Five days later, on the front lines of the Land of Fire.
Aoki Yoru sat in front of the barbecue grill, flipping the fish to ensure it cooked evenly.
After five days of busy work, the severely wounded patients had all been arranged to be sent to Konoha Village for better medical treatment.
The medical station was not short-staffed for the moment, so he could relax and didn't have to run around anymore. He went to the lakeside to barbecue; he was sick of eating military rations, so he always carried seasonings with him and was quite skilled at it.
At this moment, a man and a dog were happily eating grilled fish. This dog was none other than Kakashi's summon, Pakkun.
Just a moment ago, this guy had suddenly darted out of the woods, his eyes shining as he stared straight at the grilled fish, drool flowing all over the ground—he looked like a starving ghost reincarnated.
Aoki Yoru glanced at Pakkun out of the corner of his eye.
"By the way, Pakkun, why did Kakashi-sensei summon you?"
Pakkun, who was busy eating happily, paused for a moment. "Ah, Kakashi told me to come and get you to go to the command center; Commander Shikaku is looking for you."
Upon hearing this, Aoki Yoru silently put down the grilled fish and looked at it speechlessly.
"Then why didn't you say so earlier?"
He then stood up, brushed the dust off his backside, and slowly walked toward the camp. Since it had already been delayed for so long, a few more moments didn't matter.
Lifting the heavy curtain of the tent, Aoki Yoru walked inside. At this moment, only Shikaku was in the command post, dealing with paperwork.
Aoki Yoru bowed slightly to him. "Commander Shikaku, subordinate Aoki Yoru reporting for duty."
Shikaku put down the documents in his hand, a hint of unconcealable fatigue on his face, and smiled at him.
"I wanted to see you after the battle. The Village has seen your efforts in destroying the enemy's supply point and your performance on the battlefield. Truly, heroes come from the youth."
"I am honored by your praise, sir. This is my duty, and I must also thank the Village for its cultivation."
Aoki Yoru bowed slightly; it was necessary to show proper loyalty.
Shikaku nodded with satisfaction and pulled a gold-stamped folded decree from the documents, handing it to him.
"This is the Village's reward for you. You are now a Special Jonin of the Village. Congratulations, Special Jonin Aoki."
Aoki Yoru immediately straightened his posture, took the appointment letter with both hands, and slowly opened the fold.
The bright red Hokage seal and the Konoha Village emblem were particularly striking under the light. A line of clear handwriting caught his eye: 'Hereby appointing Aoki Yoru as a Special Jonin of Konoha Village.'
"This... isn't this too fast?"
Aoki Yoru found it hard to believe. He was a Special Jonin just like that? One had to know that there were only a few dozen Special Jonin in Konoha, and they were all the backbone of the Village.
Shikaku smiled. "Your strength and contributions are sufficient, and Kakashi also highly recommended you."
As he spoke, he took out a Jonin medallion and handed it to him. "This was decided after the Village considered everything, and it is also recognition of you. Special Jonin Aoki, the Village has high hopes for you."
After listening, Aoki Yoru stood straight and said with a serious expression, "Yes, Commander Shikaku. I will certainly not let the Village and the Third Hokage down."
Shikaku then explained the authority, obligations, and precautions for a Jonin to him.
Afterward, Aoki Yoru took his leave.
Walking out of the tent, Aoki Yoru patted his face with both hands, his expression instantly becoming serious.
"So I've become a Jonin. It seems I'm going to become a target for everyone."
He wouldn't let the title of Jonin go to his head. He knew the Village's purpose clearly; beyond the contributions he had genuinely made, they also wanted to create a hero.
Just like when Kakashi was promoted to Jonin at twelve during the Third Shinobi World War, it inspired countless civilians and young people to rush to the battlefield one after another.
Having experienced the Third Shinobi World War and the Nine-Tailed incident, Konoha had suffered greatly, and in just over a decade, it hadn't been able to fully recover its vitality.
Therefore, they needed to create a hero to boost morale, eliminate the war-weariness of the Ninja, and incidentally shift the attention of the Konoha public from focusing on casualties to worshipping a hero.
It could be said to be killing many birds with one stone. At this moment, Aoki Yoru couldn't help but admire the Third Hokage's political maneuvering; it was truly seasoned and ruthless.
No wonder he had been in charge of Konoha for over forty years and still sat firmly on the Hokage's throne, with no one able to threaten his position.
"I suppose the news of me becoming a Special Jonin will spread throughout Konoha and the front lines tomorrow."
Aoki Yoru shook his head helplessly; things were going to be annoying from now on.
Sure enough, the next day, the news of Aoki Yoru becoming a Special Jonin spread throughout the entire camp.
People discussed this thirteen-year-old Jonin one after another. One had to know that the last one so young was twelve-year-old Kakashi, and Kakashi was his teacher—truly, a great teacher produces a brilliant student.
"Congratulations, Yoru. You actually became a Jonin! That's great. Now you've finally made a name for yourself in the Ninja World."
Upon hearing the news, Yui and Kenta came to find him early in the morning, congratulating him with envious faces.
"Heh."
Aoki Yoru looked at the two with a bitter smile. "This isn't good news. Now I'm practically standing in the spotlight. Kumogakure should be able to guess that the destruction of the supply point had something to do with me, and plus, having killed those people, I should be on Kumogakure's hit list."
Yui and Kenta put away their smiles upon hearing this. That's right, being too prominent wasn't good; a typical example was the top student of their class, Hyuga Taiichi.
Kenta said with a worried look, "Yoru, you have to be careful. Don't get trapped in the enemy's encirclement in the upcoming battles, otherwise, Kumogakure will kill you at any cost."
"Yui, in the medical department, do you know how the other classmates are doing?" Aoki Yoru suddenly asked about the situation of their classmates. He hadn't seen them for the past few days and had an ominous feeling.
Yui was silent for a moment, her face showing sadness. "Except for those from the great clans like the Ino–Shika–Chō, Sarutobi, and Inuzuka, the rest are all dead. Many of them were sent away by my own hands; their injuries were just too severe."
"Is that so?"
Aoki Yoru felt a sense of sadness for his fallen comrades at this moment. Over a dozen classmates he had spent his days with were just gone like that. Previously, they had been high-spirited, wanting to make a name for themselves on the battlefield, but they had died without a sound.
Aoki Yoru felt it was not worth it for them. Being of ordinary background, they didn't receive good guidance after graduation. They only knew a few C-rank and D-rank Ninjutsu and were purely used as cannon fodder on the battlefield, unable to stop the enemy at all.
Kenta's eyes were red at this moment; he felt the most empathy. If he hadn't teamed up with the two of them and received careful guidance from Kakashi and Might Guy, he would also be on the casualty list now.
He really couldn't imagine how devastating it would be for their families to receive the news of their deaths.
Kenta glanced at his two companions, his eyes resolute. "Yoru, Yui, we absolutely must survive."
Aoki Yoru and the other looked at each other and nodded fiercely.
In the following days, sick of being looked at like a rare animal every time he went out, Aoki Yoru simply stopped going out. He stayed in his room researching Natural Energy, trying his best to increase his strength.
The upcoming battles would be the most dangerous. He had killed two of Killer Bee's disciples and cut off an arm of the future Raikage. Given their protective nature, they would definitely look for an opportunity on the battlefield to kill him.
Suddenly, a commotion came from outside the camp. Unable to calm his mind due to the noise, Aoki Yoru frowned, pulled back the tent curtain, and walked out.
At this moment, everyone in the camp was cheering.
It was the reinforcements from Konoha.