Playing As Gojo Satoru in Naruto

"But how did you sneak out again?"

One of Shisui or Biwa Juzo should have stopped this kid, right?

The village's top shadow just wandering outside like that makes people uneasy.

"I came out with the people taking the Chunin exam."

"I've never left the village before. Nobody really knows me here, so I snuck out."

"Hey! I might not be as good as the teacher, but I can definitely take care of myself!"

Hozuki Mangetsu scratched his head and quickly reached out to defend himself.

Since becoming Mizukage, Mangetsu hadn't really left the Land of Water.

Even if he tried to control himself, a boy his age would naturally be curious about the outside world.

Now that he was in the Land of Fire, Konohagakure, there was no way he'd just stay put and wait to watch the Chunin exams.

Besides, it made sense for him to visit his long-lost teacher while he had the chance.

"Hmm, well, it's not exactly like that."

Hatake Satoru paused thoughtfully. Given Konohagakure's current strength, there weren't many who could actually hurt Mangetsu.

Well, whatever, it made sense that this kid wasn't very careful.

After all, he wasn't some old guy in his 30s or 40s.

"By the way, wasn't it a bit rushed to have those three form a team?"

"Hasn't Haku just come back recently?"

Hatake Satoru thought for a moment before asking.

"The timing seemed right. I also want Haku and Kimimaro to move up to Chunin and Jonin faster."

"Anyway, Haku will probably just be on vacation with Zabuza once he goes back. The Chunin exams won't take too long."

Mangetsu thoughtfully rubbed his chin. He had actually thought about how these three would work together.

After Satoru sent Kimimaro back to Kirigakure, he had done quite a few missions.

Their missions in Kirigakure were a bit different from Konohagakure's—they often involved some personal assassination work.

Mangetsu and Kimimaro only knew each other from childhood but had spent some time together.

Having those two work together was better than pairing two strangers.

As for Haku, he had always been Zabuza's student, working closely with him on missions.

Bai knew how to work with others well and could also help guide Kimimaro and Mangetsu.

The only thing Mangetsu worried about was that all three were really suited for solo fights.

He wasn't sure how well they'd work as a team.

"Hmm~ Their team is actually pretty interesting."

But all three coming here was exactly what Hatake Satoru expected, since Kirigakure was the place where things were changing.

It was quite exciting to have this new generation involved.

"Ah—"

"Ah—"

Right after Satoru finished speaking, two sharp caws sounded overhead.

A big shiny-feathered crow suddenly dove down and pecked hard at Mangetsu's head.

"Ah! Caught me! But holding out this long isn't bad."

"It's great to see the teacher still so strong. I'll keep working hard, aiming to be like you!"

Mangetsu covered the back of his head with one hand while tightly gripping Hatake Satoru's hand with the other.

"Well, I'll head back for now. I'll come see you again when I get the chance!"

"Stop pecking me! I'm just out for a bit of fun, and I've got important stuff to do too, you stingy thing."

Hozuki Mangetsu turned around, grumbling as he swatted at the crows near his head, then reluctantly ran off in another direction, following them.

Another crow hovering in the air gave Hatake Satoru a look with its beady little eyes, then both birds followed after Mangetsu.

"They really have a lot of energy, huh~"

Hatake Satoru casually watched Mangetsu leave, looking thoughtful as he made his way back home.

…

"A recommendation letter? Why me?"

"I'm not even a ninja. If you drag me into the Chunin Exams, I might not be able to keep myself safe~"

"You all better think this through."

Hatake Satoru flipped through a comic without even looking up. On the corner of the table sat a neatly written recommendation letter done with a calligraphy brush.

Can't keep you safe?

We should be more worried about whether *you* are a danger to the students.

"..."

Kakashi looked at Hatake Satoru, like he wanted to say something but didn't.

The recommendation letter had been handwritten by Morino Ibiki, addressed to the Hokage.

Ibiki got injured during a mission, and with the Chunin Exams coming up, he probably wouldn't recover in time to oversee them.

To make sure the exams wouldn't be delayed, Sarutobi Hiruzen asked Ibiki to recommend someone suitable.

Most interrogation work is psychological. Ninja all know a bit of that, but it's rare to find someone who really specializes in it.

So Ibiki, from his hospital bed, wrote a recommendation letter suggesting Hatake Satoru handle the intelligence-gathering part of the exam.

But since Hatake Satoru isn't officially a ninja, Sarutobi Hiruzen couldn't just order him directly.

So the task of asking fell to Kakashi.

"Huh? My brother? Interrogation?"

Up until now, Kakashi had no idea that Hatake Satoru had that kind of skill.

Morino Ibiki was tall, big, had a rough-looking face and a scary stare—just standing there was enough to put pressure on people without saying a word.

But Hatake Satoru always looked so easygoing, even his tone was light. Kakashi could barely remember ever seeing him act serious. There was just no way he looked like someone who'd be good at interrogation.

But in Ibiki's letter, he clearly said that many of his own interrogation methods were learned from Hatake Satoru.

At the same time, he also wrote that aside from those skills, Satoru was basically a regular person with no real combat ability.

But even so, there was no one more suitable.

Kakashi let out a troubled sigh. One of the hardest things about persuading his brother was that they didn't really know what Hatake Satoru *wanted*.

So they had no way of offering anything that would make him say yes.

"Taking care of a bunch of genin should be easy for you... and if you want bodyguards, we can arrange that too."

"If you have any requests, the Hokage will do his best to meet them."

Sarutobi Hiruzen really knew how to push people—putting Kakashi in the middle like this.

Even if Hatake Satoru disliked the Hokage, he wouldn't want to make things hard for his brother.

Well, to be honest, Satoru was a little curious about the whole exam thing.

He pressed down the comic book in his hands and looked up with a slight smile.

"Well~ since you're putting it that way, then my one request is: while I'm testing the students, no one is allowed to watch or interfere."

"No one is allowed to question my choices or decisions. That's it."

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