Rescue

Days passed, and the chill of early spring had long since faded. For many days, the weather remained bright and clear, and as the temperature rose, Konoha grew increasingly lively. In an era where peace had taken deep root, no one noticed the lurking danger. Konoha ninjas had always been capable of blocking all threats outside the village; aside from the Nine-Tails attack over a decade ago, no one could remember the last time the village had been directly assaulted.

As the date for the Chunin Exams drew near, Mizuki accelerated his preparations. A crisis is something that holds two possibilities: danger also contains opportunity. The stagnant, unchanging atmosphere always filled latecomers who refused to be mediocre with deep loathing.

Although Mizuki enjoyed these harmonious days, in a situation where war was inevitable, considering how to survive and fish in troubled waters was a decent choice.

Just as Mizuki thought he would wait like this until Orochimaru attacked Konoha, he received an emergency summons. He had no choice but to set aside his leisurely job as a mission NPC.

When Mizuki arrived at the Hokage's office, many people were already there; he was the last to arrive.

Ibiki Morino, Aoba Yamashiro, Izumo Kamizuki, Kotetsu Hagane, Hayate Gekko, and myself? This has the rhythm of an S-rank mission. Are they forcing us into a corner?

"Everyone is here." Seeing Mizuki enter, the Third Hokage continued, "I have called you all here because there is a very tricky mission that requires you to complete."

"First, I must tell you some bad news. The C-rank mission to the Land of Waves led by Hatake Kakashi has undergone a major change and has been temporarily upgraded to an S-rank. An S-rank missing-nin, Demon Zabuza, appeared during the mission. After an exchange, Hatake Kakashi emerged victorious but was unable to pursue. Currently, Kakashi's stamina is severely overdrawn and his combat strength is insufficient; he is in great danger, so he has requested reinforcements from the village."

"How could something like this happen?" Aoba Yamashiro asked in surprise. "Wasn't the mission vetting process reviewed carefully?"

"The responsibility for this lies with me." The Third Hokage took a breath and said sternly, "When the mission was submitted, Mizuki had already raised this issue, and the village had conducted some investigations, but unfortunately, the severity of the problem far exceeded our expectations."

"We originally thought the opponent was just a local powerhouse who might hire a few rogue ninjas at most. With Kakashi there, there would be no problem. In fact, when they first left the village, Kakashi's squad was attacked by two Chunin-level ninjas. The village received a report, but we didn't pay enough attention to it. We never expected that Demon Zabuza would appear. The opponent is truly audacious to hire such an unprincipled S-rank missing-nin."

"Then we must act as soon as possible?" Ibiki Morino asked.

"Yes, you must be careful. This operation will be a six-man squad with Ibiki as the captain. Protecting Kakashi's squad is the top priority. If other forces want to fish in troubled waters in the Land of Waves, try your best to stop them."

"But," Mizuki asked skeptically, "why doesn't Kakashi abandon the mission? The client lied about the mission rank; the village can completely withdraw. Why drag the village into this trouble that offers no benefits?"

"I know," the Third Hokage said with a deep breath. "You have another secret mission: to secretly assist Kakashi in completing the Land of Waves mission. Although the Land of Waves is far from the village and very poor, it is a strategic location and an important barrier between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water. If we can make them lean toward Konoha, it will be a great help to us. Therefore, unless necessary, do not expose yourselves. Try not to cause too much of a stir to avoid criticism."

"Understood."

"Then I leave it to you. Hurry and set off."

After the group received their orders and left, Captain Ibiki Morino instructed, "Everyone has a quarter of an hour to prepare, then gather at the village gate."

With that, everyone scattered like birds and beasts.

Mizuki ran home quickly, organized his ninja tools, and packed some life-saving potions before heading out. Although the side effects are not small, if I use small doses as temporary healing potions, it shouldn't be a problem. If things get truly urgent, I'll just have to bet my life.

Seeing he still had time after leaving his house, Mizuki went to greet Tsubaki and asked her to help look after the plants and animals in his room before rushing toward the village exit.

"Am I the last one again? I shouldn't be late, right?" Mizuki asked in surprise.

"No. Alright, everyone is here, let's go!" Captain Ibiki Morino's stern expression, paired with his scarred face, was truly oppressive. As a good youth of the new century, Mizuki was not good at dealing with such dangerous people who excelled at interrogation and psychological warfare.

The six of them ran wildly, but their conversation was pitifully sparse. Aoba Yamashiro was skilled in genjutsu and could read minds; Ibiki Morino was a sadist—this interrogation duo usually didn't speak unless necessary. Hayate Gekko was a sickly man; saving stamina to keep up with the pace was the logical thing to do. Kotetsu Hagane and Izumo Kamizuki, those two best friends, didn't speak either; the mission was simply too urgent. However, Mizuki couldn't stand the stifling atmosphere and couldn't help but speak to Ibiki.

"Hey, Captain, don't you think the configuration of this team is a bit strange?"

"What's strange about it?" Ibiki replied.

"You and Aoba Yamashiro are good at intelligence and interrogation, Izumo and Kotetsu are good at head-on combat, and Hayate Gekko is good at dueling—isn't that a pretty good team? What do you need me for?" In fact, Mizuki was asking something he already knew. Although the original work didn't specify, Konoha likely sent a rescue force. It was highly unlikely that an experienced ninja like Kakashi wouldn't report to the village when encountering such a change. Furthermore, the idea of him fighting until he fainted only to barely repel a strong enemy, while having to protect the Nine-Tails jinchuriki and Sasuke Uchiha, was a foolish act that didn't fit the style of a Jonin. Most likely, Konoha did provide support; whether they arrived in time or if there were other behind-the-scenes details, he didn't know.

Originally, this shouldn't have involved Mizuki, but unfortunately, he hadn't ended up in prison like in the original story, and his three-month probation was almost over. As a top-tier Chunin, it was perfectly normal to be sent on a mission as a test to clear his name. Besides, his lazy behavior likely annoyed people.

Sigh, I brought this on myself. If I don't gain anything from this, I'll be working for free.

Before Ibiki could answer Mizuki's question, Kotetsu complained, "Lord Third is truly discerning. Sending idle ninjas out to do actual work is truly wise."

"Who's idle? I haven't made a single mistake in my work these past two months."

"Stop arguing, cough, cough." Hayate Gekko couldn't help but chime in, "As long as we link up with Kakashi before Zabuza attacks again, the mission will be more than half complete, cough, cough."

"My friend, please stop talking," Mizuki said, unable to watch any longer. "You need rest more than I do. In front of a model ninja like you who fights while sick, I feel ashamed of my selfishness."

"Heh," Ibiki actually laughed. "Although the possibility of a fierce battle on this mission isn't high, with Kakashi there, we aren't the primary combat force. We just need to secretly protect the three Genin and the client; we'll handle other things as they come."

"Please, Ibiki, don't laugh. It's even more terrifying than before," Mizuki couldn't help but retort. "By the way, Captain, the Chunin Exams are coming up after this mission. Can you arrange a light job for me? Look at how busy I've been lately; I've lost so much weight that Tsubaki is worried."

"That's a pity. The arrangements have already been made; you'll be notified when the time comes."

"Hey, that's so heartless. I worked so hard in the Forest of Death recently."

"Then you should go talk to Anko."

"Next time, I'll have to talk to Lord Third about my salary. Sigh."

"Mizuki, stop complaining, cough, cough." Hayate Gekko was truly relentless. "I have to handle the preliminaries before the third round of the finals. Why don't you swap with me?"

"Forget it," Mizuki refused without hesitation. Facing the sleep-deprived One-Tail jinchuriki? He didn't want to experience that kind of terror. If he didn't know, fine, but knowing and walking right into it? That would be asking for trouble!

Finally, after more than three days of forced marches, the six-man rescue squad arrived in the Land of Waves and secretly linked up with Hatake Kakashi.

"Yo, Kakashi, I heard you got beaten up pretty badly. That's quite unexpected." Mizuki said sarcastically.

"Indeed," Kakashi didn't deny it. "After all, Zabuza is one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. Ninjas of that caliber, who are above the standard, are all difficult to deal with."

"Alright, leave the rest to us. You should rest and recover. We will provide secret support. As for Zabuza, we'll wait for you to solve it yourself. After all, the Silent Killing Technique is too troublesome. If there is a disadvantage in strength, the numerical advantage is almost meaningless. As long as Zabuza holds the initiative and has the home-field advantage, we will be helpless," Ibiki said.

"Of course, leave Zabuza to me. With you here, I can rest easy. Please help me look after the three Genin."

Night fell. Mizuki, Aoba Yamashiro, and Hayate Gekko rested in a temporary tent. Ibiki Morino had divided the six into two teams, while he took Izumo and Kotetsu to monitor from another location.

Kakashi and Ibiki are being careless. Although it's hard to imagine any force directly provoking Konoha, according to my memory, Kakashi's final battle was very difficult. Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki were almost killed. If it weren't for Haku showing mercy, they wouldn't have waited for Naruto to explode with power and turn the tide.

According to his own analysis, even if he didn't change anything, the possibility of Konoha not sending a rescue squad was extremely small. But since they didn't appear in the original, the reason was intriguing. What exactly held up the rescue squad and left Kakashi to fight alone?

Mizuki wasn't as optimistic as the others. If his expectations were correct, they might have a big fight on their hands this time.

This is a real, life-or-death struggle. It's nothing like the time I played around with Iruka and Naruto.