Land of Rivers Mission Line

"Then I want to be the squad leader," Naruto requested.

"No way!" Tsunade refused without hesitation. "Team 3 3 are all honest people. If you make them the squad leader, they'll be completely fooled by you."

"If things go wrong, the reputation of the entire Konohagakure could be ruined by you alone."

"It's not that exaggerated, is it?" Naruto scratched his face. "I'm an honest person too."

"Huh?" Tsunade narrowed her eyes, quickly walked over and grabbed Naruto's collar. The large, round body pressed against Naruto, making it hard for him to breathe. "You'd better not lie to them and do anything strange."

"If I find out, you're dead!"

"No, no!" Naruto chuckled sheepishly.

Tsunade released him, her expression still grim, and poked his forehead as she spoke.

"Jiraiya took you to train, but you refused. If you don't do more missions, how will you improve your strength? I picked out missions for you in the midst of my busy schedule, but you're still being picky."

"If I hear you say that again, you'll be doing odd jobs in the office!"

"Knew."

Seeing that Naruto had finally behaved, Tsunade tossed him back onto the Hokage Chair, poured herself a glass of water, and parted her red lips slightly.

"This mission is a bit special," she said frankly. "A mining village in the Land of Rivers has been taken over by people who call themselves the Kurotsuchi Family, which involves the mining village and the Kurosuki clan, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen."

"It is highly likely that the person is Raiga Kurosuki."

"Was that person very strong?" Naruto couldn't remember who the Seven Ninja Swordsmen were anymore. In his memory, the previous generation of the Seven Ninja Might Duy Guy.

One character I vaguely remember is Itachi's former teammate, Juzo Biwa, a perfectly good elite Hidden Mist from Elite Jonin, who was turned into Shinobi World's "Xianglin's Wife" after being kicked by Might Duy.

Whenever they encounter Konohagakure ninja, they always ask if he knows a Might Duy Genin.

"Strong? I wouldn't say." Tsunade pondered for a moment, then tapped her head and said, "But that batch of Seven Ninja Swordsmen escaped from the Bloody Mist Period, and the people here are generally not quite normal."

"I originally planned to have Kai lead the team, but he was specifically entrusted with a protection mission by Daimyo from another country, so I had to send you instead."

Upon hearing this, Naruto's face darkened, and he sat in the Hokage's office chair, crossing his legs.

"What do you mean you can only send me? Being a temporary worker is already exhausting enough. I can't stand being treated like a slave, but there should be some real benefits, right?"

"Hmm?" Tsunade frowned slightly.

"No, I mean paid leave."

"What do you take me for? I may be the Hokage, but I still keep my personal and professional life separate." Tsunade dragged Naruto through the door and threw him out. "If you fail to complete this mission, you won't be going on any more missions. You'll be doing odd jobs in the office."

No sooner had he finished speaking than the office door slammed shut.

"Keep public and private matters separate?" Naruto was speechless. That wasn't what he said a while ago. Women are so fickle. After shaking his head, he stood up, dusted himself off, and left.

With two hours left before departure, he intended to go home to pack his things. However, his client was in a hurry, and before he even left the Hokage Building, Rock Lee called out to him from behind.

"Naruto, wait a minute."

"We're about to set off now," said Rock Lee, who was wearing a green bodysuit.

Upon hearing this, Naruto turned around to look.

Rock Lee stood in the Nikko, looking serious, as if something terrible had happened.

Two figures emerged from the irregular shadows of the Hokage Building, slowly walking out of the building from the left and right. They were Neji Hyuga and Tenten, whom Naruto had seen before.

Neither of them looked well, appearing extremely serious. Naruto could sense that this seriousness wasn't directed at him, but rather at the upcoming mission.

In other words, the preparation time for the task has been eliminated.

"What do you mean by 'leaving now'?" he asked with a smile. "Aren't there still two hours to prepare?"

"Sorry, Rokosuke was too worried about Kanpachi in the village." A burly, simple-looking man walked out of the Hokage Building, dressed like a villager with a thick beard.

The man's face was bandaged, as if he had been injured by a blunt object such as a shovel.

Behind him, two other men dressed as villagers, thin in build, came out. They looked to be around thirty years old, with thick calluses on their hands from heavy manual labor.

One man, dressed in a deep blue shirt, had thin lips and a face that screamed "not someone to be fooled." The other man, with narrowed eyes, appeared to be a gentle and honest person who was easy to talk to.

A quick glance around, combined with the information Rock Lee had just given and Rokosuke bearded man's words about Rokusuke's concern for Kanpachi, suggested that Rokosuke must be the one with the thin lips, and Kanpachi was probably some villager in danger.

He didn't remember some details very clearly, but he vaguely remembered that the Team 3 did seem to have a mission to eliminate Raiga Kurosuki, and the whole process was a bit unsettling.

As for the source of his unease, Naruto looked at the three villagers who had entrusted him with the task and subconsciously frowned.

The "special" thing Tsunade mentioned was actually waiting for him here.

"Let me explain," Neji Hyuga said, walking over without any emotion. "Their village is being oppressed, and anyone who offends the Kurotsuchi Family will be nailed to a coffin and buried alive."

"The three of them risked their lives to escape and seek help, hoping that Konohagakure could help them eliminate the Kurotsuchi Family and help them get rid of the fear of living under death every day."

"Their companion Kanpachi was buried alive, so we may have to set off earlier."

"That's right!" Rock Lee echoed enthusiastically.

Tenten didn't seem to have any objections, and all three of them looked at Naruto, as if waiting for him to say something like, "Let's set off now!"

But.

I disagree.

Naruto's words surprised everyone, and the atmosphere instantly froze. The resentment and dissatisfaction almost entirely stemmed from the thin-lipped villager, Rokosuke, while Rock Lee Tenten Neji, and Neji were mostly taken aback.

"Why?" Neji asked, not with any intention of blaming, but simply as a question.

"I'm not ready to set off," Naruto explained. "Besides, Rock Lee has clearly just finished training, and he won't be able to travel for long without rest."

Rock Lee scratched his head. "I can manage."

Upon hearing this, Neji remained silent, considered it seriously for a few seconds, and then nodded.

"Then depart at the normal mission time and cancel the early departure."

Tenten gave a helpless smile, with an expression that said, "I'm fine with whatever happens."

Only the thin-lipped villager Rokosuke, who had remained silent until now, suddenly became agitated and shouted, "Are you kidding me?!"

"My comrades are still buried underground, their fate unknown. You cold-blooded ninjas have no heart at all!"