Tsunade Takes a Mission

"Tsunade took Uzumaki Shin to approach Kurama Fu."

Third Hokage held his pipe, taking a puff from time to time, his brows furrowed tightly.

"Yes, Lord Third Hokage. It is understood that Uzumaki Shin wanted to learn genjutsu from Kurama Fu, but Kurama Fu refused."

An Anbu ninja standing nearby reported to Third Hokage.

Tsunade bringing Shin to find Kurama Fu naturally could not escape the eyes of the Anbu. Once the Anbu knew, Third Hokage would naturally know as well.

"Is that so." Sarutobi Hiruzen nodded, then ceased to pay it any mind.

At this moment, Tsunade and Shin had already returned home. Shin went straight to his room and activated his Mangekyou Sharingan.

Feeling the changes within himself, his ocular power had doubled; the genjutsu capabilities of his Sharingan should be even stronger now, though he had no target to test them on for the time being.

With his immense mental energy, Shin felt that his genjutsu attacks would manifest as tangible strikes.

It seemed that copying the Kekkei Genkai of the Kurama Clan this time was the right move. Shin's strength had increased significantly, especially in compensating for his shortcomings in genjutsu.

It wasn't that Shin's genjutsu hadn't been strong before—after all, he possessed the Mangekyou Sharingan, how could his genjutsu be weak? It was just that compared to his taijutsu and ninjutsu, it had been a significant step behind.

After studying the changes in his Mangekyou Sharingan, Shin estimated that his ocular power was already vast, though he still had no idea when it would evolve into the Eternal Mangekyou.

"Shin, come out for a moment."

Inside the room, upon hearing Tsunade's call, Shin opened the door and stepped out.

Once outside, Shin discovered that Orochimaru and Jiraiya were also there, along with the students brought by Orochimaru and the students brought by Jiraiya.

"Shin-kun, long time no see."

Orochimaru smiled and took the initiative to greet Shin, which left Shin quite surprised.

It wasn't just Shin who was surprised; Tsunade and Jiraiya, as Orochimaru's teammates, were also very astonished. Orochimaru was not the type to take the initiative to strike up a conversation with others.

"Actually, I had originally wanted to become Shin-kun's supervising Jonin," Orochimaru said.

"Yo, I didn't expect you, Orochimaru, to think highly of this brat, though his performance at the Ninja Academy wasn't anything special," Jiraiya remarked, eyeing Shin with surprise.

"If you want to change your supervising Jonin, Shin, you can come find me."

Orochimaru ignored Jiraiya and looked directly at Shin as he spoke.

"Orochimaru, are you trying to poach my student?" Tsunade, incensed, let her chakra erupt as she glared at Orochimaru.

Did this stinking snake Orochimaru really dare to snatch someone away from her, Tsunade? Did he think she was easy to bully?

"What truly terrifying chakra." Orochimaru glanced at Tsunade, a flicker of envy crossing his eyes; Tsunade's chakra was far stronger than his own.

However, Orochimaru was not afraid of Tsunade. Chakra was not the sole standard for measuring strength; having more chakra did not necessarily mean one was stronger.

"Shin-kun, what is your choice?" Orochimaru's gaze remained fixed on Shin, a look of interest flashing in his eyes.

Shin felt a chill at this.

"I think staying with Tsunade is quite good, and I haven't considered changing my supervising Jonin."

Tsunade breathed a sigh of relief. She had truly been afraid that Shin would run off with Orochimaru, though she was overthinking it; Shin would never follow a pervert like Orochimaru.

Although Orochimaru was undoubtedly the number one in the Naruto World when it came to scientific research, there was no denying that he was a total pervert.

"That is truly a pity," Orochimaru said, shaking his head in disappointment.

"Why are you all here?"

Shin asked Orochimaru and Jiraiya. They wouldn't be here if there wasn't a reason.

"It's like this: there is a mission that requires the three of us to go, so the nine of you will be working together for the time being. The Third will send a Jonin to lead your three squads on this mission," Jiraiya said to Shin.

"So that's how it is." Shin nodded, then turned his gaze toward Tsunade.

"Tsunade, if you encounter danger while on this mission, run away quickly."

"Yo, Shin brat, are you worried about me?"

Tsunade asked with a teasing smile.

"Yes, after all, if you don't come back from out there, Tsunade, I'll be quite troubled." Shin scratched his hair and said.

Tsunade's face darkened, and she couldn't help but rap Shin on the head.

"Can't you say something nice for once?"

"The mission is extremely urgent, so I'm leaving first. You all go to Training Ground 24 to wait for your new team leader."

Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya departed. A mission that required all three of them to act together was certainly no simple task.

However, the strength of those three is not weak; even if they truly encounter danger, ensuring their own safety should not be a problem.

"Shin, we're going to be doing missions together," Nawaki said happily.

"Heh, I have no desire to go around shoveling manure with you lot."

Shin's words immediately caused the faces of Nawaki's teammates, Hizashi Hyuga and Uzumaki Kai, to darken. Nawaki had actually gone and blabbed about their manure-shoveling duty.

"Let's go, head to Konoha Training Ground 24."

Shin took the lead toward Konoha Training Ground 24, followed by Mikoto and Kushina, while Nawaki and Namikaze Minato also tagged along.

Upon arriving at Konoha Training Ground 24, the new Jonin team leader had not yet arrived, so Shin simply found a spot to sit down.

"Hey, Shin, have you guys done any missions?" Nawaki asked Shin.

"Hmm, we just finished a C-rank mission, that's all," Shin replied with a faint smile toward Nawaki.

Nawaki jumped up instantly.

"What? You guys did a C-rank mission? That's not fair! Why are we only allowed to take D-rank missions?"

Nawaki's shouting drew the gazes of the others, their eyes filled with inquiry.

"Kushina, you guys didn't actually do a C-rank mission, did you?" Uzumaki Akiko asked Kushina.

Kushina nodded at Uzumaki Akiko; there was nothing to hide, and besides, Kushina felt quite proud of it.

"Hmph, who knows if it's true or false," Uzumaki Kai said with a cold snort.

Compared to the others, Uzumaki Kai seemed somewhat out of place; even his teammates, Nawaki and Hizashi Hyuga, had no desire to pay him any mind.

In truth, when they first became teammates, Nawaki had wanted to build a good relationship with Uzumaki Kai, but forget it now—Nawaki had already given up.

"Uzumaki Kai, are you looking for a beating?" Kushina stood up and said.

"You think I'm afraid of you?" Uzumaki Kai glanced at Kushina with disdain.

"There's no need to waste words on him; just take action," Shin said to Kushina.

Spouting threats is inadvisable; taking direct action is more effective than ten thousand harsh words.

Kushina nodded and immediately utilized the sealing technique Adamantine Sealing Chains, instantly binding Uzumaki Kai and rendering him unable to move.

Uzumaki Akiko's eyes widened; even she could not use the sealing technique Adamantine Sealing Chains with such proficiency.

After being groomed as a Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Akiko had received meticulous instruction from Uzumaki Mito, yet even so, she could only barely manage to use Adamantine Sealing Chains at this stage, nowhere near as effortlessly or skillfully as Kushina.

Controlled and filled with shame and anger, Uzumaki Kai roared as he struggled, only to be met with a look of disdain from Kushina.