Staring at Kakashi, who looked ready to depart at any moment, Minato shook his head lightly before glancing around. Only then did he reply:
"Not yet. We're waiting for one more person."
"Waiting?"
Both Veigar and Kakashi spoke up at once, their voices tinged with confusion.
Minato nodded. "That's the other reason I gathered you here today…"
"Minato-sensei, I'm here."
Just as Minato was about to inform Veigar and Kakashi that their team would be gaining a fourth member, a voice rang out—familiar to Veigar.
All three turned toward the sound. When Veigar caught sight of the figure, his eyes widened in surprise.
"Shōgetsu, what are you doing here?"
"Oh, Shōgetsu! You made it. Come on over!"
Minato waved him over with a smile the moment he saw Shōgetsu Uchiha approaching.
Only Kakashi remained silent, his expression unreadable as he watched Shōgetsu draw near.
When he reached the trio, Shōgetsu offered a slight bow.
"Veigar, we're teammates from now on. Let's work well together."
Then he turned to Kakashi.
"You must be Kakashi. I'm Shōgetsu Uchiha. Looking forward to working with you."
Though Kakashi knew of Shōgetsu, they weren't close. He simply nodded in response.
Veigar, however, was visibly stunned. His eyes darted between Minato and Shōgetsu.
"Wait—you're saying you're joining our team now?!"
In that instant, Veigar realized it. His presence in this world had already started a butterfly effect. Shōgetsu joining Minato's squad was proof.
Before Shōgetsu could reply, Minato answered on his behalf.
"That's right. Shōgetsu's now an official member of our squad."
"I expect you all to get along."
A few days prior, Shōgetsu's original team had fallen apart. Kōtarō Akiyama was hospitalized at the Konoha Hospital, and their jōnin squad leader, Masahi Yūhi, had been assigned to a classified mission. Hoshino Sarutobi had died in battle.
Masahi, unwilling to let Shōgetsu be reassigned to the Konoha Military Police Force, sought out Minato to ask a favor—could he take Shōgetsu in?
Hiruzen Sarutobi gave the final approval, and Shōgetsu was transferred into Minato's unit.
What surprised Hiruzen most was that Shōgetsu refused the position at the Police Force—something he hadn't expected. He had been considering how to fulfill the promise he once made to Danzo Shimura, and Shōgetsu's appearance gave him a perfect solution.
If not for Shōgetsu, Hiruzen was prepared to forcibly assign an Uchiha graduate into Minato's team.
For Shōgetsu, joining Minato's squad felt like fate—an unexpected twist in his journey.
As they made their way toward the border of the Land of Rivers, Veigar and Shōgetsu chatted casually. It was then that Veigar learned their mission:
Eradicate the Sunagakure shinobi who've infiltrated the Land of Fire.
It wasn't a standard mission—no clear duration, and the difficulty level fluctuated between B– to A–Rank, depending on the circumstances.
And they weren't the only team.
At least five other squads had been dispatched for the same purpose. Exactly how many Hiruzen had sent out, no one could say for sure.
But this much became clear to Veigar:
The Third Great Ninja War is coming.
Since the Warring States Era ended, the dream of peace forged by Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha gave birth to Konoha. Soon after, other nations followed: Suna, Iwa, Kiri, Kumo, Takigakure, Amegakure, Kusagakure…
Yet everything began to unravel after Hashirama's death following the Battle at the Valley of the End. Madara was thought dead, but in truth, he survived by casting Izanagi and vanished from the village.
Since then, two shinobi world wars had erupted.
And Veigar knew all too well—the third was on the horizon.
Its spark?
The assassination of the Third Kazekage by Sasori of the Red Sand, a genius puppeteer of Sunagakure, who turned the Kazekage into a human puppet.
In their search for the missing Kazekage, Suna had sent waves of shinobi into the Land of Fire, occupying mountain strongholds across the border.
From these movements, Hiruzen realized: conflict was now inevitable.
Still, without an official declaration of war from Suna, Hiruzen couldn't act openly. Instead, he issued a series of classified missions—one of which led to Veigar's current assignment.
After deploying all available task forces to the field, Hiruzen made two preparations:
Internally – He activated full war-time protocols. With Konoha's numbers thinned, he shortened the Academy's six-year training program to three, pushing students toward early graduation.
Externally – He dispatched covert operatives into the Land of Wind to uncover the true cause behind Suna's aggressive expansion.
Having survived two wars already, Hiruzen understood exactly what lay ahead.
As dusk settled across the land and darkness began to creep in, Minato's team—now a four-man squad—set up camp in a mountain cave, intending to rest and resume travel by morning.
At their current pace, they'd reach the border by midday in two days, where their mission would officially begin.
Meanwhile, in Kumogakure, Renchi Furuyama, who had escaped from Root operatives, was now hiding in the neighboring Land of the Moon.
After using not only Lightning Release: Lightning Flash, but also another forbidden technique with severe side effects, he had barely managed to relay news of the attack before collapsing inside a mountain pass…
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