The Plot Officially Begins

Kitahara Kaede had dealt with them too quickly. Before long, he had slaughtered all the ninjas here. Suzuki Ryujin's head was also severed and sealed inside a scroll, ready to be taken back.

He then drove shuriken into the heads of the other Genin, destroying their brains before finally turning to leave.

"Let's go. Time to report back!"

Kitahara Kaede said.

Two days later, outside Konoha's gates, the three of them finally returned to Konoha after completing their mission. The journey had been eventful but ultimately safe.

To prevent Danzo from taking desperate measures and sending another Root Squad after him, the three of them had not taken the same route back. Instead, they changed paths and hurried back without much rest.

It was not until noon that day that they finally rushed back to Konoha.

After completing the registration and confirming that they had gone out on a mission, Kitahara Kaede and the other two were permitted to enter Konoha by the Chunin guarding the gates.

The first thing the three did was head to the Hokage Building to turn in their mission. Everything went smoothly. It was only an ordinary B-Rank Mission: hunting down an Elite Chunin-level Rogue Ninja.

Not long after they handed over Suzuki Ryujin's head, an Anbu arrived to take it away. A ninja from the Nakayama Clan would probably come to examine the contents of his mind.

As Kitahara Kaede had previously discussed with his two teammates, they did not report their encounter with the Root Squad. They even acted as though it had never happened.

Once all the procedures were completed, the Jonin from the Nara Family responsible for registration glanced at Kitahara Kaede and said, "The mission process has been confirmed. The payment for this mission will be deposited into your accounts within one month."

The three nodded without objection.

"Let's go, let's go! We're finally back in Konoha. I'll treat everyone to barbecue. All those Soldier Pills these past few days have left my mouth tasting like nothing but bird shit."

Soten Genryu raised both hands toward the sky as he spoke.

This period had truly been tormenting for all three of them. It was not just the harsh conditions of carrying out missions outside the village, where they could only eat a few Soldier Pills when hungry and travel in silence the entire way.

There was also the psychological strain of possibly encountering another Root Squad at any moment. Ninjas were humans, after all, and naturally needed to relax properly.

"You're being this generous? That's a serious splurge."

Kitahara Kaede burst out laughing.

Barbecue in Konoha was not cheap.

"Of course!"

Soten Genryu said. "You saved me last time, and I still haven't properly thanked you. Come on, let's go!"

As the three chatted and laughed their way out of the Hokage Building, they saw a group heading toward it.

Kitahara Kaede looked closely. Weren't these four the protagonists of the Shippuden world, Kakashi's Team 7?

At the front was the energetic Uzumaki Naruto. Behind him were Uchiha Sasuke and Sakura, while the one walking last was none other than Konoha's Number One Technician, Hatake Kakashi.

When Hatake Kakashi saw Kitahara Kaede Squad, he froze for a moment. Then he suddenly recalled the contents of yesterday's diary. Judging by the timing, today should have been when Kitahara Kaede returned to turn in his mission. He just had not expected his team to run into Kitahara Kaede on their very first day of coming to accept missions.

However, he had to pretend not to know Kitahara Kaede. After all, they should not have had any prior contact.

The second person to become excited was Uchiha Sasuke. When he saw Kitahara Kaede, he could not help revealing a hint of excitement. In his understanding, this might have been one of the Uchiha Clan's few remaining members in the shinobi world.

As for Uchiha Itachi, Sasuke already regarded him as dead—a criminal who had slaughtered the entire clan and did not deserve to call himself an Uchiha.

The moment Uzumaki Naruto saw Kitahara Kaede, he hurried forward in surprise. "Big Brother Kaede, hahaha, look! I became a ninja."

Uzumaki Naruto boldly stepped forward and showed off his ninja headband, grinning as he said, "Didn't expect that, did you? I passed the academy's tests and Kakashi-sensei's test. I'm a real Genin now."

"Congratulations, Naruto!"

Kitahara Kaede gave him a thumbs-up. Although he had just been assassinated by Danzo once because of his contact with Uzumaki Naruto.

But since he had already done it, he would not regret it.

"Hehe!"

Uzumaki Naruto grinned. He did not have many friends, and there were even fewer who did not bear hostility toward him. Now that he had accomplished something, he really wanted Kitahara Kaede to see it.

"Big Brother Kaede, let me introduce you. This is my teammate, Sakura." When Uzumaki Naruto mentioned Sakura, a mischievous expression appeared on his face, as if to say, Big Brother Kaede, you get it.

Kitahara Kaede could not help laughing when he saw that. Of course he understood.

At this point in time, Uzumaki Naruto liked Sakura very much. In fact, he would continue liking Sakura for several years afterward.

Hinata would not get her chance until the Fourth Shinobi World War.

"That smug-faced guy is Uchiha Sasuke," Uzumaki Naruto introduced.

Uchiha Sasuke's face darkened, but upon seeing Kitahara Kaede, he held back from cursing at Uzumaki Naruto.

"And, and, this is my teacher, Hatake Kakashi."

Uzumaki Naruto introduced him.

The two behind Kitahara Kaede also revealed looks of surprise. This was Hatake Kakashi, the Copy Ninja famous throughout Konoha.

The two hurriedly nodded in greeting. In terms of ninja rank, they were Chunin, while Hatake Kakashi was an Elite Jonin. The difference was enormous.

"Are you here to accept a mission?" Kitahara Kaede asked.

"Yeah, yeah! This is the first time Team 7 has come to accept a mission since we were formed!" Uzumaki Naruto said hurriedly.

"You just got back?" Hatake Kakashi asked with his dead-fish eyes, seemingly casually.

From Kitahara Kaede's diary, he knew that this seemingly unremarkable squad had just killed a Root Squad in counterattack.

Their strength already rivaled that of many Jonin squads, yet this team consisted of only three Chunin who had been promoted not long ago.

"Yes, we just finished a mission."

Kitahara Kaede said.

"We still need to head back and rest up, so we won't disturb you any longer."

After saying goodbye, Kitahara Kaede and the other two headed toward the Yakiniku Restaurant.

"First mission, huh? Being young really is nice." Soten Genryu remembered how, when he had first become a ninja, he too had been so full of energy and anticipation for missions.

The three of them then exchanged smiles, because they all knew what kind of missions freshly graduated Genin could possibly receive.

Nothing more than taking out the trash, catching cats, teasing dogs, and the like.

It felt fresh at first, but before long, it became completely dull.

Still, for Genin, when they looked back on it many years later, those days might become rare and precious memories—no one died, no blood was spilled, and they never had to face the pain of parting through life and death.