" Team 3 the Konoha Genin — Neji Hyuga, Rock Lee, Tenten, Naoki Senju, and their leader Jonin Might Guy —are all present. This is the permission to leave the village signed by the Lord Hokage."
In Konoha Gate, Might Guy was conducting a routine inspection, handing the village exit permit to Kotetsu Hagane.
After confirming that the certificate was in order, Kotetsu Hagane took out a stamp and stamped it on the certificate. Only in this way would the permit to leave the village be considered valid. Otherwise, in the worst case, he might be regarded as missing-nin who sneaked out of the village and sent to the infamous Konoha Interrogation Department.
I heard that Master Chiriku of the Fire Temple spent three or four days in the Interrogation Department, and after some unknown treatment, he almost died on the spot upon returning to the Fire Temple...
Since it concerned the Daimyo and the royal family of the Land of Fire, the abbot of the Fire Temple personally went to Konoha and had a friendly and pleasant exchange with the Third Hokage. After consulting with Chiriku, he chose to downplay the matter and not pursue the issue further.
However, even now, Master Chiriku has announced his seclusion, Twelve Guardian Ninja, renowned throughout the Five Great Nations, have officially disbanded.
In reality, they have no choice but to disband. The Daimyo of the Land of Fire is gone; who will they protect? The Hokage? The current Daimyo hasn't been officially chosen yet, but it's highly likely they'll select a child without any autonomy...
From then on, some high-ranking officials and nobles of Konoha and the Land of Fire used their daimyo to command the Land of Fire. The Land of Fire, which had been peaceful for decades since the First Hokage established Konoha, officially entered the turbulent end of its dynasty.
However, none of this mattered much to the village ninjas. They were only pleasantly surprised to find that the rewards for each subsequent mission had increased, because the Land of Fire's financial allocation was about to increase significantly.
Hiruzen Sarutobi had reason to suspect that those lunatics in Kumogakure had secretly done such things long ago. Otherwise, why would the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning agree to allocate so much war funding to Kumogakure every year just by selling ore?
Unless the Raikage personally takes action and holds a 40-meter-long sword to the neck of the Daimyo of the Land of Lightning... well, those brutes might actually do that.
However, Konoha wouldn't do that, at least not on the surface. One of the stops on Team Guy's mission this time was the capital of the Land of Fire, representing Konoha's peaceful will.
As for the other stop, it was naturally the cunning Third Hokage, used to test Naoki Senju's true identity...
" Jonin Might Guy, have a safe journey." Kotetsu Hagane, one of the gatekeeper duo, returned the exit permit to Might Guy.
Kai took the permission to leave the village, then struck a rather 'seductive' pose, grinned, revealing his gleaming white teeth, and excitedly said:
" Rock Lee, our mission, brimming with youthful passion, is about to begin. Let's start by running 30 kilometers to ignite our youthful spirit!"
"Yes, Guy-sensei!"
Then the master and apprentice, carrying huge backpacks, started running wildly down the road like untamed horses, without looking back.
She was stunned by Tenten. She had originally had beautiful fantasies about the scenery outside the village, but after running 30 kilometers, she no longer had any desire to see the scenery.
Fortunately, Might Guy's voice drifted from the front:
" Neji, Tenten, Naoki, we've set up camp ahead and are waiting for you. Catch up quickly and we'll discuss the details of this mission."
Tenten breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. If she really had to run 30 kilometers at the pace of Teacher Guy and Rock Lee, she wouldn't have to carry out any missions. She could let her body rest for a few days first.
"I really admire Teacher Guy and Rock Lee; they carried the heaviest tent and basic supplies (pot, salt, rope, and other necessities)."
As she spoke, Tenten bounced the small backpack she was carrying. Strictly speaking, it wasn't small at all. Inside were several sets of Tenten's clothes, some Kunai Shuriken, and other ninja tools, as well as some emergency medicine.
Naoki and Neji's backpacks were also quite large, containing their respective clothes, essential ninja tools, fresh water, and compressed food.
However, Neji seemed completely unconcerned about the weight. He walked over to Naoki Senju, raised an eyebrow provocatively, and said:
"Although I don't know your strength, I hope to witness your true power this time. I'll be waiting for you up ahead."
Then, with an air of indifference, he began trying to catch up with the simple-minded master and apprentice. It won't be long before Neji starts to question his existence: Are those two really on this path? Where are they!?
"He's destined to be single forever..." Naoki Senju shook his head with pity. " Neji had been half as proactive as Naruto, would he still be 'a boy until death'?"
" Tenten, let's go too. Don't worry about them. We just need to get there before lunchtime."
Tenten felt a little comforted by her sense of alienation; teaming up with a group of inhuman Taijutsu teammates was hardly a good experience, and it was quite disheartening.
"Yeah, Naoki-kun is the best. Traveling is so boring, why don't you tell me about Lady Tsunade Naoki-kun?"
To be honest, I'm afraid of ruining Sister Tsunade's shining image in your heart...
After much hesitation, Naoki Senju decided to save face for Sister Tsunade and just let her be the little girl he was going to deceive.
" Sister Tsunade, she's usually a very serious and earnest person..."
In the Senju Clan Compound, Tsunade, who was so bored that she was carving dice herself, suddenly sneezed, then said with a helpless yet indulgent tone:
" Naoki is still just a kid. He's already missing me after only leaving Konoha."
It was almost noon when Naoki Senju and Tenten finally arrived late. By then, Might Guy and Rock Lee had already set up two tents, one large and one small. The smaller tent was naturally prepared for Tenten.
In the center of the campsite sat an iron pot, stewing mushrooms and wild vegetables picked from the forest, along with some cute rabbit meat. Judging from the strong curry smell in the air, it wasn't hard to tell that this lunch was going to be somewhat unpalatable.
Exhausted and breathless, Neji, who hadn't recovered even after resting for over two hours, walked angrily up to Naoki Senju:
Why won't you accept my challenge?
Silence fell instantly. Rock Lee stopped stirring the curry, and for some reason, a feeling of betrayal suddenly arose in him.
"Hmm~ Maybe it's just the weather today. Next time, next time, definitely."
This dismissive tone instantly shattered Neji's patience. As Byakugan genius, he was always the one being challenged; when had he ever been looked down upon like this?
Light blue Chakra clung to Neji's right hand, his Neji thumb slightly bent, fingers joined together to form a palm, and his left hand rested on his waist. This was the starting stance of the Hyuga Style Gentle Fist, completely different from the Konoha- Konoha Style Taijutsu of the Strong Fist.
"Today you must accept my challenge! The honor of the Hyuga Clan cannot be tarnished!"