First Mission

Early the next morning, after washing up and tidying himself, Torifu set off for the meeting place he had agreed upon with Hiruzen Sarutobi.

Since he was heading out on a mission, wearing robes would certainly be inconvenient, so Torifu changed into the standard combat gear for ninjas in the village.

It was quite rare, but his family actually had a set of ninja combat gear that fit his age.

Upon arriving at the assembly point, Torifu was surprised to find that he was the last one there, even though he had thought he was quite early.

He hadn't expected these people to be even earlier than him.

Among this group, Torifu also spotted a very familiar figure.

"Hi, Torifu!"

Chirori waved happily, signaling for Torifu to hurry over.

"Chirori? Why are you here too?"

Torifu was very puzzled by this; Hiruzen Sarutobi shouldn't have agreed to it.

Chirori clenched her small fist in a threat: "My brother agreed to let me come, and everyone else has no objections, so you shouldn't have any either, right?"

Facing Chirori's 'threat,' Torifu pretended to be scared and said repeatedly: "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. With Chirori here, we'll definitely complete the mission with ease."

Kagami couldn't stand it anymore from the side; he reached out and ruffled Chirori's hair, leaving it a mess.

"Remember, Chirori! You must stick close to me this time. I don't expect you to kill any bandits, just make sure you don't get taken out yourself."

Chirori wasn't angry at her brother's lack of trust, nor did she argue; she simply said she would be well-behaved.

Torifu raised an eyebrow; Chirori's state was very unusual.

In truth, Chirori didn't want to be this humble, but heaven knows how much she had begged and pleaded last night to get her brother to bring her along.

She had used every trick in the book, from coercion to bribery, before Kagami Uchiha finally gave in.

Torifu had actually anticipated this; a girl as competitive as Chirori would never miss such an opportunity.

The reason Hiruzen agreed to Chirori's unreasonable request was mainly due to Kagami Uchiha's guarantee that he would take full responsibility for Chirori's safety during the mission.

"Alright, since everyone is here, let's set off!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi said with great enthusiasm; after all, this counted as their graduation exam! If it weren't for the fact that he had exhausted quite a bit of chakra yesterday, he would probably already be at the bandits' lair by now!

Everyone checked their gear pouches, ensuring they had sufficient quantities of shuriken, kunai, and explosive tags.

They also had enough military rations to cover the trip there and back.

With everything prepared, the gates of Konoha slowly opened, and for the first time, Torifu and Chirori officially stepped onto the path of a mission.

In truth, it was only because they were born in a relatively peaceful era; before the village was established, six-year-old children were already heading to the battlefield to kill enemies.

Ninjas of that era were considered long-lived if they reached the age of thirty; how tragic.

The group took the main road, so they made good time. It is worth mentioning that ever since Torifu awakened his system, he no longer had any spare time to play in that forest from before.

He had all sorts of training to do every day.

Hiruzen Sarutobi slowed his pace and said to the group: "Everyone, stay close. I'll share the specific intelligence with you all; it was obtained by my father."

Hearing this, everyone immediately complied. Hiruzen's father, Sasuke Sarutobi, was a ninja with immense combat power in the village and was also the head of the Sarutobi Clan.

He had led the Sarutobi Clan to join Konoha and held great prestige in the village.

As for the intelligence Hiruzen mentioned, it was likely obtained from some bounty organization or the black market.

Those intelligence brokers wished for war to break out every day so they could profit from it.

"Of those five samurai, the leader can be compared to a first-rate ninja in the village, while the rest are not worth fearing."

Everyone nodded to show they understood. Hiruzen and the others had dealt with samurai many times, but most of them were just blowhards.

They had none of the true spirit of a samurai and were completely vulnerable.

"Those two rogue ninjas from Sunagakure, one excels in Fire Release and the other in Wind Release. They are twin brothers and have excellent synergy."

"After escaping the pursuit of Sunagakure, they fled into the Land of Fire and set themselves up as kings of the mountain."

"Their combined Wind and Fire attacks are very powerful; we must be extra careful and break them up to defeat them!"

"Understood!"

The intelligence was brief, but it was enough for everyone to understand the level of the enemy's strength.

This would prevent them from being careless and causing irreparable consequences.

Kagami thought for a moment and said: "The main purpose of their combined Wind and Fire attack is to enhance the power of the fire. If we have a sufficiently strong Water Release to suppress it, they won't be anything to fear."

"Koharu, you excel in Water Release; can you successfully suppress them?" Danzo asked from the side.

Utatane Koharu shook her head uncertainly: "I can't judge without having fought them, but I can certainly reduce the power of their ninjutsu."

The biggest taboo during a mission is to boast and fail to recognize one's own strength.

If one rashly takes on an important task in a team operation only to fail, it becomes a fatal crisis for the entire team!

"I also excel in Water Release. If Sister Koharu and I perform it together, it should work," Torifu said calmly from the side.

Hiruzen revealed a smile: "Little Torifu! I never expected you to be so skilled with Water Release."

"To be precise, I am quite proficient in all five elemental releases." Although this statement sounded like bragging, no one scoffed at Torifu.

Because everyone had witnessed Torifu's strength firsthand, they naturally believed him.

During their spar with Hiruzen last time, they had only seen a portion of his Crystal Release ninjutsu, so as for Torifu's true strength.

To be honest, they still only had a partial understanding.

But a qualified ninja should be just like Torifu, never letting anyone know their true strength!

Koharu smiled: "If we cannot separate the two of them to defeat them, then Torifu and I will just have to take care of them with Water Release."

Everyone nodded; although the battle plan was not yet fully refined, it should be enough to complete this mission.

Afterward, they stopped chatting and focused on their journey.

Meanwhile, Uchiha Chirori ran along while sulking, feeling somewhat angry at being ignored by the group earlier.

But there was no helping it; she was the one who had insisted on tagging along shamelessly. If she could have joined the squad through her own strength like Torifu, she would surely have been acknowledged.

Alas, as a true Genius of the Uchiha Clan, she had been reduced to acting like a brat.

The gap between her and Torifu was indeed vast.

If I were to awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan, perhaps my strength would be able to catch up to Torifu's?

Uchiha Chirori thought to herself, but awakening the Mangekyō Sharingan was incredibly difficult. Even her brother had not yet awakened his, so it was impossible for her to awaken hers before him.

Regardless, I will do my absolute best to prove my worth during this mission.

Although Uchiha Chirori was relatively humble, the trait of pride flowed through the blood of the Uchiha Clan.

Kagami turned his head to glance at his pouting sister and couldn't help but smile faintly.

Do your best, Uchiha Chirori. Let me see just how far you can go.