Konoha's Tatsuya

In Konoha, newly-graduated genin were considered inexperienced rookies, still wet behind the ears when it came to missions and further learning. The village typically organized them into three-man squads, assigning an experienced ninja as their team leader. This allowed them to operate as a cohesive unit under guidance.

Generally, the top-ranking students from the Academy were assigned to exceptional Jonin instructors. However, teams like Tatsuya's, comprised of individuals who'd graduated early due to the war and lacked sufficient individual strength, were led by Chunin-level instructors.

Tatsuya didn't feel any resentment about this.

The ninja world was, at its core, a meritocracy. To earn greater privileges, one needed the corresponding ability or potential.

Tatsuya and Sakawa were assigned to Team Thirty-One, the thirty-first genin team of their graduating class. Their original team leader, Nomura, had been a Chunin.

Unfortunately, Nomura had been killed in action during the recently concluded Third Great Shinobi War.

At the time, Team Thirty-One was on a reconnaissance mission at the edge of the battlefield when they were ambushed by an Iwagakure assault squad.

Team Thirty-One was utterly helpless against the elite Iwa squad. Their team leader, Nomura, and another member, Yamanaka Kirou, a branch-family member of the Yamanaka clan, were killed instantly. Tatsuya himself had been severely injured and barely survived.

Only Sakawa, who was responsible for relaying messages, had been relatively unharmed.

After the war, Team Thirty-One was essentially disbanded.

Sakawa had recently learned that the village had assigned them a new team leader and a new member.

Their names and abilities were still unknown, and today was the day they would meet their new team and leader for the first time.

"Tatsuya, you seem really different from before," Sakawa remarked, scanning Tatsuya up and down as he thought about the situation.

As teammates, Sakawa was reasonably familiar with the old Tatsuya. However, after their first meeting since Tatsuya's recovery, Sakawa felt like he was looking at a completely different person.

"Is that so? After everything that's happened, a person's bound to grow, right?" Tatsuya responded, turning his gaze from the distance to Sakawa. His tone had a definite air of someone trying a little too hard to be cool.

"Yeah... We're lucky to have survived something like that," Sakawa agreed, his expression darkening slightly, his voice low.

As a ninja, he'd already prepared himself for the possibility of life and death, but the brutal Third Great Shinobi War had left an indelible mark on them, these newly hatched fledglings.

"Alright, let's not dwell on that. Since we were fortunate enough to survive, we should work even harder to protect this hard-won peace! Tell me more about our new team leader and teammate." Tatsuya waved his hand, cutting off Sakawa's somber mood.

Sakawa shook his head. "Right, you're right. But I don't know who our team leader or new member is, either. I got the notification to assemble here from the Anbu."

"I see. Then we just keep waiting."

Tatsuya joined Sakawa, and together they waited for their team leader and new member to arrive.

During the wait, they chatted with some familiar faces in the crowd.

From these conversations, Tatsuya learned that many of the dozens of genin gathered there were in a similar situation to Team Thirty-One.

A few teams were relatively lucky, with only one or no members lost. Most teams, however, had lost two or more members, and quite a few had lost their team leaders as well.

This grim reality underscored the sheer brutality of the Third Great Shinobi War.

The one silver lining was that the crucible of war had, to varying degrees, forced all the genin present to mature.

This growth might not have been a direct increase in power, but it was a significant enhancement of their resolve as ninja.

"You two must be Akimichi Tatsuya and Sakawa, right? My name is Ichikawa Shin, and I'll be Team Thirty-One's leader from now on," a Chunin holding a small stack of files said, approaching them with another genin in tow. He smiled warmly at the two.

The Chunin appeared to be in his thirties, and his friendly smile suggested he was easy to get along with. The genin standing behind him was around Tatsuya and Sakawa's age, with a handsome but somewhat aloof expression.

"Akimichi Tatsuya (Sakawa), reporting, sensei," they replied immediately, realizing this man was their new instructor, and gave a respectful bow.

"Good, good! It looks like you've both recovered well. This is your new teammate, Yuuhi Teru. Let's all get acquainted!" Ichikawa Shin's gaze swept over Tatsuya and Sakawa before he nodded in satisfaction and gestured to the genin behind him.

"Hello," the three exchanged greetings, nodding to each other.

Tatsuya couldn't help but steal a few extra glances at Yuuhi Teru.

He was very familiar with the Yuuhi surname from his previous life. Yuuhi Kurenai's beauty had captivated many fans back then, and Tatsuya had always appreciated beautiful things.

Hearing the name Yuuhi Teru instantly piqued his interest.

So the men in their family are this good-looking too! Tatsuya mused internally, impressed by Teru's 9/10 looks.

He remembered that the Yuuhi clan was renowned in the village for their genjutsu. Though not a large clan, each member was a skilled genjutsu user.

"Could this Yuuhi Teru be another weakling? Otherwise why would be put in a team such as ours?" Tatsuya pondered.

"Alright, now that everyone's here, let's find a suitable place to get to know each other better. After all, we'll be operating as a team from now on, and it's not conducive to teamwork if we don't understand each other's abilities!"

With everyone present, Ichikawa Shin immediately led Tatsuya and the others away from the training ground to a nearby dense forest.

The gathering point had been designated by the village and wasn't suitable for individual teams to showcase their abilities and get to know one another.

For their first meeting, Ichikawa Shin didn't set up a special test like Kakashi's bell test with Team Seven. He simply had the three genin demonstrate their basic abilities.

The aloof-looking Yuuhi Teru excelled in all areas. His basic kunai throwing and the Three Basic Jutsu (Transformation, Clone, and Body Replacement) were exceptionally polished. He was still learning his family's hereditary genjutsu.

Sakawa, despite being of commoner origin, also had a solid foundation.

If Tatsuya hadn't recently used the bio-chip to rapidly improve his Three Basic Jutsu, he would undoubtedly have been the weakest of the three.