more than enough saved.
"Just treat this like your own home. No need to hold back."
Kaede Kitahara waved it off casually.
After spending months together, the three of them had long since grown comfortable with each other, the initial awkwardness gone.
When the meal ended, Naruto and Sasuke left under the cover of night.
Kaede Kitahara watched them go with a faint smile. He couldn't help recalling how the two had still been competing at the table, neither willing to concede.
A classic pairing—protagonist and rival.
One impulsive, the other perpetually irritated.
Before long, nearly a year would have passed since their graduation. Both of them had grown tremendously stronger compared to their original trajectories.
When the Chunin Exams came around, they were bound to shock everyone.
Their identities weren't exactly secrets among Konoha's higher-ups—an Uchiha survivor and the Fourth Hokage's son, the jinchūriki of the Nine-Tails. They were both considered invaluable.
Only they themselves remained unaware.
Not long after dinner, an Anbu ninja arrived, delivering the copied scrolls for Bringer-of-Darkness Technique and Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation.
After confirming that the seals were intact and untouched, Kaede Kitahara got to work immediately.
He didn't practice at home.
Instead, he used the Flying Thunder God to teleport to a remote, desolate area.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!"
Completing the hand seals, he exhaled a massive wave of flames.
Fire surged outward, spreading across the land in a sweeping inferno that far exceeded the range of ordinary Fire Release techniques.
Though it covered only about half the area Uchiha Madara had once achieved, it was still astonishing—engulfing a radius of several hundred meters.
That single jutsu consumed nearly five percent of his chakra.
Its rank might not be high, but that only reflected its learning difficulty. Its destructive power wasn't fixed. With greater chakra input, its strength could rise to terrifying levels.
Feeling the rapid recovery of his chakra, Kaede Kitahara noted that the expended five percent had already begun to replenish.
Without hesitation, he prepared to continue testing.