BlackStar_BH:
More Power Stones and comments, guys!
Enjoy the new chapter!
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[—
"If you want it that much… I'll give you a C-rank mission."
The old Hokage chuckled internally, thinking, 'Hehe, he used to only be able to express himself through pranks.'
"It's a protection mission for a certain individual."
Naruto's eyes lit up with excitement, and he asked eagerly, "Who?!! Who?!! A feudal lord?!! A princess?!!"
"Calm down, I'm about to introduce him."
"Hey, will you come in here?"
The door opened as the old Hokage requested the person to enter.
An elderly man appeared, carrying a bottle of sake. "What's this?"
"They're all a bunch of brats… Especially, the shortest one with the super stupid-looking face. Are you really a ninja? Huh?!"
Hearing this, Naruto laughed loudly:
"Haha!! Who's the shortest one with the stupid face… Dattebayo!"
It turned out that he was indeed shorter than both Sasuke and Sakura.
"I'll kill you!!!" Naruto tried to leap at the annoying old man, but Kakashi grabbed him and said,
"What's the point of killing the person we're supposed to protect? Idiot!"
The old man introduced himself: "I am Tazuna, a super expert bridge builder."
"I expect you to provide me with top-notch protection until I return to my country and complete the bridge."
—]
...
Inside the Art Store, Uzumaki Mito smiled as she read this scene.
"So Naruto's first mission will be in the Land of Waves…"
Mito sighed, thinking about her homeland, Uzushiogakure… the village that, if it had survived, would have been the sixth hidden village in the world, ruling the Land of Waves, which currently has no hidden village.
In a way, Naruto was returning to his original homeland through this mission.
Beside her, even Kushina had a warm expression on her face as she followed the chapter with her wide eyes.
From time to time, she giggled at Naruto's childish reactions:
"This person named Tazuna has a sharp tongue…"
"I see… a C-rank mission, yet it might contain unexpected dangers," Minato said as he turned the page to the next scene.
"Do you really think so? They're just newly graduated Genin. I don't think leaving the village directly is something the Hokage should allow," Kushina said, her concern showing.
"Allowing the village's Jinchūriki to go on a mission… Either Hiruzen trusts Kakashi immensely, or he doesn't care about the safety of the village's ultimate weapon at all."
Mito squinted at Hiruzen, who was listening to her words with a peculiar expression, and added,
"…And I have a feeling the first assumption is correct."
'The son of Sakumo can't be just an ordinary Jonin,' Mito thought with a smile.
"The village doesn't raise useless shinobi. If they aren't exposed to real danger, how can they become true shinobi?"
At that moment, Danzo spoke with a calm expression, determined not to let Mito dominate the discussion.
"I think Danzo is right," Hiruzen said—not in agreement, but because it was true.
Mito looked at Danzo. She could feel the intense cunning of this man, the kind she had never sensed before, but she shook her head, ignoring unnecessary thoughts for now.
"There are no useless shinobi, only useless leaders," she said coldly.
"A kid shinobi needs genuine care, especially Naruto. I see he's a pitiful child from my clan. His background hasn't been fully revealed yet, but I bet there is a direct reason behind his tragic situation."
'I don't think Rubirō drew Naruto's story just to kill time. There must be a hidden purpose behind all this risk.'
Mito smiled internally as she pondered,
'Perhaps he wants to fix the situation for the children of our clan…'
Thinking of the few remaining Uzumaki children scattered across the world, Mito felt a pain in her heart.
Since the destruction of the Whirlwind Village, the Uzumaki children had lost their homes.
'If Hashirama had still been alive back then, my homeland would not have been destroyed.'
At that moment, Mito felt a small hand grab hers:
"Grandmother, trust Naruto. No matter what danger appears in this mission, Naruto will be strong enough to overcome it."
Kushina felt confident. Even if the current Naruto was just a mischievous and quick-tempered child, she could see what was behind that mask, in rare and fleeting glimpses that stayed in her mind.
That confidence, that gaze, that ambition, and the ability to survive in a village that rejects his existence—all these qualities made Kushina believe in Naruto. 'He would be able to succeed.'
"No matter the danger, I bet it will turn into a blessing," Kushina continued.
"I agree with Kushina," Minato said with a smile.
Minato, who had already continued reading the manga, followed the Seventh Team led by Kakashi as they departed the village to carry out the mission of protecting bridge builder Tazuna.
...
"The Land of Waves, then."
Hugaku, head of the Uchiha clan, watched the manga with a calm expression.
"Not bad for a start."
"Not bad, even though I wanted to see the child of our clan get a more dangerous mission as a beginning."
"Fugaku, Sasuke still has no real experience," the clan head said to his son, Fugaku.
"Father, even if he lacks experience… Uchiha clan members don't need much experience. They only need to know the mission details and complete it."
"With the strong dojutsu that distinguishes our clan, do we really need experience?"
Fugaku was proud of his Uchiha dojutsu, like the rest of his clan. Moreover, he was proud of his ability to develop his Sharingan to its full three-tomoe form while still a Chunin.
"You still lack a lot, my son… Well, that's fine. Lack of experience means there's still room to grow."
"You've participated in many C- and B-ranked missions. Let's follow the events of this mission assigned to Sasuke and his team. Let's bet—it won't be just a simple C-rank mission…"
Hugaku smiled as he looked at his son.
"What do you mean?" Fugaku asked, confused.
"Could it be dangerous? Just an ordinary protection mission?" Even Mikoto, sitting beside them, felt tense.
"This is how the shinobi world works… If you're an ordinary shinobi, it's fine… But these two aren't ordinary. One is a talented member of our clan, and the other is a Jinchūriki of the village."
"No matter how you look at them, you'll know they are far from ordinary."
"And that means missions associated with them won't be ordinary either."
"The old Hokage knows that, and he probably planned it as well."
Hugaku Uchiha looked deeply at Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was sitting not far away.
...
"I love Naruto's character, hahaha!"
Jiraiya laughed as he followed the chapter's events.
In the scene he was talking about, Naruto pointed at the old Tazuna, who had been mocking him, and said:
One day, I will take on the super elite ninja title Hokage!
My name is Uzumaki Naruto! Remember it!
"That old man, Tazuna… is he deliberately provoking Naruto?" Even Jiraiya was annoyed by Tazuna's behavior.
"Haha! He's just teasing him," Tsunade laughed.
"He's mocking Naruto's dream! I don't like him!" Beside her, little Nawaki puffed his cheeks.
His angry expression was adorable in Tsunade's eyes, who hugged him and played with his hair.
"Haha! Wow! You really resemble Naruto a lot!" Tsunade laughed enthusiastically while playing with her brother.
"Resemble Naruto? He resembles me! Hmph! Stop playing with my hair, sister! I'm not a child anymore…" Nawaki said, annoyed, his face turning red with embarrassment, especially after seeing Jiraiya staring at him with envy.
"Jiraiya, what? Do you want to get beaten?"
Seeing Jiraiya staring at this scene with a ridiculous expression, Tsunade formed a tight fist with a disgusted look.
"Eh? No, no, I'm just admiring your sibling relationship."
Jiraiya quickly wiped his mouth and replaced his silly expression with a serious one, closing his eyes to show a very serious stance, while still keeping away from the danger zone.
For some reason, he was the only person who could feel pain from a strike in this place, where he had heard before that no one feels pain, even when hit.
'But why do I feel pain from Tsunade's punches?'
Jiraiya thought as he backed away cautiously.
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Upcoming chapter titles (spoilers):
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Chapter 59: The World Map and the Appearance of Enemies!
Chapter 60: Sasuke Excels.
Chapter 61: Naruto Rises Up! We're Continuing the Mission!
Chapter 62: The Appearance of Momochi Zabuza!
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BlackStar_BH:
The chapters currently available on Patreon are up to Chapter 83.
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