By the time Ueno Kei reached the room, he was surprised to find only their team leader, Akamatsu, inside. The rest of his teammates were nowhere to be seen.
Usually, Ueno Kei was the last one to arrive. Could it be that, for once, he'd actually gotten here early? He wondered, puzzled.
Just as Ueno Kei was considering whether something unusual had happened, Akamatsu spoke. "Hawk, this is an A-rank mission. Your objective is to kill the rogue ninja Aoi Rokushō and recover the stolen sword of the Second Hokage, the Sword of the Thunder God. Here are the mission details. Take them back and read them carefully!"
As he spoke, Akamatsu handed Ueno Kei a scroll.
"Yes, sir!" Ueno Kei replied instinctively. Then he felt something was off. He was being given the mission scroll? Usually, team leader Akamatsu kept it. Ueno Kei looked at him in confusion.
Akamatsu's expression didn't change as he said calmly, "Our team's original mission was to eliminate the Iwagakure ninja who infiltrated our borders. But not far from the mission site, in the Land of Tea, which shares a border with our country, we discovered traces of the rogue ninja Aoi Rokushō. After assessing the situation, they assigned this mission to our team as well. You'll handle the mission to eliminate Aoi Rokushō alone. Once it's complete, meet us at the designated location written in the scroll!"
"Yes, sir!" Ueno Kei still had some questions, but three years in Anbu had taught him good habits, and he answered promptly.
Ueno Kei left the Anbu base and returned home. After carefully reading the mission scroll and memorizing the important information, he destroyed it, as Akamatsu had instructed.
Then he prepared his ninja tools and rations, left Konoha Ninja Village, and headed straight for the