The First Mission

Two days had passed since that lesson.

Today, they would undertake the first mission of their ninja careers.

After preparing a bento for her mother, Hyuga Ningxue prepared to head to the meeting point.

Before she left, her mother was still fretting over whether she was truly feeling alright.

At the meeting point.

Kamizuki Izumo looked at his three students.

Sugiyama Tetsu remained as energetic and restless as ever. He seemed to have completely emerged from the shadows of the Torture and Interrogation Force from two days ago.

He even seemed full of anticipation for the upcoming mission.

Nakamura Daisuke, meanwhile, maintained his usual lazy demeanor, and his complexion looked quite normal.

It seemed that aside from perhaps giving him a night of nightmares, the experience hadn't left any lasting impact.

Only Hyuga Ningxue was different.

Kamizuki Izumo turned his gaze toward him.

This boy, usually the quietest of the group, looked slightly pale today, with faint, barely noticeable dark circles under his eyes.

Unlike the other two, who were looking around or whispering to each other, he just stood there in silence, as if digesting something all on his own.

It seems the effects of the first lesson are still lingering with this child.

Kamizuki Izumo understood, but he didn't point it out. The boy seemed to have poor psychological resilience; this kind of shock would take time to process.

"Alright, stop standing there like statues."

Kamizuki Izumo clapped his hands, drawing the attention of the three. "Starting today, we are officially executing missions."

He opened a scroll and continued speaking to the three before him.

"The first mission, D-rank. Help Lady Shuihu on South Street find her lost pet cat, Xiaohu."

"Find... find a cat?" Sugiyama Tetsu froze for a moment, then his shoulders slumped in disappointment.

"I thought it would be a more exciting mission than this..."

Nakamura Daisuke's eyes, however, lit up.

"Finding a cat? That's great! I can slack off, and it's way better than that dump from two days ago!"

Ningxue didn't speak, merely giving a slight nod.

The group arrived at Lady Shuihu's home on South Street. She was a middle-aged woman with a plump, tiger-like build and an anxious expression.

"Oh! You've finally arrived!" Upon seeing Kamizuki Izumo and his squad, Lady Shuihu lunged at them as if she had seen her saviors.

"Oh, ninjas, please, hurry and find my Xiaohu. He's usually so well-behaved and never runs off. I just opened the door to let some air in, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone. You must help me find him!"

The middle-aged woman grabbed Kamizuki Izumo's arm and shook it back and forth with such force that even he was swayed along with her.

Faced with an employer who was not only hands-on but also chattering incessantly, Kamizuki Izumo had no choice but to patiently interrupt.

"My Lady, we have understood your request, and we will begin searching for you now."

But the woman refused to let go, continuing to talk about how precious her cat was and how human-like it acted, as if she hadn't lost a cat, but her own child.

Sugiyama Tetsu was at a loss for what to do, so he could only offer comfort.

"Don't worry, My Lady, we will definitely find him for you!"

Nakamura Daisuke retreated a step, his face clearly reading the word 'trouble.'

Ningxue stood a little further away, listening in silence. The woman's sharp, anxious voice made his already muddled head throb with pain.

He hadn't slept well for the past two days; every time he closed his eyes, the bloody, nauseating scenes from the Torture and Interrogation Force would flash through his mind like ghosts.

Kamizuki Izumo was experienced. Once the woman finished her complaints, he cut through her rambling and attempted to ask for key information.

"My Lady, please describe Xiaohu's physical features. Where was he last seen? Are there any places he frequents or things he likes?"

"Xiaohu is an orange cat, he has a bit of white on the tip of his tail, and he wears a golden bell around his neck!" Lady Shuihu gestured.

"He loves my special tuna rice balls the most!"

"And I usually like to take him for walks on the Commercial Street. Usually, he loves climbing on the roof or the trees in the yard. Oh, and he doesn't seem to get along with a certain black cat. Did he go to fight? Oh, and also..."

She began to list every possible detail, interspersed with a massive amount of nonsense.

What a... pain! Ningxue whispered quietly from a distance. Neji had once complained to him that the most feared thing when executing missions was encountering people who were overly attached to their pets, as they would clutter their descriptions with useless chatter, lowering the efficiency of the mission.

"Alright, we understand." Kamizuki Izumo interrupted decisively once more. "We will split up to search."

"Tetsu, go search the North District streets. Keep an eye out for any cat fights."

"Daisuke, check the rooftops, walls, and the entrances to the alleys."

"Ningxue, use your Byakugan to scout this area. Focus on high places and hidden corners."

"Yes!" Sugiyama Tetsu rushed toward the North Street, full of vigor.

"Sigh, understood..." Nakamura Daisuke began to climb the nearby wall, looking reluctant.

"Mhm."

Ning Xue took a deep breath and closed his eyes, struggling to suppress the bloody imagery in his mind before beginning his work.

When he opened his eyes again, the veins around them bulged, and his Byakugan vision instantly expanded to a radius of one kilometer.

Immediately, he began searching the streets, alleyway entrances, and rooftops.

Activating the Byakugan required intense concentration, but his poor state today made it a massive burden.

Not only did he have to focus on the search, but he also had to suppress the intrusive flashbacks that kept interfering with his efforts.

Meanwhile, the other two had been searching for ages without success, even getting scratched a few times after checking a pile of stray cats.

Kamizuki Izumo observed the trio's performance, his gaze lingering for a moment on the increasingly pale Ning Xue.

Before long, Lady Shuihu, waiting anxiously nearby, began to nag and complain about the low efficiency of the ninjas, fretting over what might happen if Xiaohu were in danger...

But just then, Ning Xue's Byakugan seemed to lock onto the cat with the golden bell; it was hiding in an alley two streets away.

"Found it," Ning Xue said in a low voice, his tone carrying a trace of imperceptible exhaustion.

"Where?" Kamizuki Izumo asked immediately.

"Southeast, two streets over, behind a pile of debris in a dead-end alley."

Ning Xue pointed in that direction.

"Good, lead the way."

Ning Xue closed his eyes, the veins at his temples gradually fading, before leading the three of them toward the dead-end alley.

The group soon arrived at the alley Ning Xue had described.

The alley was narrow, dimly lit, and cluttered with discarded furniture.

The cat was tucked away in a corner that was difficult to spot.

To everyone's surprise, however, the cat, Xiaohu, was not trapped; instead, its eyes were fixed intently on something inside the old furniture.

The group followed the cat's line of sight, and what they saw was entirely unexpected.

There, a robust black cat was affectionately licking a docile white cat, and beside them were several newborn black kittens.

As for the large orange cat, it was huddled in a corner, silently shedding tears like a defeated soul.

Whether due to the poor lighting or some other reason, one could vaguely see the cat's shoulders trembling incessantly, making it look utterly miserable.

"Uh... this..." Sugiyama Tetsu opened his mouth, at a loss for how to describe the scene.

Nakamura Daisuke let out a yawn.

"Oh, we found it. Well, let's hurry up and grab it so we can finish the job. Why are you all just standing there?"

Kamizuki Izumo was also speechless; he hadn't expected to stumble upon a soap opera drama while looking for a cat.

Ning Xue watched the orange cat's lonely back in silence. For some reason, three words popped into his mind: NTR.

Kamizuki Izumo stepped forward and easily picked up the orange cat, which was still immersed in its sorrow. The cat let out a symbolic whimper before giving up the struggle, allowing itself to be carried away with an expression that suggested life had lost all meaning.

Mission accomplished.

After handing the cat over to Lady Shuihu and enduring ten minutes of expressions of gratitude, Kamizuki Izumo said they would meet at the same time tomorrow before taking his leave.

Sugiyama Tetsu and Nakamura Daisuke high-fived, happy to have completed their first mission.

After greeting Ning Xue, they left together.

Ning Xue, however, felt even more exhausted. He didn't say much to his teammates, merely nodding before turning to leave.

He didn't head straight home, instead changing direction and walking toward his usual training ground.

He sat down against a large tree, his body shrouded in shadow.

As he closed his eyes, the nauseating, bloody scenes from the Torture and Interrogation Force came rushing back like a tide.

Unconsciously, his mind revisited the morality of his past life and the coldness of this reality.

The two sets of values clashed within his mind, leaving him with a splitting headache.

He needed time; he needed time to alleviate this and to adapt.