At the same time, in the backyard of the Hyuga Estate.
Hinata tightly hugged the bouquet of Blue Enchantresses in her arms, which was larger than her face. The crisp floral fragrance lingered around her nose, along with... that person's domineering yet reassuring scent.
"Wait for me to come back. Then I'll marry you."
Those words, like the most sacred spell, had been branded deep into her soul.
"I... I want to become stronger too!"
The girl used all her strength to hug the bouquet even tighter, as if she wanted to merge it into her body.
"I have to become stronger, become a woman who can stand beside Naruto, instead of one who can only look up at him from behind!"
At that moment, the timid and frail young lady of the Hyuga Clan died.
In her place stood a warrior determined to raise her fist against the entire main house and against her own fate for the sake of the one she loved!
The next day, at the Hokage's Office.
"Third Hokage-sama, you wanted to see us?"
Sakura and Sasuke stood in the middle of the office, both looking somewhat confused.
Kakashi stood off to one side, as lazy-looking as ever, but his eyes were clear and alert.
"Hehe, don't be nervous, children."
Hiruzen Sarutobi wore a kindly smile and took a deep puff from his pipe. "I just wanted to talk to you about the previous exercise. You performed very well, especially in terms of teamwork."
He gave them the usual few words of praise before his tone shifted and his gaze deepened.
"During the exercise, Naruto displayed some... special abilities. What do you think about that?"
Sakura instinctively wanted to say something, but she did not know where to begin.
Sasuke's gaze sharpened. He knew the important part had arrived.
Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes swept across both their faces, taking in every reaction.
"Those eyes of Naruto's, as well as the abnormal taijutsu he used, are all S-rank secrets of the village."
His tone turned serious. "From today onward, you must keep this matter absolutely confidential. You are not to mention it to anyone, including your families. This is the Hokage's order. Do you understand?"
"Yes!"
Sakura and Sasuke immediately stood at attention and answered.
Looking at the two Genin who only half understood, Hiruzen Sarutobi added meaningfully, "You only need to remember that Naruto is your most important companion. That is enough."
After leaving the Hokage Building, Sakura's head was full of questions, while Sasuke clenched his fists.
An S-rank secret... Just how many secrets was that dead last hiding?
The target he was chasing seemed increasingly out of reach.
A few days later.
Konoha's commercial district, inside a ninja tool shop bearing the sign "East Wind."
"Tch, these mass-produced pieces of junk are practically an insult to the term ninja tools."
Naruto idly played with a kunai in his hand, then casually flicked it away. With a sharp thud, it struck the bullseye of a distant target with perfect accuracy, its handle still humming.
He was here because he had truly had enough of D-rank missions like catching cats and pulling weeds.
Rather than waste time, he might as well get himself some handy "toys."
"Hey, customer, you can't say that!"
A crisp voice with a hint of heroic spirit came from behind the counter. "Our shop's ninja tools are among the best in Konoha!"
Naruto looked over and saw a cute girl with twin buns, standing with her hands on her hips and glaring at him indignantly.
It was Tenten, the ninja tool user from Guy's team.
Naruto curled his lip and picked up another shuriken, thinking to himself, All those videos about forging cold weapons and popular science explanations of metalworking from my previous life are finally useful. Add the Sage Body's innate sense for chakra metal conductivity, and I can tell what's wrong with this kunai just by touching it.
He said, "The center of gravity is off, the quenching during forging was uneven, and there are too many impurities in the material. Stuff like this can only fool students at the Ninja Academy."
Tenten was stunned by his words.
She considered herself an expert in ninja tools, yet this blond brat had spoken so knowledgeably, and every sentence hit the nail on the head.
She picked up the shuriken and inspected it closely. Her expression changed slightly. Everything he said was correct!
[Ding! Target detected: Tenten. Favorability has fluctuated slightly!] [Current Favorability: 45 (An interesting guy)]
Tenten looked at Naruto somewhat unwillingly. "You... how do you know all that?"
"Because I'm a genius."
Naruto arrogantly raised his chin. "All right, stop trying to fob me off with this junk. Do you have a way to get custom orders? I want the best materials and the finest craftsmanship. Money isn't an issue."
Seeing Naruto's smug expression that practically screamed, "I've got money, get over here," Tenten did not get angry. Instead, her eyes lit up.
This was a major customer!
More importantly, he was a genuine expert!
"Yes! Of course!"
She immediately put on an enthusiastic smile. "Please follow me. Our backyard is the workshop, and my father is one of Konoha's best ninja tool smiths!"
[Ding! Target: Tenten. Favorability +5!] [Current Favorability: 50 (An expert! Must befriend him!)]
The corner of Naruto's mouth lifted into an almost imperceptible smile as he followed Tenten deeper into the shop.
During this low-profile growth phase, it was time to upgrade his equipment too.
"Meow—!!!"
On the roof of a residence somewhere, an extremely arrogant-looking fat cat let out a scream like a pig being slaughtered.
Naruto held the famous pet "Tora" of a noblewoman from the Land of Fire in one hand, his face utterly lifeless.
"Damn it, I can't live like this anymore!"
He roared inwardly, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, for fuck's sake! I possess six divine skills, the future king of the Shinobi World, and you're making me catch cats every day?!
Not far away, Sasuke wore a serious expression as he faced a large tree, attempting the force-generation technique Naruto had casually pointed out to him.
Meanwhile, Sakura had completely fallen into chaos as her worldview shattered.
She looked at Sasuke, who was treating a tree like a punching bag, then at Naruto, who was holding a fat cat with an annoyed face. Remembering what the Third Hokage had said a few days ago, she felt like her brain's CPU was about to burn out.
Sasuke... he actually called Naruto "big brother"?
And he humbly asked him for advice?
And Naruto's secrets were actually S-rank classified information?
What... had happened to this world?!
At last, after completing another childish mission like "find a lost dog" or "help villagers pull weeds," Naruto finally exploded.
He shoved the dog leash into Kakashi's hand, his face dark, then turned and strode toward the Hokage Building.
The Hokage's Office.
"Bang—!!!"
The door was kicked open from the outside!
"Old man!"
Naruto planted one foot on the threshold, looking exactly like a thug who had come to collect a debt. "Stop trying to fob me off with these kiddie missions! I'm about to grow fur! Give me something difficult! Something where I can spill some blood!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi set down his pipe, fox-like gleams flashing in his murky old eyes.
"Hehe, young people sure have energy... Fine, there happens to be a C-rank escort mission that requires Team 7 to make a trip."
"You'll be escorting a bridge-building expert named Tazuna back to his hometown, Wave Country."
As soon as he finished speaking, an old man reeking of alcohol staggered in.
With bleary eyes, Tazuna glanced over them, then rudely pointed at Naruto. "What kind of joke is this? This stupid-looking little runt is supposed to protect me? He'd be lucky not to piss his pants when he sees bandits on the road!"
Dead silence.
Kakashi had only one thought: It was over. Totally screwed.
Sasuke's lips curled into a cold smile as he silently stepped half a pace back.
Naruto slowly turned his head, and a terrifying killing intent like mountains of corpses and seas of blood erupted!
"Uh... ah..."
Tazuna's legs went limp. With a thump, he collapsed onto the floor like a puddle of mud, while a wet stain rapidly spread beneath him.
He had really been scared into pissing himself.
"All right, Naruto, that's enough joking around with the client."
Kakashi hurried forward and pressed a hand onto Naruto's shoulder.
The killing intent instantly vanished without a trace.
Naruto withdrew his gaze and curled his lip with a look of utter boredom.
Kakashi sighed, nodded to the Third Hokage, then turned around and announced to the three behind him, "All right, that's the situation! Everyone go back and prepare. Gather at the village gate in half an hour!"
After Naruto and the others left, Hiruzen Sarutobi put down his pipe, and the fox-like gleam in his eyes grew even deeper.
He took a special envelope used for ANBU communications from a drawer, wrote a line on it, and stamped it with the Hokage's seal.
"Anbu Ape."
A masked figure appeared by the window.
"Follow Team 7 and secretly monitor Naruto Uzumaki throughout the entire mission. Record every detail of any unusual abilities he uses, especially those eyes. He can pretend while he's in the village, but once he leaves and encounters real combat, he won't be able to hide it. I want to know exactly how many trump cards he is still concealing."
Anbu Ape vanished soundlessly.
The Third Hokage lit his pipe again and muttered to himself, "I'm letting you leave not because this old man has no way to deal with you. It's because... a bird in a cage can never spread its wings."
Half an hour later, at Konoha's main gate.
All of Team 7 had arrived, along with the still-shaken Tazuna.
Kakashi had put away his usual laziness, his expression more serious than ever.
"Listen carefully. Although this is only a C-rank mission, any mission can encounter unexpected circumstances. From now on, we are entering combat status."
He pointed to the ground at his feet. "Next, I will announce our marching formation and assignments. Mr. Tazuna will stay in the center. Sakura, you stay beside him and remain alert to the surroundings. Watch for traps or any suspicious traces."
"Sasuke, you will serve as the vanguard. Activate your Sharingan and scout conditions within one kilometer ahead."
"Naruto, you will handle the rear guard. Use your... sensory ability to cover our rear and flanks, preventing us from being surrounded."
"As for me, I will coordinate from the center and handle intelligence analysis and command for the entire team. Understood?"
"Yes!"
The three answered in unison.
Looking at these three Genin, still immature yet already sharp-eyed, Kakashi relaxed slightly.
Perhaps this Team 7 really could create a miracle.
"Good. Our destination is Wave Country! Move out!"
Before you continue