C-Class Mission

For the past few days, Kamizuki Izumo had been leading them on a series of D-Rank Missions.

Initially, Sugiyama Tetsu had been quite energetic and proactive, and while Nakamura Daisuke was lazy, he still fulfilled his duties.

However, after several days of these tasks, they were nearly depressed; there was no other reason than the fact that the clients were far too demanding.

Consequently, Kamizuki Izumo decided to treat them to a C-Rank Mission today.

"I see you're all looking listless, so let's change things up today and take on a C-Rank Mission," Kamizuki Izumo announced to the three dejected youths.

"C-Rank?" Sugiyama Tetsu's eyes lit up instantly. "Are we leaving the village? Will we encounter enemies?"

Nakamura Daisuke let out a yawn, looking as if he hadn't woken up yet. "C-Rank? What a hassle..."

Ning Xue remained silent; he had no objections, as Kamizuki Izumo was the one in charge of the missions.

"The mission is to escort a merchant caravan to the neighboring Land of Rivers and ensure the safety of the goods and personnel," Kamizuki Izumo said, keeping it brief.

"The estimated duration is three days. We assemble tomorrow morning, so make sure to tell your families and be ready to depart at dawn."

The next morning, Ning Xue carefully checked his ninja tool pouch, confirming that his kunai, shuriken, and that flask of special paralytic poison were all packed.

He asked his mother once more if she would be alright for the next three days, and she responded with a smile, assuring him she could take care of herself and urging him to be careful.

Upon arriving at the meeting point, Kamizuki Izumo and the other two teammates had already arrived.

Sugiyama Tetsu was fully armed and pacing back and forth with excitement. Nakamura Daisuke was carrying a bulging backpack that seemed to be stuffed with snacks.

"Everyone is here. Let's move," Kamizuki Izumo said concisely, leading the three of them toward the village gate to rendezvous with the caravan.

The group arrived at the gate and met up with the caravan.

The caravan was small, consisting of only three horse-drawn carts loaded with goods.

The cargo was covered tightly with tarpaulins.

The merchant leader breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing the hired ninjas arrive.

He respectfully handed over the mission documents and began to carefully explain the destination of the cargo.

"These goods are to be delivered to the Hidden Grass Village in the Land of Rivers. They are urgently needed medical supplies. I leave it to you, ninja lords," the leader explained.

Ning Xue felt a slight stir in his heart. The Hidden Grass Village? He remembered it being quite chaotic, seemingly caught in a struggle between two factions. Although he knew this, he said nothing.

And so, the group set off, escorting the caravan out of the Leaf Village.

The main road leading out of the Leaf was relatively wide, but as they approached the fork in the road, the surrounding trees gradually grew thicker.

This was their first mission outside the village, so they were inevitably a bit excited.

Sugiyama Tetsu felt like he was on a vacation, constantly sighing and looking around, remarking on how beautiful the scenery was.

Nakamura Daisuke had found it interesting and fun at first, but as they traveled further, his stamina began to wane. He became exhausted, to the point where he was too lazy to speak or look at the scenery. (It is hard to imagine how he even graduated; if everyone were like this, to borrow Orochimaru's words, the Leaf should just hurry up and be destroyed.)

Ning Xue, however, remained silent. He walked at the back of the formation, occasionally activating his Byakugan to scan the surroundings and ensure no enemies were lying in ambush.

Theoretically, a C-Rank Mission was usually a standard escort job, and there wouldn't be any enemy combat. But that was only in theory; one could not let their guard down, as even without ninjas, there were still mountain bandits and outlaws.

The first day passed without incident.

As dusk approached, everyone set up their tents on the spot. After finding a nearby river, they drew some water and caught a few fish, preparing to make dinner.

Although Ning Xue truly, deeply hated fish, he had to swallow it down because he had forgotten to bring his compressed rations and rice balls.

In the evening, everyone sat around a campfire, laughing and chatting—and of course, there was our chef, Nakamura Daisuke, grilling fish for everyone.

His skills were indeed impressive, and everyone offered their praise, except for Ning Xue.

"Ugh..." Ning Xue felt a bit nauseous after one bite, but to fill his stomach, he endured the disgust and ate it all.

Seeing this, Daisuke began to doubt his own cooking. Is it not good? They all seem to be eating happily, so is there something wrong with my cooking?

"Hmm, strange. What is Daisuke doing crouching over there?" Kamizuki Izumo asked curiously, looking at Sugiyama Tetsu, who was sitting beside him.

"I don't know, maybe he's just bored," Sugiyama Tetsu said, nonchalantly eating his grilled fish.

Evening.

Kamizuki Izumo assigned the night watch duties to Ning Xue and the others.

"Sugiyama Tetsu, you and Nakamura Daisuke will take turns for the first half of the night."

"Ning Xue and I will take turns for the second half. Understood?"

"Understood," the three replied with a nod.

"Good! Now, the three of us are going to sleep. Sugiyama Tetsu, keep a good watch."

The next morning, around 3:00 AM, he looked at the nearly asleep Nakamura Daisuke with a sense of helplessness. Fortunately, there were no enemies around.

Nakamura, sensing someone, rubbed his eyes. Seeing that it was Ning Xue, he immediately flopped over and fell back asleep, completely unconcerned about the dirt on the ground.

"..."

The second half of the night...

Kamizuki Izumo, yawning, was startled to see Nakamura on the ground. He instantly drew a kunai and scanned the surroundings in alert.

"Teacher, he's just asleep."

At this moment, a voice reached Kagami's ears.

Upon hearing this voice, Kagami did not lower the kunai in his hand, but instead aimed it toward the direction of the sound.

It was only after Ning Xue wore an expression of speechlessness and Kagami confirmed it was indeed him that he finally lowered the kunai.

"Haha... uh, let's have him take the first watch next time. Haha..."

Kagami felt a bit awkward, but it had been necessary.

"You go back and rest; leave the remaining time to me."

Ning Xue gave a grunt of acknowledgment before walking toward the tent.