Chapter 384: The Beginning of the Mission to the Land of Waves!

Autumn deepened, and the weather had completely turned cold. In the early morning, a thin layer of fog shrouded the village entrance.

"Stop! Who goes there?!"

At the village gate, Kamizuki Izumo, who was on guard duty, spotted a plainly dressed middle-aged man wearing a bamboo hat, slowly approaching through the mist toward Konoha Village. The man, a citizen of the Land of Fire, didn't dress like a typical resident of the nation, which immediately put Izumo on alert. He straightened up and stopped him without further hesitation.

Just a few months ago, Konoha had suffered an attack. Although the Fourth Hokage, Uzumaki Raiden, had intervened in time to defeat the enemy and prevent the village from being destroyed, the event had left a deep impression on Izumo. Even months later, whenever he was on duty, he remained on edge, his nerves never relaxing.

"Hello, I am Tazuna from the Land of Waves. I have come to Konoha Village to request assistance from its ninjas."

"I'm here to issue a mission."

Tazuna raised his right hand to remove his hat, revealing a calm smile. Despite Izumo's questioning, he did not appear flustered. Unlike most ordinary people who showed fear or deference in the presence of a ninja, his gaze remained steady and confident.

After just one glance, Izumo took a higher measure of the middle-aged man before him.

"Do you have a companion card?"

Izumo's tone softened when he heard that Tazuna was from the Land of Waves. He knew that the Land of Waves was a small country bordering the Land of Fire, without any native ninjas of its own. During wartime, it had been largely dependent on the Land of Fire for protection. In many ways, the Land of Waves was almost a subsidiary of the Land of Fire.

In recent years, requests for missions from the Land of Waves had become rare. As someone who had guarded the gate for years, Izumo was well aware of this, which was why he asked further questions.

"Yes, yes." Hearing this, Tazuna quickly pulled a pass from his pocket and handed it to Izumo. After verifying the identification number, Izumo pointed toward the northern part of the village and instructed:

"The mission building is in that direction. There's a designated place for issuing missions now."

"Just go there and provide your details at the reception desk. Our staff will assess the difficulty of the mission and the necessary funding."

"Once that's done, the village will dispatch the appropriate ninja team to complete your request."

Since Tazuna was a new face, Izumo made sure to explain the process clearly after verifying his credentials.

Tazuna listened attentively, nodded in understanding, thanked Izumo, and proceeded toward the mission building.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei, when are we going to stop doing these D-rank missions?"

"This is so boring!"

At an orphanage on the outskirts of Konoha Village, Naruto Uzumaki grumbled while scrubbing clothes in his hands. In front of him were more than a dozen wooden tubs, large and small, filled with children's laundry.

Today, Team 7 had received yet another D-rank mission from the mission building—to help out at the orphanage by washing the children's clothes. The woman in charge of cooking and laundry had taken leave, prompting Nono, the orphanage director, to request assistance through the mission system. Since no ninja team had voluntarily taken on the task, it had remained unclaimed for several days until it was finally assigned to Team 7. Because of the delay, there was now an overwhelming pile of laundry to handle.

Beside Naruto, Sasuke sat on a small stool, scrubbing clothes against a washboard with a reluctant expression. Hearing Naruto's complaints, he looked up, his eyes filled with expectation as he turned toward Kakashi.

The reality of life as a ninja was vastly different from what Sasuke had imagined. He had believed that as an elite graduate from the Ninja Academy, he would be entrusted with high-priority missions by the village. Even if they started with basic assignments, he had expected them to be escort or security-related missions at the very least.

However, reality had hit him hard. Most of their missions consisted of chasing stray cats, rounding up lost dogs and wild boars, and even mundane tasks like cooking, cleaning, and childcare. The sheer contrast between expectation and reality had left Sasuke deeply frustrated.

Behind them, Karin clasped her hands together, causing saplings to sprout from the ground. The young trees spread out across the open space, forming a makeshift drying rack for the freshly washed clothes. When she heard Naruto's complaints, she paused and turned toward Kakashi.

At that moment, Kakashi was leaning against the trunk of a tree, flipping through a yellow book titled Icha Icha Paradise, completely absorbed in its pages. He sensed the three students staring at him and, without lifting his gaze from the book, said lazily:

"Missions in the village are not assigned at random. They are all distributed through the mission building, with S-rank and A-rank missions being directly designated by the Hokage."

"As for C-rank and D-rank missions, teams are allowed to take them based on their accumulated points and capabilities. Any backlog of C-rank and D-rank missions that remain unclaimed will eventually be assigned to available teams."

"We were unlucky this time and ended up getting this long-overdue mission."

"Our team is still new, and based on our points, we're only eligible for D-rank missions."

"However… after we complete this mission, we should be eligible for a C-rank mission."

"If there's a suitable one available, we'll take it."

Kakashi's words instantly sparked excitement among the three genin.

"C-rank?!"

"We can accept a C-rank mission?!"

Naruto tossed aside the clothes he was washing, sprang to his feet, and rushed up to Kakashi, looking at him eagerly. Kakashi, uncomfortable under Naruto's intense stare, nodded reluctantly.

"Yes, once we complete this mission and gain enough experience, we'll try a C-rank mission if there's a suitable one available."

Kakashi smirked as he spoke. In Konoha's mission hierarchy, C-rank missions were a significant milestone. Unlike D-rank tasks, which consisted of basic errands, C-rank missions often required travel outside the village. While they still typically involved mundane tasks, there was a small chance of encountering bandits, making them a good stepping stone for rookie ninjas.

"Alright! Let's hurry up and finish this so we can move on to the C-rank mission!"

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Excited, Naruto quickly formed hand seals, summoning dozens of shadow clones. Under his command, the clones rushed to work, even snatching away the clothes Sasuke had been washing. Watching Naruto's enthusiasm, Kakashi couldn't help but chuckle.

At that moment, a loud cry of an eagle drew Kakashi's attention. Looking up, he spotted a communication ninja hawk circling above them. After a few rounds, the bird veered off and disappeared. Seeing this, Kakashi's smile faded, and he quietly closed his book, slipping it into his pocket.

Thanks to Naruto's newfound motivation, the backlog of laundry was finished in no time. Once the clothes were hung to dry, Kakashi led Team 7 to bid farewell to Nono and left the orphanage.

It was still early, just past ten in the morning.

As they walked through the streets of Konoha, Naruto noticed that they weren't heading toward the mission building. Looking at the surroundings, he frowned in confusion.

"Kakashi-sensei, aren't we going to the mission building to report our task completion?"

"Where are we going?"

Before Kakashi could respond, Sasuke scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Are you even a ninja? How have you not figured this out?"

"When we were at the orphanage, a ninja hawk was circling above us. That was the Hokage's summons."

"We're heading to the Hokage's office."

Naruto ignored Sasuke's smugness and asked in confusion, "The Hokage's office? Why?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Kakashi replied as they walked through the bustling streets of Konoha Village, making their way to the Hokage Building. While much of the village was under construction, the Hokage Building itself remained unchanged.

Under Kakashi's lead, the team arrived at the Hokage's office. Just as Kakashi reached out to knock, Naruto abruptly grabbed the handle, pushed the door open, and strode in without hesitation.

"Father, I'm here!"

"Do you need us for something?!"

Naruto's sudden entrance drew the attention of everyone in the office. Unlike usual, the room was quite crowded. In addition to Namikaze Minato, the Fourth Hokage, and his assistant Shikaku Nara, there was a middle-aged woman and a dark-skinned man wearing a bamboo hat, both seemingly in their thirties.

On the office sofa, Uzumaki Raiden was lying down, rubbing his eyes as he slowly sat up. The noise from Naruto's entrance had woken him.

"This is...?"

Noticing unfamiliar faces, Naruto hesitated, feeling slightly embarrassed. Kakashi followed him inside, offering Minato an apologetic glance before subtly shifting his gaze toward Raiden on the sofa, surprise flickering in his eyes. However, Minato remained unbothered, smiling warmly as he addressed the group.

"You're here. This is Mr. Tazuna from the Land of Waves. I called your team because I have a mission for you."

Minato stood up, gesturing toward the man beside his desk before turning to Tazuna.

"Mr. Tazuna, this is Hatake Kakashi, one of Konoha's Jōnin. The three with him are his Genin subordinates. They will be the ones fulfilling your request."

Minato's face carried his usual gentle smile, his tone warm and reassuring, putting people at ease like a spring breeze.

"This is Konoha's ninja team?" Tazuna scoffed, his tone laced with contempt. "So rude... Are they really capable of handling my request?"

His voice carried clear sarcasm, offering no courtesy to anyone in the room. The moment his words fell, an awkward silence enveloped the office. The tension in the air was palpable. Even Minato, usually unfazed, showed a brief flicker of surprise before regaining his composure.

It was obvious—his words were directed at Naruto, who had barged in unannounced.

Although Naruto had a thick skin, he had never been openly mocked like this before. His brows furrowed, and he opened his mouth, about to snap back in anger, but Kakashi quickly placed a hand on his shoulder, silently urging him to stay calm. Before Naruto could retort, Minato spoke up first.

"Mr. Tazuna, although they are still in training, rest assured—they are Konoha ninjas. They possess the qualities necessary for the task."

"You have nothing to worry about."

Minato's tone remained as gentle as ever, without a trace of irritation. His calm demeanor had a way of diffusing tension, making even the harshest words feel insignificant.

At that moment, Tazuna finally took a closer look at Minato. Despite his young age, the Hokage exuded a presence that demanded respect—not just for his strength, but for his character and wisdom.

Team 7's first impression of Tazuna wasn't great, and the feeling seemed mutual. However, under Minato's mediation, the meeting proceeded smoothly. Tazuna briefly explained the mission, and everyone quickly grasped the details.

Escorting Tazuna to the Land of Waves—simple enough.

The mission was classified as C-rank, just as Naruto had hoped. They were scheduled to depart at 3:00 PM. After receiving their assignment, Naruto, Sasuke, and Karin rushed home to pack. Tazuna was escorted to the mission building by a female ninja to rest before departure. Only Kakashi remained behind with Minato.

Once the others had left, the office fell quiet, with only Minato, Shikaku, Kakashi, and Raiden remaining. It was only then that Raiden, who had been lying on the sofa groggily, finally seemed to snap into focus, his expression turning serious.

"Minato-sensei… What's really going on with this mission?"

Kakashi didn't wait for Minato or Shikaku to speak. He got straight to the point.

Something about this assignment didn't sit right with him. A C-rank mission—yet Minato had personally assigned it? That was far too unusual.

(End of this chapter)