After discussing it, the two decided to take on the mission.
Halfway through, they ran into Haruno Sakura, who had come looking for them.
Naruto unexpectedly asked, "Sakura-chan, you haven't trained deliberately, so do you still have to go on a mission?"
"Of course!" Haruno Sakura stepped forward and grabbed Naruto's arm. "I'm a member of the team too~"
"Yeah~" Naruto pulled his arm back. "Okay, then you can come along. It's just a low-level mission anyway."
Actually, in terms of strength, Haruno Sakura had only started improving after becoming Tsunade's disciple.
That's why Naruto wasn't in a hurry to make a special training plan for her.
Still, having some experience before officially becoming a disciple was better.
The three of them walked together to the Hokage's office.
Generally speaking, ninjas don't pick up missions in the Hokage's office.
After all, the Hokage is very busy and can't personally handle every task.
Only those students who recently graduated are brought to the Hokage's office by their instructors to receive missions.
Although this increased the Hokage's workload, it allowed him to clearly see the growth of new ninjas.
In this way, the most talented among the newcomers could be identified and cultivated in time.
Sarutobi Hiruzen said excitedly, "Little Naruto, you're finally willing to accept a mission."
"After all, I haven't been training, but the team members still need experience," Naruto replied casually, taking out a stack of mission scrolls and flipping through them.
Hiruzen did not stop him.
It was a great blessing that this little prodigy was willing to take a mission.
As for failing it? Not likely.
An existence capable of communicating with the Nine-Tails on equal footing was not weak by any means.
He had even sneaked up on Danzo, making the cunning man suffer losses twice in a row.
Plus, Naruto's parents were both geniuses. As the saying goes, "A tiger father rarely raises a dog son."
Hiruzen was very confident in Naruto's abilities.
Not long after, Naruto picked a mission sheet.
"This isn't bad."
[Mission content: Eliminate or drive away the bandits in Ruhai Village, eastern Land of Fire.
Mission rank: A
Reward: 750,000 ryo]
Looking at the mission, Naruto fell into thought.
A-rank missions could take several days, yet the reward was only 750,000 ryo — and it would be split among the team.
And, of course, there were risks.
Being a ninja wasn't that easy, even for someone like him.
Still, the mission reminded Naruto of something funny.
From novels he had read in his previous life, the protagonist's first missions usually weren't trivial chores like catching cats or dogs — they were about driving away bandits and robbers.
In other words, fighting bandits had become a traditional skill for time travelers.
He hadn't expected that today it would be his turn. How amusing.
Naruto handed the mission scroll back to Hiruzen.
Hiruzen was slightly shocked and reminded him, "Little Naruto, A-rank missions must be accompanied by a Jōnin or an experienced ninja."
"Is that so?" Naruto touched his chin thoughtfully. "Does that mean we can only catch cats and tease dogs?"
Hiruzen coughed dryly. "That's to accumulate mission experience."
Mission experience?
In Naruto's opinion, it was unnecessary.
He could handle D-rank missions, A-rank missions — all were familiar territory.
"What level of mission wouldn't I understand?" he thought.
"But I should be the Instructor of Team 7, right?" Naruto asked. "Only a Jōnin can be an instructor, right?"
Hiruzen didn't answer immediately.
Well, he had made an exception once before — and he'd do so again.
But Hiruzen wasn't entirely at ease.
Naruto had offended someone in Konoha. So Hiruzen said, "Little Naruto, I agree to let you take this mission. But since you offended someone yesterday, I'll assign a Jōnin to go with you."
"Okay!" Naruto agreed without hesitation.
Hiruzen then called an ANBU member to summon someone.
During this, Haruno Sakura curiously asked, "Naruto-kun, who did you offend? Why didn't I hear about it?"
"An old immortal," Naruto said casually.
Sakura subconsciously looked at Hiruzen.
Hiruzen: "?"
Bang!
Naruto knocked on Sakura's broad forehead. "I'm not talking about Hokage-sama."
"Oh~" Sakura covered her head and stopped asking.
Not long after, Kakashi appeared in the office, looking sleepy.
Seeing him like this, Hiruzen sighed and said, "Kakashi, your daily routine doesn't exactly follow regulations…"
"Huh? Well… it's my fault. I'll be careful in the future," Kakashi said weakly.
Hiruzen waved his hand. "Kakashi, Team Naruto is about to take an A-rank mission. For village reasons, you'll be accompanying them."
When Kakashi heard it was about Naruto, he accepted immediately without question.
After accepting the mission, the next step was to meet the client at the designated location.
As an experienced Jōnin, Kakashi led Naruto and the others according to the address on the mission scroll.
After meeting the client, they agreed to depart at noon.
The team then spent the remaining time preparing: checking ninja tool pouches, strategizing, and so on.
At noon, the team departed Konoha, heading to the eastern Land of Fire.
The client was a middle-aged man of simple appearance, hardworking and steady on his feet.
During the journey, Kakashi advised the three young ninjas, "A-rank missions often involve confrontations with other ninjas. Be mentally prepared."
Sasuke couldn't help but get excited. After years of training, he would finally experience real combat.
Haruno Sakura, however, felt nervous.
After all, she understood the dangers.
But looking at Naruto, calm as ever, she felt inexplicably reassured.
Naruto had no mood swings when it came to fighting other ninjas.
His actual combat experience came from countless simulated missions, mountains of corpses, and seas of blood.
Konoha was small, but the Land of Fire was vast.
The team spent nearly two days traveling.
Finally, they arrived at a small village of about thirty main buildings.
Upon hearing Konoha ninjas were approaching, villagers gathered quickly.
The village chief saw Kakashi and bowed tearfully. "Ninja-sama, you must investigate. Bandits have been targeting children. Half of the village children are missing!"
Kakashi looked at the chief with his usual deadpan expression. "I'm not the leader. He is."
Kakashi pointed at Naruto.
The village chief's expression shifted slightly.
The reward had been painstakingly gathered by the villagers — and yet Konoha had sent a child?
Kakashi reassured him. "Although he's young, don't doubt Konoha's quality. Being allowed to lead the team means he's qualified."
The village chief smiled awkwardly. "Then… little ninja, you've traveled far. Let's rest today and deal with the bandits tomorrow."
Naruto remained calm, unfazed by the slight, and said, "Alright. But please tell me the specifics. That way, we can plan accordingly."
Seeing Naruto's composure, the village chief felt slightly relieved.
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