Rescue Mission

"Whether a ninjutsu is powerful or weak, if it can defeat your opponent, then it's a good ninjutsu. Besides, there are no weak ninjutsu, only weak ninjas."

"Even a C-rank ninjutsu can unleash power beyond S-rank in the hands of a master. I hope you'll make good use of every ninjutsu you've learned." Hiruzen Sarutobi taught Qingyun this lesson again and again, filling Qingyun with warmth.

The image of the old man as weak and incompetent in the original story didn't match the man before him at all.

"You've made a lot of progress during your training. Now, I have something to ask of you! I need to assign you a mission." Hiruzen Sarutobi was direct, handing Qingyun a scroll right away.

Qingyun was a little puzzled. Before, he'd always taken missions as part of a team, but this time, he was going alone.

After reading the scroll, Qingyun said anxiously, "What!? Sensei, why didn't you tell me about something this serious sooner?"

The scroll contained a distress signal. It was unmistakably one used by his own team, which meant they were in danger.

"I only received it a little while ago. Kushina Uzumaki of the Uzumaki Clan in our village has been kidnapped, and Minato went to rescue her. But it's been so long, and we haven't heard anything from him."

"Minato left in such a hurry that he didn't file any paperwork to leave the village. So Danzo is trying to have him branded a rogue ninja." The Third Hokage spoke with some embarrassment.

What? Danzo really is a pain! Qingyun couldn't help grumbling inwardly. Why did that guy have to make trouble for everyone?

"Minato is Konoha's hope, and I believe in him. The Anbu aren't suited to handle something like this. I hope the two of you can complete this mission together," Hiruzen Sarutobi said.

"Just the two of us? Who else is going with me?" Qingyun asked.

"Me, of course."

Qingyun turned around and saw Senju Yoshihime, her purple hair, already waiting there.

"How did your presence become almost undetectable?" Qingyun asked in surprise. After all, he was a sensory ninja. Even though his attention had been on the Third Hokage, he should still have noticed her.

"You've been training like crazy these past few months, and so have I. I've made a lot of progress, too." Yoshihime wasn't lying. Qingyun could clearly sense that her chakra was much stronger than before.

"Your mission is to rescue Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki! For now, it's classified as B-rank, but you may encounter powerful ninjas. Be careful!" Hiruzen Sarutobi warned them.

"Sensei, who took Kushina? And which direction did Minato go?" Qingyun immediately asked the right questions.

"Qingyun, come with me," Yoshihime said.

She grabbed Qingyun and ran toward the edge of the village. Once they got there, she pointed to a tree nearby and said, "Minato and I fought over there. He noticed something, then ran southeast."

"What did Minato notice?" Qingyun went straight to the tree and spotted a few red hairs on the ground.

Red hair? It must be Kushina Uzumaki's. She probably left it as a clue on purpose, Qingyun thought.

"What's this?" Qingyun noticed some footprints on the ground. His One-Tomoe Sharingan revealed them clearly.

There were only two sets of footprints, which meant there had been only one person who kidnapped Kushina, while the other set belonged to Minato.

"Someone came all the way to Konoha to kidnap Kushina and actually succeeded? They must be strong, and their confidence suggests they're a seasoned ninja." Qingyun carefully analyzed the situation.

"He ran southeast?" Qingyun shook his head and asked, "Yoshihime, did you see Minato go southeast with your own eyes?"

"Yes. It was urgent, so he ran straight southeast," Yoshihime replied.

"He probably left some clues behind." Qingyun was sure that, despite being in a hurry, Minato wouldn't have lost his composure. Otherwise, he never would have become Hokage in the original story.

They headed southeast, and sure enough, Qingyun found Minato's code on a tree.

It was a directional marker used by Konoha Ninja. Qingyun and Yoshihime trusted it completely and followed the route Minato had marked.

But before they'd gone far, Qingyun and Yoshihime realized they'd walked into a trap.

A group of ninjas suddenly closed in around them. Some were wandering ninjas, while others were rogue ninjas.

"Ha! Senju Yoshihime of Konohagakure, and the Third Hokage's little disciple, Qingyun! I can't believe you walked right into our hands!" the wandering ninja crowed.

"It wouldn't have been easy to capture you in Konoha, so we used Konoha's own markers to lure you outside the village. Now, there's no way you can escape!"

The wandering ninja said no more. He waved his hand, and his subordinates rushed toward Qingyun and Yoshihime.

"Leave one alive! Kill the rest!" Qingyun was always polite to his friends, but he had no mercy for enemies who dared to ambush him.

"Fire Style: Great Flame Technique!" Qingyun opened with a powerful technique from the Sarutobi Clan. The flames surged toward the enemy.

These opponents were clearly a cut above the rest. Faced with Qingyun's Fire Release, they immediately used Earth Style: Earth Wall!

They couldn't possibly use Water Release. Only someone like the Second Hokage could freely use Water Release on dry land.

The Great Flame Technique instantly heated the Earth Wall until it was scorching hot.

"Haha!" the wandering ninjas said smugly. "You're just a couple of kids, and you dare fight us? You don't know your place!"

"Ha! I bet those two kids are already exhausted and begging for mercy on the ground!"

The wandering ninjas were completely off guard. In their minds, there was only so strong a Konoha Genin could be. A genius who hadn't yet come into their own would still end up as their prisoner.

But the next moment, what happened left them dumbfounded.

Boom! Qingyun slammed his fist into the Earth Wall. Months of intense training had greatly improved his physical strength. He already had Chakra Enhanced Strength, and after training for so long, his blows were even more powerful.

Qingyun hadn't even used Armament Haki Hardening, yet he smashed the Earth Wall apart with a single punch.

"No way! The Earth Wall was smashed apart with one punch!?"