Mission

Early the next morning, Jun met up with Minato and Nozomi in front of the village's gates. They all wore their new flack-jackets, looking even more like professionals.

Closing the book she was reading, Nozomi looked up at the beautiful dawn sky. Even though they were in the middle of summer, the temperature was still a little chilly, and she could hear the birds waking up.

"Why didn't Jiraiya-sensei tell us about the mission?" Sighing, she shifted her gaze to Jun and Minato, who both sat quietly, waiting for Jiraiya.

"You're right. It's a little shady." Smiling, Minato also wondered the reason for this. they didn't even know the rank of the mission they were going on. "Well, he did mention that it was top-secret."

They'd been told that they'd leave on a secret mission, but any details were purposefully left out, leaving them uninformed.

"Does it matter? I just hope that there will be some strong opponents." In his usual sleeping position, Jun opened one eye and also stared at the fleeting clouds. 'Hopefully, it won't be too boring.'

After a short while, Jiraiya finally arrived. Behind him were two more people, that Jun instantly recognized.

Tsunade and Orochimaru, or Jiraiya's former teammates. Jun knew that after the coming war, they would collectively come to be known as the 'Sannin'. [1]

Smiling, Jiraiya walked up to the three Chunin, the corners of his mouth rising into a small smile. "Sorry for the wait! I want to present you to the two ninja that'll accompany us on this mission."

"It's you!" With a surprised expression, Nozomi pointed at Orochimaru. "You're the bizarre snake-proctor guy!"

Hearing her description of Orochimaru, both Jiraiya and Tsunade struggled to hold back their laughter. On the other hand, Orochimaru seemed unaffected as he spoke in a monotonous voice. "The name's Orochimaru, nice to meet you." [2]

"I'm Tsunade. I've heard a lot about you three!" Smiling, Tsunade presented herself. Remembering her from his fight against the five Kage, Jun found it amusing.

The fact that she, along with the other four, even tried to fight him baffled Jun. 'Five frogs stuck in a well... I hope that she's not as delusional as she was back then...'

After greeting each other, Minato raised his hand and spoke his mind.

"Master Jiraiya, what kind of mission are we going on exactly?" The fact that they needed the help of two more Jonin filled him with anticipation.

"We're headed to Uzushiogakure!" Smiling, Jiraiya took out a sealed scroll. "The Hokage tasked us with delivering a vital document to their leader... It has to do with the coming war."

"Uzushiogakure? You mean the Uzumaki clan?" Nozomi's eyes lit up like stars. It was one of the places she wanted to visit at least once!

"I've read that they're our close allies, and masters of fuinjutsu."

"Exactly." Hiding the scroll in his clothes, Jiraiya's demeanor changed to a serious one. "This is a critical mission, and we must complete it without fail. Do you understand?"

Hearing Jiraiya's words, Tsunade and Orochimaru slightly frowned. In recent times, they felt developing tension between the Konoha-Uzumaki alliance and the rest of the Shinobi villages.

Because these two powers would help each other no matter what, the other nations were actively trying to sour their relationship. After all, if both forces collaborated once again, a repeat of the first shinobi world war would be inevitable, with Konohagakure reaping all of the benefits.

"U-understood..." Minato and Nozomi both nodded their heads, intimidated by the quick shift in mood. This mission was much more critical than they'd initially thought.

"Uzumaki..." Opening his eyes in surprise, Jun got up from his resting posture.

'How could I forget!'

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[1] 'Sannin' (Literally meaning legendary three ninja) The three were the students of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage. During their time under Hiruzen's tutelage, they all learned to use the Summoning Technique, which they perform with their left hands. Despite being a team and having accomplished great things together, the three members were always in constant disagreement with one another, which Tsunade referred to as a "three-way deadlock". Once they became skilled ninja able to look after themselves, Hiruzen's team was disbanded.

[2] So, I wanted to clear something up. Pe- I mean, Ochimaru, hasn't yet descended into complete madness. His obsession with eternal life is already budding, but it's not as prominent as it was during the main series, yet. Some things still haven't happened.