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"!" Another blink, another dizzy spell… the three newly promoted chūnin were brought back to their original spot by Minato.

Tōji could clearly feel that his chakra had been thrown into some disarray…

He looked at Minato.

Minato was smiling warmly at Tatami Iwashi…

"Excellent. I've made my decision. Are you willing to join my Guard Platoon, Chūnin Tatami Iwashi?" Minato's tone was a formal invitation!

And that was it? No place for him?

Was the key to learning the 【Flying Thunder God Technique】 based on how one's chakra reacted during the space-time warp? Or was it a test for innate talent in space-time ninjutsu?

Tōji was left with questions, but of course, no one was going to give him the answers.

"Lord Hokage, I accept!" Tatami Iwashi agreed immediately, his usual shyness giving way to visible excitement.

Tōji glanced at Mizuki—

Mizuki's fists were clenched tightly, his brow furrowed, jealousy plain in his eyes!

『This guy wears his thoughts on his face? No wonder he can't accomplish anything!』 Tōji felt nothing but contempt for Mizuki.

Similarly, Tōji had no mental preparation for being passed over. Though deeply disappointed and unwilling, he managed not to lose control of his expression.

Be elegant. Be composed…

But inside, Tōji's "Angel Tōji" was desperately holding back "Devil Tōji," yelling "Stay calm, stay calm!" while "Devil Tōji" fought to break free and roared, "Don't hold me back—I don't accept this!"

It would've been a lie to say he wasn't jealous of Tatami Iwashi.

Especially when he saw the joy on Iwashi's face…

"Huff~" Tōji closed his eyes and let out a deep breath, feeling a little better—but the frustration still lingered.

There were still people around—don't lose composure!

At that moment, Natchi walked over and patted Tōji on the shoulder, looking at Iwashi with a grin. "That guy's really lucky!"

Natchi showed no jealousy at all…

Tōji gradually steadied his emotions and reined in his wandering thoughts. "Yeah—Iwashi has the talent for it."

Right—it all came down to talent, didn't it? Some things are decided the moment you're born…

"Do we have anything else scheduled?" With no more big names coming to recruit, Natchi asked for Tōji's take.

"Probably not." Tōji didn't want to say that Minato had likely already agreed to let Kenji take him, Natchi, and Neru on the Land of Water mission…

"But Neru might have her own plans." Tōji glanced at Neru…

Neru didn't seem particularly affected by not being chosen by Minato.

Well—out of everyone here, only Tōji knew that being selected for the Hokage Guard Platoon meant a chance to learn the 【Flying Thunder God Technique】.

Everyone else just thought it meant being a glorified aide to the Hokage.

"None of the important departments picked me, I can't learn Flying Thunder God—so is Konoha Hospital my only good option left?" Tōji's gaze shifted from Neru to Yūhi Shinku, who had stepped aside…

『Maybe I could become an Academy instructor… but my parents would probably object to a job with no long-term prospects. And I'm not the principal…』 Tōji was only daydreaming.

There was no way a newly promoted eleven-year-old chūnin with no backing would ever become principal—even if he became a jōnin in twenty years, it still wouldn't happen.

Tōji felt that all the expectations he'd built up over the past days had come crashing down.

『I need to get into Konoha Hospital before they assign me some dangerous mission!』