The next day, at exactly 7:45 a.m.
At the main gates of Konohagakure.
Whoosh!
Menma, carrying his backpack, leapt down from a nearby rooftop, landing with practiced ease. Four figures were already waiting at the gate—Kakashi Hatake, Uchiha Sasuke, Haruno Sakura, and their mission client, Tazuna, the bridge builder.
Each of the three Genin carried a standard-issue mission pack filled with ninja tools, rations, and basic supplies—standard for shinobi leaving the village for a long-term assignment.
Just as Menma arrived, a loud, familiar voice echoed through the air.
"Wait for meeee! I'm coming!"
A blur of gold darted toward the group—Naruto Uzumaki, loud and energetic as always.
"Well, everyone's here," Kakashi said calmly, closing his ever-present orange book. "Let's head out."
After presenting the mission clearance scroll to the Chūnin Gate Guards for inspection, Kakashi led Team 7—Naruto, Sasuke, Sakura, and Menma—beyond the great wooden gates of Konoha, setting off toward the Land of Waves.
⸻
Meanwhile, deep beneath Konoha.
In the Root Division's underground base, Shimura Danzō sat in his dimly lit chamber, his single visible eye narrowing coldly as a report reached his desk.
"Heh…" Danzō murmured darkly.
"Hai!"
A shadow appeared in the corner—a masked Root operative kneeling before him.
"Deliver the package to Orochimaru," Danzō commanded. "Tell him I accept his proposal. But before I fully commit, he must first prove his sincerity."
"Yes, Lord Danzō."
The masked ninja vanished into the darkness.
"Hiruzen… letting a twelve-year-old Nine-Tails Jinchūriki leave the village so easily. You've grown soft in your old age," Danzō muttered, his tone dripping with disdain. "Don't blame me when I take matters into my own hands."
He turned toward the direction of the Hokage's Tower, his expression cold as stone.
⸻
Konoha was no longer the invincible force it had been during the days of the Third Great Ninja War, nor the golden era of the First Hokage and Second Hokage. It was now a transitional period—a time of rebuilding and uncertainty.
The village's old guard was aging, and many of its strongest shinobi had perished in battle. Among the younger generation, true prodigies were rare.
That made Menma—the host of the Nine-Tails—an irreplaceable asset. If another great war were to erupt, the village's survival would depend heavily on his strength.
Konoha, despite its prestige, was now a giant with cracked armor—strong in name, but fragile within. Without powerful figures like Menma to uphold its reputation, even a small tremor could shatter it from the inside.
Thus, Menma's first mission beyond the village was being watched closely by many, both allies and enemies alike.
And Menma himself was well aware of this.
But he didn't mind. Attention meant little to him—as long as he could keep growing stronger, quietly and steadily, until the time was right.
That time, he felt, was coming soon.
Before crossing the treeline, Menma turned to look back at the towering gates of Konoha. His silver-blue eyes reflected a flicker of something unreadable—resolve, and a hint of defiance.
⸻
Their journey began.
Because Tazuna was a civilian, the group's pace was limited to a regular walking speed. Under normal circumstances, it would take over a full day to reach the Land of Waves, assuming they could find a ferry promptly. Otherwise, delays could easily stretch the trip into several days.
As they traveled, Kakashi used the opportunity to brief his Genin. It was the first time the three rookies—Naruto, Menma, and Sakura—had left the village for an official mission.
"Only one day's travel?" Sakura repeated, tilting her head. "So it's not that far. But, Mr. Tazuna, why didn't you just hire ninjas from your own country? For a C-rank mission, even a local team could handle it, right?"
Naruto and Sasuke turned toward Tazuna, curious as well. Only Menma remained quiet, listening with mild disinterest.
Tazuna chuckled wearily. "Little girl—"
"Call me Sakura!" she corrected.
"Ah, Sakura then. The Land of Waves is a small nation. It's barely larger than one of the smaller provinces of the Land of Fire. We don't have our own shinobi village. Sometimes wandering mercenaries pass through, but they can't be trusted. Hiring one is more dangerous than going unguarded. So I came to Konoha. It's the nearest of the Five Great Shinobi Nations, and its ninja have a solid reputation."
Sakura nodded, understanding. "Oh, I see!"
Though she was one of the top students in theoretical knowledge at the Ninja Academy, even Sakura hadn't learned much about smaller nations. The academy curriculum focused mostly on the Will of Fire, Konoha's founding, and brief overviews of the five major hidden villages. The wider political landscape wasn't part of their formal education.
Naruto frowned thoughtfully. "So… other countries don't have ninja villages? Wait, then what about the other big nations? Are they all like Konoha?"
As expected, Naruto's grasp of theory hadn't improved much.
"The Five Great Nations each have a major shinobi village," Sakura explained with mild exasperation. "Besides our Hidden Leaf Village in the Land of Fire, there's the Hidden Cloud Village in the Land of Lightning, the Hidden Stone Village in the Land of Earth, the Hidden Sand Village in the Land of Wind, and the Hidden Mist Village in the Land of Water. Naruto, didn't they teach this in the second year at the Academy?"
Naruto blinked, scratching his head. "Uh… maybe I was absent that day?"
Sakura sighed deeply. "You were probably sleeping through it, as usual."
Kakashi chuckled quietly from the front, his visible eye curving in amusement. Despite the light tone, a hint of concern flickered beneath his calm exterior.
For all their youthful energy, this mission would soon show them what it truly meant to be shinobi.
___________________
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