A ninja's first lesson: teamwork

Naruto is a man of action; taking action is far easier than using his brain. He rushed into the livestock shed, Teuchi the wooden fence, and prepared to grab a bull and lasso it with a rope.

Sasuke and Sakura, who were still standing by the window pondering how to deal with the hundreds of bull heads, were nearly scared out of their wits when they saw this.

"Naruto, you big idiot, what are you doing?!" Sakura stormed into the house in a fit of rage, her thunderous roar shaking the entire building.

Naruto flinched, dropping the rope he was holding, which ended up around the bull's horn.

The sudden falling object made the bull uncomfortable; it mooed and turned its head. Naruto tightened his grip on the rope and immediately felt a strong force coming from his hand.

Bang!

Unsurprisingly, Naruto was pulled straight to the ground by the bull and ended up eating a pile of dry grass.

Moo moo...

The surrounding cattle also started bellowing, seemingly mocking Naruto's overestimation of his abilities. The bull chewed its grazing, staring at Naruto expressionlessly.

It's as if it's saying, "You little punk, you think you can put a rope around my neck?"

Naruto's face darkened, and he pulled the withered grass out of his hair, looking aggrieved. He asked, "Sakura, what are you doing? You scared me half to death!"

"What are you doing? Do you know what you're doing?" Sakura yelled.

"Grazing? Aren't we supposed to move them all out?" Naruto asked blankly.

"..." Sakura was completely at a loss for words, staring speechlessly at Naruto, trying to figure out if he was joking.

So many cattle and sheep, are they being herded one by one?

When will it be?

At that moment, Sasuke was a step behind, also entered the large room, glanced around, and said leisurely, "Idiot, you know you need to get them all out?"

Sasuke deliberately emphasized the word "them".

"What did you say? Who are you calling an idiot?" Upon hearing Sasuke's words, Naruto immediately jumped up and roared, rolling up his sleeves as if ready to fight Sasuke.

The last one...

Sasuke glanced at Naruto indifferently, showing no desire to even make a move.

"It's impossible to herd them one by one, so we need to know how Uncle Sai Hao usually does it. If we can find his herding record book, perhaps we can solve our current problem."

Sasuke turned to look at Sakura, and although he was speaking to Sakura, he was also indirectly explaining things to Naruto.

Sakura nodded in agreement; Uncle Sai Hao couldn't possibly give them a task they couldn't complete.

Where is the grazing manual? What are the habits of these cattle and sheep? Which nearby pasture do they prefer? How long should they graze?

They need to know many things; this is the intelligence gathering before a mission.

What appears to be a simple ranch mission is actually preparation for a dangerous mission later on.

Just as Sasuke and Sakura were silently looking around, Naruto's voice suddenly rang out, "Is this it?"

Swish!

Two figures flashed toward Naruto, Sakura dodged the handbook from Naruto's hand, flipping through it with a rustling sound.

"Really? Naruto, you're still quite useful!"

"Hehe..." Hearing Sakura's praise, Naruto blushed slightly, scratched the back of his head, and chuckled sheepishly.

"It seems that Uncle Sai Hao was well-prepared. We just need to follow the steps in the manual." Sasuke glanced at the table where Naruto had taken the manual.

In a very conspicuous place, is where Uncle Sai Hao usually stays.

Not only were there grazing manuals, but a whole set of tools were also prepared neatly.

If the three of them hadn't found these things beforehand and instead acted recklessly, they would likely have caused a major disaster.

Sakura removed the Bull Ring, Naruto carried the hay, and Sasuke stood guard to deal with any unexpected situations.

Under normal circumstances, there shouldn't be any problems, as long as you don't do anything reckless.

"Sakura, be careful! This guy is incredibly strong!" Naruto kindly warned.

Sakura pouted. The manual clearly stated that this bull was the alpha male of the herd of cattle and sheep. Once she won it over, she could take them for a walk together.

The bull was fairly good-tempered; lured by the hay, it was easy to put Bull Ring on it.

"Come here quickly, hand me some hay!" Sakura held the Bull Ring in one hand and spread her other hand out.

Naruto said "Oh," and quickly unpacked the hay, picked up a bundle and handed it over, while cautiously watching the bull, afraid that the bull would mess with him again.

Sakura took the hay, smiling as she looked into the bull's eyes. "Come on, this is top-quality hay! It's all yours!"

As she spoke, Sakura had already placed the hay in her hand near the bull's mouth.

The bull didn't stand on ceremony; it turned its head and took most of the meat in one gulp, then, showing no mercy, began chewing on its own.

Sakura wasn't annoyed. She crept forward two steps with a sly look and reached out to slip the Bull Ring onto her.

Moo!

The bull, with its back to the three men, seemed to know what was about to happen. It twisted its massive body, turning its head inward, leaving only its large rear end, swishing its tail, facing the three men.

Sakura leaned forward and almost bumped into him.

Naruto couldn't help but burst out laughing, but a cold glare swept over him, and he quickly covered his mouth with both hands.

Sakura glared at Naruto in exasperation, her smile freezing on her lips.

How dare you disrespect me! Humph!!

"Sakura." Just as Sakura was about to act recklessly, Sasuke flashed in and stopped her.

Sasuke caught the Bull Ring and leaped into the air, flying straight above the bull. He then tossed the Bull Ring out like a vase.

The Bull Ring traced an arc in the air...

Middle!

"Wow, Sasuke is so cool!" Sakura exclaimed inwardly, her eyes sparkling with hearts.

"Naruto, go open the rest of the wooden fences. Sakura, come with me and take this guy out." Sasuke handed one end of the rope to Sakura, then bent down and picked up a bundle of hay.

"Why should I listen to you? I'm not going!" Naruto was already annoyed that Sasuke had stolen his thunder, so how could he possibly listen to him?

However, just as Naruto finished speaking, a pale fist grew larger from small to large.

Bang!!

Sakura punched Naruto, sending him flying. "Go open all the doors!"

"Yes, yes, Sakura, don't be angry!" Naruto quickly got up and nodded in response. The punch looked powerful, but in reality, it didn't do much damage.

Sasuke lured the bull away little by little with hay, while Sakura held onto the rope, not daring to use too much force, simply leading it in the direction Sasuke was moving.

Little by little...

The two led the bull to the gate of the barn, and Naruto opened all the wooden fences.

Seeing the lead cow leave, the herd of cattle and sheep followed it out and headed towards the gate.

The three men led the herd of cattle and sheep at a slow pace, but things were moving in a positive direction.

To the north of the pasture lies a wide-open grassland, surrounded by mountains, water, trees, and flowers—a picturesque area that cattle and sheep love to gather in.

Sasuke and Sakura led the way with a cow, while Naruto watched over the other cattle and sheep to prevent them from getting lost.

If any member leaves the group, Naruto will bring them back.

The bull was quite cooperative, seemingly knowing where the three were taking them, and, tempted by Sasuke's delicious food, it walked straight ahead without looking back.

One hour later...

On the refreshing grass, the three of them wiped away their sweat and lay down together.

What seemed like a simple task took a toll on the three little ones, and Naruto, who was responsible for keeping an eye on the team and maintaining order in the rear, was physically exhausted.

Sasuke was leading the bull at the front, was exhausted. Although he was beside the bull, his eyes were always on the group behind him.

Sakura, who was holding onto the bull's rope, suddenly felt that her arms no longer belonged to her.

Puff!

Someone, seeing their companion's disheveled appearance, couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Hahaha..."

The remaining two, seeing this, looked at themselves and burst into laughter as well.

It was tough, but I was very happy.

This was their first time completing a D-level mission, even though they had only completed half of it. They still needed to bring these guys back before nightfall.

Not one can be missing!

After that experience, the three of them became much more skilled and were able to bring the cattle and sheep back to the pasture much faster.

As for Tōka, the teacher in charge of Team 7?

Apart from delivering lunch to the three of them once at noon, they were nowhere to be seen all day.

Night falls, the sun sets, and darkness envelops the entire earth.

In the direction of the village, thousands of lights shone brightly, like twinkling stars adorning the village, dispelling much of the darkness.

Uncle Sai Hao returned in his oxcart as dusk fell. He saw that the large animals in the livestock shed had eaten their fill and were now asleep, and his eyes were full of satisfaction.

Outside the ranch fence, Uncle Sai Hao smiled and saw them off.

"Thank you so much! I really don't know what I would have done today without your help!"

"Of course, they gained valuable experience." Tōka nodded politely. "It's getting late, so we'll be leaving now."

"Alright, be careful on your way back." Uncle Sai Hao waved his hand kindly.

"Goodbye Uncle Sai Hao!" The three kids felt that today was very fulfilling, even though it was different from the task they had imagined.

However, they also accumulated a lot of experience.

Overall, everyone is very satisfied today; the only drawback is...

Why did this guy get the lion's share of the pay even though he didn't do anything? The three kids glared at Tōka's back with secret annoyance.

Little did they know that even without Tōka's Eternal Tenseigan being activated, he could still freely expand and contract his field of vision.

In other words, Tōka took in the expressions of the three little devils.

"If you're not satisfied, then hurry up and become stronger to become Chunin!" Tōka without turning his head, his voice carrying a hint of ethereal laughter.

"Once you become Chunin, you can lead a team, and then you can get the lion's share of the rewards without doing anything!"

The premise is...

You need to be strong enough to earn more money!

There are rules for the distribution of rewards among ninja teams. Tōka didn't care about the money, but seeing the three kids' pained expressions made him feel quite generous!

Sakura's parents were ordinary people, but they had no shortage of food or clothing.

Sasuke was the last member of the Uchiha Clan, and although most of the things left behind by the large clan were taken by Konoha.

Even if only 10% is left, it would be enough for Sasuke to eat and drink for the rest of his life.

Naruto, on the other hand, was the poorest of the three!

However, this doesn't mean Sasuke and Sakura didn't care about the reward, after all, this was their first mission to complete.

"Given your good performance, I'll treat you to barbecue today." Several thousand taels of silver are hardly enough for four people to have barbecue, but Tōka doesn't care about the money.

Offering a small bribe to gain favor with the three is a classic example of "hitting the nail before giving a treat."

Sure enough, as soon as Tōka finished speaking, the three little devils' eyes immediately lit up with joy, and their little faces broke into uncontrollable smiles.

Tōka treating everyone to barbecue is not just about the meal itself, but more about showing his appreciation for them.

At least for today's task, Tōka is satisfied.

Despite numerous setbacks, the newly assembled team knew how to cooperate and help each other, managing to get by.

Why do ninjas form teams of four?

The goal is to leverage the power of the team, which is also the first lesson that all the instructors teach to the rookies who have just become Genin.

Tōka was too lazy to explain, so he let the three of them figure it out for themselves.

If Naruto insists on acting recklessly, Sasuke will still look down on his two teammates, Sakura will devote herself entirely to Sasuke.

Let alone herding hundreds of cattle and sheep, even that big bull could keep them entertained for a whole day!

Barbecue Restaurant.

Steaming hot, sizzling.

The enticing aroma was incredibly tempting, Naruto was about to reach for a piece of roasted meat when Sakura suddenly Teuchi.

Naruto turned to look at Sakura, puzzled. Sakura then gestured for Naruto to look at Tōka.

As a member of a prominent family Sasuke clearly excels in manners, while Sakura, having been taught by her parents, behaves well at the dinner table when elders are present.

Especially when dining with someone for the first time, it's essential to make a good impression.

Although Naruto didn't quite understand, seeing that Sasuke and Sakura were sitting properly without moving, he also put down his chopsticks and sat properly as well.

Even though the drool from the corner of his mouth was almost dripping onto the table...

"Eat up, let's chat while we eat." As Tōka spoke, she first picked up a large piece of meat and put it on her plate.

Seeing this, the three of them immediately stopped being reserved and took action. Several afterimages flashed by, and the red-hot Iron Plate was quickly swept clean.

While the three of them were devouring the barbecue, Tōka took a sip of tea.

"You all know about today's mission, right? That's why ninjas need to form four-person teams, isn't it?" Although it was a question, Tōka hoped to get a positive answer.

"I know, I know." Naruto, swallowed it whole and then pounded his chest.

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately perked up their ears, seemingly anticipating what Naruto would say next.

Naruto took a sip of Clear Tea to catch his breath before speaking, "A fool like Sasuke needs a genius like me to take care of him in order to complete a mission!"

Sasuke's face darkened, Sakura raised an eyebrow, and Tōka looked at Naruto speechlessly.

Really!

Naruto is such an idiot...

We shouldn't expect him to say anything profound or philosophical!

The sudden silence made even the usually carefree Naruto feel a little awkward, and he quickly lowered his head and silently stuffed the grilled meat into his mouth.

After a brief silence, Tōka slowly uttered a sentence.

"It's teamwork."

The three of them ate with their heads down, but Tōka's words were overheard by them. At the same time, they were recalling the events of the day, and what would happen if everyone refused to cooperate.

The mission is definitely impossible to complete!