Tenten

Ino, who had already made a round trip to Kirigakure Village, could be considered a seasoned veteran. Seeing Kurenai patiently and meticulously explaining the village exit procedures to Hinata, she suddenly realized, "Wow, Hinata has never left the village before?"

Upon closer thought, it made sense. The Byakugan of the Hyuga main family was far too precious, and there was always the risk of someone daring to take desperate measures.

Leaving the village was dangerous, but Hinata couldn't stay in the village forever. Not just her, even Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga had once fought on the battlefield.

If they could go to war, then naturally, they could also leave the village for missions.

They couldn't stop eating for fear of choking. Hinata needed training, and this mission to monitor Hanare wasn't too difficult but also not too simple. With three kunoichi accompanying her, the safety factor was greatly increased, making it a good opportunity for training.

Just as the four of them finished the exit procedures, they saw two green figures and a cloud of dust rushing toward them from a distance.

"Tenten! You must give it your all during the mission!"

"Tenten! Might Guy and I will be cheering for you!"

"Yes, Tenten, let your youth burn! Let it boil!"

Might Guy and Rock Lee, the master and disciple duo, had come all this way to see their teammate Tenten off.

However, their passionate farewell made both the person involved and the onlookers feel extremely awkward.

Tenten clenched her fists, looking down at her toes, trying hard to hold back her emotions.

Kurenai covered her forehead and sighed softly.

Ino grabbed Hinata and swiftly moved five steps to the left, then peeked around, pretending to be a passerby who had nothing to do with the scene.

Neji Hyuga, another teammate, acted much more normally. He arrived at the gate in the standard ninja running posture, whispered a few words of advice to Tenten, and then looked toward Ino—or rather, toward Hinata.

"Lady Hinata, please be careful. Do not bring shame to the Hyuga Clan."

Hinata lowered her head, her toes pointing inward, her voice as soft as a mosquito's. "I... I understand, Neji-nii-san."

Neji Hyuga, with an air of arrogance, raised his head as if he wanted to say more. Ino stepped in front of Hinata and said loudly, "You're Neji Hyuga, right? I've been wanting to challenge you. How about a match right now?"

Ino's defeat of the three Kirigakure ninjas wasn't a secret in certain circles. Inoichi, the king of internal competition, had already spread the word.

Haku was unknown and unnoticed, but Chojuro was different.

Even though Kirigakure Village didn't interact much with the outside world, Chojuro, a young ninja who was highly regarded by the village, had caught the attention of intelligence departments in other villages.

Ninjas needed fame. The titles of the Legendary Sannin, the White Fang of Konoha, and the Yellow Flash of Konoha—these reputations were built on their own strength, but also with the help of village propaganda.

Kirigakure Village had already established Chojuro as a young genius.

This kind of reputation was also part of the training. If one could overcome all the hardships, they would naturally gain both fame and fortune, transforming from a young genius into a true genius, and eventually becoming a figure that ordinary ninjas would look up to. If they failed midway, the village would simply find someone else to cultivate, with no significant loss.

Ino, with her exquisite Water Release, had defeated Chojuro and gained quite a bit of attention.

She wasn't quite at the level of "Little Tobirama," but she had already made a name for herself.

She was now challenging Neji Hyuga, the top-ranked student from the previous year at the Ninja Academy, and no one could find fault with that.

Might Guy and Rock Lee, who had come to see Tenten off, raised their fists with fervor, enthusiastically shouting, "Accept her challenge!" "Accept her challenge!" Kamizuki Izumo, the gatekeeper, looked utterly speechless. After much persuasion, he finally managed to calm down these two instigators. Neji Hyuga, known for his calm demeanor, had heard about Ino's achievements and was somewhat tempted. However, considering the current environment and timing were inappropriate, he quickly suppressed his impulse: "You're also participating in this year's Chunin Exams, right? I'll face you then."

He nodded gently at Hinata and left alone.

The four kunoichi walked out of the gates of Konoha, with Might Guy and Rock Lee still waving vigorously behind them: "Everyone! Youth is endless! Please run on the path you believe in!"

At the village entrance, under the afterglow of the setting sun, Ino seemed to hear the sound of waves crashing against the rocks. She couldn't stand such a passionate scene and quickly pulled Hinata away.

Yuhi Kurenai followed closely, and finally, Tenten, who looked like she was about to collapse.

Once they had shaken off the passionate teacher-student duo, their group became much more normal.

This time, with Hinata's Byakugan in the team, Ino, who was only a second-rate scout, no longer had to take on the responsibility of reconnaissance.

Among the four, Ino, Yuhi Kurenai, and Tenten each had different specialties, corresponding to Ninja Techniques, Genjutsu, and Ninja Tools, respectively.

In terms of attack range, excluding Kakuzu's shuriken thrown from eight hundred miles away, Ninja Techniques had the largest range, followed by Ninja Tools, and Genjutsu had the smallest range, often requiring face-to-face confrontation to be effective.

They devised a temporary tactic, essentially a ninja version of a three-stage attack.

Upon encountering enemies, Ino would first use a wide-range Ninja Technique to clear the area. Then, Tenten would throw Ninja Tools to eliminate any remaining enemies. If after two rounds of clearing there were still enemies left, they would undoubtedly be powerful ninjas, and Kurenai's Genjutsu would be perfect for dealing with such foes.

If the enemies didn't fall for the Genjutsu or managed to break free through other means, Ino, who had already retreated to the rear, could unleash another wave of Ninja Techniques, followed by Tenten's Ninja Tools, and then Kurenai's Genjutsu again. Hinata's role was reconnaissance. If they encountered enemies they couldn't defeat, they wouldn't care about Hanare; they would just run! This was Hinata's first time leaving the village, and she was extremely cautious, using her Byakugan at the slightest sign of movement.

On the way, Ino told Hinata about the experiences of Naruto's Team 7 and her own Team 10 during their first mission outside the village, where they eliminated a group of bandits.

She also shared some interesting stories from the Land of Waves and the Land of Water, but Hinata remained tense.

On the afternoon they left the village, Hanare also received permission from the village. Dressed in standard ninja attire, she left Konoha.

Whether she was trying to prove her loyalty or harboring ill intentions, the four kunoichi relied on Hinata's Byakugan to follow her from a distance, observing where she went and whom she contacted.

They spent two full days traveling. On the evening of the second day, Hanare found a valley to rest, and the four kunoichi monitoring her set up camp on the sheltered side of the mountain.

The night watch and continued surveillance couldn't stop.

They divided into two shifts.

Ino, who also had detection abilities, took the first watch with Tenten.

Hinata lacked experience, so she was assigned to guard the latter half of the night with Kurenai.

None of the four had any objections.

Without Choji around, they couldn't have warm meals. Each of them gnawed on two cold rice balls, which served as their dinner. Afterward, Kurenai took Hinata to rest first.

Only Ino and Tenten remained in front of the tent.

Staying awake during a dull watch was the easiest way to feel drowsy, so they started chatting to keep themselves alert.