Looking at the deep purple grip marks on Kanta's wrist, a solemn expression appeared on Yuya's face.
He turned his gaze to the youth a few steps away, inwardly shocked. 'To have such terrifying grip strength at this age, and he's only a Genin.'
"You are Mamoru, aren't you?" Miki asked, his eyes like torches as he sized up the youth before him.
"You know me?" Mamoru asked back calmly.
"Hokage-sama mentioned you to me."
Miki continued, lowering his voice slightly, "He also specifically asked me to give you a message—don't go too far, or he'll send you back to the Ninja Academy."
Before this operation, Hiruzen had specifically talked to him, telling him to pay more attention to a certain Genin in the team, to look after him, and that if they encountered difficult problems, they could consult him and things might go more smoothly.
At the time, he had wondered if Hiruzen was being a bit overly concerned—asking a Genin for help with difficult problems?
But looking at it now, this Genin was indeed no simple character.
Mamoru's lips twitched.
After a moment of silence, he scratched his hair and replied gloomily, "Understood."
Yuya patted Kanta's shoulder, signaling him to return to the team.
Kanta kept his head down, clutching his wrist as he hurried back into the ranks, not daring to meet Mamoru's eyes again.
Then, Yuya came up to Mamoru and, facing Miki, asked, "Miki, how should we handle this?"
Mamoru looked up to size up this Vice-Captain named Yuya. The man looked to be in his early twenties. His yellow hair was particularly prominent in the morning light, making him look like a low-budget version of Minato.
Miki said dismissively, "Just a joke between colleagues. You explain the mission's rules of engagement to him."
Watching Miki's retreating back, Yuya was momentarily stunned. This didn't seem like the impartial Miki he knew.
However, since Miki had said so, as Vice-Captain, he certainly wouldn't dwell on the matter.
"I am Fujimoto Yuya." He offered a friendly smile, trying to ease the atmosphere. "Kanta just has a blunt personality, he didn't mean any harm."
"Uchiha Mamoru." Mamoru gave his name, subconsciously labeling this kind-faced young man as a 'nice guy.'
Hearing his name, Yuya was startled for a moment, then nodded. "Oh!? So you're from the Uchiha clan? No wonder you have some skill."
"This is your first time participating in a unit-level mission, right?"
Seeing Mamoru's silent affirmation, he said seriously, "During the mission, please be sure to follow superior orders and do not act on your own. This concerns the safety of the entire team."
Seeing how serious the other party was, Mamoru nodded. "Alright."
A smile appeared on Yuya's face as he reached out his hand and said, "Nice to meet you. I am the Vice-Captain for this mission."
"Hello."
As the saying goes, one doesn't hit a smiling face, so Mamoru shook his hand.
Yuya had already roughly judged the youth's personality: he responded to kindness but not to force. Better keep a close eye on him during the journey.
"Then, let's prepare to set out."
With that, he turned and nodded to Miki not far away.
Miki understood and gave the order.
"Everyone, we're moving out now! Keep up with the team, don't fall behind!"
Immediately, the team galloped out of the village in unison, their footsteps creating a steady rhythm on the stone road.
"Let's keep up too." Daichi said to the Genin, his gaze lingering on Mamoru for a moment longer.
Having said that, he started running with the team.
"Yes." Yoko and Teruhito followed closely behind.
Mamoru trailed at the very back of the team, following at a leisurely pace.
—
The rolling mountain ranges were covered by dense primeval forests, where the branches and leaves of ancient trees intertwined to form a green canopy in the sky.
The afternoon sun filtered through the layers of leaves, casting dappled spots of light throughout the woods.
A ninja squad was moving rapidly through this green labyrinth. They leaped nimbly between thick branches, their feet lightly tapping the trunks, their movements as agile as forest apes.
Every jump and landing kicked up a few falling leaves, their footsteps so light they were almost silent.
At the end of the team, Mamoru stepped on a branch and caught up with Daichi, who was responsible for the Genin, in a few leaps. He deliberately controlled his speed to stay parallel with Daichi.
"Where is Muomu Mountain, the destination of this mission?" His voice was steady, not at all breathless from the high-speed movement.
The details of this mission hadn't been disclosed much to the Genin. Up until now, Mamoru only knew they were going to a place called Muomu Mountain to eliminate bandits entrenched there.
Presumably, it was thought that giving the Genin too much intel was pointless and would instead cause unnecessary concern, affecting their performance and leading to accidents. It was better to have them follow orders blindly without knowing the situation. This wouldn't hinder the mission's completion and would ensure their safety.
Daichi glanced at Mamoru. The scene at the village entrance was still fresh in his memory, using only grip strength to render a Chunin helpless. Such power was already far beyond the scope of a normal Genin.
Hearing the question now, he couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy, unable to fathom Mamoru's intentions for a moment.
After hesitating for a while, he answered truthfully, "Muomu Mountain is located on the northeastern border of our country, less than fifty kilometers from the border with the Land of Hot Springs."
Mamoru narrowed his eyes and pressed for details, "So how many bandits are there in this mission? Why does Konoha need to send a team of over twenty people?"
As he spoke, he nimbly dodged a protruding branch among the trees.
Daichi glanced at the team ahead and deliberately slowed down to create some distance.
He lowered his voice and said, "That group of bandits on Muomu Mountain was originally just a gang of about a dozen stragglers. They would vanish for a while after every raid, so the Daimyo didn't pay much attention to such a small group."
He paused and continued, "But not long ago, those bandits stopped hiding. They claimed the mountain as their own and began heavily raiding and killing merchant caravans and travelers between the Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Springs. To prevent the situation from worsening and to avoid further economic losses for both countries, the Daimyo personally assigned the mission to the village."
Mamoru raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Just a dozen bandits shouldn't require so many people to eliminate them, right?"
A serious expression appeared on Daichi's face, and his voice deepened. "That's in the past. According to clues from survivors who were lucky enough to escape, this group has now grown to a scale of over a hundred people. And..."