151. Growing Naruto And Sasuke

"Ah~~~~~"

Sakura screamed in fear while Naruto and Sasuke had already shifted their positions, instinctively protecting Tazuna, who had yet to react.

Facing the chain thrown by the Kirigakure shinobi, Sasuke dodged swiftly, throwing a few shurikens. The shuriken spun through the air with precision, heading toward the Kirigakure shinobi.

"Tsk! This kid is quite troublesome..."

One of the Kirigakure shinobi avoided the attack and attempted to comment aloud, but before he could finish speaking, a small fist struck his waist with terrifying power. The force exploded from the small fist, sending him flying.

As the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, and one recognized by the Nine-Tails, Naruto's strength was astonishing, even at his young age.

"What?"

Seeing his comrade sent flying by a child, the other Kirigakure shinobi hesitated, momentarily frozen in shock.

"You dare to get distracted in battle? Are you really a Chūnin?"

Sasuke appeared before him, his Three Tomoe Sharingan spinning slowly. With just one glance, the genjutsu was complete.

The two Kirigakure shinobi never understood how they were defeated by two children. They had assumed it would be a simple matter to deal with Kakashi and complete their mission. What they failed to realize was that even someone like Kakashi could struggle against a coordinated attack like Zabuza's.

As the two Kirigakure shinobi fell to the ground, Sakura finally snapped out of her daze. Looking at her two teammates, calm in the face of danger, she couldn't help but feel a pang of embarrassment.

They were all shinobi embarking on the same mission. Compared to Naruto and Sasuke, her performance just now seemed sorely lacking!

"Sensei Kakashi, if you don't come out, we're going to go home. This old man has clearly concealed the true danger of the mission. According to protocol, we can cancel the mission unilaterally."

After tying up the two Kirigakure shinobi, Sasuke called out from a tree branch.

He knew that while he and Naruto were strong, they were far from invincible. Risking their lives recklessly to show off strength went against the principles he had learned.

"We encountered two Chūnin right after leaving the village. Based on mission evaluation standards, this is at least a B-rank mission. With the financial backing of the Kado Group, they could even hire Jōnin-level shinobi. Tazuna-san, I hope you'll explain the actual situation."

Kakashi emerged from the woods, glancing at Tazuna and Sakura, who both looked momentarily stunned. Of the six people present, they were the only two who had genuinely believed Kakashi might have died earlier.

Noticing Sakura's gaze, Kakashi shook his head inwardly. He had witnessed the performance of Team 7 just moments ago.

From the perspective of freshly graduated Genin, Naruto and Sasuke's actions were highly unusual, far exceeding the normal expectations for shinobi of their level.

And little Sakura's performance was far from the standard of a Genin. 

While Naruto and Sasuke quickly secured Tazuna's safety and seized the opportunity presented by the enemy's arrogance to counterattack decisively, achieving an impressive victory, Sakura's contribution was glaringly absent. Positioned closest to Tazuna, she did nothing but scream at an ear-piercing volume. If Naruto and Sasuke had been less capable, they would have been forced to divert their attention to protect her, creating a liability for the team.

"I..."

Tazuna looked troubled but, faced with the three children standing before him—none much older than his grandson—he finally sighed and confessed:

"Fine! I wasn't lying to you about everything. The Land of Waves really was a wonderful place once. But after Kado came, we were plunged into poverty. It's true I withheld information, but it wasn't to deceive you. I just couldn't afford more than a C-rank mission."

Tazuna laid everything bare. At its core, his goal was simple: return home and complete the bridge. However, his adversary was no ordinary opponent.

"I see. Let's discuss this among ourselves before making a decision. Should we proceed with the mission or return to report the situation?" 

Kakashi left the decision to the team rather than unilaterally determining their course of action. 

Hearing this, Sakura hesitated. She glanced at Sasuke, who appeared deep in thought and decided not to speak. 

From her perspective, the safest option would be to abandon the mission, given that the circumstances exceeded the original expectations. After all, Team 7 was still a Genin squad, and while Kakashi was with them, the Kado Group's wealth was intimidating. Who knew how many Jōnin they might have hired?

"I think we should continue the mission. It's rare to encounter a Jōnin. It'd be a shame to miss this opportunity," Naruto said casually, almost causing Sakura to choke in disbelief. Although she suspected both Naruto and Sasuke wanted to continue, hearing it voiced so nonchalantly was exasperating.

"However," Sasuke added calmly, "we need to evaluate the situation fully. How many Jōnin might the Kado Group hire, or what kind of forces might they have stationed in the Land of Waves? If they have too many Jōnin, we might not be able to handle it."

Sasuke's reasoning was grounded. Both he and Naruto knew their strengths and limitations. Despite their power, their lack of real-world combat experience was a notable shortfall. With the ninja world enjoying relative peace, missions rarely involved intense battles. This mission presented a rare chance to gain such experience. Passing it up could mean waiting indefinitely for another opportunity.

"Although the Kado Group bears the word 'group' in its name, it's really just a hollow entity. At most, they could employ two Jōnin," Kakashi reassured them.

In reality, the Kado Group was far less influential than in the original timeline. With the rise of Uchiha Heavy Industries, which dominated 80% of the ninja world's market through a combination of force and financial clout, Kado's company had been reduced to an insignificant player. If Kado's operations had posed any real threat, Uchiha Heavy Industries would have dismantled it long ago.

"Then… I guess I'm fine with continuing," Sakura said reluctantly. With both Naruto and Sasuke advocating for the mission to proceed and Kakashi tacitly supporting them, she felt she had little choice. Tazuna, as the client, naturally agreed, leaving her voice largely irrelevant.

Watching this unfold, Kakashi remained silent. He hadn't expected much from Sakura. Despite her excellent academic record at the Ninja Academy, she was clearly "unsuited to be a shinobi."

Even later in the original timeline, this was evident. In the Fourth Great Ninja War, when Obito entrusted her to destroy the Rinnegan, her indecision almost prolonged the conflict. If not for her hesitation, the war could have ended much sooner...

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