The Corpse at the Naka River's Lower Reaches

Konoha's Mission Assignment Office.

The Third Hokage looked complicatedly at the members of Team Seven. In the end, his gaze settled on Kakashi Hatake, his expression becoming even more inscrutable.

Team Seven's jonin instructor, Kakashi Hatake, had his arm wrapped in thick bandages. This injury had been added after the Survival Exercise.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at his arm and took a slow drag from his pipe. "Kakashi, your injury isn't too serious, is it?"

This Kakashi was practically an oddity among jonin instructors!

In previous years, his graduation exam pass rate had been zero. This year, he had finally allowed one team to pass, only to get injured by his own graduates!

Kakashi Hatake reached up to straighten his messy hair and sighed. "It shouldn't be a problem. I can still handle ordinary ninja missions..."

The Third Hokage nodded and puffed on his pipe. "Hmm, help Lord Kasen look after his little grandson, clear the lower river channel, or remove weeds from farmland?"

"Then let's pick one that pays more!"

Naruto Uzumaki stood beside Kakashi Hatake and raised an eyebrow.

Hiruzen Sarutobi glanced at him and could not help saying, "Naruto, many people in the village need help. Every mission needs ninja to carry it out. If everyone is picky, the people waiting for help will become anxious."

"But mission difficulty is tied to the reward, isn't it?"

Naruto Uzumaki adjusted his Forehead Protector and looked at the Third Hokage, speaking softly. "Besides, now that I've become a ninja, the living allowance the village provides to orphans will stop this month. I'll need mission rewards to support myself."

Hiruzen Sarutobi paused at those words. He flipped through the mission ledger in his hands and selected a sheet of paper. "Is that so? There happens to be a mission request that has been backlogged for a long time. The environment there is too troublesome, so no Genin have been willing to complete it."

"It also happens to be a D-rank Mission your team can currently accept: clear the river channel at the lower reaches of the Naka River. The maximum reward is ten thousand ryo."

"Although the client is no longer alive, the reward will still be paid in full."

The Naka River was Konoha's Naka River.

When Sasuke Uchiha heard that name, his expression immediately changed. Yet when he saw Naruto Uzumaki's calm face, he ultimately said nothing to stop it.

After Team Seven arrived at the lower reaches of the Naka River, Sakura Haruno could not help covering her nose. The stench here was overwhelming. A thick tree trunk lay across the river's surface, blocking garbage from floating farther downstream and breeding countless flying insects.

And that was clearly not all. There should have been rampant weeds beneath the water as well, because they could see lush aquatic plants poking above the surface, densely growing amid the garbage.

The foul odor was so intense it was almost eye-watering.

Kakashi Hatake sighed and remarked, "This looks even harder than an ordinary garbage-picking mission! No wonder no Genin have been willing to take this request."

"We shouldn't have listened to Naruto!"

Sakura fanned the air before her nose with one hand, her little face pale. "It would have been so much better to run errands, deliver letters, or find pets! This place is absolutely not suitable for Sasuke and me to have a date!"

"..."

Sasuke Uchiha's face darkened. He glanced at Naruto Uzumaki, who remained unmoved, and said, "This place has always smelled terrible. I rarely come near it. I remember Father mentioning once that he would issue a mission request for it..."

The Uchiha Clan had always been proud. No matter what, they could not possibly send a jonin from the clan to clear a river channel or pick up garbage.

Yet unexpectedly, the request issued by the Uchiha Clan's former patriarch had remained backlogged in the village. Even after the Uchiha Clan was reduced to a single orphan, it had never been completed.

So many years had passed, and Konoha had never dealt with it.

Kakashi Hatake seemed to know something. He pointed at his arm and sighed. "My wound hasn't healed yet. The doctor instructed me not to get it wet. It looks like this mission can only be completed by the three of you..."

Sakura Haruno: "..."

Sasuke Uchiha: "..."

Naruto Uzumaki simply nodded without concern, brought his fingers together, and began forming hand seals. "Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Thousands upon thousands of Shadow Clones densely filled the space around them. No matter how many times they had seen it, the sight still did nothing to lessen their shock.

Kakashi Hatake was dumbfounded. "..."

Sakura widened her eyes as she watched Naruto Uzumaki's Shadow Clones begin rolling up their clothes. Somewhat happily, she said, "It looks like Naruto can complete this mission by himself!"

"I'll help too..."

Sasuke rolled up his pant legs and sleeves, speaking softly. "This place isn't far from our clan compound... and... it was also Father's mission request."

"Then... I'll help too!"

Sakura rolled up her sleeves and gritted her teeth, choosing to follow Sasuke's lead. However, judging from her expression, she was far from pleased.

The sun slowly rose, growing hotter and hotter.

The stench at the lower reaches of the Naka River became increasingly unbearable.

After clearing away all the garbage, Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke worked together to push the thick tree trunk onto the riverbank. Just as they let out sighs of relief, Sakura Haruno's scream came from nearby.

The members of Team Seven leaped toward her position and nearly collided head-on with the pink-haired girl, whose expression was full of panic. Tears hung from the corners of her eyes as she pointed beneath a cliff in the distance and cried, "There... there's someone... a corpse..."

"Stay alert!"

Kakashi Hatake left those words behind and rushed over in a single bound!

Because there was a certain ninja on the team, he had to remain cautious. Ever since Konoha had been founded, there had been no shortage of spies secretly infiltrating the village.

If a murder had occurred here, it was no small matter.

Yet when Kakashi Hatake saw the corpse, his expression gradually stiffened. He turned his head and slowly fixed his gaze on Sasuke.

Sasuke Uchiha's heart trembled. "Sensei Kakashi, who is that dead person? What happened?"

"Come take a look."

Kakashi Hatake rubbed his white hair.

Beneath the cliff in the shade, dense weeds and shrubs grew everywhere. The corpse of a ninja wearing ANBU attire lay there, giving off an unbearable stench.

His body had already decayed. Perhaps because of where it had been preserved, no birds or beasts had come to gnaw on his remains. Some of his facial features could even still be faintly made out.

Kakashi Hatake watched Sasuke Uchiha slowly approach, his eyes gradually growing vacant, and explained quietly, "Preliminary judgment is that the river carried him here. Since this area is near the water and there is only a cliff above it, the body was preserved..."

After speaking, he removed an identification tag from the corpse and handed it to Sasuke Uchiha. "You should... know him."

Sasuke Uchiha looked at the words on the tag, then slowly dropped to his knees before the remains. Two streams of tears ran down his cheeks as he sobbed softly, "It's Brother Shisui..."

Sakura looked confused. "Sensei Kakashi?"

Kakashi Hatake sighed and pulled Sasuke to his feet. "Sasuke, this needs to be reported to the village. Shisui was a jonin of the village. He disappeared six years ago, yet it turns out he was assassinated by someone who infiltrated the village. This is no small matter..."

"I know who the murderer is."

Sasuke Uchiha clenched his fists and ground his teeth. His face gradually twisted with fury. "Back then, many people in our clan knew that he was the one who killed Brother Shisui!"

"For power, he killed everyone!"

"It must have been him!"

First Update

Itachi Uchiha: Do you know that because of you, neither my little brother nor I can explain ourselves properly anymore?

Shisui Uchiha: What happened?

Itachi Uchiha: He has always believed I killed you...

Shisui Uchiha: I actually left a final message there...

Itachi Uchiha: What final message?

Shisui Uchiha: Itachi, protect Konoha's future.

Itachi Uchiha: And what happened?

Shisui Uchiha: I had no strength left before I died, so I only managed to carve your name...

Itachi Uchiha: ...