Chapter 17 – Shadows Sharpened
The first mission had changed them.
The memory of blood, the smell of death, and the weight of their choices still lingered — but it no longer shook them. Instead, it hardened them. They had crossed the line from students to shinobi, and there was no turning back.
It was time for the next step.
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⚔️ C-Rank Mission 1 – The Twenty-One Bandits
Only three days after their first mission, the triplets received another C-rank assignment.
This time, a small village on the northern edge of the Land of Fire had been plagued by a group of about twenty bandits, looting trade caravans and raiding travelers.
The mission reward was modest — 15,000 ryō — but they accepted without hesitation.
Upon arrival, they met the village chief, a tired old man with worry lines etched deep into his face.
"There are around twenty of them," he said. "They come from the forest at night, steal everything, and vanish before anyone can react."
"Understood," Yuva replied calmly. "We'll handle it."
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They moved through the forest silently. Daichi scanned the ground and found several wire traps and explosive tags around the path — crude but deadly. He neutralized them with a wave of his hand.
"Only twenty-one signatures," Tenzo said quietly, his chakra sense stretching outward. "All civilians… but they're experienced fighters."
"Good," Yuva replied. "Then let's give them a chance. If they come outside willingly, we'll finish this quickly."
They waited until nightfall. When the bandits returned from a raid, the trap was sprung.
Daichi blocked their retreat with Mud River Flow, cutting off their escape. Yuva and Tenzo surged forward — swords flashing, brass knuckles breaking bones.
It was over in minutes.
One by one, the bandits fell. No jutsu. No hesitation. Just steel and resolve.
When the last man fell to Yuva's blade, the forest was silent once more.
There were no hostages this time, only a few thousand ryō in stolen goods.
They sealed it in a scroll and reported the mission complete.
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⚔️ C-Rank Mission 2 – The Twelve Thieves
A week later came another mission.
This time, only twelve bandits had been reported — small in number, but bold enough to attack near a trade route.
The mission was over almost before it began.
They struck at dawn, ambushing the bandits in their own camp. Yuva's lightning-coated sword flashed like light, Tenzo's wind spheres ripped through weapons and shields, and Daichi's stone fists crushed the ground beneath their feet.
None of the bandits escaped.
None survived.
By the time the sun rose, the mission was done.
They returned to Konoha in silence — another step down the bloody path of the shinobi.
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🌀 Shadow vs. Shadow
That evening, Yuva returned home exhausted but restless. Instead of sleeping, he created a shadow clone and challenged Tenzo's clone to a duel.
What began as a friendly spar quickly turned intense. Blades clashed in the courtyard with deadly precision. Sparks flew as lightning met wind, each movement faster than the last.
Their skills had grown so much that even their clones fought like trained genin, their techniques sharp, their reactions lightning-fast.
The sound of steel echoed deep into the night — a promise of the warriors they were becoming.
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✋ Tenzo's Breakthrough – Mystical Palm Jutsu
While his clone sparred with Yuva's, the real Tenzo was inside the house, kneeling beside his mother, Yuki. She was explaining the final stages of the Mystical Palm Jutsu, a technique even many chūnin struggled to master.
"Focus," Yuki said gently. "Let your chakra flow softly, not forcefully. Feel the wound, don't fight it."
Tenzo's hands glowed faintly green as he placed them over a cut on a training dummy. Slowly, the flesh knit together, the injury vanishing as if it had never existed.
"Good," Yuki murmured. "Now again."
For two weeks, Tenzo practiced tirelessly, guided by both his mother and his shadow clones. Each day, his control improved. His chakra became smoother, his touch gentler, his healing faster.
And finally, one evening, Yuki watched as he fully healed a deep laceration in seconds.
Her eyes widened. "You… mastered it."
Tenzo blinked. "I did?"
She nodded slowly, still stunned. "I've seen medics twice your age struggle with this. And you… you've done it in just two weeks."
Tenzo smiled, tired but proud. "I promised myself I'd become someone who could protect others… and heal them too."
That night, for the first time, Yuki looked at her son not as a boy — but as a true medical shinobi in the making.