New Mission

After concluding a rather unpleasant trip to the hot springs, Kamizuki returned to Konoha and spent a pleasant and heartwarming weekend at home, keeping company with his two adorable sisters.

At 7:30 on Monday morning, all members of Genma Team gathered in front of the Hokage Building, preparing to execute the first mission of their new week.

Genma entered the mission hall with his three cute subordinates and little Adou, who was being held in the arms of Sakura Mangetsu. There were not many ninjas coming to accept missions today.

Inside the mission hall, teams were scattered in twos and threes, browsing the S, A, B, C, and D mission bulletin boards to select tasks suitable for their squads.

Genma led his three subordinates to the B-rank mission board first, but after circling it, he couldn't find a mission that suited his team.

He then moved on to the A-rank board. After picking and choosing, Genma felt dissatisfied with the options; some required collaboration with other teams, while others lacked any real challenge.

What's that? You want a challenge? Then go take an S-rank mission!

Heh... S-rank missions were indeed very challenging, but they lacked the qualifications to accept them.

To be fair, an S-rank mission required at least two or three members of the team to be at the Jonin level or above. Otherwise, it wasn't just a matter of seeking a challenge; it was a one-way ticket to death.

Just as Genma was hesitating over whether to accept a mission that appeared to have a slight degree of difficulty, a sickly figure tapped him lightly on the shoulder. When Genma turned his head, he saw that the person who had tapped him was Gekko Hayate.

Genma asked Hayate with some curiosity, "What wind blew you over here today, Hayate?"

Hearing Genma's teasing, Hayate didn't say much, only unable to suppress the tickle rising in his throat.

He coughed a few times—"Cough, cough, cough"—before covering his mouth and saying with some effort, "Stop joking around. The Third Hokage specifically sent me to invite everyone on your team to his office!"

"Oh." Upon hearing Hayate's words and learning that the Third Hokage was looking for their team, Genma offered no further nonsense. With that simple and clear response, he led his team members to follow Hayate toward the Hokage office.

The Genma Team followed Gekko Hayate to the top floor of the Hokage Building. After reaching the top, they walked down a long corridor. Just as they turned a corner, they saw two ninjas standing guard in front of a door that appeared larger than the others in the middle of the hallway.

Upon getting closer, they realized that the two ninjas at the door were both at the Jonin level. Kamizuki knew these two guards were members of the personal guard of the Third Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen.

Gekko Hayate and Genma Shiranui nodded slightly to the two ninjas at the door. The guards returned the gesture with a mere glance, and only then did Hayate knock twice on the door.

After a powerful, aged voice called out, "Come in," Hayate pushed the door open.

The group entered the room one by one. Kamizuki, who was at the back, closed the door behind him after entering.

Once everyone was standing in place, the Third Hokage, who was sitting behind his desk surrounded by a mountain of documents, instructed Gekko Hayate to clear the pile of files in front of him to the side first.

Although Gekko Hayate was a sickly man, he was quite nimble when it came to work. In less than two minutes, he had cleared away the high stack of documents.

Seeing that Hayate had neatly tidied up the files, the Third Hokage took a sip of tea, cleared his throat, and began:

"I have invited you here today because there is a special mission I hope to entrust to your team."

After finishing his sentence, the Third Hokage rested his hands on the desk, watching the energetic young people before him.

Seeing that the Third Hokage had no intention of continuing, Genma spoke respectfully:

"Thank you for your trust in our team, Third Hokage. Please give your orders; this subordinate will do his utmost to complete the task."

The Third Hokage looked at this group—the future of Konoha—with an expression of great appreciation and said with a smile:

"The mission is as follows: it was commissioned by the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers. Because there is currently too little intelligence regarding this task, after discussions between the village and the Daimyo, it has been provisionally classified as an A-rank mission."

"The specific details are as follows: multiple supernatural incidents have occurred within the Land of Rivers, and many citizens have gone missing during these events. Specific intelligence is unknown, so the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers hopes that Konoha will conduct an investigation and retrieve the missing citizens. That is all."

Hearing such a mission with vague details, Genma frowned slightly, but he accepted the task nonetheless.

After accepting the mission, the Genma Team bowed to the Third Hokage, respectfully exited the Hokage office, and walked out of the Hokage Building.

Once outside, Genma instructed his subordinates:

"The specific intelligence for this mission is unknown, so everyone must be mentally prepared. It is possible that this mission might exceed an A-rank difficulty. Therefore, spend this afternoon preparing thoroughly. This mission might take a long time. Gather at the Konoha gates tomorrow morning at 7:00 sharp. That is all! Dismissed."

After saying "dismissed," Genma turned and left.

Kamizuki had intended to go home to prepare, but just as he was about to leave, he was held back by Mai.

The two women knew that Kamizuki possessed a large storage scroll, so they made him accompany them to the street to purchase items that might be needed during the mission, as well as to prepare some food to store in the scroll. They didn't want to eat those military ration pills while on the mission.

Thus, Kamizuki was helplessly dragged away by the two women to serve as manual labor. Their combat power on the streets was truly formidable.

No matter what they were buying, the two of them could haggle with the shopkeepers for a long time. Only after buying a huge pile of goods were the two women finally satisfied.