"Good morning, Renjiro," Minato said, his voice friendly. " You guys are right on time. Let me introduce you to our teammates for this mission."
Minato first introduced the man beside him. "This is Yano Shimura, a jounin and one of my closest friends. We were on the same genin team."
Renjiro couldn't help but gape at the man before him. Standing at an impressive height of 6'7, Yano possessed a broad, muscular build that was hard to miss.
His skin was tanned from countless hours spent outdoors, and his dark brown hair was neatly combed back, secured with a navy blue bandanna that held his forehead protector in place. Similar to Minato, he wore a blue jumpsuit and a green flak jacket.
Renjiro's first thought was that Yano looked like a giant, which was understandable since Renjiro himself was only 5'7 and still in his pre-teen years. Yano's presence was imposing, to say the least.
"It's good to meet you," Yano said in a deep, rumbling voice, offering a hand to Renjiro and Hiro.
Renjiro shook his hand, feeling the strength in Yano's grip. "Likewise. I'm Uzumaki Renjiro."
Minato then turned to the woman standing beside Yano. "And this is my younger cousin, Sama Namikaze. She is a chunin, just like you two."
Sama Namikaze stood at 5'5 with a lithe, toned figure. She possessed an alluring beauty that was both striking and intimidating. Her long blonde hair was worn in a tight ponytail, revealing her forehead protector, which she wore on her delicate, pale neck.
Her striking green eyes were framed by thick lashes that accentuated her expressive features. She wore a black jumpsuit and a green flak jacket adorned with Konoha's symbol.
Sama smiled politely. "Nice to meet you both."
Renjiro gave her a nod as he introduced himself formally, "I am Uzumaki Renjiro."
Sama's eyes twinkled with recognition. "With that red hair, I am guessing you might be related to Kushina, right?"
Renjiro nodded, "Yes, something like that."
It was not the first time Renjiro had been asked this, so he already had an answer for it. While they were not explicitly related, the fact that they were the last survivors of the Uzumaki clan bonded them.
'If Kushina knew of the other survivors in the other shinobi villages, I am sure she would treat them the same.' Renjiro thought.
Sama then turned to Hiro. "And you are?"
Hiro nodded. "I am Hiro Hatake, Renjiro and I were on the same genin team."
With all the introductions done, Minato addressed the group. "I'm going to choose the missions that we'll be taking. I'll be back shortly."
As Minato left, the group was enveloped in an awkward silence. Renjiro glanced around, noting the tense atmosphere. He thought,
'From the way Yano looks, I don't think he's much of a talker.'
Renjiro decided to break the ice. He turned to Sama and asked,
"So, how long have you been a chunin, Sama?"
Sama smiled, "I've been a chunin for about three years now. I'm also working towards becoming an elite chunin. Once I complete a few more missions as a medical-nin, I should get promoted."
Renjiro's mind raced. 'Ooh, so that's why she's here. Minato is probably helping her ascend to elite chunin status. She is also probably my age... wait! Why am I thinking of her age?'
While the rank of elite chunin was indeed prestigious, it didn't impress Renjiro much.
'If I wanted, I could also apply to be one. After the Magatama process, my chakra sensing has improved significantly. My chakra field and perception are stronger than ever. And my fuinjutsu skills are getting better and better; So either of them could help me get to that rank.'
He considered the benefits. 'I don't think there are any real advantages apart from status. Besides, I'm probably close to becoming a jounin. If I keep training hard, I might get that promotion in at most three years.'
Sama then turned the question back to Renjiro. "What about you? How long have you guys been chunins?"
Renjiro caught Hiro's eye, signalling for him to join the conversation. Hiro understood and jumped in.
"Both Renjiro and I became chunins just a couple of months ago."
Sama's eyes widened in surprise. 'They've barely been chunins for a year, and Minato invited them to our squad? Even if Renjiro is related to Kushina, Minato wouldn't invite them without merit. They must be really talented.'
The conversation flowed more easily from there. They discussed their training routines, favourite techniques, and even shared some funny mission stories. Renjiro, uncharacteristically, was quite chatty, which surprised Hiro.
Hiro thought, 'For as long as I've known Renjiro, he's never been the chatty type.'
Renjiro, sensing his own change, thought, 'It's funny. I can't explain it, but I feel like I can trust her. But that doesn't mean I'll reveal all my secrets.'
Just as they were continuing with their conversations, Minato returned from the mission centre with a stack of parchment.
Minato's expression was serious but enthusiastic. "Alright, I've got our missions lined up."
When Renjiro saw the parchments that Minato was holding, he couldn't help but think,
'When he said that he was planning on completing a few missions, I thought that he meant like five missions, but that is clearly more than twenty missions!'
Noticing everyone focusing on the parchments in his hands, Minato addressed the group,
"Since we are basically a new squad, I thought it would be good if we took a few low-ranked missions to work on our teamwork. Once it's up to a certain level, we can begin working on the higher-level missions."
'That's fair. We will probably start with some bandit missions. It will help us to better our coordination and overall teamwork since most of us don't know each other's capabilities,' Renjiro and Hiro thought simultaneously.
They had both experienced similar team-building exercises in different contexts. Renjiro in the Konoha Force and Hiro when he began taking on missions with shinobi from his clan.
Minato continued, "Regarding the pay, I think it's fair if everyone gets an equal share. With the number of missions I have, the pay will be good regardless."
'Pay?? Why would it be good regardless? We're only five people; I don't think bandit missions pay that well. Or has it been long since I last took those missions?' Hiro thought while Renjiro sensed something was off.
"Minato-sama," Renjiro began, causing everyone, even the silent Yano, to turn to him, "What ranks of missions are we starting with?"
"I have fifteen B-rank missions. I could have taken more, but there were none available. As for A-rank missions, there were only seven suitable for us," Minato innocently replied.
"..."
'Only fifteen B-rank missions?' Renjiro thought, barely processing what Minato had said.
He had completed fewer than ten B-rank missions since becoming a chunin, and the number of A-rank missions he had participated in could be counted on one hand.
Hiro was in a similar situation but had taken up more missions than Renjiro since becoming a chunin.
'Calm down, Hiro,' he reminded himself.
'Remember why we are here. Minato is close to Lord Third, so his jounin recommendation would hold more weight. You need to impress him, even if you will be taking up more missions than you have ever done.'
Despite their surprise at the workload Minato had chosen, a spark of determination lit within both chunins, urging them to challenge themselves.
'While it will be a hassle, it's clear that I lack enough experience in missions, so maybe this will help. Besides, Everyone seems fine with it,' Renjiro thought.
Hiro also had similar thoughts, 'Just go with it Hiro, no one is complaining. You will just have to challenge yourself.'
While both Renjiro and Hiro resigned to their fate due to a misunderstanding, even if they were aware of the truth, nothing would change.
This was because it was rude to complain about the amount of work needed to be done when somebody invited you to their mission squad.
Seeing that everyone was seemingly in agreement Minato said "With everyone in agreement, I think we can set out. We have at most two weeks to complete these missions,"
With that, the squad of two jounins and three chunins set off from Konoha.
2
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