Starts In Konoha: Unlocking Shadow Clone

Over the following week, Naruto found himself idle. Despite his eagerness to take on a mission outside the village to complete his sign-ins, Kakashi remained firm in his stance that the team needed to work on their cohesion.

Otherwise, unexpected issues could easily arise once they left the village.

No matter how Naruto tried to reason, he couldn't sway Kakashi.

Fortunately, a week was not that long, and that morning, all members of Team 7 gathered and came to the Hokage's Office.

"Kakashi, they're just rookies who've only just started. Everyone begins by accumulating experience through simpler missions. I thought Naruto would be the one to act up, but I'm surprised to hear this suggestion coming from you."

Iruka, who was standing next to Sandaime, remarked with a frown.

Before Kakashi could respond, Naruto stepped forward and said, "Iruka-sensei is right, but don't blame Kakashi, this was my idea. I think we're ready to handle a higher-level mission."

Sandaime puffed on his pipe, and said: "Naruto, it seems I need to explain the real purpose of missions."

"Listen, every day, the village receives a large number of commissions, ranging from babysitting to assassinations. Each of these commissions is documented in a ledger, and ranked from D to A according to its difficulty."

"The village is structured by capability, starting with me as Hokage, then the Jonin, Chunin, and finally the Genin. The commissions are assigned to the corresponding Shinobi by the higher-ups according to the Shinobi's rank and abilities. As long as the mission is completed successfully, we'll receive payment from the client."

"That being said, you have only just become Genin, so the best you can do is D-Rank missions."

Naruto frowned and was about to open his mouth to protest, but Kakashi stepped forward and interjected, "Hokage-sama, I trust in their abilities!"

Hearing Kakashi's decisive answer, Sandaime and Iruka looked at him in surprise, taken aback by his response.

Then, the two exchanged smiles.

If Kakashi was this certain, it likely meant that Team 7's three Genin had shown some promise. This genuinely delighted them both.

After glancing through the mission requests, Sandaime mused, "Since you're so confident, I'll assign you a C-Rank mission!"

"C-Rank?" Sasuke frowned slightly, looking somewhat dissatisfied.

Naruto quickly held Sasuke back, gesturing for him to stay quiet.

He remembered the first time Sandaime entrusted Team 7 with a C-Rank mission, that was no ordinary C-Rank.

"This is your client, Tazuna!"

At Sandaime's words, the door was opened.

A wave of strong, almost overwhelming, alcohol fumes immediately wafted through the room, followed by the entrance of an older man in a tank top, gray-haired, bearded, and wearing glasses.

"What's this? Just a bunch of brats?"

He took a swig from his bottle, then muttered drunkenly, "Especially the shortest one with the super stupid-looking face, are you really a Shinobi?"

Hearing this, Team 7's expressions darkened.

The shortest one is undoubtedly Naruto, but at this point, Sakura and Sasuke considered Naruto almost like family, so how can they allow outsiders to say bad things about him? Even Kakashi wouldn't tolerate someone disrespecting his sensei's son.

Seeing Sasuke looked ready to charge forward, Naruto grabbed his arm and said, "Don't be rash."

"But he insulted you." Sasuke frowned.

Naruto shook his head and said, "No matter what, he is our client… of course, provided that he is rich enough."

Tazuna snorted, "I'm a world-famous bridge builder. During my return and the time I'll be building the bridge, you'll need to protect me with everything you've got. Money's no issue as long as the job's done."

"Very well, we accept this mission," Naruto replied with a smile.

Although it appeared to be just a C-Rank mission, Naruto knew that beneath the surface, this was easily at least a B-Rank mission.

In any case, the rank of the mission didn't really matter to Naruto. What mattered most was that he could finally leave the village and get a chance to sign in at different locations.

As for Tazuna's insults, Naruto wasn't in a hurry to retaliate. After all, would be plenty of time for a little payback on the road.

Watching this exchange, both Sandaime and Iruka showed expressions of approval.

Although Tazuna was indeed impolite, he was still a client, and Naruto's calm reaction showed that he had undoubtedly grown.

However, the rest of Team 7 didn't see it the same way.

The last time they'd seen Naruto smile like this, it was a sign he was about to cause trouble.

In short, when Naruto smiled, fate became unpredictable.

When they looked at Tazuna again, they no longer found him annoying. Instead, their eyes were filled with sympathy and pity.

After accepting the mission and completing the procedures to leave the village, they ended up spending about an hour on preparations.

In Naruto's mind, the system's long-absent notification suddenly chimed.

[It is detected that the host has stayed in the Hokage's Office for one hour. Sign-in successful. Reward: Sealing Technique: Dead Demon Consuming Seal!]

[Dead Demon Consuming Seal: Sacrifice your own and the enemy's souls to the Shinigami, which devours them, allowing you to take your enemy down with you.]

'Huh?'

Naruto was stunned when he saw this reward.

'Is this a reward or a punishment?'

Naruto was a little speechless. If he ever used this technique, regardless of whether the enemy was sealed, his own soul would be offered first… it was practically self-sacrifice.

'Come on! Are you kidding me? How is this any different from actively seeking death?'

'No wonder the system had never prompted me to sign in at the Hokage's Office… it was bound to be something dubious.'

As memories of the S-Rank Sealing Technique flooded his mind, Naruto quickly grasped its principles. However, he had also resolved firmly never to use it. He wasn't sick or desperate enough to seek his own end.

However, this move also reminded him that when Minato sealed the Kyubi, Only the Yang Attribute Kyubi was sealed in his body, while the other half of the Yin Attribute Kyubi was still sealed with Minato's soul.

'If there is a chance in the future, I must retrieve the full power of the Kyubi. At that time, my strength will definitely be able to reach a higher level.'

At this thought, he and the others arrived at the village's gates.

"Are these kids really up to the task?"

Tazuna continued grumbling, questioning Team 7's abilities.

Sasuke walked up to Naruto and whispered, "Naruto, how are you going to deal with him? Count me in this time."

Even Sasuke was reaching his limit. Why should they put up with this old man's constant criticism? What a terrible client.

"It's not the right time to do anything now. But don't worry, he will definitely suffer the consequences."

Naruto reassured Sasuke, who finally let it go.

Kakashi on the side couldn't stand it any longer and said in a deep voice: "Tazuna-san, with a Jonin like me on this mission, rest assured that nothing will go wrong. Or… are you questioning my abilities too?"

Tazuna was suddenly speechless. He drank from his bottle sullenly and said nothing more.

Without this guy's complaints, the journey became far more peaceful.

Naruto took in the scenery along the way, feeling quite uplifted. After all, this was his first time leaving the village.

He wondered what kind of rewards awaited him on this trip to the Land of Waves.

Although he could ask the system, that would spoil the excitement. It was like opening a blind box, the anticipation made it all the more enjoyable.

However, not long after he walked, he spotted a suspicious puddle on the road ahead.

Seeing this, Naruto's eyes gleamed with amusement, a sly smile tugging at his lips.

'Tazuna, the show's about to begin...'