159. Support Mission

Sora and Uzumaki Kushina had only been together for a few days when he was urgently summoned to the Hokage Building by Sarutobi Hiruzen.

When Sora arrived at the Hokage Building, he discovered that in addition to Sarutobi Hiruzen, there were also Namikaze Minato, Danzo, and even Konoha's two senior advisors, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, in the Hokage's office.

When Sarutobi Hiruzen saw Sora enter, he said with a serious expression, "Now that Sora is here, we can begin. I will explain the current situation to all of you.

The shinobi from Iwagakure have been preparing for our troops to counterattack in the Land of Grass. Now all the Iwa shinobi in the Land of Grass have moved to the Land of Rain, so our ninja forces have followed them there.

However, Rasa, who has just been officially appointed as the Fourth Kazekage after serving as acting Kazekage, suddenly announced that he would send Sunagakure ninjas to the Land of Rain to join our battle against Iwagakure. The three forces are now engaged in a chaotic battle in Amegakure.

Taking advantage of this confusion, Iwagakure has quietly sent their Elite Jōnin, Higashinari, to lead 1,000 Iwa troops in a surprise attack on the Land of Fire.

Our frontline commander of Konoha's defense force, Meimura Yeju, is currently leading our ninjas to resist this attack."

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Sora and Namikaze Minato with a serious expression and ordered, "Sora, Minato, you two must work together to support our forces! And Sora, Kakashi has been promoted to Jōnin and has been sent back to Konoha by Orochimaru.

He should arrive tonight.

You should set off immediately after he arrives."

"Yes, Hokage-sama!" they both responded.

Outside the Hokage Building.

Namikaze Minato smiled and said to Sora, "It seems we'll be fighting side by side again."

Since Namikaze Minato was now Uzumaki Miyuki's lover, although Sora disliked him, he still had to show respect for Uzumaki Miyuki's sake and reluctantly replied, "Yeah."

"You're still as cold as ever. I'll go gather Obito and the others to set off first, and we'll wait for you outside the village gates."

Namikaze Minato smiled and used the Body Flicker Technique to disappear.

Sora returned home and informed Uzumaki Kushina about his mission. He picked up the backpack that Kushina had prepared for him, left home, and waited for Kakashi at the gates of Konoha.

Two hours later, Kakashi arrived, having rushed back to the village.

"Sora-sensei!" Kakashi called out.

Seeing Kakashi's growth, Sora smiled and said, "It's been a while, Kakashi. I can see you've become stronger."

Kakashi smiled in return. "Orochimaru-sensei taught me a lot."

Then Kakashi's expression turned serious. "By the way, Sora-sensei, how is sensei's wife doing?"

Sora's smile widened.

Seeing Sora's smile, Kakashi realized that his teacher had succeeded, and he smiled again.

Sora replied, "The Jinchūriki is no longer Kushina. It's been settled. But because Iwagakure's attack was so sudden, there's no time for you to go back and see her now."

Kakashi nodded and said, "I understand. I'll wait until this mission is completed before visiting sensei's wife."

Sora put his hand on Kakashi's shoulder. "Let's go."

...

Sora and Kakashi found Namikaze Minato's team in a forest outside Konoha.

However, Minato's team only had Nohara Rin and Takei Katsuhiko present; Uchiha Obito was missing.

Namikaze Minato said to Sora, "Sora, you're finally here."

Sora remarked sarcastically, "Wow, that was quick. But where's the kid with the goggles?"

Suddenly, Uchiha Obito fell from the sky, landing on the ground with a thud.

Obito took a deep breath. "Finally caught up!"

Katsuhiko Takei complained, "Obito, you're late again. How many times have you done this? Do you even know what time we were supposed to meet?"

"Hey, it's because I met an old lady on the way who asked me for directions... Hey, Kakashi, you're here too!"

Uchiha Obito looked at Kakashi in surprise.

Kakashi pursed his lips and said, "I don't want to hear excuses from people who break the rules. Besides, you're lying."

Namikaze Minato smiled and said, "Don't be like that, Kakashi. He helped the old lady, right, Obito?"

Obito nodded vigorously. "Yeah, yes! What I said is true!"

Kakashi challenged Minato, saying, "Those who break the rules are called scum among ninjas, right, Minato-sensei?"

Namikaze Minato laughed awkwardly.

Uchiha Obito said angrily, "Kakashi, don't you have any compassion? Every time I see you, all you talk about are rules and regulations. It's annoying. The most important thing is heart, right?"

Nohara Rin intervened, "Come on, it's rare for us to see Kakashi. Let's not argue."

Namikaze Minato spoke up, "By the way, Kakashi will be a Jōnin like Sora and me starting today."

"What?!"

Uchiha Obito, Nohara Rin, and Takei Katsuhiko all stared at Kakashi in shock.

They were still Genin, while Kakashi had already reached Jōnin rank.

Namikaze Minato suggested to Sora, "Since Kakashi is now a Jōnin, for the mission's efficiency, let's split up. Kakashi can lead the team, right?"

Sora thought for a moment and realized Namikaze Minato's proposal made sense. The two of them were the fastest and could reach the battlefront more quickly.

Sora nodded in agreement. "Alright."

Uchiha Obito asked in confusion, "What does 'Kakashi leads the team' mean?"

Namikaze Minato explained, "Konoha is facing an unprecedented shortage of combat power. Kakashi will be captain of one team with Obito, Rin, and Katsuhiko. Sora and I will form another team."

Namikaze Minato took out a Flying Thunder God kunai and handed it to Kakashi.

Kakashi looked at Namikaze Minato in confusion.

Namikaze Minato explained, "This is a gift for your promotion to Jōnin. Although it's heavier than ordinary kunai, the quality is excellent and it's better than standard kunai."

Kakashi frowned and looked at Sora.

Sora said, "Since he wants to give it to you, just accept it."

Kakashi took Namikaze Minato's Flying Thunder God kunai and said, "Thank you."

Nohara Rin suddenly rummaged through her backpack and took out a small box, handing it to Kakashi. "I just happened to bring this as a gift. It's a personal medical kit that I've improved myself. It's very useful."

Kakashi accepted the medical kit and said, "Thank you."

Katsuhiko Takei didn't know Kakashi well, so he didn't offer a gift.

Uchiha Obito said, clearly annoyed, "Hey, Kakashi, aren't you going to ask what gift I want to give you?"

Kakashi replied coldly, "It doesn't matter. It won't be anything good anyway. Useless things are just burdens."

Kakashi's words made Uchiha Obito's face turn red with anger.

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