- But they don't have the unreasonable arrogance of the nukenins, which the natives of the great villages suffer from," Hiroshi said ironically, slanting his eyes at his subordinate, "so it's much easier to train them.
- I'll knock you," the kunoichi raised her fist, squinting maliciously.
- Saki-chan, don't be so hotheaded, especially since it's useless anyway," the massive neighbor patted her on the shoulder soothingly, "or have you forgotten about your last fight with Hiroshi-sama?
- I know that without you, you dolt," the jonin jerked her cheek irritably, dropping his hand, "it still doesn't change the fact that only the three of us are worth anything, and the rest are just grease for the kunai.
- Yes, that's true now," Hiroshi agreed calmly, "but all five of us have the talent and chances to rise to the level of tokubetsu jonin in half a year or so.
- And also, there is someone to stand guard and accompany Mr. Ikizuma in the manor itself, while we are busy training or resting, - said the neighbor kunoichi.
- Akashi's point is valid," the clone agreed with his subordinate and grinned irritably, "and I've told you more than once what's the point of including a few promising chunin in the squad rather than someone stronger.
- Oh, don't start your lectures again, - Saki grinned and waved away, - the one with his academy teacher's attitude and the other - a boring ronin, how did I agree to work with you?
- It was money, Saki-chan, money," the massive man grinned, folding his arms across his chest, "and if my memory serves me correctly, you were all in favor of the plan to recruit and train the youngsters, and to divide the rest of the lord's budget between the three of you.
- But it turned out to be even more troublesome to train them than ordinary Genin," the woman pouted, "and in general, you're the only one who doesn't bother with training, unlike us!
- I don't know any of your shinobi tricks," the big man snorted, "I'm the one who can swing a sword.
Hiroshi only sighed, having long ago gotten used to the fact that the nukenin from Iwa and the wandering ronin, who had joined him on a couple of missions and remained under his command, were always arguing with each other for any reason and without reason. And if at the very beginning of his independent journey and life as a mercenary, the idea of gathering his own squad, thus reducing the risk of betrayal and the possibility of grabbing tasty long-term contracts from nobles and land lords, seemed like a great idea, now it did not feel so attractive.
No, a fortunate five-year contract to guard a rather powerful nobleman in the court of the Fire Nation's Daime was quite lucrative and dust-free, allowing one to take their time developing their power (in theory), but there were some downsides. Collective formation of more than two people will inevitably have conflicts that need to be solved by the commander, again to monitor the subordinates, so as not to do anything wacky, to train, to conduct organizational work on the implementation of the contract and similar tasks that inevitably arise in any leader. And until you set up the whole system so that each subordinate knows his place, there is even less time for personal development than for the Original.
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