Dark clouds covered the moon. The Sarutobi squad laid out their sleeping bags near the campfire to rest. The flames kept away most wild beasts and also brought warmth to the chilly night.
"Tsunade, your sleeping bag is over there."
Orochimaru glanced at Tsunade, who came over, then looked at the rolled-up bag not yet spread out.
"Let's squeeze in together!"
Tsunade grinned, squeezing into Orochimaru's sleeping bag.
A single sleeping bag was fine for one person, but for two it was very cramped.
"How about I join you two as well?"
Jiraiya smirked lecherously as he leaned toward them, about to crouch down—only for Tsunade's fist to crash into his shin.
"Ahhh! My leg, my leg!"
Jiraiya screamed in pain, clutching his leg and rolling on the ground.
"Still want to squeeze in?"
Tsunade raised her fist threateningly.
"No, no, no!"
Shaking his head frantically, Jiraiya crawled away as quickly as he could, dragging his injured leg.
Too careless… that won't do.
Sarutobi Hiruzen lay on a tree branch above, pretending to be asleep, but from the corner of his eye he glanced at the shadowed forest beyond. He was waiting to see how his three disciples would handle things.
"Orochimaru, you noticed too, right?"
Tsunade, her head resting against Orochimaru's chest, whispered softly while glancing at the darkness in the distance.
"They've been lurking for a while, waiting for us to drop our guard."
Yawning, Orochimaru held her casually, as if chatting with a close friend before sleep.
"Looks like teacher Sarutobi wants us to handle it ourselves."
"He must have already sensed them."
"Not sure if that idiot Jiraiya noticed."
"Jiraiya's not that stupid."
The two exchanged "casual" words, soon dozing off as if exhausted from the day's journey. Jiraiya lay in his bag, still grimacing in pain from Tsunade's punch.
Aren't those guys going to make a move yet?
He half-faked his groans while sneaking glances into the darkness.
Moments later, once the Sarutobi squad appeared fast asleep, the hidden enemies finally struck.
"So these are ninjas from the Hidden Leaf? Not cautious at all."
"Just a bunch of wet-behind-the-ears kids. Their leader is far too careless, hahaha!"
"I thought Konoha would send real threats, but so much for that."
"Looks like the village hasn't recovered yet. Otherwise, they wouldn't have kids and a weak leader on a mission like this."
Four ragged men in worn-out robes—clearly rogue ninjas—stepped out from the darkness.
"All right, let's do it. Water Style: Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
The leader, with a ninja umbrella on his back, weaved hand signs. Thick mist spread, quickly covering the area around Sarutobi's team.
Shuriken and kunai shot out from the fog, striking Hiruzen's body on the tree, blood splattering.
Two rogues moved toward Orochimaru and Tsunade's sleeping bags, while another approached Jiraiya's, dagger in hand. They weren't about to show mercy just because the targets were children.
Bang!
Smoke puffed—Orochimaru and Tsunade turned into logs, while Jiraiya transformed into a frog doll with its tongue sticking out.
"Damn, substitution jutsu!"
"How dare you sneak attack Lord Jiraiya! You've got guts!"
A foot suddenly struck out from the mist, slamming into one rogue's face. With a muffled scream, he collapsed, his nose broken and bleeding. Jiraiya looked around, but the fog kept him from seeing Orochimaru and Tsunade.
He was about to rush toward them when Orochimaru's voice cut through the mist.
"Wind Style: Gale Palm!"
Hands clasped together, Orochimaru unleashed a fierce gust that blew the mist away.
"Bastard!"
Tsunade drove her fist into one rogue's stomach. His face contorted, eyes bulging, mouth agape—he collapsed without even managing a scream.
Another rogue charged at her with a kunai.
"Tsunade, duck!"
She instantly crouched as Orochimaru shouted.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
Forming signs swiftly, Orochimaru inhaled and spewed out roaring flames. A massive fireball engulfed the rogue's scream, hurling his burning body dozens of meters before exploding.
Boom!
Flames scattered across the ground. The charred corpse lay still as the stench of burnt flesh spread.
Tsunade was impressed by the jutsu's power, though she felt no envy—she knew how hard Orochimaru trained.
Orochimaru, however, frowned at the scorched corpse. Her first kill… and she felt nothing at all. She had prepared for it mentally, but not for the emptiness afterward.
"Tsunade, Orochimaru—you're okay, right?"
Jiraiya landed beside them, then looked up in horror. On the tree above, Hiruzen's body hung pierced by kunai and shuriken, head drooping lifelessly.
"Teacher Sarutobi!" Jiraiya screamed in despair, clutching his head.
Orochimaru and Tsunade turned, stunned at the sight.
Suddenly, a ninja umbrella spun into the air.
"Ninja Art: Thousand Needle Rain!"
The rogue leader, until then unseen, unleashed a storm of needles from the umbrella, covering not only the Leaf genin but even his own allies.
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"
Orochimaru slammed his hands to the ground. A stone slab rose, and Tsunade grabbed it, lifting it as a shield against the barrage.
"Pointless! My needles have no blind spots—you brats are finished!"
But then—the ground split open beneath him. Pale hands burst forth, grabbing his legs and yanking him down into the earth, leaving only his head above ground. His umbrella clattered uselessly to the dirt.
"Nicely done, Orochimaru!"
Bang!
Tsunade threw the stone slab aside, cracking her fists as she walked toward the rogue ninja whose head alone stuck out of the ground. Her smile was dazzlingly bright.
"What was it you just called us? I didn't quite catch that!"
"I'll avenge Teacher Sarutobi!"
Jiraiya strode forward in anger toward the trapped rogue's head.
"D-Don't come any closer! Aaah!"
The rogue ninja's eyes widened in terror as Tsunade and Jiraiya advanced.
People in this world really have incredible physical strength…
Orochimaru observed calmly as, under Tsunade and Jiraiya's fists and kicks, the rogue eventually lost consciousness—yet stubbornly clung to life.
"Teacher Sarutobi, with enemy ninjas involved, is this still considered a C-rank mission?"
Orochimaru looked toward where Sarutobi Hiruzen was hidden. A mission involving combat with other shinobi shouldn't be classed as C-rank—it was clearly B-rank, which also meant B-rank payment.
"Teacher Sarutobi… but isn't he already…"
Jiraiya stopped beating the rogue, glancing toward the "corpse" lying on the branch. Only then did he notice it wasn't a real body at all, but a human-shaped dummy with a piece of paper stuck on its face—crudely drawn features sketched on it.
"A… substitution jutsu?!"
Jiraiya's lips twitched. Thinking back to how he had believed their teacher gravely wounded—or even dead—he felt utterly foolish.
"That's why you're such an idiot," Tsunade said flatly. She had seen through the trick long ago.
"Shut up!"
Jiraiya's face flushed red as he glared hatefully at the rogue, now swollen and bruised like a pig's head.
"Hahaha…"
Sarutobi Hiruzen chuckled awkwardly, releasing the cloth that had almost blended into the tree trunk. "I wanted to see how far you could go when ambushed, without my hints or aid… and your performance far exceeded my expectations."
As he spoke, his gaze lingered on Orochimaru, increasingly pleased with this disciple who always managed to surprise him.
Of course, Jiraiya and Tsunade had done well too—their growth had impressed him.
"Teacher Sarutobi, please don't change the subject!"
Orochimaru looked at him seriously. When it came to money, she couldn't let it slide.
Praise from their teacher was nice, but what she wanted more was B-rank mission pay.