Chapter 15: It's Always Nice to Have a Safety Net!

Chapter 15: It's Always Nice to Have a Safety Net!

"A mere B-rank mission is a piece of cake for me!"

Tsunade, very satisfied with Nara Keisuke's "good behavior," looked back at the old man and said bluntly, "Even a few more B-rank missions would be no problem!"

A few more B-rank missions?

Does that mean a few more B-rank Shinobi Secret Scrolls?

Nara Keisuke quickly did the conversion in his head, his eyes instantly lighting up as he looked expectantly at Hiruzen Sarutobi.

After the [Apprehend the Spies] and [Military Police Force Member] missions just now, Nara Keisuke had basically confirmed his own strength level and was very confident in completing B-rank commissioned missions issued by Konoha. After all, the enemies in a B-rank commissioned mission were at most Chūnin level. Taking ten thousand steps back, even if he were to mess up and the enemy turned from a Chūnin to a Jōnin... wouldn't Tsunade be there to back him up?

Nara Keisuke glanced at the big sucker next to him and made up his mind. This time, he would definitely be a responsible shepherd! He absolutely wouldn't let the sheep run away!

"You two really are..."

Looking at the tacit understanding between the pair, Hiruzen Sarutobi couldn't help but laugh.

Who said Tsunade doesn't do her job properly?

Who said all Nara are lazy bums?

You can't fully trust paper records!

Hiruzen Sarutobi stroked his graying goatee. For an elite ninja of Tsunade's level, B-rank missions were indeed nothing. A-rank or even S-rank missions were where she should be showcasing her strength.

But Hiruzen was well aware of the situation with this special duo of "Tsunade and Nara Keisuke." A B-rank mission was basically the limit of what their duo could currently handle. If the difficulty level were any higher, the combat risk would also soar... Moreover, with the threat of war constantly approaching, Tsunade hadn't taken on a high-level mission in a very long time. Using some relatively simple B-rank missions to help Tsunade regain some of her professional standards as a ninja wasn't a bad idea.

Having thought it through, Hiruzen Sarutobi opened a drawer of his desk and took out a scroll.

"Here is a list of most of the B-rank commissioned missions the village has currently received."

Hiruzen handed the scroll to Tsunade, who took it.

"If you're interested, you can pick a few more to complete."

For B-rank missions, Tsunade had no intention of being picky. She unrolled the scroll, gave it a rough scan, and casually picked a mission title that looked pleasing to the eye.

"This one!"

"Cleaning up bounty hunters?"

Hiruzen took the mission scroll and glanced at it, nodding slightly. He was familiar with the content of most high-level missions in the village.

"Recently, there have indeed been many bounty hunters active in the Land of Fire, and many merchant caravans heading to Konoha have been affected. This B-rank mission was also jointly initiated by several small merchant caravans, and the mission fee has reached the B-rank upper limit of 150,000 ryō."

"Looks like my judgment is pretty good!" Tsunade said cheerfully. "I picked the one with the biggest mission fee with just a random choice!"

As she said this, her clear brown eyes suddenly darted around nimbly. My luck seems... pretty good today... should I...

The legendary big sucker was pondering whether to go and donate some money to the gambling dens.

In contrast to Tsunade's relaxed and carefree attitude, Nara Keisuke was stunned by the mission information given on his panel.

[Detected that a B-Rank Ninja Commissioned Mission has been triggered]

[B-Rank Mission: Bounty Hunters]

Mission Content: Clear out the bounty hunters roaming around the official road from Konoha to the capital of the Land of Fire.

Mission Reward: One B-Rank Shinobi Secret Scroll.

'A mission outside the village?'

As a semi-native resident of Konoha, the farthest place Nara Keisuke had ever been was the forest outside Kikyo Castle. To be honest, he was somewhat curious about the outside world. If it were a time of peace, Nara Keisuke might have even thrown a resignation letter at Hiruzen saying, "The world is so big, I want to go and see it."

But first, the current situation was turbulent, and war was about to break out. Second, "traveling" and "executing a mission" were two completely different life experiences. The thought of having to run back and forth on the official roads of the Land of Fire on his own two legs sent a shiver down Nara Keisuke's spine.

'Is this being a ninja or being livestock?'

Just as Nara Keisuke was hesitating whether to bring Ōkaku along for this mission...

Croak—

An untimely frog's croak suddenly sounded in the solemn Hokage's Office.

"A toad?"

Hiruzen and Tsunade exchanged a glance, a hint of joy flashing in both their eyes.

"Jiraiya's back in the village?"

Ninja Art: Toad Hiding in a Toad Technique!

A deep green toad that had hopped onto the windowsill of the Hokage's Office at some point opened its mouth. A large, rough hand stretched out from inside, followed by a complete human figure.

Mount Myōboku, the Toad Sage, the Hermit of the Six Paths, also known as the Toad Sage Jiraiya, has entered the scene!

"Yo, Sensei, Tsunade!"

The brightly smiling Jiraiya greeted his teacher and goddess, whom he hadn't seen in years, while not forgetting the other child.

"Hello there, little sister."

Hiruzen's and Tsunade's expressions became very strange. A vein popped on Nara Keisuke's forehead.

"I'm not a little sister..."

Jiraiya was taken aback and looked Nara Keisuke up and down. It wasn't uncommon in the shinobi world for some special ninja to remain petite even long after adulthood. Not to mention distant examples, the "old toad couple" in Mount Myōboku who had trained for over eight hundred years were very small in size.

"Alright, how old are you?"

"12."

"This Toad Sage is 35 years of age."

A confident smile reappeared on Jiraiya's face.

"Calling you little sister shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"First, 'age' in that context is an honorific term, referring to the number of years a deceased person has lived." Nara Keisuke's mood calmed down. There was no need for him to argue with an idiot. "Second, I'm a boy."

"Nani?!"

Jiraiya's eyes widened.

"A boy-sister?"

Bang!

Tsunade, who had been holding it in for a long time but couldn't anymore, decisively gave her stupid teammate a "Friendship-Breaking Face Punch."

After not seeing him for several years, Jiraiya was still the same old Jiraiya. If he were allowed to continue talking, Tsunade felt that her heroic image in Nara's eyes would also become foolish.

Jiraiya's body involuntarily twisted. He spun 720 degrees in the air, somersaulted backward three and a half times, and crashed into the wall of the Hokage's Office in a posture of extremely high difficulty.

Perhaps Tsunade had held back. Perhaps the walls of the Hokage's Office had been reinforced with some kind of ninjutsu. Jiraiya was plastered to the wall in a spread-eagle shape, like a human-shaped tapestry, the mysterious and fantastical aura from his debut completely shattered.

"How is it possible..."

As he slid down from the wall, Jiraiya was still muttering to himself.

"So cute, how can he be a boy..."

Tsunade moved away in disgust, not forgetting to pull Nara Keisuke with her. Hiruzen, sitting behind the desk, couldn't help but facepalm and sigh. What kind of eye did he have back then to have chosen these three "oddballs"—Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade—as his direct disciples?

"Old man, if there's nothing else, I'm leaving!"

Tsunade clutched the newly acquired B-rank mission scroll, waved at Hiruzen, and didn't even glance at Jiraiya.

"I still have a mission to do."

"Go on..."

Hiruzen waved back at Tsunade. He didn't quite dare to look at Nara Keisuke at this moment. Everyone in Konoha knew that the Sannin were his disciples. And having produced such a "prodigy" as Jiraiya, and making such a fool of himself in front of Nara Keisuke... Hiruzen was very sorry for being born human.

"Wait, Tsunade, you can't leave yet. We have important things to discuss."

Jiraiya, who had been ignored by everyone, finally couldn't be bothered with his laments and spoke up.

"I have some urgent intelligence here, from Sunagakure. About a week ago, the Third Kazekage of Sunagakure... went missing!"

"Stop spouting nonsense, Jiraiya!"

Tsunade had been somewhat serious at first, but after hearing his so-called "intelligence," she immediately sneered.

"The Third Kazekage possesses the special Magnet Release Kekkei Genkai and is hailed as the 'Strongest Kazekage in History.' How could such a prominent figure suddenly go missing?"

This so-called "urgent intelligence" sounded as ridiculous as White Fang's suicide three years ago.

"Jiraiya, don't fool around!"

Hiruzen also frowned, his knuckles rapping hard on the desk.

"The Third Kazekage is in his prime. How could he possibly..."

Creak!

Just then, the door to the Hokage's Office was pushed open from the outside.

"Hiruzen, the intelligence Jiraiya provided is accurate."

The leader of Root, Shimura Danzō, strode into the room, his gaze quietly sweeping over the Nara clan child.

"The same news is circulating in Iwagakure. My subordinates have previously relayed this intelligence, and I have also sent personnel to confirm it. The Third Kazekage... is indeed missing!"

Nara Keisuke glanced at Tsunade, who was also looking at him at this moment.

"Come outside with me!"

Tsunade grabbed Nara Keisuke's arm and swiftly led him out of the Hokage's Office. The others turned a blind eye. The Third Kazekage was missing. The upper echelons of Konoha urgently needed to formulate a response strategy. As a Genin, Nara Keisuke didn't even have the qualification to stand guard outside the door, let alone listen in.

"Sorry, Nara."

Outside the Hokage's Office door, Tsunade forced a smile. She didn't like war.

"I was planning to take you on a few more B-rank missions, but it seems there won't be a chance now."

Nara Keisuke shook his head and silently settled the [Bounty Hunters] B-rank mission he had just triggered, once again claiming a small C-rank minimum payout.

"I was originally planning to give you this scroll after some time."

Tsunade pulled out a black scroll from somewhere and stuffed it into Nara Keisuke's hands.

"But now... you're a mature ninja. You should learn to study ninjutsu on your own!"

(End of Chapter)