"Boss, eight hundred ters ahead, there are ten people hiding on both sides of the road. They're all ard. They don't seem like shinobi—probably bandits trying to ambush us," gumi reported quickly while looking at the lens display.
"Got it."
Natsuki raised a hand to halt the group. He scanned the area himself and confird they weren't ninja.
"Just a bunch of small fry," he said to Rinya and gumi. "Wanna play with them? It's been a boring walk so far."
Rinya imdiately replied, "Yeah, it's been pretty dull. Boss, gumi, leave the small fry to . I'll be done in no ti. Though, Boss, how should I deal with them?"
Natsuki waved his hand. "Just subdue them first. Aoba-sensei can use Mind Reading Technique later. If they're scum, then we kill them."
Killing was inevitable for a shinobi—just a matter of ti.
So, the three of them were ntally prepared. The reason Natsuki didn't ask Rinya to go straight for the kill was simply because he didn't want to murder indiscriminately. Even in a twisted world like this, he refused to beco a butcher who disregarded life. Kill when necessary, but spare those who don't deserve death. That was all.
It wasn't about being a saint—just his bottom line.
Rinya nodded and quickly ford a few hand seals before slapping the ground.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu: Karasu Gun!" (Summoning Technique: Flock of Crows)
"This is the Scatter Chidori Technique my bro taught !"
As he spoke, the summoned crows swooped into the bushes ahead, driving the hidden bandits out. The place erupted into chaos.
These weren't ordinary crows but summoned beasts. No matter how wildly the bandits slashed at them, they couldn't land a blow. Instead, they were pecked and clawed repeatedly.
Rinya dashed forward, and in the blink of an eye, knocked each bandit to the ground with one kick each. The whole thing didn't even take two minutes.
The mustached rchant and his four guards swallowed hard. They hadn't expected a twelve-year-old ninja to have such skill, taking out ten ard n alone. And that boy called "Boss" hadn't even made a move yet—he must be even stronger.
As for the instructor walking at the rear, well, there was no need to even ntion him.
They had previously dared to complain about these powerful ninjas. The fact they hadn't retaliated already was rcy enough. They'd better be more respectful from now on.
Natsuki smiled. "Aoba-sensei, Rinya's improving fast, huh?"
Aoba nodded slightly. "He's been working hard. It's only natural that he's made progress."
"Heh, or maybe he just wants to show off in front of a certain soone. Isn't that right, gumi?"
Natsuki's teasing remark made gumi blush. She imdiately realized he had seen through the situation between her and Rinya and shot him a glare.
Natsuki simply shrugged. Teasing was fine, but he didn't intend to interfere.
Still, he rembered gumi used to be part of the Sasuke fan club. How did she forget about Sasuke so quickly and start liking Rinya?
Maybe... their nas really are fatefully linked?
Soon, Rinya returned, dragging the ten subdued bandits behind him. Grinning, he said, "Boss, all done!"
Then he gave gumi a smug look, as if to say, "See how aweso I am?" making her blush again and roll her eyes.
Natsuki nodded and looked toward Aoba.
Aoba approached the bandit leader, perford a few hand seals, and placed his hand on the man's head. After a short while, he withdrew it.
"They're just drifters trying to charge people for passage."
"Then beat them up and dump them by the roadside."
Since Natsuki was primarily in charge of the mission, he had the authority to decide how to deal with them. No one objected.
Rinya personally gave the ten bandits a good thrashing before tossing them aside.
"Alright, keep moving. Once the sun sets, we'll stop and camp by the road."
Under Natsuki's orders, the group resud their journey. But the rchant caravan moved painfully slow, and the sun soon began to set again, forcing the team to stop.
If it were just the ninja, they'd have reached the Fire Capital before nightfall.
But they were escorting this slow rchant group—who hadn't even bothered to bring horses—so naturally, things dragged out.
Still, this was part of being a shinobi. More missions lay ahead, and such situations were normal. Less complaining was better. Besides, field camping was inevitable for future missions, so it was good to get used to it now rather than suffer later in worse conditions.
Natsuki took out a scroll and summoned several tents, along with pots and pans.
Of course, this setup was for his own team. The rchant group was responsible for their own food and shelter.
After all, Team 9's mission was only to escort and protect in dangerous situations—nothing more. And considering the mustached rchant had been rude at the start, there was no need to go out of their way for them.
So, while the five rchants gnawed on dry rations, they watched enviously as Natsuki's group cooked a hot al.
Later, while the rchants huddled by their cart for the night, Natsuki and the others slept comfortably in tents. They even arranged for night shifts. Otherwise, the rchants probably would've cried.
The night passed uneventfully. The well-rested Team 9 looked at the rchants' tired faces and couldn't help but feel a bit of smug satisfaction.
These guys called themselves rchants, yet they hadn't even brought tents? Either they were broke or just stingy.
And they had the nerve to complain about the shinobi Konoha sent?
You can't even spend 800 ryo on yourself, and you expect the Hokage to personally protect you?
The rest of the journey went without incident. After all, this was the main road from Konoha to the Fire Capital. With Konoha shinobi escorting the group, most bandits wouldn't dare make a move—unless they were desperate or suicidal.
Besides, the rchant's goods were so shabby that they weren't even worth robbing.
By evening, the group finally reached the Fire Capital, officially completing the mission.
Team 9 imdiately parted ways with the rchant caravan. With night falling, they decided to stay in the city and take a stroll.
Truthfully, the mission had been pretty boring.
If they hadn't encountered those bandits along the way, they probably could've completed the whole thing while yawning or napping.
What Natsuki looked forward to most was just enjoying the city and picking up a few gifts for his girlfriend. Everything else was secondary.
Aoba found a cheap inn and kindly said, "The Fire Capital is quite lively at night. Go out and have fun—but make sure to co back tonight. And rember, we're Konoha shinobi. Don't cause trouble, but don't be afraid of it either. Just don't bring sha to the village."
"Yes, Aoba-nii / sensei! We're off to play!"
(End of Chapter)
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