Finally, he came face-to-face with the person he had been longing to meet—Ringo Ameyuri.
It was just a little awkward.
After all, whatever the Anbu had told her about him couldn't have been anything good.
Yagura was self-aware enough to know that much.
So, Ringo Ameyuri was in the Anbu? Just like Yamato in his youth, a shinobi hidden in the shadows rather than standing in the light.
No wonder Mangetsu and the others had never heard of her.
"Hello, Ringo... san?"
"Just call me by my name."
Her sharp, lively eyes blinked once before she casually waved her hand, correcting him,
"Yagura-chan."
Her gaze lingered mischievously on the top of his head, exaggerating the playful emphasis on 'chan.'
"Alright, Ameyuri."
Yagura smiled as if nothing had happened. "So, what did the Anbu say about me?"
He would remember this. One day, he'd make sure to settle the score with those Anbu.
"I can't say." Ringo Ameyuri had been strictly warned to keep her mouth shut, especially in front of the subject himself.
"Oh, really?"
Yagura pouted. "Fine, then. If you ever fall for someone, don't expect me to help you pursue him."
Ringo Ameyuri's expression stiffened: "..."
She had heard the rumors—this Three-Tails Jinchūriki was... a bit eccentric.
Not difficult to get along with, but also... not easy to deal with.
Mukumo, who had been quietly observing, suddenly spoke seriously, "Ameyuri-san, I'm sure you must be quite popular with men."
You too?
Ringo Ameyuri smirked nonchalantly. Her smile carried an untamed energy, revealing a hint of sharp canine teeth.
"Any man who wants to conquer me must first win over my blade."
"Cough."
The Third Mizukage cleared his throat, signaling the end of idle chatter.
Time to get to the point.
"Mizukage-sama, when are we heading to Konoha?" Yagura asked. "We should arrive a little early, right?"
It had already been more than half a month since Kirigakure had submitted the application to participate in the Chūnin Exams and received Konoha's approval to send both Kirigakure and Iwagakure representatives.
Which meant there was only about a month left until the end of December—the scheduled date of the exams.
"Make your preparations. We leave this afternoon."
The timing surprised Yagura. "That soon?"
"You have a mission to complete on the way."
Ignoring Yagura's reaction, the Third Mizukage continued,
"An S-Rank mission—to test your abilities and teamwork. Once the mission is complete, you will proceed directly to Konoha."
"S-Rank?!"
Mukumo was visibly shocked.
Ringo Ameyuri's normally composed expression faltered as well upon hearing the mission's rank.
Their reaction was understandable.
Ninja missions were ranked from lowest to highest: D, C, B, A, and S.
Genin and Chūnin primarily took on D, C, and B-rank missions, with the toughest opponents usually being other Chūnin.
A-Rank and S-Rank missions, however, were typically reserved for Jōnin.
Take, for example, the well-known Land of Waves mission.
When Naruto's team first accepted it, it was classified as a C-Rank mission because the bridge builder had only reported threats from a wealthy merchant and his hired samurai.
However, after encountering two of Zabuza's subordinates, Kakashi immediately pointed out that the mission had escalated to B-Rank.
And when Zabuza himself appeared, the mission's difficulty skyrocketed straight to S-Rank!
An S-Rank mission came with a bounty of at least ten million ryō, which meant the enemies they would face were likely to be as formidable as the infamous Demon of the Mist, Zabuza Momochi himself.
In other words, they, as mere Genin, were expected to face at least one Jōnin-level opponent.
Yagura clenched his fists.
Before becoming a Jinchūriki, he had already been capable of holding his own against a Jōnin.
Now, as the Three-Tails' host, his power hadn't exactly doubled, but if he faced someone like Jinin Akebino again, he was confident he could make the man suffer.
The real question was—what were Ringo Ameyuri's and Mukumo's capabilities?
The Third Mizukage studied their reactions before calmly stating,
"If you can't complete an S-Rank mission, you might as well forget about going to Konoha. No need to embarrass yourselves."
"You do realize we could die, right?"
Mukumo was visibly concerned. "A Genin squad should have at least one Jōnin overseeing the mission. Mizukage-sama, are we really going alone?"
"There will be a Jōnin supervising you."
Yagura raised an eyebrow.
Supervising, huh?
That meant they were still expected to complete the mission themselves.
Ringo Ameyuri asked, "May I ask who our target is?"
The Third Mizukage said nothing.
Instead, an Anbu member stepped forward, tossing a scroll to Yagura.
"All the details are inside."
"Thanks."
Yagura unrolled the scroll, tilting it so Mukumo could see as well. Ringo Ameyuri stepped behind them for a look.
Yagura glanced at her—she was taller than him. He chose not to ask if she could see.
Damn it, when would he finally hit a growth spurt?
The Three-Tails was the smallest of all the Tailed Beasts. Could his short stature be some kind of curse from Isobu?
Maybe he should seek out the Six-Tails instead?
Isobu: ...
Isobu seemed to be saying something—or maybe nothing at all.
Ignoring the Tailed Beast's mutterings, Yagura focused on the mission details.
Their task was to guard the heir of a noble family in the Land of Water, specifically within his residence.
Not very interesting.
He skimmed further down.
According to reliable intelligence, someone had commissioned Sunagakure to issue an A-Rank assassination mission targeting this heir.
Such family disputes were common in the Land of Water.
Since Kirigakure couldn't involve itself in the country's internal conflicts, those who wanted the heir dead had sought an assassin elsewhere.
Sunagakure had already assigned a ninja to the job. The provided intelligence read:
"Bloodline Limit shinobi from Sunagakure—Scorch Release user, Pakura."
It was her.
Yagura hesitated, momentarily pausing as he unrolled the scroll further.
Noticing his reaction, Mukumo asked, "What's wrong, Yagura?"
"Nothing. Just surprised to see a Bloodline Limit."
"What's so strange about that?" Mukumo scratched his head. "Aren't they everywhere?"
Yagura: "..."
He had a point.
Bloodline Limits were common in Kirigakure.
In other villages, they were rare—Sunagakure had only Scorch Release and Magnet Release.
But Kirigakure? You needed both hands to count them all.
Of course, saying that out loud would earn them some serious hostility from other villages.
"I've heard of Pakura before," Ringo Ameyuri murmured, baring her sharp teeth in thought. "Scorch Release is difficult to counter. She's highly skilled in both ninjutsu and taijutsu. She's clashed with our village's shinobi multiple times and is a top priority on the Anbu's wanted list."
Yagura asked curiously, "What's her bounty?"
"Forty million ryō."
"That's a fortune."
Yagura whistled.
Kirigakure's S-Rank missions paid shinobi 25% of the target's bounty.
That meant between the three of them and their Jōnin overseer, each of them would earn two and a half million ryō!
A bowl of ramen cost about fifty ryō.
"High risk, high reward."
Ringo Ameyuri continued, "No one has ever survived an encounter with her."
Of course.
Anyone hit by Scorch Release was instantly drained of all moisture, reduced to a dried-up corpse.
Yagura nodded internally.
This mission was going to be... interesting.
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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