Passing the test officially established Team 7.
And Chiba, the butterfly who had transmigrated into this world, had officially pushed the once-unchanging plot in an unknown direction.
"Today, our mission is to catch Little Tiger, the daimyo's wife's missing cat."
Kakashi Hatake looked at the slip of paper in his hand and spoke listlessly.
Having a Jonin like him lead these three Genin on so-called missions...
It truly was torture for him.
Especially after several straight days of delivering letters, finding lost items, and helping with farmwork.
Even Kakashi Hatake's last shred of enthusiasm had been worn away.
The other three members of Team 7 weren't having a great time either.
Setting aside the relatively levelheaded Chiba, Naruto Uzumaki was already on the verge of exploding.
As for Sasuke Uchiha, the impatience was plain on his face.
"All right, all right."
"We've already accepted the mission, so let's finish it first."
Kakashi Hatake offered a few words of reassurance.
After some trouble, Naruto Uzumaki finally held the tabby Little Tiger in his arms, pinning the cat firmly in place.
The struggling tabby kept flailing its claws and letting out piercing yowls.
This pushed Chiba, whose mood was already poor, to the verge of exploding as well.
"Shut up. Make another sound and I'll kill you!"
The sinister voice sounded right beside the tabby's ears.
The cat instantly fell silent.
It stayed obediently in Naruto Uzumaki's arms, no longer putting up any resistance.
The animals in this world were all fairly intelligent.
Understanding human speech wasn't particularly difficult for them.
Little Tiger could also clearly sense the killing intent radiating from the person before it.
If it didn't quiet down, the person in front of it really might kill it.
"Huh?!"
Naruto Uzumaki stared at the cat in his arms in astonishment.
"Chiba, you're amazing!"
"I never thought you'd scare this nasty cat into behaving with just one sentence!"
Watching from the side, Sasuke Uchiha felt no admiration whatsoever.
Instead, what he felt most was fear.
Naruto Uzumaki seemed simple and good-natured, without much guile.
Naturally, he couldn't see Chiba's true nature.
But Sasuke Uchiha knew that the killing intent Chiba had just released was absolutely genuine.
"Phew-"
Kakashi Hatake arrived late, but when he saw the quiet tabby...
A flicker of surprise passed through his only exposed eye.
"All right, now that we've found the cat..."
Kakashi didn't dwell on it. Completing the mission was what mattered to him.
The Hokage Office.
Shijimi, the wife of the Land of Fire's daimyo, had been waiting there for some time.
Ecstatic delight flashed in her eyes when she saw her tabby, Little Tiger.
She then took the cat from Naruto and kept rubbing it against her face.
Makeup as thick as wall putty flaked off in showers.
Now that it seemed to be back with its owner, the cat began yowling again.
But when it caught sight of Chiba's icy gaze, it instantly froze.
Its yowls gradually grew quieter, turning into pitiful whimpers.
The Third looked at the mission scroll in his hands and read aloud:
"Your next mission is to deliver some supplies to the neighboring village."
"Or, you could help clear weeds from the fields."
Hearing these missions, Naruto Uzumaki immediately shouted:
"Don't you have anything more challenging?"
After a round of spirited arguments, the Third smiled readily.
"In that case, I'll give you a C-Rank Escort Mission!"
At those words, Naruto Uzumaki immediately perked up.
"Really?"
"Will we be escorting a lord or a princess?"
The Third called toward the door:
"Come in!"
Chiba watched the man enter, a faint smile appearing on his lips.
Tazuna, the master bridge builder from the Land of Waves.
Team 7's first real mission!
Chiba thought to himself, The mission might be a little difficult, but at least we can leave the village.
The Third turned to Tazuna and explained:
"These are the ninja who will escort you home."
Tazuna took a swig of liquor and said with some dissatisfaction:
"What? They're just a bunch of brats!"
"Especially the shortest, dumbest-looking one. Is he really a ninja?"
Chiba ignored Naruto, who wanted to kill Tazuna.
At that moment, his attention was entirely focused on the system.
Just moments earlier, a new system mission had been issued.
[Issuing sign-in mission...] [Mission objective: Travel to the Land of Waves to sign in and kill Zabuza Momochi, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist!] [Mission reward: Eight Gates Released Formation!] [Issuing hidden mission...]
The sudden mission left Chiba feeling somewhat bewildered.
Hadn't he still not completed the last sign-in mission?
Before you continue