The Land of Waves Mission

The next morning, the sky was clear and the sun shone warmly on the earth.

At the Konoha Gate, the towering gates, several meters high, showcased the Konoha's grandeur, making the ninjas entering and exiting appear insignificant. Team 7 had been waiting there for a long time, anticipating the arrival of the belated girl.

"Hmph, you're late, you pretty face!" Sasuke snorted impatiently at Sakura. Sasuke wasn't usually one to call people by nicknames; Sakura had corrupted him.

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Wrong! I'm almost there! And don't call me a pretty face, I'm expressionless!"

"If you're not just a pretty face, how do you explain dressing like this?" Sasuke said with a sneer.

Naruto chimed in, "Wow! Sakura, are you sick? Dressed like that!" Then, rubbing his chin with his right hand, he pondered seriously, "But, Sakura, who's usually so unfeminine, actually looks like a woman after dressing up. This world is truly amazing!"

Thump! Sakura gave Naruto a solid flick on the forehead. "Thank you for the compliment!"

Sakura was dressed in a gorgeous kimono. Her hair, which she usually neglected, was carefully styled and piled up high, revealing her smooth forehead. She wore a pair of delicate wooden clogs, which further accentuated her slender feet.

This outfit certainly doesn't look like that of a ninja going out on a mission.

There's a reason why Sakura dresses like this. Her mother has always criticized Sakura's appearance. In her mother's eyes, Sakura's usual behavior of just washing her face, combing her hair, and wearing an unattractive ninja uniform before going out is simply unkempt and a disgrace to the family. "How will you find a boyfriend if you're so lazy!" "I'm sorry to disappoint you, but I'll wait until my sister is born before looking for a son-in-law!" Sakura silently replied in her heart.

However, today, Sakura's mother finally snapped. Sakura had brought two identical sets of Konoha uniforms with her on her trip, and there wasn't even any face wash! "If this continues, people will think there are three boys in Team 7!" Without waiting for a reply, she tried to stuff women's items into Sakura's clothes. After Sakura's pleading, she finally stopped, but Sakura absolutely had to be dressed "like a womanly girl," even if it meant using Transformation Technique.

In short, Sakura went out feeling utterly devastated.

Sakura quickly changed her expression, her fierce look vanishing, replaced by a flirtatious smile. Her emerald eyes, tinged with a hint of allure, gazed at Sasuke. "Pretty, isn't she?"

Sasuke blushed for once, then turned his head away with a haughty smirk.

Sakura instantly burst into laughter, her image ruined, "Hahaha! Sasuke can be shy too!"

"Alright, alright, Sakura..." Kakashi interrupted Sakura's performance, "Put away the Transformation Technique!"

"Huh? Is this Transformation Technique?" Naruto asked, scratching the big bump on his forehead, looking bewildered.

Sasuke frowned, surprised. It was Transformation Technique! He hadn't noticed even when they were so close. When did Sakura become so good at concealing her Chakra fluctuations?

"Hehe, Kakashi-sensei is amazing, he saw through it right away!" Sakura laughed playfully, deactivated her Transformation Technique, and this time she changed her look again. Her hairstyle changed from a middle part to bangs, and her clothes changed from her Genin uniform to a normal girl's short-sleeved top and capri pants.

Kakashi remained outwardly calm, but inwardly he sighed. That Transformation Technique was indeed beautifully executed. If it weren't for the slight aura revealed when he struck Naruto with his hand, Kakashi wouldn't have been able to detect the Transformation Technique. Sakura's talent was truly unreasonable. Naruto's previous Transformation Technique were already impressive, but Sakura had progressed from openly using Ninjutsu to now doing it so silently in just a few months. Even a simple Transformation Technique like that was astonishing.

"Sakura, I never thought you'd dress up in such a cute, ordinary girl style!" Kakashi teased Sakura.

Although the village issued uniforms, the new generation of ninjas usually only wore their own clothes. On the other hand, the Jonin of Kakashi's generation, who mostly came from the battlefield, preferred a uniform, simple, and practical style of dress, which was very different from the ninjas who grew up in peacetime.

Upon entering, Sakura, without any makeup, looked just like Kakashi and the others.

"Hey, you guys are going too far! I can pull off this kind of outfit! This is to maintain a good image for us Konoha Ninja outside the village!"

As she grew older, her features matured, and Sakura gradually began to resemble the beauties in manga.

However, appearance reflects the heart. The original Sakura had a gentle temperament, while the current Sakura appears more confident and energetic, with a heroic air between her brows.

The members of Team 7 were chatting idly when Uncle Tazuna arrived, and the group officially began their mission to the Land of Waves.

The Land of Waves is located east of Konoha, facing Konoha across the sea. It is a very large island nation. The narrowest point of the strait between the Land of Waves and Konoha is no wider than a large river, and that is where Tazuna built the bridge.

Although Tazuna concealed the truth, Sakura, who had read the original work, remembered the reason behind it.

The Land of Waves was once a peaceful and prosperous nation, but everything changed after Gato's arrival. Gato, outwardly the owner of a shipping company, secretly colluded with the mafia and wandering ninjas to smuggle controlled goods, dominate other companies and even nations, all for exorbitant profits. A year ago, Gato set his sights on the Land of Waves. Through violence and wealth, he controlled all maritime transport on the island, thus controlling the lifeline of the Land of Waves. Under Gato's relentless exploitation, the Land of Waves quickly became an impoverished and destitute country.

The bridge built by Tazuna was the key to breaking through Gato's blockade, which is why Tazuna became Gato thorn in Gato's side.

Given Konoha's intelligence capabilities, it wouldn't be difficult for them to find out what Tazuna was hiding. Sakura guessed that this mission was likely intentionally assigned to Team 7 by the Hokage. Logically speaking, although Gato is rich, he is essentially still an ordinary person. Even if he colludes with wandering ninjas, he wouldn't be too strong, otherwise he would suffer a backlash sooner or later.

Team 7 accepted this mission for two reasons: firstly, to find a mission of moderate difficulty to train them; Team 7 secondly, for political reasons. After the bridge to the Land of Waves was completed, the Land of Waves would inevitably rely more on Konoha, so it was important to establish good relations in advance. As for the lost hiring fee, it was not a big deal.

Kakashi should have been fully aware of the possibility of ninja confrontations during the mission; otherwise, how could Tazuna, an ordinary person, have submitted to an elite ninja so easily? Team 7 was originally meant to continue their mission.

If you're reading a shonen manga, you might not notice this, but Sakura, living in the real world, only needs to think about it for a moment to understand the key point. Many seemingly illogical things actually have their reasons for how they turned out that way.

The only thing that surprised Konoha was that Gato was able to hire a ninja of Zabuza's caliber. Hiring rogue ninjas is inherently very risky; many rogue ninjas will kill their employers and steal all their money, simply because it's easier than completing the mission. Furthermore, being provoked by the employer or believing that the employer has exposed their location could also lead a rogue ninja to kill them. In fact, if Zabuza tolerated him once, Gato Zabuza long ago. Konoha probably never imagined that Gato would be so foolish as to dare hire a ninja of this caliber; he's asking for trouble.

Sakura, with a mixture of understanding and confusion, embarked on her first mission abroad.

At a ninja's pace, it would only take three or four days to travel from Konoha to the Land of Waves at full speed. However, with Tazuna, an ordinary person, in the group, the journey was extended to more than two weeks.

The group hiked along the main road, traveling during the day and camping at night, or resting in towns along the way. At first, the journey was quite exciting; the three members of Team 7 had only ever gone as far as a neighboring village on a mission before, and this was the first time they had left Konoha this far.

In places far from Konoha, ordinary towns are very different from Konoha. The biggest difference is that ninjas are no longer a common sight. More than 95% of the ninjas in the Land of Fire are in Konoha. In other places, you can only see ninjas on missions. Sakura and her group have therefore become rare, experiencing the feeling of being watched like animals in a cage.

The armed forces patrolling the city are usually soldiers who know some basic Chakra manipulation. These people are okay at dealing with ordinary thieves and bandits, but they are far from being able to handle wandering ninjas. Fortunately, Konoha has a great reputation, so ordinary ninjas don't dare to cause trouble here.

In contrast, a country like the Land of Waves, lacking its own ninja villages and ninjas, is vulnerable to being bullied even by someone like Gato. That's the tragedy of a nation!

Another obvious difference is the architecture in the city. Because of Ninjutsu, the buildings in Konoha can be built to be more magnificent and spectacular, or exquisite, grand or bizarre, while the buildings in towns outside Konoha are often low and simple, without so many fancy designs.

Along the way, Sakura carefully observed and savored the unique charm of this place, so different from Konoha, while secretly remaining vigilant against any ninja attacks that might occur at any moment.

Two weeks have passed, and they are about to cross the border of Konoha into the Land of Waves, but there is still no sign of the enemy. The journey is as peaceful as ever, as if Gato is completely unaware of Tazuna's return. This is impossible.

The closer they got to the Land of Waves, the greater the chance of being attacked. Knowing this, Tazuna and Kakashi remained as calm as ever.

On the contrary, Sakura herself became nervous. Once, she almost thought someone was spying on them, so she shot a Kunai into the distance, but found nothing.

Sakura and the others arrived at a city on the border, where they would rest for the night before continuing their journey for three days straight back to Tazuna's house.