"Are you going to take the in Exams, or would you prefer a k mission?"

  Nara Ensui posed the question directly.

  in Exams or a k mission?

  Link paused, weighing the pros and s.

  Both options were clear paths to adva. The in Exams would be more challenging, requiring him to fight other ninja and prove his worth in a high-profile setting. Success could fast-track his promotion. In trast, k missions wouldn’t involve ninja bat but would focus on gradually accumuting experiend mission pletions.

  "So, does this mean our mission is a k?" Link asked after only a moment's thought, a smile spreading across his face.

  There was o participate in the in Exams. For ninja, intelligence was critical. Battling publicly under so many watchful eyes would iably expose his abilities and teiques. While grinding through missions to earn promotion might take longer, it was safer and allowed him to maintain his strategic advantage.

  Ensui caught the underlying message in Link’s response and was a bit surprised. He had assumed that his ambitious subordinate would jump at the pete in the exams.

  But this choice was sensible.

  “Then it’s settled,” Ensui said. “Would you like to expin this to the others?”

  By granting Link this level of deaking power, Ensui was signaling his io groom him for leadership. With just one or two successful out-of-vilge missions, even a less-than-stelr performance would likely be enough to solidify Link’s promotion to in.

  "Uood." Link nodded, watg his seurn to leave. After a brief pause, he added, "Thank you, Sensei."

  Ensui didn’t turn back but waved a hand in aowledgment before vanishing with a quick Body Flicker Teique.

  Finally...

  Link ched his fists, uo tain his excitement. The prospect of being a in was unfolding much faster than he had anticipated.

  As he walked home, he barely restrained himself from humming aloud.

  And no, it wasn’t out of tune.

  With his mood greatly improved, Link made a small detour to Amaguriama, a famous feery on Meicha Street, to reward himself with a chestnut yokan.

  (Amaguriama: Known for chestnut yokan and pastries. Meicha Street: A tral distri Konoha filled with tea houses and dessert shops, views of the Hokage Rock.)

  Chestnut yokan wasn’t cheap, especially at such a renowned shop in the heart of the ercial district. But it was worth it.

  Delicious beyond belief.

  As a growing child who traiensively every day, Link’s love for sweets ractically instinctive. Ever since Ami had once brought him a box of treats from Amaguriama, he had been hooked.

  Now that he was on the cusp of k missions and potential promotion to in, celebrating with his favorite dessert felt appropriate.

  “So expensive, but so good…”

  Initially pnning to savor the yokan at home with some tea after dinner, Link couldn’t resist the temptation. Cheg to make sure no one was watg, he broke off a pied popped it into his mouth.

  (It was the kind of yokan that came in a block you had to cut yourself.)

  One piece turned into two.

  Then three.

  The rich aroma of chestnuts and the velvety sweetness were utterly irresistible. By the time Link neared home, he reached into the box for another pied froze.

  “...?”

  Where’s the rest of my yokan?!

  Frantically rummaging through the box, Link realized he had eateire thing on the way home.

  Heartbroken but still craving more, he trudged into his house, clutg the y box. As he was about to toss it irash, a thought struck him. There must be some crumbs left!

  Opening the box, he tilted it into his mouth, catg the st bits.

  Delicious.

  Satisfied at st, he discarded the box, sat cross-legged on his bed, and began p what to make for dinner. He g his hands, which still carried the faint st of chestnuts.

  “Cough~”

  A soft cough escaped him as he brought his fingers closer to his nose. He was home alone, after all, so…

  …

  Initially, Link’s goal was to bee a in before the Konoha Crush, giving him three years to climb to Jonin rank before Shippudes began.

  Now, with this opportunity arriving over a year ahead of schedule, his margin for error was signifitly rger.

  Being a i he could begin formally applying to the vilge to learn new jutsu. His first target was:

  Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Teique.

  A k jutsu with a manageable learning curve and low chakra ption. Judging by the might even mutate into something particurly useful.

  More importantly, this teique shared simirities with other earth-based stealth jutsu like Headhunter Jutsu, Hiding in the Rock Teique, and Underground Proje Fish Teique—all designed for underground movement and surprise attacks.

  Since Link already khe Headhunter Jutsu, he could likely master Hiding Like a Mole with ease.

  Other advaeiques like Chidori, Flying Thunder God, or Strength of a Hundred could wait. They were lofty aspirations, but pursuing them now was impractical.

  Under normal circumstahis teique might be avaible for purchase. However, it was sidered outdated and rarely seen on the market.

  Most earth-based stealth jutsu, like Hiding in the Rock, liquefy the soil for seamless movement. In parison, Hiding Like a Mole transformed the ground into loose sand, requiring users to dig and tuheir way through.

  The differences were stark:

  Hiding in the Rock offered smooth, effortless travel.

  Hiding Like a Mole relied on brute ford was effectively dismissed as a lesser alternative.

  Still, Hiding Like a Mole had distinct advantages. Its tunneling allowed freater depth, making it ideal for avoiding sensory ninja and enabling more advanced ambushes or escapes.

  And with its minimal chakra requirements, the teique was energy-effit—though the physical effort of digging took its toll.

  In specific sarios, Hiding Like a Mole could shine. But pared to other earth-based jutsu, it simply wasn’t versatile enough to gain widespread popurity.

  For Link, however, its uraits made it the perfect addition to his repertoire.

  Bleam