Starting with Completing My First B-Rank Mission

Starting with Completing My First B-Rank Mission

Did this count as completing a B-Rank Mission?

Lin Ke walked back to the inn. He could not say whether he was disappointed or happy; he simply felt calm. He just felt that his first battle had been a little too easy.

It felt like he had merely ridden the coattails of two elite jonin to complete a mission.

He had no idea why they had carried out this mission, why it had arisen in the first place, or how they had ended up clashing with Amegakure ninja. From beginning to end, he had been completely confused.

He had not done much during the process, nor had he taken part in any intense battle. Could this really count as one B-Rank Mission?

As he strolled along the roadside, he thought about the mission for a while before turning his attention to the lightning-fast exchange from earlier.

In truth, the Amegakure ninja who had kicked him was far stronger than him in physique, strength, and speed. If they had gotten tangled up in close combat, it probably would have been rather troublesome.

But that guy had underestimated him too much. What kind of strength could a nine-year-old child with an unskilled dominant hand and a weak off-hand possibly have? He had rushed in, casually kicked him, and intended to go straight after the protected female ninja.

The instant he saw his body fly away and fall apart while his head remained where it was, he had clearly believed that he had fallen under Genjutsu.

So he instinctively tried to disrupt his chakra to dispel the Genjutsu. By the time he realized it was not Genjutsu, he had already been wounded by Lin Ke, whose taijutsu was far weaker than his. Even without the female ninja's help, the outcome of their fight would likely have been decided.

A single wrong decision in an instant could determine life or death.

For some reason, Lin Ke suddenly thought of someone else—

Nara Shikamaru.

In the original work, Nara Shikamaru was said to be capable of instantly choosing the correct option from over two hundred possible decisions.

So, could Lin Ke make the right judgment in a similar situation and carry it out without hesitation?

He silently sighed. Putting himself in the Amegakure ninja's shoes, even he would probably have failed—or even died—due to shock and the instinctive urge to dispel Genjutsu.

The Ninja Academy's combat simulations had taught him many things, and his only two real combat experiences had been against two jonin. That had made him feel a little too full of himself.

He could not help developing the mistaken belief that as long as he summoned a powerful Stand, he could fight a jonin. Even if only temporarily, that was still powerful strength.

But in real combat, there was no time to form hand seals in advance, much less two sides standing ready and trading techniques. It was not turn-based, with one attack from you and one from me.

It was surprise attacks, assassinations, and ambushes. It was enemies about whom you had no intelligence at all. It was choices where one mistake meant eternal damnation.

Ninja were not samurai. All they needed to do was take the target's life at the smallest possible cost.

But more importantly, this battle convinced Lin Ke that his techniques held an advantage against other ninja. In other words, it gave him confidence. Being defeated by two jonin in two consecutive graduation exams had affected his mindset somewhat. Now he realized that it was not because he was weak—the jonin had simply been too strong.

It also confirmed the necessity of maintaining the Clone Technique at all times. The only flaw was that his opponent had not even given him the chance to use the Transformation Jutsu and test his new combat system.

After going through all that, his mindset became more stable. He would neither underestimate nor overestimate himself. Mindset was important.

"My first B-Rank Mission, my first fight against a ninja..."

Lin Ke stood before the inn and glanced back at the brightly lit street.

"Not bad." — Nara Yan Shui returned to the inn the next morning and informed Fifth Squad that they could play on Tanzaku Street until noon before returning to the village that afternoon.

Yuan Wei and Xia had no idea that their instructor and teammate had carried out an A(B)-Rank Mission the previous night. The two split up and went sightseeing with their little wallets.

Tanzaku Street had more than just Gambling, Pornography, and Drugs. It also had an amusement park famous throughout the Land of Fire—

Lin Ke could not understand why a town built on Gambling, Pornography, and Drugs would have a place like an amusement park.

In any case, he did not go out with his two teammates. Instead, he came alone to Tanzaku Castle, an ancient castle from the era of war several decades ago that had now become a cultural landmark of the Land of Fire. Its overall architectural style was almost identical to the old Japanese castles from his previous life. Kishimoto had clearly copied Japan's famous Himeji Castle; many scenes were exactly the same as the photographs.

The place was bustling with people, and quite a few foreigners with obviously different styles of dress had come to visit. He circled the castle once, then climbed to the highest point to look down over its structure and the neighboring streetscape of Tanzaku Street. It had quite the feeling of modernity blending with the past.

Everywhere on Tanzaku Street stood buildings in the same style as Konoha, arranged in a pleasing, layered harmony of heights and shapes. Modern elements such as promotional banners and power lines could be seen everywhere, and there was even an electrical appliance district dedicated to selling appliances.

Yet they could not even manage long-distance communication. Konoha's specially made radio earpieces could only guarantee communication within five hundred meters, while cross-regional calls and medical operations that consumed too much electricity actually required Lightning Release and enormous batteries.

The entire technology tree had a strong "I reckon it works, so it works" feeling.

Honestly, if someone suddenly told Lin Ke one day that the humans of the Naruto World were actually greenskins, he would not be surprised at all.

After touring Tanzaku Castle, he returned to the inn and headed back to Konoha with his teammates and teacher.

Without a client slowing them down, the four were able to fully display their speed. They set out after lunch and returned to the village before nightfall.

After checking in at the mission assignment office and collecting the reward, the four went their separate ways. Nara Yan Shui found Lin Ke alone and said, "You did well on last night's mission."

"Uh, it was just—" Lin Ke realized that this counted as the first B-Rank Mission he had completed.

"That's right. You completed your first B-Rank Mission." Nara Yan Shui smiled. "Congratulations."

Lin Ke pressed his lips together, looked up at him, and said, "Thank you for your help."

"Don't get too proud. Completing your first B-Rank Mission is only the beginning." Nara Yan Shui tossed over a small booklet. "Study the contents carefully. There will be other B-Rank and higher missions waiting for you later. Depending on your performance, I will recommend you for promotion to chunin."

Konoha Chunin Guidance Manual

Lin Ke caught the booklet. Just from the title, he knew what it was. At last, he could not help smiling. "Thank you so much, Yan Shui Teacher."

"Well..." Nara Yan Shui rubbed the back of his head. A trace of youthful frustration appeared on his somewhat weathered face, despite him being only in his twenties. "Taking care of you three little brats every day gives me a headache too."

He lowered his hand and patted Lin Ke on the shoulder. "Keep it up." With that, he left.