C-Rank Mission

The dense canopy of the forest rustles gently in the cool night air, moonlight barely filtering through the leaves. Raizen crouches behind thick foliage, his golden eyes glowing faintly in the darkness. In his earpiece, Kakashi's voice comes through, calm and steady.

"What's the distance to the target?"

Sasuke, perched on a branch just above Raizen, narrows his eyes at the moving silhouette in the distance. "Five meters."

Raizen smirks. "I'm ready." He glances at the others. "You two?"

Sasuke gives a short nod. Naruto, hanging from a lower branch, gives a thumbs-up. "Let's get this over with!"

"Good," Kakashi says. "Go!!"

At once, the three of them burst from their hiding spots, moving in perfect sync. Raizen is the fastest, closing the distance in a blink. His hand shoots out, and—

"Got it!" he calls, gripping the struggling figure tightly.

A small, furious yowl erupts from his arms. He looks down.

A cat.

With a red ribbon around its neck.

Raizen blinks. "Wait..."

Naruto leans in, squinting. "Yup! That's the ugly cat on the mission scroll!"

Kakashi's voice crackles through the earpiece. "Are you sure it's the target?"

Naruto puffs out his chest. "Of course! Look at its scrunched-up little face!"

The cat hisses, violently clawing at Raizen's arms.

Raizen sighs. "Confirmed. Lost pet Tora search mission... complete."

—

They arrive at the Hokage's office, stepping into the warmly lit room. The Third Hokage sits behind his desk, pipe in hand, observing them with quiet amusement. Standing beside him is Iruka-sensei, his expression a mix of pride and exasperation.

In front of them is a large, round woman in fine silk robes. The second she lays eyes on the cat in Raizen's arms, her face lights up.

"TORA-CHAN!!" she shrieks.

The cat lets out a strangled meow as the woman snatches it from Raizen's hands, hugging it tightly. The feline thrashes, clearly trying to escape, but she only squeezes it tighter.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Raizen all watch, horrified.

"She's killing it..." Raizen mutters under his breath.

"Why did we have to bring it back?" Sasuke mumbles.

Naruto shudders. "Poor guy..."

The Third Hokage chuckles before clearing his throat. "Well done, Team 7. Another successful mission."

He picks up a clipboard and adjusts his glasses. "Now, for your next assignment—"

The three immediately lean forward, anticipation in their eyes.

"Babysitting the elder's grandson."

Their expressions fall.

"Or, shopping duty in the neighboring village."

Naruto twitches.

"Or assisting with potato digging."

Naruto explodes. "WHAT?! NO WAY! I'm not doing this stupid stuff anymore!"

"I want a more incredible mission!! Find us a better one!!"

Raizen doesn't say anything, but he definitely agrees.

Iruka slams his hands on the desk. "You idiot!! You are just a rookie!! Everyone starts with the simple duties and works their way up!"

"But!! But!! We keep getting the crappiest possible jobs!!"

Before Iruka can yell again, there's a loud thwack!

Naruto yelps, clutching his head. Kakashi calmly retracts his hand from the smack. "Quiet."

Naruto glares at him, rubbing the growing lump on his head.

"Naruto, it seems I have to explain to you what these jobs are all about. Listen, every day the village receives numerous requests, from babysitting... to assassination. Each request is written down on these lists and divided into an A, B, C, and D ranking based on difficulty. The village is also divided based on skill, starting with me to the Jounins, Chunins, and Genins. The missions are then handed out by us at the top two ninjas based on their abilities. And if the job is completed successfully... we receive payment from the client."

The third Hokage says.

"You guys just recently became Genin. D-rank missions are perfect for you."

"Well, I think I should have at least B-rank," Raizen says as he puts his hand on his chin, shifting his weight to one leg.

"Last night I had pork ramen, so miso sounds good for..." Naruto says as he's sitting down contemplating what would be good for dinner, obviously not paying attention to what the 3rd Hokage has to say.

"I...I apologize..." Kakashi says, embarrassed at the two.

"Geez... all you do is give lectures like that... But you know what?! I'm not the trouble-making brat you still think I am!" Naruto yells.

"Well..." Raizen says, glancing at him.

"Ok," The 3rd Hokage says.

"If you want it that much... I'll give you a C-rank mission it's a protection mission of a certain individual."

"Who? A feudal lord? Or a princess? what about..." Raizen says, getting excited.

"Calm down; I'm about to introduce him. Hey, will you come in here?" The third Hokage calls out behind the door.

The doors creak open, and in walks… an old man.

His belly protrudes over his belt, his cheeks are red with intoxication, and a giant bookbag is slung over his shoulder. A half-empty bottle of sake dangles from his hand, sloshing as he stumbles forward.

Raizen stares. This guy…?

The old man squints at the three, then takes a swig from his bottle before pointing at Naruto. "So, these runts are supposed to protect me?" He snorts. "I asked for ninja, not a bunch of brats fresh out of the academy."

"The shortest one with the stupid looking face. Are you really a ninja?!"

"Haha... who's the shortest with the stupid face..." Naruto says as he looks at Sasuke and then at Raizen, noticing he is the shortest.

...

"I'll kill you!!"

Before he can lunge, Kakashi grabs him by the collar, effortlessly holding him in place as Naruto flails.

The old man huffs, and then his gaze shifts to Raizen. He pauses, blinking blearily. "And what's up with you?"

Raizen raises an eyebrow. "What about me?"

The old man waves his bottle at him. "You look weird."

Raizen's expression darkens. "…Weird?"

"Yeah! What's with that white hair? And your eyes—what are you, some kind of fancy noble brat?" The old man chuckles. "You some secret prince or something?"

Raizen's golden eyes narrow. "And what's with that big gut? You pregnant?"

The room goes silent for a second.

Sasuke coughs to cover up his chuckle.

The old man's face turns red. "Why you little—"

Before he can continue, Kakashi, still holding Naruto with one hand, swiftly places the other over Raizen's mouth. "Alright, that's enough."

Raizen glares but doesn't resist.

The old man clears his throat, shifting his bookbag on his shoulder. "Anyway, I'm Tazuna, the super expert bridge builder." He straightens (as much as a drunk man can). "I expect you brats to provide me super protection until I get back to my country and finish my bridge."

—

Now standing in front of the massive gates of the Hidden Leaf Village, Team 7 and Tazuna prepare to depart.

Naruto vibrates with excitement, fists clenched. "Let's gooooooo!!"

Raizen sighs dramatically. "Please calm down. You look like you just got let out of a cage."

Tazuna eyes Naruto and Raizen before turning to Kakashi. "Are you sure I'm gonna be safe with these two?"

Kakashi chuckles. "Don't worry. I'm a jounin. You'll be fine."

Naruto puffs out his chest. "Don't underestimate us! I'm incredible! And one day, I'll become a super elite ninja and be the Hokage! My name is Naruto Uzumaki!! Remember it!!"

"Hokage is the village's #1 ninja, right? I doubt someone like you could become it."

"Well, first off, it won't be number one; it'll be the second strongest after me." Raizen shrugs.

"Shut up!! I am prepared to do anything to become Hokage!! Once I become Hokage, you will acknowledge me!"

Tazuna stares at Raizen, then at Naruto.

"No, I won't, you brat, even if you did become Hokage."

Naruto twitches. "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY, OLD MAN?!"

He stomps forward, ready to throw a punch.

Then suddenly, whoop!

His foot catches on something.

Raizen casually pulls his leg back after having tripped him.

Naruto faceplants into the dirt.

Raizen bursts out laughing.

Naruto jumps to his feet, furious. "RAIZEN!!!"

Raizen smirks. "Déjà vu, huh?"

Naruto lunges, and Raizen dodges effortlessly, snickering as the team sets off on their first real mission.