After the work at Menma came to an end for the time being, Naruto's life at Konoha Village returned to the rhythm of the past. There is still some time before the next big plot point - Chunin Ninja Exams.
On an ordinary afternoon, Team 7 had just finished harvesting crops and helped walk a few large Ninja Dog hybrid D-rank mission.
After the mission, the three of them were filled with the smell of dust and grass.
Kakashi held the book "Icha Icha Paradise" as always. He glanced at the three of them lazily with his exposed eye and spoke slowly. "Okay, everyone has worked hard today. I'll go to Hokage Building to submit the mission report. That's it for today. Let's disband."
However, having said that, the other three did not leave immediately as usual. Sakura seemed particularly dissatisfied. She slapped the dirt and hay on her legs hard and complained.
"Let me tell you, Kakashi-sensei! We obviously don't have that kind of record on our patient files, so why after coming here can we only do these D-rank mission tasks of catching cats, walking dogs, and helping with farm work! It's so unfair!"
The "kind of record" she refers to is the final rating of the last mission to Poland. After facing a traitorous ninja of Zabuza Momochi's level and experiencing a real life-and-death fight, the actual difficulty and danger of that mission made it an A-level rating.
And the information brought by Kakashi - about the [Jin] organization's re-operation, Zabuza Momochi and Ice Release blood successors confirmed to join the organization, and the most amazing, about the leader [Menma]'s suspected ability to "repair everything" and reverse death - its strategic value is inestimable.
Although Menma did not take action against Team 7 this time, the important information related to the organization that Ninja World was most afraid of, its contribution and the particularity of the mission itself finally allowed Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi to personally set the final rating of the Polish mission to S-level.
Genin actually has a record of completing S-level missions? Naruto I don't know what the situation is like in other villages, but in Konoha Village, this is definitely the only one.
Kakashi closed the book in his hand and explained with a slightly helpless tone. "What are you thinking about, Sakura. The S-level evaluation of the country was due to an unexpected situation that completely exceeded expectations, which is an extreme exception. Under normal circumstances, the tasks that Genin should perform should be mainly D-level. This is for your safety."
"Then... then you should at least give us some C-rank mission!" Sakura argued unwillingly. She wanted to C-rank mission so much. A large part of the reason was that C-rank mission could usually leave the village to perform.
This means that I can spend more time with Satsuki day and night, away from my mother's nagging.
Due to the introduction of Naruto, the fate of Team 7 has changed a little. For example, in Team 7, in addition to Kakashi, Naruto is the only "orphan" panel in the strict sense. This also makes Sakura feel that he has more excuses to sympathize with each other.
Kakashi scratched his silver hair and finally said vaguely. "Well... C-rank mission... I will report it to Lord Hokage. But before that, you still have to complete the assigned D-rank mission."
Kakashi said so. Although Naruto was a little helpless, it wasn't that long before Chunin Ninja Exams. With this in mind, he decided to talk about his family first.
"Well, since I'm fine, I'll go ahead." Naruto patted the dust on his body and said cheerfully to his companions, "Satsuki, Sakura, and Kakashi-sensei, if you want to come to me, just come to my house!"
After saying that, Naruto turned around and walked in the direction of his home. He had to quickly settle the "baby" in his backpack - that Pokémon Egg still needed to "walk" to hatch. Every time he performed a mission, Naruto would carefully carry it on his back, looking forward to the day when his life would break out of the shell.
Now that the mission is over, he has to quickly put the eggs in the nest at Yi's house.
Watching the back of Naruto leaving, Satsuki subconsciously stretched out his hand and opened his lips slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end the words were stuck in his throat and turned into an almost inaudible sigh, and his arms hung down feebly. When Sakura saw this, although she thought Satsuki looked a little strange, she didn't think much about it. She just wanted to go home quickly, take a hot bath, and thoroughly wash away the dirt and dog hair stuck to her body from farm work.
"Then I'll get back to you first, Satsuki, see you tomorrow!" Sakura waved his hand and turned to leave.
There are only Satsuki and Kakashi who are preparing to submit a mission report. Kakashi originally planned to go into practice after handing in the report, but noticed that [Satsuki was still standing there, staring blankly at the end of the street where Naruto disappeared.
"What's wrong Satsuki?" Kakashi stopped and asked with concern, "Aren't you going home? You're standing here in a daze."
"... Huh? Ah... that... I know..."
Satsuki suddenly came back to his senses and responded in a panic, but his eyes were still a little wandering, and he looked absent-minded and preoccupied.
Seeing her like this, Kakashi couldn't help but think of the time when he first returned to the village, when he seriously taught Satsuki about the rules of not being able to kill the client.
The explanation given by Satsuki at that time was that "Tazuna pulled Naruto into a foreseeable danger." This strong and paranoid desire for protection and concern has long gone beyond the scope of ordinary teammates or even friends.
Combined with Satsuki's overly focused gaze on Naruto on weekdays, his subconscious approach, and his lost state at the moment, Kakashi naturally saw the clues.
At this moment, Satsuki's heart was being stirred up by a strange and turbulent emotion. She herself couldn't figure out what was going on? Why does Xinli feel inexplicably restless every time I watch [Naruto]? Every time I see him leave, I feel an indescribable loss?
During the Land of Waves mission, I saw Naruto encounter danger one after another. The protective desire that was about to break through my chest was stimulated and accumulated again and again, and it was almost reaching a critical point.
To put it simply, the growing emotions in her heart have never been truly satisfied and vented... A vague but strong desire grew in her heart - she wanted to take her relationship with Naruto to a deeper level, becoming more than just a teammate, more than just a friend.
But... why does the courage disappear like a popped balloon every time a word comes out of your mouth? Do you get cold feet every time? This entanglement made her feel extremely irritable.
"Satsuki."
A calm call suddenly sounded in his ears, interrupting Satsuki's chaotic thoughts. She turned her head and was a little surprised to find that Kakashi did not leave, but walked beside her.
"What's wrong?" Satsuki asked subconsciously.
Kakashi looked at her, the exposed eye was slightly bent, and he spoke calmly with a clear look.
"You like Naruto, right?"