Chapter 22
Here @riojiyo131, your trusted writer.
I would really appreciate it if you left reviews on the story. I would love for it to be rated and make it into the Ranking.
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[Ding! The member 'Mist Ninja' has joined the chat group!]
[Ding! The member 'Mist Ninja' has joined the chat group!]
< System: The nicknames of the new group members have been updated automatically. >
[Meizu: What the hell?! That brat killed us! He was too fast!]
[Gōzu: What's going on? Where are we?]
Kakashi had decided to take a detour, and to everyone's surprise, Tazuna agreed.
After witnessing Naruto's display of power and even Kakashi's relaxed attitude towards the mission, the old man decided he no longer had any reason to worry.
But as they walked towards the river, Naruto stopped for a few seconds before continuing.
Sasuke, who had been watching him with a frown, noticed the gesture and looked at him curiously.
Sasuke had silently decided to pay more attention to Naruto, who had demonstrated a level of strength he hadn't shown during their training.
Naruto, on the other hand, was fully focused on the chat group.
The same Mist Ninjas he had killed had joined the group!
How the hell was that possible?!
[Kushina Uzumaki: YOU BASTARDS!! HOW DARE YOU ATTACK MY BABY?!]
A wild Kushina has appeared.
[Naruto Uzumaki: ...]
[Meizu: Your baby? YOUR BABY?! That thing is a damn monster!]
[Gōzu: He tore me into thousands of pieces with that weird spinning chakra ball!]
[Minato Namikaze: That's the power of the Double Whirlwind Ball, Jiraiya-style!]
[Kushina Uzumaki: Minato, we already talked about this in the past! It's Rasengan! It's called Rasengan!]
[Minato Namikaze: ...]
[Mito Uzumaki: Are you seriously arguing about this right now? Is no one going to talk about the fact that these two joined the group after dying?]
[Meizu: Can someone explain what's going on?]
[Naruto Uzumaki: With the chat group, you can return to life by fulfilling a single requirement.]
[Gōzu: What's the requirement?! Can we really come back?!]
[Naruto Uzumaki: Yes. You just have to tap the bottom of the screen and select the option 'Give everything to the group leader.' Only then can the leader, an almighty and charismatic god, bring you back to life.]
[Meizu: !!]
[Gōzu: !!]
[Meizu has granted the group leader all his strength, chakra, experience, and techniques!]
[Gōzu has granted the group leader all his strength, chakra, experience, and techniques!]
Immediately, Naruto felt a slight increase in his chakra.
His reserves, probably the largest in the Ninja World, barely expanded with this addition.
For anyone else, absorbing the chakra of two ninjas would have been a significant boost, but for him, it was almost irrelevant.
The only useful thing he obtained was a few Water Release techniques.
Everything else was trash.
[Kushina Uzumaki: Wait, Naruto! You're not thinking of bringing them back, are you?!]
[Naruto Uzumaki: Honestly, I considered it just to kill them again, but it would be a hassle.]
[Meizu: You're the group leader?!]
[Gōzu: Wait! Raiku, don't you realize?! That Naruto guy is the brat who killed us!]
[Meizu: WHAT?!]
[The group leader, Naruto Uzumaki, has permanently expelled Meizu.]
[The group leader, Naruto Uzumaki, has permanently expelled Gōzu.]
[Kushina Uzumaki: Oh...]
[Madara Uchiha: That brat has the power to kick us out of the group?!]
[Tobirama Senju: Expelling them was the best decision Naruto could have made.]
[Naruto Uzumaki: You're not calling me a brat anymore, but Naruto? Heh...]
[Tobirama Senju: ...]
Closing the chat group, Naruto crouched by the river and began washing his hands, covered in dried blood.
He had to scrub for a while to clean them.
He also took the opportunity to clean his kunai.
This kunai was a precious gift from his father, passed down through the system.
It was then that Kakashi approached Tazuna.
"Tazuna-san, we need to talk."
The old man tensed up and nodded silently.
"The Mist Ninjas from earlier... both were after you. Our mission was only to escort you against bandits and thieves to the Land of Waves, but with ninjas of this caliber involved, the mission ranks up to at least B-Rank."
"You may have your reasons, but lying when requesting a mission is a problem. It not only puts your life at risk but also ours."
"But you're lucky this is within our capabilities. As you've seen, our team, though new, has the strength to handle this situation."
Tazuna, who had lowered his head in shame, lifted it when he heard Kakashi's last words.
"The truth is that the Land of Waves is going through hard times..." he admitted sorrowfully. "That's why I decided to build a bridge connecting us to the mainland, to help stabilize the economy..."
He gritted his teeth, frustrated. "But this went against the interests of Gatō, a billionaire in the shipping business."
Kakashi raised an eyebrow. "Gatō? From the Gatō Company? He's one of the richest men in the world."
Tazuna nodded.
"Officially, he runs a transport company, but in reality, he traffics drugs and smuggles contraband... Right now, he has total control over the Land of Waves."
"I couldn't afford a B-Rank mission, so I had no choice but to lie..."
"That's not really our problem."
Tazuna frowned at Naruto.
"Naruto..." Sakura tried to intervene, but she was cut off.
"He's right." Sasuke sided with Naruto, making Sakura fall silent.
Tazuna had deceived Konoha, hiding crucial information and endangering a team of Genin fresh out of the Academy.
If they weren't strong enough, they would probably already be dead.
Or they'd be about to die when Zabuza Momochi, the Demon of the Hidden Mist, appeared.
Risking the lives of Konoha's ninjas was unforgivable.
Tazuna, believing they would abandon the mission, tried to play his last card:
"If you leave me now, I'll be killed before I get home." He looked at them with apparent indifference. "But it doesn't matter. The only thing that will happen is that my eight-year-old grandson will cry inconsolably, and my daughter will hate Konoha's ninjas for the rest of her life, living alone and miserable."
The entire Team 7, including Kakashi, looked at him with blank stares.
The old bastard was being ridiculously shameless.
[Hashirama Senju: I like this old man! He's hilarious! HAHAHAHAHA!]
[Madara Uchiha: Hilarious? Even I feel like punching him right now.]
[Tobirama Senju: Even if the Land of Waves is struggling, it's unforgivable that he endangered Konoha's ninjas.]
[Minato Namikaze: Just because we're used to danger doesn't mean we should throw ourselves into it.]
[Kushina Uzumaki: Honestly... after hearing his story, I do feel a little sorry for him.]
Naruto, after finishing cleaning up, stood up and mocked Tazuna's words.
"And why should we care? Konoha won't be affected in the slightest, no matter what happens."
Tazuna and Kakashi frowned.
Kakashi had already decided to continue the mission and help the Land of Waves, but if his team refused—and they had reasons to—he wouldn't try to convince them otherwise.
"When we return to Konoha after completing this mission, you will be charged the tax corresponding to a B-Rank mission." Naruto spoke firmly.
"But..." Tazuna tried to protest, mentioning the Land of Waves' struggling economy again.
"No buts." Naruto cut him off immediately. "I'm sure you can negotiate with the Hokage. He'll probably let you pay in installments, but you won't escape the debt. Consider it punishment for putting us in danger."
Tazuna, knowing arguing was useless, nodded silently.
[Tobirama Senju:] Brat... have you considered becoming Hokage in the future?]
Naruto laughed at the irony of the Second Hokage offering him the position.
[Naruto Uzumaki:] I once dreamed of being Hokage, but I'm not interested anymore. Too much responsibility...]
[Tobirama Senju: You still have time to think about it. Don't rush to answer.]
Tobirama clearly didn't accept "no" as an answer.