Takayama Haru held not one, not two, but three roles simultaneously.
Aside from being the newly appointed Director of the Administrative Department and Deputy Head of the Anbu, he was also the Vice Principal of the Ninja Academy and the teacher of Class Seven.
Naturally, Haru felt a bit overwhelmed.
"I don't want to go to work!"
Kushina Uzumaki laughed and cried at once, poking Haru with her finger playfully.
"You lazy bum!"
Haru pulled Kushina into his arms.
"I'm not lazy. I just feel like I don't have enough time to be with you."
"Look at it: the administrative office, the Anbu, the academy—everywhere needs me. Am I supposed to have three heads and six arms?"
"I don't want to work overtime every day and stay up all night."
Kushina, blushing in Haru's arms, whispered, "Still, it'd be nice if you could split yourself up."
"Clone myself?" Haru paused, then his eyes lit up with joy.
"Yes! A shadow clone! Kushina, you're brilliant!"
Without hesitation, Haru kissed her deeply.
"Whoa!"
Kushina melted in his arms.
After a while, she blushed furiously and pushed him away.
"What are you doing? Grandma Mito saw that!"
Haru chuckled, "Then let's head outside."
"No way! Lord Minato just said you need to report to the administrative office this morning!"
Grinning, Haru said, "Fine, but if I don't go…"
As he spoke, he made a hand sign.
Poof!
Three shadow clones appeared behind him, exchanging glances.
"Wait, that's only two."
Poof!
A third clone appeared.
"Kushina, remind me—it's okay to use shadow clones like this, right?"
Most people found it hard to maintain shadow clones for long periods. But for Haru, it was nothing.
Shadow clones use chakra to create physical copies. They think and act independently, with consciousness separate from the original.
It was perfectly fine.
"You, report to the Administrative Department!"
"You, head to the Anbu!"
"You, go to the academy!"
The three clones looked at the original Haru.
"And you?"
"Of course, I'm taking Kushina shopping."
Kushina rolled her eyes but couldn't hide her sweet smile.
As one of Haru's clones arrived at the academy, Minato Namikaze came over to greet him.
"Haru, congratulations on becoming Director of the Administrative Department and Deputy Head of the Anbu!"
Minato was also a Deputy Head of the Anbu, so he knew about Haru's updated roles. After all, both departments were secret Konoha organizations.
"Jiraiya-sensei said that if you're too busy, I can take over Class Seven."
Haru glanced at Minato and said, "No. You don't have the best luck."
Minato looked confused. How could Haru judge his luck?
Haru had said similar things before but thought better of it.
Consider this: Kakashi and Obito both ended in tragedy. Even if Obito was redeemed, the pain remained. In the end, Obito and Rin met in spirit. Maybe it was just a hallucination.
Obito even died with Kushina during the Nine-Tails' rampage.
He was cursed with loneliness.
On the other hand, Naruto thrived without Minato. His words alone defeated powerful enemies, and he eventually became the Seventh Hokage.
Sometimes, luck is truly mysterious.
Haru didn't want to hand Class Seven over to Minato.
Even though this was just one of Haru's clones, his thinking and ideals remained unchanged.
"Sensei!"
"Mr. Haru!"
Haru turned around to see three seventh-year students: Obito, Kakashi, and Rin.
"You're here."
Haru opened his teacher's handbook. As a teacher, his current priority was to summarize their last mission.
Yes, that was a good idea. Even Sarutobi left some materials for reflection.
Haru closed the handbook and said, "Let's review your last mission. From your first encounter with the enemy to your final performance, your progress has been remarkable."
"I still remember your first kill, Obito. It was a Mist ninja. Quite the mess."
"Sensei!" Obito blushed. It was a dark memory for him.
Kakashi and Rin both laughed.
"Sensei, please never bring that up again. I beg you!" Obito gritted his teeth. As the next Uchiha prodigy, this story was embarrassing.
At Anbu headquarters, White Fang clapped Haru's second clone on the shoulder.
"I've got a mission to run. Luckily, you're here. I might be gone in half an hour. Here's your command token. It grants you top-level access in the Anbu."
"No barriers within Konoha will stop you."
Haru nodded and took the token.
White Fang smiled. "You better return. If the clone disappears, the token will fall."
Haru looked at him in surprise. "You saw through my clone?"
White Fang laughed. "If I couldn't, would I still be head of the Anbu? Kid, don't underestimate me!"
With that, White Fang walked out.
Haru watched his flowing cloak with a thoughtful expression.
White Fang of the Leaf—truly worthy of the title.
But would someone like him really commit suicide?
Was that part of the mission…?
"Senior White Fang!"
White Fang paused at the door. "Yes?"
Haru didn't know what to say, so he simply said, "Safe travels. If you need anything, I'm here."
"Got it!"
White Fang waved goodbye and left.
Haru's third clone arrived at the Administrative Department.
The first floor was empty, save for two people.
Seeing Haru, they quickly stood up.
"Lord Haru, you're here!"
They had received notice that morning. Akimichi Hyou, recently appointed, had suffered a relapse and could no longer work. He was stepping down.
Haru was the new director.
"Just the two of you?"
"Lord Haru, I'm not sure. Shall I escort you to your office first?"
Haru nodded politely. "Alright, thank you."
They sighed in relief. He wasn't as difficult as rumored.
They led him to the second floor, which was also empty.
"Seriously? Where is everyone?"
Haru looked around. No one.
"This is bizarre."
Just as he sat down, a document was brought to him.
"Lord Haru, this is from the Hidden Mist Village."
Mist Village?
Haru took a glance and paused.
The Third Mizukage had recently died. Mist Village sent an envoy to Konoha.
No wonder Sarutobi had dropped him into the Administrative Department.
He was the one who killed the Third Mizukage, making him the most qualified to handle this.
The document stated that Mist wanted to retrieve the Mizukage's body and bring home a noble descendant.
They also wanted to strengthen ties with Konoha and proposed a joint Chunin Exam.
Of course, this exam was essentially a high-stakes gamble.
If Mist won, they would reclaim the body and noble heir.
If Mist lost, they would still take the body and the heir, Zhao Meiyu, but at a steep cost.
This was Mist's perspective.
Konoha had its own agenda.
The conflicting views led to Mist's envoy arriving in person.
Because the initiative now lay with Konoha.
Haru had killed the Third Mizukage. Mist was now leaderless.
That was the game-changing event.
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