Chapter 101: Please Give Me a High-Level Mission That Will Get Me Killed, I Want to Die, Thank You
Sakura had lowered her stance so much that Sasuke's expression was momentarily one of astonishment.
Although she didn't show her chest... ahem, although it was just a simple bow and a verbal apology, her attitude was very sincere, and that was enough. Sasuke was a little surprised, but after thinking about it carefully, this was Sakura's style!
"Hmph, don't let it happen again!" he said proudly with his head held high, almost looking down at Sakura with his nostrils, but the corners of his mouth secretly curved into an arc.
Naruto, on the other hand, frankly patted Sakura's shoulder and said with a wide grin, "Hehe, you're forgiven!"
"Yesterday was my fault, but let me tell you," Sakura also started to laugh, "the ice clone is really amazing! You guys can try it out today!"
"Alright, alright! But today should be a mission day, right?" Naruto said after thinking for a moment. They were now doing a mission every other day as a form of rest, balancing work and leisure.
"Tch, Kakashi-sensei went out on a mission by himself, leaving us to only take some boring D-rank and E-rank missions. It's so boring!" Sasuke said with his arms crossed and a pout. "If it's another E-rank mission today, we might as well go train! Tsk, it's just a waste of time!"
"That's right! I really miss the Land of Waves mission! Lately, we've been doing these low-level tasks like pulling weeds and cleaning rivers. We're a team that defeated a Jonin! Can't we take on some higher-level missions!" Naruto also chimed in.
Sakura sighed helplessly. "It's no use telling me these things. I'm helpless too! Unless you go and pester Grandpa Third for a high-level mission again."
This time, even Naruto hesitated. "That... probably isn't a good idea, right?"
So you know it's not a good idea?!
"Tch...! Anyway, if it's just some boring missions, Sakura, we might as well just use clones to half-ass them and then go train!" Sasuke's face darkened at the thought of those boring and troublesome tasks.
"Sigh... that's not very good either," Sakura thought for a moment, then suddenly snapped her fingers. "Oh, right, I almost forgot!"
"You guys sit down first and wait for me!" Saying that, she dashed back into her room.
Brushing her teeth, washing her face, combing her hair, changing her clothes. Fifteen minutes later, Haruno Sakura, dressed in new clothes, made a grand entrance!
"Tada~! Look, what is this!"
"Hey, isn't this a Chunin vest? Oh, I almost forgot, you're already a Chunin!" Sasuke had a flash of realization. "I get it!"
"Aaargh, Sakura-chan is already a Chunin! Damn it, I want to be promoted to Chunin too!" This was the cry of a Naruto filled with envy, jealousy, and hate.
"Hehe, I went to the office building yesterday and took the opportunity to get this in advance. It was originally supposed to be distributed uniformly next week!" she said smugly. She then took out her wallet and a red ID booklet. "The important thing is this, my Chunin ID!"
Her slender fingers nimbly opened the booklet. On it was written:
"Konoha Ninja Registration Form. Name: Haruno Sakura. Gender: Female. Rank: Chunin.
Personal Bio: Interests are researching chakra and Water Style ninjutsu. Favorite thing is water, most disliked thing is impure water."
On the front page, there was also a recent photo of Sakura. In the photo, the girl was wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt with a white circle family crest, with a Chunin vest over it. She was smiling with her lips pursed and her eyes curved, a very artistic smile, carrying a sense of quiet and sweet tranquility—this was completely different from the unified ugly ID photos of her previous life. The atmosphere of individuality in the ninja world was quite strong.
Sakura emphatically traced her finger over "Rank: Chunin" a few times and glanced at Naruto with contempt. "According to the rules, as a Genin, Naruto, you should be calling me Chunin Haruno Sakura-sama!"
"What?! There's a rule like that?!"
"Calm down, Naruto. Whether there's this rule or not is not important," Sasuke said, holding Naruto down. "The important thing is, what Sakura is saying is that we can now accept C-rank and B-rank missions!"
"That's right, that's exactly what I mean!" Haruno Sakura said with a smile, clapping her hands together.
"Oh, oh! Is that so? That's great! Then let's go!"
Konoha Mission Assignment Desk.
This place, which had not appeared in over eighty chapters, had now moved to a new building.
The house where they had received the Land of Waves mission had unfortunately been damaged in the battle during the Chunin Exams, had become a hazardous building, and had already been demolished.
However, the layout still retained the style of its predecessor: a huge hall, a long table as a counter, and behind it sat a row of ninja serving as dispatchers. The ninja who came to accept missions, at busy times, numbered in the hundreds. They stood outside the counter, or took a mission sheet and studied it on the side, or sat in the waiting room waiting for their comrades. It was a bustling crowd.
On both sides were waiting rooms, where various clients who were posting missions came and went, registering and waiting for ninja to accept their mission requests—usually, after waiting for just a few hours, the posted mission would be accepted by a ninja. If the reward was high, there were also examples of it being snatched up as soon as it was posted. But there were also cases where it was left untouched for several days, mostly because the mission was set unreasonably, such as the reward being too low, the difficulty too great, and so on.
However...
"This is actually just the dispatch center for low-to-mid-level missions. High-level missions, that is, B-rank and above, because they usually involve confidential matters and high-ranking ninja, will not appear in such a crowded place. After all, which Jonin has accepted which mission is in itself a piece of intelligence."
"So, there are no B-rank missions you want here," the dispatcher said, spreading his hands after explaining, to the Naruto who had been clamoring for a B-rank mission as soon as he entered. "Very few B-ranks are assigned here."
"So where can we get higher-level missions, like B-rank?" Sakura asked calmly, pulling away the Naruto who was pestering the dispatcher.
"Of course, at a higher-level dispatch center," the dispatcher said, pushing up his glasses. He was a middle-aged man with a sharp-jawed face and didn't seem very easy to talk to.
He looked at the mission sheet in his hand, and continued to speak while looking down and doing his own thing, "But with all due respect, a ninja who has just been promoted to Chunin should not be in a hurry to take on missions that are too difficult. Perhaps you are already very proficient in those low-level missions, but I have to remind you that there is a world of difference between high-level and low-level missions."
"C-rank and above missions may involve combat. B-rank and above missions usually mean that the enemy is a ninja... this is no joke! High-level missions are often full of bloody battles, sometimes even requiring you to fight other ninja to the death. The loser may die without a burial place. It's a completely different matter from the D-rank or even E-rank missions you're used to, which are like playing house—" The dispatcher was still looking down, rambling on.
The more Sasuke listened, the more his brows furrowed. Hearing this, he couldn't help but interrupt, "I think we are more used to fighting ninja than bullying petty thieves without chakra, and certainly not doing some boring, house-playing missions!"
The dispatcher finally raised his head, looked at Sasuke in surprise, and asked, "Are you a Chunin?"
"No, I'm still a Genin," Sasuke said, flashing his blue Genin ID booklet in front of him.
"And what about you?" the dispatcher asked, turning his head to Naruto.
"Me?" Naruto hastily fumbled through his trouser pockets for his ID booklet. After fumbling for a long while, he finally found it. "I'm a Genin!"
"Oh!" the dispatcher exclaimed in surprise, as if he had encountered something astonishing.
"A newly promoted Chunin, a female Chunin," he glanced at Haruno Sakura, "and two Genin," he then swept his gaze over Naruto and Sasuke.
"So in fact, not long ago, you were just three Genin," he nodded, his expression as if he had discovered a great secret.
Sasuke and Sakura's brows furrowed. This dispatcher didn't seem very easy to communicate with!
"Hey! Don't call us Genin, Genin. We're very strong!" Naruto said with dissatisfaction, slapping the table.
The middle-aged ninja glanced at the spot Naruto had slapped, and his brow furrowed for a moment.
Then he regained his expression and nodded thoughtfully. "Hn, very strong Genin."
Sakura took a deep breath, a fake smile on her face, growing sweeter and sweeter until it was cloying. "You're right. But I am still a Chunin now, and I can still accept high-level missions, can't I?"
"Theoretically, yes," the dispatcher said, stacking the mission sheets in his hand and putting them aside, freeing his hands, and raising his head.
"But I think that probably no responsible mission dispatcher would entrust a high-difficulty mission to you. This is being responsible for you, and also for the village. After all, you are just a female Chunin and two very strong Genin, not a female Chunin and two very strong Chunin, let alone a female Chunin and two very strong Jonin. High-level missions are too early for you, not suitable for you, and you can't handle high-level missions," he said with great righteousness, pushing up his glasses.
"I'm sorry, I think whether a mission is suitable for us should be judged by the ninja who accept the mission, not by the dispatcher. In short, please show us the B-rank and C-rank mission sheets," Sakura's face had already turned a little unpleasant, and she said, suppressing her anger.
A dispatcher only had the authority to help ninja look up and register for missions. Deciding for others what mission to take was overstepping his authority. Perhaps the mediocre academy graduates of the past few years had given him the wrong impression—maybe it had been years since a new face had taken on a high-level mission. Perhaps working as a dispatcher for too long had given him a bureaucratic air. In short, Sakura felt that she was being targeted.
"Young people are always so hot-blooded and impatient. But if you accept a high-level mission and then unfortunately fail, then what's damaged is not only the village's reputation, but also your young lives, isn't it? So, I can't give you a mission that will send you to your deaths. If you want to accept a mission, I still have many E-rank and D-rank missions here," the dispatcher said with great heartache, a look of "I'm doing this for your own good."
Sakura sighed and finally gave up on reasoning with him. It seemed this person was deliberately making things difficult.
With a cold expression, she tapped her knuckles on the table and said, "Thank you for your good intentions, but I have to remind you that you only have the authority to record. What mission we choose is our decision!"
She leaned close to the man, so close that her spit could spray on his face at any time—
"Excuse me, but please trouble yourself to give us a B-rank mission that will get us killed. We all want to die, thank you!"
The hot breath of her words, tinged with anger, hit the man's face, almost scalding him.
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