The First Mission

The southern Land of Fire, a city of commerce and travel: Flower Capital.

"So this is Flower Capital... It really is bustling." Ranwu gazed at the small city before her, feeling a wave of emotion.

"Mm. Flower Capital is the trade hub of the southern Land of Fire, so of course it's bustling. The only downside is that lodging and food here are so expensive," Jiraiya said.

"'Expensive' doesn't even begin to cover it... This C-rank bounty will barely cover our expenses for the trip," Akaseki said, the corner of his mouth twitching.

"Just think of it as a graduation trip," Minato said, not wanting to dampen the mood.

Jiraiya asked them pointedly, "You still remember the mission details, right?"

"Of course! Once we enter Flower Capital, we need to go to the Government Office and find the chief of police," Ranwu answered at once.

The three had once been scolded by Jiraiya for not reading the mission scroll carefully. They knew the details this time: the Flower Capital Office had issued the mission, asking Konoha Ninja to help catch a gang of... thieves who had been running rampant in Flower Capital lately!

Since no ninja were involved, it was only a C-rank mission.

But with the cost of living in Flower Capital, even a short delay might mean the bounty wouldn't cover their expenses!

Flower Capital had issued the mission this way because it expected ninja passing through on other assignments to stop by and help.

Jiraiya, however, had specifically chosen this C-rank mission outside Konoha to train his three students. It wasn't dangerous enough to put them at serious risk, but it still offered a challenge. Most importantly, it took them far from home and gave them a chance to gain experience.

After entering Flower Capital, Jiraiya went even further and left them to their own devices...

"Oh, right. I'm going to do some research. You can find the Government Office yourselves, can't you?" Jiraiya asked casually.

"Huh? Well... of course we can." Ranwu was taken aback, apparently not expecting so much freedom on their very first mission.

After all, all three of them were still Genin. Even setting aside the fact that they had only just graduated, they technically weren't qualified to undertake a C-rank mission alone. Even experienced Genin were supposed to have a Chunin leading them!

Still, all three were quite confident in their abilities. They were stronger than ordinary Chunin; all they lacked was field experience...

"Here, use this for your expenses. We'll settle up once the mission is done." As Jiraiya spoke, he tossed the money pouch to Akaseki.

Jiraiya also thought that Minato, the youngest of the group, was more levelheaded. But he understood their personalities better. If Akaseki took the lead, Minato wouldn't object, and Akaseki would listen to Minato's advice. If Minato took the lead, though, Akaseki would definitely make a fuss...

When Jiraiya really did wave goodbye and leave, the three followed the map on their own and found the Government Office.

Flower Capital was bustling, almost as much as Konoha.

Of course, it was much smaller than Konoha, both in area and population...

The three soon arrived at the Government Office. Using their Konoha Ninja credentials, they met Naiku, the chief of police who had issued the mission.

"Huh? Children?" Chief Naiku couldn't help looking conflicted when he saw Akaseki and the others.

"Don't worry! You've heard of the Uchiha Clan of Konoha, right? Konoha never has any thieves because we're there!" Akaseki said, patting the clan crest on his chest.

"The Uchiha Clan... I've heard of them," the chief said, still seeming uneasy about their age.

Seeing that Ranwu was growing impatient, Minato stepped forward and said warmly, "Sir, we did just graduate from the Ninja Academy, but we have a Jonin instructor supervising us from the shadows. After the mission, please give us a good review."

A Jonin instructor?

At the golden-haired boy's words, Naiku's eyes lit up. He felt the money had been well spent—if they could call in backup, he had nothing to worry about!

"Then... please come with me," Naiku said, his attitude immediately improving.

"Heiji, these three... ahem, these three are all Konoha Ninja. You'll assist them from now on. Make sure you catch those brazen thieves!" Naiku called over a constable.

Heiji looked to be in his thirties and seemed quite capable. A jitte hung at his waist. Hearing Naiku's instructions, he looked at the three "children" in surprise.

But the name "Konoha" seemed to have done the trick. Heiji promptly said, "Yes! Ninja, just tell me what you need, and I'll do everything I can to help!"

"Good. We'll be counting on you, Constable Heiji," Akaseki said, nodding with an air of importance.

Naiku left first. The chief of police was clearly busy, which was why he had assigned Heiji as their "guide."

"You three Ninja..." Heiji began.

Ranwu interrupted him. "Just call us by our names. I'm Ranwu, and they're Akaseki and Minato."

"Yes. Should we go take a look at Flower Street first?" Heiji asked.

The thefts were most common on Flower Street, the district where Flower Capital's tourists and traveling merchants gathered.

"No. Before that, show us the case files," Akaseki said unhurriedly.

After getting the case files, Akaseki told Heiji, "All right, we'll look these over first. Meet us on Flower Street at four this afternoon."

"Huh? All right." Heiji hadn't expected the three children to take things so seriously.

The three left the Government Office. Akaseki found an inn with reasonable prices and rented a room. They'd be sleeping on the floor anyway, just as they would outdoors, so there was no need to worry about propriety between boys and girls.

Once they were in the room, the three discussed the mission.

"The thefts started increasing two months ago, and they're concentrated on Flower Street, which has the most tourists. On the worst days, there were over a hundred reports a day. It's already damaged Flower Capital's reputation. No wonder they issued a mission to Konoha," Minato analyzed, looking over the case files.

Usually, petty thefts like these settled into a "dynamic balance." As a commercial city, Flower Capital had the resources to handle the problem itself, especially since it employed so many constables...

But now the number of thieves had suddenly surged, dealing a serious blow to the city's reputation.

"What does 'pickpocketing' mean?" Ranwu asked in confusion, pointing to a term in the case files.

It wasn't part of the Ninja Academy curriculum.

"It means stealing someone's wallet on the street. The corresponding term 'burglary' means breaking into a house to steal. Most of the reports on Flower Street are about pickpocketing, while the number of burglaries hasn't changed much," Akaseki explained. As a member of the Uchiha Clan, he knew this terminology. The Military Police Force didn't just "monitor ninja"; it also handled "village security."

Akaseki's insistence on getting the case files right away also showed that he knew what he was doing.

"One thing that's troubling, though: the number of cases started dropping seven or eight days ago..." Akaseki noticed the change in the figures.

"Isn't that a good thing?" Ranwu asked, puzzled.

"Of course not! If the thief isn't committing crimes, how are we supposed to complete the mission?" Akaseki said, as if it were obvious.

Perhaps worried Ranwu still didn't understand, Akaseki emphasized, "With this mission's bounty and the cost of living in Flower Capital... If we don't solve it within three days, we'll have to pay for our own food and lodging!"