Naruto: Troublesome Ninja Haruta

Chapter 11: Two Missions

"You've arrived."

Inside the Hokage's Office, Sarutobi Hiruzen looked at Haruta and his two teammates with a warm expression.

"How have things been? Have you been adjusting well to each other?"

"Thank you for your concern, Lord Hokage. We... get along well."

Uchiha Shisui bowed slightly as he spoke, though his tone was somewhat unnatural.

After all, despite seeing each other over the past few days, most of their time had been spent on Haruta and Yugao practicing kenjutsu together.

Apart from that, everyone mostly did their own thing—there wasn't much real team coordination.

Not to mention the fact that he had actually doubted the Hokage's decision at first.

And now, he was standing here, telling a polite little lie.

It made him feel uneasy.

"That's good."

Hiruzen, of course, knew about the situation within their squad, but he chose not to expose it.

Building bonds takes time.

He wasn't in a rush—whether for Shisui or for Haruta.

Hiruzen wanted to resolve the Uchiha issue.

Although the Nine-Tails incident had made him suspicious of them, he wasn't like Danzo, who jumped to extreme conclusions.

He knew that not all Uchiha were united, and perhaps one day, Shisui could be the key to handling the internal conflicts.

As for Haruta—his entry into Anbu wasn't purely based on merit.

Danzo had planted him there with a mission.

However, during their last operation, Haruta had voluntarily stood his ground against Orochimaru to protect his teammates.

That left a strong impression on Hiruzen.

Not to mention the Naruto situation.

Hiruzen didn't want Naruto to fall into Danzo's hands.

If he could keep Haruta from becoming too influenced by Danzo, he would.

"I have a mission for you three. It's a dangerous one, so I hope you'll be prepared."

"Yes, Lord Hokage!"

Haruta and his two teammates responded in unison.

Hiruzen stood up, spread a map out on his desk, and said,

"This time, I need you to travel to the Land of Wind."

The Land of Wind?

Haruta's expression instantly soured.

That was nothing but a barren wasteland!

It was rude to say, but the place was just sand and rock, with its Hidden Village constantly being short on funds.

Even their Kazekage had to take mercenary jobs to keep the village afloat.

Haruta really had no fondness for that place.

That said, if he remembered correctly, Kabuto was currently undercover there, right?

Serves him right…

"I'm sure you all know that Sunagakure is our ally," Hiruzen continued.

"However, our so-called ally is currently engaging in some rather reckless behavior."

Hiruzen pointed at the map and spoke in a serious tone.

"According to reliable intelligence, Kirigakure shinobi have been appearing within the Land of Wind, consistently harassing Sunagakure.

At the same time, Iwagakure seems to be mobilizing southward.

These two villages may soon clash directly, and that could affect Konoha."

If Kirigakure got more involved, the situation would become even more volatile.

"For Konoha's sake, I need you three to gather intel and assess the actual situation."

A Brewing Conflict

In the world of shinobi, conflicts and wars between the Five Great Villages were never isolated events.

Now, with Sunagakure, Kirigakure, and Iwagakure all making moves in the Land of Wind, Konoha—located at the heart of the continent—couldn't afford to ignore the situation.

If things escalated beyond control, as Sunagakure's ally, Konoha could be dragged into the conflict.

And right now, Konoha was at a critical juncture, internally weakened and stretched thin.

Proper preparations had to be made in advance.

"We understand."

Haruta and his teammates nodded in acknowledgment.

Regardless of the deeper implications, any threat to Konoha was not to be taken lightly.

"Also, be extremely cautious around Sunagakure's people."

Hiruzen added another reminder.

"Even though we are officially allies, they do not fully trust us and do not share much intelligence with us.

And let's not forget—they only became our allies after losing the war…"

Clearly, Konoha did not fully trust Sunagakure either.

Otherwise, this mission would have been handled diplomatically instead of through Anbu.

"We'll be careful."

The three of them nodded again.

It was clear this mission would not be easy.

"Then go make your preparations."

Hiruzen sat back down, sighing.

"I originally planned for Kakashi to go with you, but unfortunately, we've found traces of Orochimaru again.

So he's been reassigned to handle that matter.

I apologize for not being able to send reinforcements, but I trust you three will handle things well.

Look after yourselves—I'll be waiting for your return."

Hiruzen's words were calm and steady, but they still deeply moved Shisui and Yugao.

Even Haruta, as cynical as he was, had to admit—

"Anbu under the Third Hokage is completely different from Root."

In Root, the mission orders were simple: "If you fail, don't come back alive."

But here?

"Protect yourselves. I'll be waiting for you to return."

Sure, it could just be empty words, but it made them feel trusted.

Something Danzo could never provide.

"No wonder he became Hokage."

Haruta muttered to himself as he followed Shisui out of the office.

Shortly after, they split up to make their preparations, agreeing to regroup that evening for departure.

[New Mission Acquired]

[Investigate Sunagakure's Secrets]

As Haruta walked home, he glanced at his mission panel and began analyzing the situation.

"Kirigakure's raids… Iwagakure moving south…"

Something about this felt strangely familiar.

Then, it hit him.

"Wait a damn minute… isn't this the incident where the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, sold out some woman named Pakura to Kirigakure?"

Pakura of the Scorch Release—Haruta remembered her clearly.

In a way, she was similar to Madara Uchiha, embodying the concept of "high offense, low defense."

The only difference was…

She was stabbed to death by a bunch of kunai.

Whereas Madara?

Well, he had a nice long chat with Black Zetsu before getting stabbed in the back.

"So that's what's happening… This mission just got a lot easier."

Haruta nodded to himself.

However, one thing annoyed him.

His system hadn't awarded any completion rewards yet—meaning he'd have to personally see the mission through.

Just then, he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

His eyes shifted toward the shadows nearby.

"Very sharp. Seems like you haven't gotten complacent since leaving Root."

A figure stepped out from the darkness.

Seeing this man, Haruta raised an eyebrow slightly.

It was Aburame Ryoma—one of Danzo's most loyal subordinates.

(T/N: You can consider Ryoma as an OC ninja. He is not Shino's childhood friend who sacrificed himself for Shino and Joined Root.)

He was also one of the people who had helped recruit Haruta into Root alongside Danzo and Orochimaru.

"Lord Danzo is aware of your mission to the Land of Wind," Ryoma said coolly.

"He has a separate task for you."

He took out a scroll and handed it over.

"The details are inside. Lord Danzo awaits your report."

"I understand."

Haruta took the scroll.

Then, a strange thought crossed his mind, and he hesitated before asking,

"Am I handling this alone? Can I request backup?

The Land of Wind isn't our territory—if I had someone like 'A' assisting me…"

"Hmph. Don't you already have your Anbu teammates?"

Ryoma scoffed.

"'A' and the others have their own assignments.

Do not disappoint Lord Danzo."

With that, he turned and left without another word.

Haruta watched him go, deep in thought.

"Kakashi is investigating Orochimaru. 'Alpha' is on another mission… Could it be…?"

Shaking his head, he quickly hurried home.