Perfect Mission!

"Yoru, hide first. Don't make a move yet. Wait for the right moment, then use Fang Over Fang to deliver the final blow. Don't be impulsive and expose yourself too soon!" Jiogan reminded Inuzuka Yoru again.

"Mm, got it. Don't worry, Jiogan, I won't be impulsive!" Inuzuka Yoru said.

"In any case, everyone's safety comes first. I'm the strongest, so no matter what happens, I'll be at the front. You are my most important companions. Protecting everyone is my most important mission!" Jiogan looked at the two of them resolutely.

Inuzuka Yoru and Kurama Feiyun nodded heavily as well. The three placed their hands together, then lowered them in unison. "Team 11's first mission! Officially begins!"

With that, the three hid outside the bandits' stronghold, waiting for the moment when the bandits had finished eating and gathered together.

Just as night fell, the bandits began changing shifts and having dinner. Apart from the two bandits standing guard on the outermost perimeter and the suspected Chunin deep within the stronghold, all the other bandits had gathered in one place to eat and drink. Laughter, curses, and filthy remarks drifted out from time to time.

"Feiyun, we're going in. I'll quickly take out the two patrolling guards first!" Jiogan gave Kurama Feiyun a meaningful look, then swiftly charged toward the two patrolling bandits.

The two bandits were merely ordinary people. Before they could react, Jiogan slit their throats, and they collapsed silently.

After succeeding, Jiogan made a hand signal. Feiyun approached from another direction and quietly made her way toward the courtyard where the bandits had gathered. Then she suddenly shoved open the gate. At the instant every bandit in the courtyard looked toward it, Feiyun unleashed a genjutsu—the Hell Viewing Technique!

The bandits in the courtyard were instantly dragged into the illusion. The moment Feiyun successfully cast the genjutsu, Jiogan rushed into the courtyard with a kunai in hand. Within a few breaths, he ended the lives of every bandit inside.

At the same time, the bandit in the room deeper within the courtyard sensed that something was wrong and rushed out as well.

He happened to see Jiogan claim the last bandit's life, and he cursed furiously, "Damn Konoha ninja! When did you sneak in here?!"

Without further ceremony, he immediately used a Ninjutsu. "Wind Release: Gale Palm!" A fierce current of air surged toward Jiogan and Kurama Feiyun. They both dodged aside, but Feiyun, positioned directly behind him, was forced back some distance. The courtyard gate was blasted to pieces by the Gale Palm's airflow.

Jiogan dodged the enemy's attack while forming hand seals and using Water Release: Water Gun Technique. He spat out a Water Ball roughly one cubic meter in size, sending it flying toward the enemy. The opposing bandit truly was an experienced ninja. He twisted and rolled aside to evade it, and the Water Ball blasted a huge hole through the room.

Seeing that his strike had missed, Jiogan hurled several kunai at the opponent from tricky angles. The bandit barely managed to dodge and knock away some of them, but two still struck him—one in the left shoulder and one in the right calf. Neither wound was fatal, but his movements were clearly impaired.

Seeing this, Jiogan immediately closed in with a kunai in hand and engaged the bandit in close combat, giving him no chance to continue forming hand seals and casting Ninjutsu.

Jiogan's Taijutsu had always been strong. Even without the Eight Inner Gates Technique, he was no weaker than Might Duy. The wounded bandit's movements were restricted, while Jiogan targeted his injuries with every move. After only a few exchanges, the bandit was clearly unable to hold on. Several more wounds appeared on his body, and he was bleeding heavily.

Seeing that he could no longer endure, the bandit pulled out an Explosive Tag, intending to detonate it at close range and perish together with Jiogan. But ever since practicing Tai Chi, Jiogan's perception had become extremely sharp. He immediately saw through his opponent's intentions, performed a backflip, then kicked off the ground and rapidly retreated.

When the bandit saw Jiogan retreat, he immediately stopped detonating the Explosive Tag, turned around, and tried to flee. Jiogan sneered at the sight. While still in midair, he quickly formed hand seals. "Water Release: Water Gun Technique!"

A two-meter-wide Water Ball infused with Chakra flew toward the bandit. This time, he had no time to dodge. He was struck head-on, let out a miserable scream, and was blasted into the courtyard, leaving a water-filled crater in the ground.

The bandit could no longer resist. He struggled to raise his head and said through gritted teeth, "I never thought I'd lose to a brat. What a bitter defeat!" After saying that, he fell silent forever.

Jiogan cautiously fired several more shuriken from a distance. Only after seeing that the man did not move again did he approach to inspect the bandit's corpse.

The mission had been completed perfectly. No one was injured.

Afterward, Jiogan and the other two thoroughly looted the bandits' stronghold, obtaining some food, coins, kunai, and a Ninjutsu Scroll for Wind Release: Gale Palm. The food and coins were returned to the nearby villagers, while the kunai and scroll were brought back as spoils of war.

The bandits' corpses were gathered, burned, and buried. The three corpses with Chakra were sealed into scrolls and brought back to the village, where a specialized department could extract information from the brains of deceased targets.

Kurama Heiji, who had disappeared for nearly a day, finally appeared. He was very satisfied with the trio's performance. From their pre-battle preparations and intelligence gathering to their tactical arrangements, combat execution, and post-battle cleanup, Kurama Heiji had observed everything in secret. He gave the three a score of ninety in his heart. It was already close to perfect.

This battle had succeeded thanks to Jiogan. Otherwise, whether it had been Feiyun or Inuzuka Yoru facing that final opponent, neither would have found it easy to win. In Kurama Heiji's view, the last bandit had only just reached Chunin level. The strength of his Ninjutsu matched that of a Chunin, but he had been suppressed by Jiogan throughout the entire battle. Aside from that initial Wind Release: Gale Palm, he had not been able to display the rest of his strength at all.

Of course, that did not mean the opponent was too weak. It only meant that Jiogan's grasp of the battle's timing was far too strong!

After the four finished cleaning up the aftermath and everything was settled, they stayed overnight in the village that had commissioned the mission. Early the next morning, they set out on their return journey.

The journey back went smoothly. Since their first mission had been completed without a hitch and no one had been injured, the four moved quickly along the way without wasting any time.

A day and a half later, the four returned to Konoha. They immediately went to the Mission Hall to hand in the mission and submit the corpse scrolls. As for any information obtained from the bodies afterward, that had nothing to do with the four of them.

The three split the captured kunai evenly, while Jiogan, who had contributed the most, took the Wind Release scroll. Jiogan could not use Wind Release, but he could trade it later for a Water Release scroll of the same level.

After this mission ended, Kurama Heiji gave the three two days of Rest Period. The mission had taken four days in total, counting both the trip there and back, and it was also their first time seeing blood. Jiogan was fine, but Kurama Heiji and Inuzuka Yoru were clearly somewhat exhausted.

Over the next two days, Jiogan did not idle around. Besides practicing Tai Chi as usual, he sold goods and made deliveries at his family's shop every day. Yet Jiogan did not feel tired. Instead, he felt happy and fulfilled.

On the evening before Team 11 was to accept its next mission, Might Duy returned to the village after completing a mission. The two met up at a yakiniku restaurant, exchanged recent experiences, and learned from each other. It became a routine between them, one that remained unchanged for a long time afterward.