Looking at the girl beside him, Namikawa Yū was puzzled at first, then understood.
Going by their ages and the established setting, Kurenai Yuhi, Might Guy, and Asuma Sarutobi had all graduated in the same class.
As the war grew steadily more intense, Konoha had sent not only graduated ninja to the battlefield, but even quite a few students who had yet to formally graduate.
As far as Namikawa Yū knew, even the Third Hokage's own son, Asuma Sarutobi, who would become one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, had been sent to the front.
If even the Hokage's own son could not escape going to war, there was little need to mention Kurenai Yuhi and the others.
"What are you looking at?"
The girl's voice suddenly rang out in front of him.
Noticing Namikawa Yū's gaze, Kurenai Yuhi frowned, a little displeased.
"Ah, sorry."
At her words, Namikawa Yū smiled. "Miss Kurenai, you're so pretty that I couldn't help looking a little longer."
"I'm very sorry if I made you uncomfortable."
He offered an apology full of remorse.
Seeing Namikawa Yū act like this, Kurenai Yuhi was the one who felt a little embarrassed instead.
Normally, no girl disliked being complimented.
Especially when the person complimenting her was a child who looked so young.
At that moment, Kurenai Yuhi could not help developing a favorable impression of Namikawa Yū.
"I'll be counting on you both to look after me during the mission."
Seeing that neither teammate was saying much, Namikawa Yū spoke up, his expression earnest. "I know some Medical Ninjutsu, but I'm really not very good at combat. I just hope I won't hold you back."
"Don't worry."
Hyuga Fu turned beside him and said calmly, "When we run into a fight, just stay behind us and handle our treatment."
"As for anything else, I'll be enough."
There was pride on his face, and he looked very confident in his abilities.
Kurenai Yuhi nodded as well, her gaze fairly mild as she looked at Namikawa Yū.
"All right."
Up ahead, the Jonin leading the team spoke calmly. "That's enough idle chatter."
"Let's begin our mission."
His calm words brought their conversation to an end.
Following the Jonin leading them, they began moving swiftly.
This time, their squad's mission was to infiltrate and take down an Iwagakure stronghold, clearing out the various arrangements the enemy had left under cover of night.
The mission went quite easily at first.
The members of the squad were all quite capable. Apart from Namikawa Yū, even Kurenai Yuhi, theoretically the weakest, had the strength of a Chunin and a good command of genjutsu.
On top of that standard of personnel, they had a Jonin, an elite Medical Ninja, and a member of the Hyuga Branch Family who possessed the Byakugan.
With a lineup like that, it really was hard to run into any problems.
Unfortunately, barring any surprises, a surprise was bound to happen.
During one raid, they fell into an enemy trap.
Ninja were an extremely vigilant bunch.
While you were plotting to kill them, they were also plotting how to lure you into a trap and what methods to use to kill you.
The Iwagakure ninja were no exception.
At certain special locations, the Iwagakure ninja had deliberately laid traps, just waiting for Konoha's people to plunge into them.
Some people were lucky enough to avoid these traps, while others fell into them.
Namikawa Yū's squad was among the unlucky ones.
To improve their chances of getting away, they split up and fled in two directions.
The Jonin leading them drew most of the attention and broke out in another direction.
Hyuga Fu and the other two headed the other way.
During the raid, Hyuga Fu's chest had been pierced.
The kunai had struck with great accuracy, coming just short of piercing his heart and nearly killing him on the spot.
As things stood, though, it had fallen just short.
Even so, he was about to lose consciousness, with only his last breath remaining.
"Put me down."
Struggling, Hyuga Fu spoke with difficulty. "If you keep carrying me, you'll both die."
"Put me down. I'll... cover your escape."
As a member of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Fu was proud.
He could not allow himself to become a burden, and he struggled to get up.
Unfortunately, his injuries were too severe. He no longer even had the strength to struggle to his feet.
"You're not in very good shape."
Namikawa Yū spoke softly. "You'd better not move around."
As he spoke, he placed a hand over Hyuga Fu's chest and gently passed it across.
A stream of warm chakra flowed into Hyuga Fu's body, temporarily stabilizing his injuries and easing his pain.
"Thank you, Yū."
Hyuga Fu drew a deep breath. "But as things stand, it's already impossible for all three of us to get away."
"Yū, you and Kurenai are still young. There's no need for you to die here."
"Let me stay behind."
As a member of the Hyuga Clan, Hyuga Fu was the most valuable of the three.
If he served as bait, he could draw Iwagakure's attention and buy his two teammates time to escape.
This was the best option available.
But at his suggestion, Namikawa Yū merely smiled and applied a little pressure with his hand.
A wisp of chakra flowed out and entered Hyuga Fu's body, knocking him unconscious on the spot.
Only after doing all this did he turn his gaze to Kurenai Yuhi beside him.
"Kurenai, you two go ahead."
"Yū?"
Kurenai Yuhi's eyes widened. "What are you going to do?"
"Both you and Fu are outstanding, excellent ninja."
Meeting Kurenai Yuhi's gaze, Namikawa Yū spoke softly. "I'm different from you."
"I have no outstanding talent as a ninja. I'm just an ordinary person."
"Rather than survive alone, I'd rather use this life to buy you some time."
With those words, he tossed Hyuga Fu from his arms to Kurenai Yuhi and ran in the opposite direction.
"Yū!"
Behind him, Kurenai Yuhi's eyes widened. She badly wanted to shout and make him stop.
But in the end, she did not.
They were still being hunted, and enemy ninja could emerge from their surroundings at any moment.
If she made too much noise, the enemy would probably discover them immediately.
If that happened, her companion's gesture would have been wasted.
Standing there, she stared at Namikawa Yū's retreating figure for a moment, then quickly made her decision. She hoisted Hyuga Fu onto her shoulder and left.
But as she did, traces of tears crept into her eyes, and her feelings were indescribable.
Namikawa Yū continued onward.
Since he was serving as bait, he naturally made no effort to hide, walking forward as though taking a leisurely stroll through a courtyard.
In only a moment, the Iwagakure ninja discovered him.
Several Iwagakure ninja appeared, advancing from every direction and surrounding Namikawa Yū.
"Just a brat?"