Are They Always This Brave?

At the gates of Konoha, Tazuna leaned lazily against a pillar, a sake gourd slung over his shoulder.

He spotted Kakashi approaching with a few brats in tow and slumped his entire body against the pillar.

"Oh my, oh my, the great ninja of Konoha have finally arrived." Tazuna's voice dragged on, long and weary, as he took a swig from his gourd and wiped his mouth.

"I've been waiting for an hour; my legs can barely hold me up anymore."

He reached out a hand, trembling as he steadied himself against the pillar.

"An old bag of bones like me still has such a long way to go to reach the Land of Waves. If I run into any bandits or water thieves on the road, what on earth am I supposed to do?"

Kakashi walked up to him. "Mr. Tazuna."

"Yes, yes, speak up, Ninja-sama." Tazuna's eyes darted beneath his lids.

"When you hired us, you specified a C-rank mission, but there are currently two rogue ninja from the Mist in the Land of Waves."

Tazuna froze, at a loss for words.

"One of them has bandages wrapped around his face, and his chakra fluctuations are near the level of a Jonin," Kakashi continued. "This is no longer a C-rank mission; it's a B-rank."

"As expected of a great ninja." Tazuna straightened his back, his sagging shoulders slowly lifting as those eyes, previously narrowed into slits, snapped open.

"So, were you playing the fool in Konoha, begging for food and drink, because you didn't have the money to pay the bounty for a B-rank mission?" Kakashi tilted his head.

Tazuna let out a cackle, revealing a mouthful of teeth.

"I truly couldn't scrape the money together. If I had to pay the B-rank fee, there's no way I could have afforded it."

"So you played the victim, trying to get us to do B-rank work for C-rank pay?" Sakura frowned.

"The little girl is right." Tazuna didn't blush in the slightest; instead, he puffed out his chest. "Besides, since Konoha sent people anyway, it means the deal is done, right?"

Kakashi sighed, turned, and began walking out of the village. "Let's go. We'll talk on the way."

The cedar trees on both sides of the dirt road swayed in the morning breeze as the six of them walked in a single file.

Kakashi led the way, followed by Tazuna, with Naruto and Sakura in the middle, and Sasuke and the two Root members bringing up the rear.

Naruto hadn't even walked half a mile before he started rambling.

"A B-rank mission! Hahahaha! I'm starting B-rank missions before I've even finished my D-rank ones!"

"Kakashi-sensei, how strong are these Mist rogue ninja? Are they weaker than me?"

"Well, who knows?" Kakashi didn't look back. "But at the Mist Ninja Academy, the graduation exam requires students to kill each other."

Naruto's previously cheerful face twisted instantly. "Huh?"

Sakura's brow furrowed. "Kill each other? Doesn't that mean they even have to kill their own classmates..."

"Correct." Kakashi's tone remained languid. "So, any ninja who survives the Mist has blood on their hands."

He paused, glancing sideways at the three students behind him.

"Scared?"

"What's there to be scared of!" Naruto slapped his own chest. "I'm the man who's going to become Hokage!"

Sakura, however, was preoccupied with other thoughts. She quickened her pace to walk beside Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei, I have a question."

"Go ahead."

"The Land of Waves is so poor they can't even afford the bounty for a B-rank mission," Sakura said as she walked, tapping her forehead protector thoughtfully.

"Why did we accept this mission at all?"

Naruto turned his head, looking confused. "What are you saying, Sakura? If there's a mission, of course we have to do it. Isn't that what a ninja is supposed to do?"

"Naruto... even though I've spent three years with you, I still hope you'll learn to think for yourself someday." Sakura looked at him earnestly.

"Even if we finish this mission, the reward we get won't reach the B-rank price."

"Konoha needs to make money, and we need to eat. Why would they take on a losing business deal?"

Naruto's brain completely overloaded: "o.O?"

His mind was whirring at high speed, his face clearly reading "Loading..."

"A mission... isn't a mission just a mission? If there's a mission, you do it, right? What does it have to do with money?"

Watching Naruto's expression, Sakura couldn't help but laugh.

"Sakura's line of thinking is excellent." There was a hint of surprise and gratification in Kakashi's tone.

"Being able to consider the interests behind a mission is an important sign of a ninja's growth."

"Then why are we doing it?" Sakura pressed.

Kakashi raised a finger and shook it in front of him.

"The ability to collect and synthesize information is an essential skill for a ninja."

"Think about it yourselves and see if you can find the answer."

Naruto snorted and turned his head away.

"It's just bridge-building in the Land of Waves, what's there to think about!"

Sakura furrowed her brows as well. She walked with her head down for a stretch, muttering the information she knew under her breath.

"The Land of Waves is an island nation with no ninja village and a weak economy. Building a large bridge is meant to connect it to the mainland and break free from Gato's monopoly on maritime transport."

She pressed her fingers to her temples and rubbed them firmly.

"But what does that have to do with us in Konoha..."

"Think about where the Land of Waves is located," Sasuke's voice drifted from behind.

Sakura's footsteps faltered.

The Land of Waves sat between the Land of Water and the Land of Fire.

The fragmented pieces of information in her mind suddenly began to click together like a puzzle.

The Land of Water had recently opened up; after years of isolationism, Kirigakure was finally beginning to trade with the outside world.

The Land of Waves was positioned perfectly between the Land of Water and the mainland.

"It's for trade with the Land of Water!" Sakura snapped her head up, her ponytail whipping over her shoulder.

"The Land of Waves is the essential route from the Land of Water to the mainland! The Land of Fire can gain the upper hand in trade with the Land of Water!"

Kakashi closed his book and looked at Sakura, the amusement in his visible eye deepening.

"Correct."

Naruto snapped out of his daze.

"So that's it! Actually, I was thinking the same thing earlier!"

"You literally just said there was nothing to think about," Sakura tilted her head.

"That—that was a test for you! As the future Hokage, I obviously have to give my teammates a chance to grow!"

Naruto didn't blush or stutter; he planted his hands on his hips and raised his voice significantly. "Right, Sasuke! You think I was just playing dumb, don't you!"

Sasuke glanced at him, then turned his head and kept walking.

"Yeah, playing dumb."

"What was that pause for! You definitely don't believe me, do you!"

Sakura covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, her shoulders shaking.

Kakashi reopened his book, hiding the upward curve of his lips.

Sasuke tilted his head to look at Naruto's flushed face but said nothing.

Tatsu and Mi, walking at the very back, remained silent; no one could see the expressions hidden beneath their fox and badger masks.

The dirt path curved ahead, and a puddle appeared by the roadside.

Sunlight reflected off the water, casting a white glare. The soil around the puddle was dry; only that single pool of water lay lonely in the center of the road.

Naruto was still arguing with Sakura about whether he had been playing dumb, his peripheral vision sweeping over the puddle.

Kakashi turned a page, his gaze still fixed on the text.

The shadow beneath Sasuke's feet rippled imperceptibly.

The edges of the puddle suddenly expanded, and the surface churned. Two hands shot out from beneath the water, accompanied by a splashing sound.

"Ninja Art: Water Prison Jutsu!"

"Second one!"

Two ninjas wearing Kirigakure headbands lunged from the puddle, their chains rattling as they pounced on Tazuna in the middle of the group from both sides.

Meitou whipped out a chain with a hooked claw from his right hand, while Yetou held the other end; the two were linked by their weapons.

The Demon Brothers.

Meitou flicked his wrist, the hooked chain aiming straight for Tazuna's neck.

Then, he took in the formation around Tazuna.

There was a white-haired man in front, an orange-clad brat on the left, a pink-haired girl on the right, and a black-haired brat in the back.

Behind the white-haired man stood two more figures in masks.

A thought flashed through Meitou's mind.

Six of them?

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Jutsu!"

Over a dozen fireballs erupted from Sasuke's mouth, tracing scattered arcs through the air and directly sealing off the Demon Brothers' retreat.

The flames slammed into the chains, the intense heat turning the metal red-hot instantly. Meitou hissed in pain, forced to retreat several steps.

Naruto reacted, chakra rapidly compressing and vibrating in his right fist.

"You guys hiding in the water! I spotted you a long time ago!"

He sidestepped the chain swung by the burly man, stepped onto the end of the chain, and used the leverage to lunge toward Meitou.

Naruto punched Meitou square in the chest, sending him flying like a cannonball until he snapped a cedar tree by the roadside.

Yetou flicked his wrist, attempting to retract the chain, but Tatsu had already drawn the short blade from his back and severed the end of the chain with a single strike.

Mi circled around from the side to his back, holding a kunai to his throat.

"Don't move."

From start to finish, the battle lasted less than twenty seconds.

Meitou lay amidst a pile of wood splinters, his clothes covered in scorch marks and debris, with a deep indentation in his chest.

He struggled to climb to his feet, but his limbs trembled, refusing to obey him.

Yetou remained frozen, held at knifepoint by Mi.

Naruto looked down at the twitching Meitou on the ground, hands on his hips, laughing heartily.

"Sasuke, Sasuke, are they always this brave? Aren't they afraid of my teammates at all?"