And as for random triggers, they were probably related to the various situations Chiba faced.
With the rewards for Daily Missions being weakened by the answers, the appearance of Special Missions was probably meant to make up for the reduced Daily Mission rewards.
"I'll have to wait for a Special Mission to trigger before I can analyze it..."
Chiba wasn't in a hurry.
After breakfast, Chiba left.
His appetite really had grown—and by an outrageous amount.
If this kept up, the food at home really wouldn't be enough to feed him.
"I'll go hunting today and sort out the food problem first!"
Koizumi's parents were both still on the front lines against the Mist Ninja.
Since Chiba hadn't become a ninja yet, he couldn't accept missions to earn money.
"I never thought I'd still have to worry about money after coming to the world of Naruto!"
Chiba sighed and headed toward the Uchiha Clan's forest.
The Uchiha Clan was huge, and with this vast forest added to it, it was even bigger.
You could say that, aside from the former Senju Clan grounds, the Uchiha Clan probably occupied the largest area in Konoha.
Not only did it have fertile land, it also had natural hunting grounds.
Observation Haki swept out, and every animal nearby entered Chiba's awareness.
Compared with a ninja's sensory abilities, this power was on a completely different level.
"All right, hunting... starts now."
Deer and boars were Chiba's first choice.
They were bigger and had more meat.
One deer and one wild boar would be enough to feed Chiba and Koizumi for many days.
For now, they probably wouldn't need to worry about food.
But when Chiba was dragging his prey back, he stopped.
His Observation Haki had detected other presences.
They were hostile, so they couldn't be animals. They had to be ninjas.
And this was the Uchiha Clan's grounds.
Why would the Police Force show hostility toward Chiba, who was himself a member of the Uchiha Clan?
Was it Anbu or Root Division?
Most likely Root Division.
Anbu wouldn't be so brazen as to come to the Uchiha Clan's grounds.
Chiba set down his prey and leaned both hands on his cane, as if waiting for the other party to arrive.
Then three dark figures flashed past.
Somehow, three ninjas had appeared on the tree in front of Chiba.
They wore strange masks. Some crouched, others stood, all watching Chiba silently.
"Uchiha Chiba..."
The other party spoke.
"Lord Danzo has taken an interest in your swordsmanship. He hopes you'll join the Root Division!"
"Join the Root Division and serve Konoha."
"This is your honor!"
"Once you join the Root Division, Lord Danzo will devote himself to training you."
"For Konoha, for the Will of Fire."
"We hope you won't refuse!"
With that high-and-mighty tone, it hardly sounded like a request.
Changing the last line to "We hope you know what's good for you" would probably better fit their style.
Chiba slowly let out a breath.
So it had finally happened.
As a member of the Uchiha Clan, any genius was bound to encounter this sort of thing.
Since Itachi was the clan leader's son, perhaps the Konoha High Command wouldn't be so blatant with him.
But Chiba was just an ordinary Uchiha.
The other party naturally had no reason to hold back.
And just then—
Ding!
[Random Special Mission triggered!]
[Zanpakuto are blades that slay souls. Only by bathing in blood and souls will the blade form a close bond with its host!]
[Special Mission: Leave No Survivors. Slay the tainted souls before you. Leave no one alive!]
[Reward: Form a bond with the Zanpakuto. No one but the host can use it. First Template progress: 0.5%. Second Template progress: 0.2%.]
Chapter 43
This was the randomly triggered Special Mission.
Listening to the system's prompt, Chiba was a little dazed.
The reward wasn't all that generous.
But it was much better than the Daily Mission rewards.
At the same time, Chiba realized that Special Mission rewards were probably scaled to the difficulty of the mission.
As expected, combat was the main theme of this world.
Chiba's heart gradually grew wild.
His Observation Haki swept across the area, instantly locking onto the three Root Division ninjas before him.
It was hostility.
Overwhelming hostility.
The three Root Division ninjas all froze for a moment.
Carrying out bloody missions from the shadows was the Root Division's job.
They were incredibly sensitive to hostility.
Almost the instant Chiba raised his head to face them—
That hostility surged toward them.
Chiba's eyes were clearly covered by a black blindfold.
And yet, in that moment, the three of them felt as though something had set its sights on them.
It was a ferocious beast.
Could this blind Uchiha really be planning to fight them?
Ridiculous.
They couldn't hide their contempt.
This wasn't arrogance. Root Division ninjas simply had every reason to be proud of themselves.
Every Root Division ninja had survived a brutal, bloody selection process.
Those who earned Danzo's approval and survived to the end were undoubtedly among the best.
As for the other party, he was nothing but an Uchiha who couldn't even see.
An Uchiha without the Sharingan was like a beast without fangs.
Nothing to fear.
"The target has shown hostility."
"Mission changed!"
"Subdue him by force and take him to Lord Danzo!"
"Remember, keep him alive!"
"Keep him alive!"
The three Root Division ninjas reached their decision and drew the Ninja Blades from their backs in an instant.
From the moment Chiba showed hostility to the moment they were ready to fight—
It took only a split second.
Decisiveness was the Root Division's greatest strength.
Because, to them, hesitation meant death.
They had already analyzed Chiba's file.
He had exceptional swordsmanship and had even earned praise from Body Flicker Shisui.
But his five-year-old body limited his swordsmanship.
His lack of strength was Chiba's greatest weakness.
"Don't match his swordsmanship. Use brute force to suppress him!"
"Make noise to disrupt his senses."
Target his weaknesses.
Suppress him as efficiently as possible.
Everything was under the Root Division ninjas' control.
But Chiba smiled.
"Keep you alive? Sorry... you probably won't have the time."
In an instant—
Chiba revealed fangs like never before.
The madness in his heart seemed to erupt at that moment.
So my heart was like a beast's too.
The moment the Cane Sword left its sheath—
The three Root Division ninjas felt as if their very souls had been shaken.
It was a kind of shock beyond words.
And then—
Chiba came at them.
This was probably Chiba's first real battle. It was also the first time he had swung his blade with the intention of killing someone.
Even though he knew.