"The Land of Waves is just a small island nation with no Ninja Village of its own."
Finally, after gathering at the Village entrance, the group officially set off. Not long after leaving Konoha Village, as they walked along a lush forest path, Kakashi noticed the hidden uneasiness in Sakura's expression. He took the initiative to explain the basic details of the mission, attempting to alleviate her tension.
"Because the Land of Waves has no Ninja power of its own, when they encounter trouble and need to commission a mission, they can only travel to other countries, such as coming to our Konoha Village in the Land of Fire."
Kakashi continued in his usual, slightly lazy tone, "Therefore, the enemies we might encounter on this trip would at most be ordinary bandits, wandering samurai, and such. That's why this mission was classified as C-rank. Remember, the theoretical premise of a C-rank mission is—no combat with enemy Ninja."
As Kakashi casually comforted Sakura, Tazuna, walking beside him, unnaturally averted his gaze with a hint of guilt.
Naruto listened to Kakashi's explanation while sensing the surrounding environment. The weather today was indeed excellent, with fresh air, birds singing, and a peaceful, harmonious scene.
However, he knew this tranquility would soon be broken. According to the "plot" development, once they saw that unnatural puddle on the road, the trouble would begin, right?
Satsuki silently followed slightly behind the team, her gaze mostly fixed on Naruto's back ahead. She really wanted to quicken her steps, walk beside Naruto, and chat casually with him as she usually did.
But when she noticed that Kakashi-sensei, who was usually so carefree that he even walked while engrossed in his inappropriate Icha Icha Paradise, had uncharacteristically put his book away and was instead scanning the dense forest on both sides of the road, maintaining a vigilant posture, she couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment and dismissed the idea of going forward.
She understood in her heart that as a Ninja, maintaining necessary vigilance and focus is the most basic requirement whenever there's any potential danger during a mission.
Thus, she could only forcibly suppress the urge to get closer to Naruto and talk to him, pushing it back into her heart.
It's just… she herself hadn't realized that these desires and dependencies, suppressed again and again, were quietly accumulating and fermenting in her heart. When these emotions could no longer be suppressed and finally erupted one day in the future, what awaited Naruto would certainly not be a gentle, flowing scene, but a more turbulent and persistent torrent.
It could be said that Naruto himself had no idea that he seemed to have been a bit too forceful in his unintentional "conquest."
Not long after the team crossed a small bridge over a gurgling stream, an inconspicuous depression by the roadside revealed a puddle.
Kakashi's gaze casually swept over the puddle, but he said nothing, maintaining his unhurried pace.
It seems… the Demon Brothers are about to appear.
Naruto understood. He knew clearly that these two guys were only slightly stronger than Mizuki from before, and with his and Satsuki's current strength, there was no need to worry at all.
Nevertheless, he secretly remained vigilant, ready to respond at any moment. At any time, the arrogance of underestimating an enemy is the most foolish display.
Just a few meters after the team nonchalantly walked past the puddle…
The surface of the small puddle suddenly bulged! Two figures shot out, wielding chains connected to sharp claw hooks, aiming directly for the most threatening Jonin in the team—Kakashi's back!
"Behind you!"
Hearing the sudden splash and sharp whoosh behind him, Naruto instantly turned around! Almost at the same moment, Satsuki also sharply turned her head!
Just an instant before the whistling chains were about to entangle Kakashi's body!
"Earth Release: Earth Flow River!"
Naruto's hand seal speed was astonishingly fast, completed almost as he turned! The solid ground beneath one of the attackers instantly softened and collapsed, turning into a surging, swirling mudslide!
The Ninja cried out in alarm, his footing immediately lost. He panicked and sank into the ground, which had suddenly turned into a quagmire. The more he struggled, the deeper he sank, and in an instant, he was firmly trapped and unable to move.
The situation for the other attacker was equally grim! His swung chain was sharply deflected with a "clang" by a precisely aimed shuriken!
Just as he hastily adjusted his posture, trying to dodge the several other shuriken that followed, he suddenly felt his body tighten!
The next moment, a huge pulling force came, and he was completely unable to resist, being dragged off the ground by that force and slammed hard into a thick tree nearby, where he was tightly bound to the trunk!
Only then did he realize with horror that those seemingly ordinary shuriken were all wrapped with Chakra threads, almost imperceptible to the naked eye! The other end of the threads was held in the hand of the black-haired girl with the icy gaze.
Kakashi, relieved, dispelled the Substitution Jutsu seals he had already prepared. He looked at Naruto and Satsuki, who had cooperated almost instantly and subdued the two attackers cleanly and efficiently, and nodded in approval.
"Very good, Naruto, Satsuki. Faced with a sudden attack, your judgment was accurate, your reactions swift, your responses appropriate, and your teamwork excellent. You performed very well."
He then turned his gaze to the other side, looking at Sakura, who, though a bit pale, still tightly clutched her kunai and stood in front of the client, Tazuna. He added, "And Sakura, your first reaction was to protect the client, and your positioning and judgment were also very correct."
After praising his students' clean and decisive response, Kakashi turned his attention to the two subdued attackers. He carefully examined their attire.
"This attire… they are Chunin from Hidden Mist Village, Ninja known as the 'Demon Brothers,' famous for using any means necessary to complete their missions," Kakashi identified the attackers and their dangerous nature.
"Truly… terrifying youngsters…"
Tazuna, witnessing the skirmish, couldn't help but sigh, filled with lingering fear and a hint of unnoticeable guilt.
However, Kakashi didn't take his cue but turned his gaze to the client. "Alright, Mr. Tazuna, now, I need to first determine who these two individuals' target truly is."
Kakashi's gaze sharpened, "If their target is indeed you, then I'm afraid… this has far exceeded the scope of a C-rank escort mission. This means you have withheld crucial mission information from us in Konoha, putting us in an unforeseen dangerous situation."
Kakashi's gaze swept over his three subordinates, finally settling back on Tazuna's pale face, offering a choice, "According to the Ninja handbook, in cases where a client deliberately misrepresents the mission rank, Team 7 has the right to immediately terminate the mission and return to Konoha. What are your opinions?"
Cold sweat instantly broke out on Tazuna's forehead. He hadn't expected his concealment of the mission rank to be exposed so quickly and directly. He was at a loss for how to explain.
Sakura, wiping cold sweat from her brow, looked at the subdued Hidden Mist Ninja on the ground, her heart filled with fear.
Fighting a real Ninja in a life-or-death battle… isn't this too soon for us? She instinctively wanted to suggest returning to the Village first, but the words caught in her throat. Looking at Naruto and Satsuki beside her, she swallowed them back, deciding to hear her teammates' opinions first.
However, when she looked at Satsuki, she suddenly froze.
Satsuki… isn't she a bit off?
Satsuki's originally pitch-black eyes had, at some point, turned an ominous crimson, with three pitch-black tomoe slowly rotating within them.
She was staring intently at Tazuna with an extremely terrifying gaze, as if looking at a dead man.
And Tazuna, being stared at by those Sharingan, felt even more terrified than when he was attacked by the chains just now! A chilling, bone-piercing killing intent, like a physical presence, enveloped him again, making him almost unable to breathe!
"Mr. Tazuna…" Satsuki's voice was devoid of any warmth, "You don't seem surprised that there would be Ninja attacks along the way, do you?"
Faced with this cold, direct question, Tazuna's throat felt as if it were blocked. He couldn't say anything, only sweat in terror.
So that's it… Satsuki instantly understood the general situation. This guy… deliberately misrepresented the mission rank!
An uncontrollable surge of anger instantly swept through Satsuki's heart.
Unforgivable… To dare to drag Naruto… into such a dangerous situation, knowing in advance that there would be a life-or-death Ninja battle, just to save a bit of mission fee!
If the sneak attackers just now weren't just this level of opponents… if their target had been Naruto from the start…
If Naruto got hurt because of your lie… or even…
Just thinking about these possibilities, the killing intent around Satsuki became even more solid and terrifying, and black flames seemed to burn in her crimson Sharingan.