First C-Rank Mission

Hokage Building.

The task delegation department is a place where people come and go like the ebb and flow of a tide.

Nearly ten thousand people pass through here every day, some accepting tasks, some submitting tasks, and some posting commissions.

There are fifty staff members stationed here, and sometimes when the pressure is too great, they will borrow people from other places. This is definitely the busiest place of all the administrative agencies in Konoha, without exception.

After talking with an office worker for two minutes, Shisui walked out of the building.

"Teacher Shisui, how is it?"

Naruto was always the most enthusiastic, rushing up and following Shisui around, constantly asking questions.

"Now we'll go see our client. As long as there are no problems with the client, this job is ours."

Shisui waved the document in his hand.

"By the way, Shuyuan, come here for a moment, I need to ask you for a favor."

"Please ask me?"

Shuyuan frowned in confusion, but still walked towards Shisui.

Hostel.

The most expensive luxury room.

"Mr. Kitajima, we are ninjas from Konoha, and we have accepted the mission you entrusted to us."

As the best room in the hotel, it comes with its own reception room.

"Hey, is this okay? My requirement is for some tough guys to be my bodyguards, not a bunch of brats. You think you can fool me with four little brats?"

With a bulky build and a neatly trimmed white beard, Kitajima Tora, a major grain merchant from the Land of Grass, slammed his fist on the table in dissatisfaction.

Naruto, with his fiery temper, was about to explode upon hearing this, but Shuyuan, who had been assigned the task, calmed him down.

Although Sasuke and Suzuran also disliked the fat old man's words, they knew what was important and wouldn't act impulsively like Naruto.

Shisui was no longer surprised by the clients' difficult behavior, especially these businessmen, for whom stinginess was ingrained in their very being. Such demeaning tactics were merely a means to reduce their compensation.

Fortunately, he had previously asked Shuyuan to help control Naruto, who was like a firecracker that could be set off at any moment; otherwise, a full-blown brawl might have already broken out here.

Behind Kitajima Tora stood two sword-wielding samurai; they weren't particularly strong, but they looked quite imposing.

"Mr. Beidao, don't underestimate my subordinates just because they are young. Their abilities are absolutely reliable. If it weren't for their age and experience, a mere C-level mission wouldn't be worth their time. With their current skill level, B-Rank Mission are the most suitable for them."

Shisui lavished praise on Naruto and Shuyuan, concluding with, "I guarantee with my reputation as Body Flicker Shisui that they are very reliable."

The name "Body Flicker Shisui" made the fat old man squint his eyes.

Merchants like these don't know who the leaders of Konoha's Anbu and Root are. The only experts they know are Hokage and Body Flicker Shisui, who is extremely active and Jonin.

Realizing that the young man before him was the famous Uchiha Shisui, the fat old man stroked his beard and began to calculate. Hiring such a master for the price of a C-rank mission was definitely not a loss. As for those four brats, he didn't care whether they were truly capable or just bluffing.

As long as this Uchiha Shisui isn't a fake, that's fine.

"... Since the renowned Body Flicker Shisui is here to vouch for us, fine, you guys are the ones. Get ready, we'll have lunch at 11:00, and we'll depart promptly at 12:00."

"Twelve o'clock? It'll be really hot then?" Sasuke couldn't help but ask.

"Kid, your job as ninjas is to protect me, not to give orders. Figure out who you are before you speak."

Kitajima Tora glared at Sasuke, got up and left the reception room, went into the master bedroom to pack his things, with two samurai guarding the bedroom door on either side.

Sasuke, sitting on the sofa, was so angry that his eyes widened. If Shisui hadn't pulled him back in time, he definitely would have rushed up and taught that fatso a lesson.

No one has ever humiliated him like this before!

"Sasuke, be quiet." Shisui pressed down on Sasuke's head with one hand and said in a low voice, "Don't let anger control your mind. Listen to me, this is the job of a ninja. Here, few people care about your family or surname, or whether you are a genius or not. They don't care about that. If you want to earn respect, let your performance speak for itself."

"And one more thing, Naruto, listen up: using violence against your employer is punishable by severe penalties."

The last sentence was spoken by Shisui to the four of them simultaneously.

"Don't think that just because you're considered geniuses at the Ninja Academy, you can be arrogant and look down on everyone else. Put away that useless arrogance. There's no reason why everyone should be respectful to you unless you have the strength and status of the Lord Hokage or the Calamity Lord..."

"Remember your place. You are nothing more than a group of Genin, the lowest rank among ninjas."

This was the first time in a month that Shisui had spoken to them in such a stern tone.

The four people, including Lian Shuyuan, were stunned.

I left the hotel with the four thoughtful little ones. It was only a little past eight o'clock, more than three hours before midnight.

This period of time is a good opportunity to make some further preparations.

"Speaking of which, Shisui- sensei, if we're just going back to the Land of Grass, there's no need to hire ninjas, is there? The bandits and brigands in the Land of Land of Fire have been mostly wiped out in the past two years, so the journey should be quite safe, right?"

The hotel's reception room.

Although it wasn't yet midnight, they had nothing to do after packing their bags, so they decided to come here and wait.

Shuyuan quickly recovered from Shisui's admonition, and everything returned to normal. She began to study the details of their mission and raised questions about the parts she didn't understand.

"Oh, this! It seems there's been a serial killer operating on the border between our Land of Fire and Land of Grass lately, attacking passing merchants. It's been quite a big problem lately."

"A serial killer?" Shuyuan looked surprised. "Don't the Border Defense Force care? It's just a serial killer."

"It's not that simple. I've heard that this serial killer is roaming between our Land of Fire and Land of Grass. Our garrison can't cross the border to pursue him. Plus, that serial killer seems to be quite skilled; ordinary samurai are no match for him. That's why the problem hasn't been resolved yet."

Shisui sat on the sofa, flipping through the latest newspaper he had obtained from the hotel reception, while chatting with Shuyuan at the same time.

"By the way, the village even issued a special mission to arrest this murderer, also a C-rank mission. Unfortunately, I was a step too late; the mission had already been accepted. Otherwise, we'd be on our way to catch the murderer right now!"

"I see! A serial killer? That's interesting."

Shuyuan didn't pay much attention to the murderer, continuing to ponder their mission and how to carry out the protection work.

Naruto and Sasuke were still reflecting on their actions, while Suzuran was folding origami and seemed to be having a lot of fun.

The stopwatch on the wall clock spun round and round until finally the clock struck twelve. (To be continued)