Amidst the ruins, the remaining Grass ninjas scattered in all directions.
Judging by their weak ninjutsu, they were nothing more than a group of incompetent, low-level genin.
Konoha's genin, you're not included in this insult. Please, have a seat.
Riyi, radiating killing intent, glared at the fleeing figures, biting her lip hard but staying rooted in place.
She knew she could chase after them and kill them, but she also had two teammates to consider—this wasn't the time to play the lone hero. Besides, her brother always said: Control the darkness within you, harness it, and release it at the right time.
On a nearby rooftop, Rinjin observed the three of them standing back-to-back, their faces full of vigilance. He nodded in satisfaction.
Riyi, for the most part, was impeccable.
The other two kids weren't bad either—they at least knew how to protect their teammates.
Barely passable!
Without dwelling on it further, Rinjin agilely leapt down from the rooftop. He casually pulled out a wad of cash and stuffed it into the hands of the dazed izakaya owner, who stood amidst the debris.
"Go to Konoha, Tea Street No. 66, and find Miss Mako. Tell her the guild master sent you and ask her to set up a new shop for you."
The izakaya owner stared blankly at the money in his hands, then at Rinjin's Konoha forehead protector.
Suddenly, as if realizing something, his eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly, his face breaking into a grateful smile.
After dismissing the unlucky shop owner, Rinjin and Tsunade approached the three genin. With a mischievous grin, Rinjin said,
"Well, now you've done it. The mission hasn't even started, and you've already beaten someone up. Have you thought about how you're going to handle the retaliation from this group of punks?"
Hearing this, Riyi pouted, her face full of guilt as she bowed deeply to Rinjin.
"Rinjin-sensei, it was my impulsiveness that caused this!"
At that moment, Teuchi quickly stepped forward, shielding Riyi behind him. Bowing deeply, he declared,
"Rinjin-sensei, this… this wasn't entirely Boss Riyi's fault. If she hadn't acted, I would've stepped in and beaten them up myself!"
As he spoke, he grabbed Fugaku by the arm and shouted,
"Fugaku, you think so too, right?"
Hearing this, Fugaku's cold little face stiffened. After a brief hesitation, he gave a barely perceptible nod.
Oh? Since when did you three get along so well?!
Rinjin scratched his head in confusion but quickly dismissed the thought. Ignoring the dust-covered ground, he sat cross-legged and pulled out the mission scroll, spreading it open on his lap.
Taking out a brush, he looked up at the three genin with a sly smile and said softly,
"You've beaten someone up and offended the Grass ninjas.
While I don't know if they'll hold a grudge against all of you, it's clear that the intelligence-gathering mission can't continue."
Hearing Rinjin's words, Teuchi immediately raised his head, ready to argue. But when he saw the sharp look in Rinjin's eyes, the words caught in his throat.
"Since that's the case, let's change the mission objectives!"
With that, Rinjin moved the brush toward the mission scroll.
At that moment, Tsunade quickly grabbed Rinjin's arm.
"Rinjin, what are you doing? You can't just alter a mission scroll!"
Rinjin gave Tsunade an exasperated look and declared with an air of authority,
"Little Tsunade, have you forgotten who I am? I'm Rinjin Sōhō!
Now, as the client, the Daimyo of the Land of Rain, Rinjin Sōhō, I hereby request a revision to the mission!
The mission is now upgraded from a C-rank to an S-rank, and the objective is changed from gathering intelligence on the Land of Grass to eliminating all Grass ninjas!
Do you agree, client Rinjin Sōhō?"
Pausing for a moment, Rinjin immediately switched to a sycophantic tone, nodding repeatedly.
"Of course, Daimyo-sama, whatever you say goes. I wouldn't dare object!"
With that, he shamelessly nodded to himself and began altering the scroll.
Watching Rinjin's self-directed theatrical performance, Tsunade and the three genin were left utterly speechless.
What the hell is this?
This was a level of audacity they had never seen before!
Changing the mission objectives on your own? Who does that?!
And your acting… isn't it a bit too over-the-top?!
After arrogantly revising the scroll, Rinjin smugly rolled it up and handed it to Riyi. With a menacing grin, he said,
"Alright, Team Eleven, your new mission is to eliminate all the ninjas in this country!
Of course, your immediate task is to deal with the retaliation from the enemies who'll be coming after you.
But hey, I've got some good news for you.
From now on, I won't be stepping in to help. You'll have to rely on your own strength~"
With that, Rinjin pushed himself up, dusted off his knees, and retreated to Tsunade's side, taking her hand.
"Goodbye, brave warriors~"
Waving nonchalantly, Rinjin and Tsunade vanished in an instant.
Staring at the spot where Rinjin had disappeared, Teuchi scratched his head in confusion.
"Wait… that's it? Rinjin-sensei! Come back! We're just genin!"
Beside him, Riyi calmly patted Teuchi on the shoulder.
"Calm down, Teuchi. S-rank missions come with S-rank rewards. If we pull this off, your ramen shop is guaranteed!"
Turning to Fugaku, she added, "And Fugaku, don't worry. As long as I'm here, I won't let anything happen to you!"
Hearing Riyi's resolute words, Fugaku pursed his lips, then nodded firmly.
There was no turning back now.
All they could do was push themselves to the limit and complete the mission!
Not far away, Rinjin and Tsunade strolled into a ramen shop, walking shoulder to shoulder.
"Rinjin, they're just genin. There's no way they can handle a mission like this right away," Tsunade said, her face filled with concern.
Rinjin waved her concerns away dismissively.
"Don't worry. We're here, aren't we? You can heal them if they get hurt, and I'll step in to save them if things get truly dangerous.
Besides, what's so impossible about it?
Kids need a little pressure to grow."
A little… pressure…
Tsunade glanced at Rinjin, speechless.
What she didn't know was that Rinjin genuinely didn't think much of it.
After all, in the future, two 17-year-old Konoha genin—Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha—would go on to fight and defeat major bosses like Obito Uchiha, Madara Uchiha, and even seal Kaguya Ōtsutsuki.
So really, you never know your potential until you're pushed to the brink.
And besides, Rinjin had his own reasons for targeting the Grass ninjas.
Among all the small nations' ninjas, the Grass ninjas were the most detestable.
It wasn't just their plagiarism of jutsu or their treacherous nature.
What disgusted Rinjin the most was their treatment of Karin and her mother.
After discovering their unique healing abilities, the Grass ninjas had literally bitten Karin's mother to death.
If not for Karin's sheer resilience, she would've suffered the same fate.
Rinjin had plans to eventually take control of the Land of Rain and had no intention of tolerating these shameless Grass ninjas as neighbors.
Lost in thought, Rinjin was brought back to reality by the aroma of freshly prepared ramen.
Setting aside his musings, he picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.
Meanwhile, Riyi and her teammates emerged from a ninja tool shop.
Each of them now carried two heavy pouches filled with kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, and more.
"Boss Riyi, you got us so many ninja tools. Are we even going to use all of them?" Teuchi asked excitedly, waving around a ninja sword as he spoke.
Riyi glanced at the overly eager Teuchi and replied sharply,
"Of course, we'll use them all. In fact, this might not even be enough!
You've seen the mission. This is bound to be a prolonged battle, so we need to be fully prepared."
Beside her, Fugaku nodded in agreement, his expression serious.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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