When Minato Namikaze looked at Shūichi Hoshita, his first thought was about the Flying Thunder God Technique.
For someone outside the Uchiha clan to have such extraordinary reflexes, Shūichi was indeed a promising candidate for mastering the Flying Thunder God.
Of course, mastering this technique required not only exceptional reflexes but also a strong sense of perception and spatial awareness.
"But it's too early for that," Minato thought with a smile.
Shūichi was only six years old, while Shisui Uchiha and Sanyō Kurama were just eight. For now, they needed to focus on building a solid foundation, gaining combat experience, and completing missions.
---
The first day after graduation passed quickly.
The next day, the morning was spent on another mission, helping villagers near Konoha deal with wild animals that were destroying their crops.
This time, it was a group of wild boars.
Following the tracks, Shūichi and the others quickly located and dispatched them.
This mission brought Shūichi just three tasks away from unlocking the "Tracking Expert" tag.
The afternoon was once again dedicated to Minato's special training—traps, shadow clone battles, and taijutsu guidance.
To Shūichi's surprise, this pattern continued for an entire week.
Morning missions, afternoon training.
Before he even had a chance to leave Konoha, Minato had helped him unlock the "Tracking Expert" tag.
With a 100% increase in tracking talent and a 100% increase in sensitivity to traces, Shūichi's progress in both missions and training became visibly faster.
March 24, Year 39 of the Konoha Calendar.
As usual, the team gathered on the rooftop. However, when Minato arrived, he announced, "Today's mission is a C-rank mission outside the village. Meet at the village gate in half an hour."
"Understood!" Shūichi and the others replied in unison before using the Body Flicker Technique to disperse.
At home, Shūichi quickly packed his gear into his backpack.
Kunai, shuriken, a medical kit, soldier pills, a change of clothes, as well as explosive tags and grenades…
After packing, with some time to spare, Shūichi went to Konoha Hospital and Tenka's shop to bid farewell to Yakushi Nono and Tenka.
When he arrived at the village gate, Minato and the others were already there.
However, Shūichi wasn't late.
"Let's move out!" Minato ordered as soon as Shūichi arrived. The four of them left Konoha and headed south along the main road.
Before long, they veered off the path leading to the Daimyo's residence and entered the forest, moving southwest.
As they leaped through the trees, Minato explained the mission: "Our target this time is a group of bandits based on the border of the Land of Rivers."
"These bandits have crossed the border into the Land of Fire multiple times, attacking villages in the area."
Shisui immediately sensed something was off: "The border has ninja team outposts. If they've managed to cross the border and raid villages multiple times, it means they've figured out the patrol routes of the border ninja teams."
A C-rank mission? This was likely more than that!
Shūichi Hoshita thought, "Even if ordinary bandits had ninjas among them, it wouldn't be enough to consistently figure out the patrol routes of the border ninja squads and manage to infiltrate and return to the Land of Rivers each time."
Sanyō Kurama commented, "So, Shūichi, are you suggesting that these bandits might be disguised ninjas?"
Shūichi replied, "That's a possibility."
"But if that's the case, this mission might not be for us."
"There's another possibility: the bandits could indeed be ordinary bandits, maybe with just one or two lower-ranked rogue ninjas among them. However, they might have precise intelligence support."
Minato Namikaze smiled, "Shūichi's analysis is very good."
Shisui Uchiha asked, "Minato-sensei, if that's the case, where would their intelligence come from?"
"From Amegakure?"
"Before the Second Shinobi World War, the Land of Rivers was within Amegakure's sphere of influence, and the missions there were managed by Amegakure. After the war, Amegakure's influence was limited to the Land of Rain, while the Land of Rivers' missions were divided between us and Sunagakure."
"So, it could be that Amegakure wants to make a comeback, or Sunagakure wants to take over all the missions in the Land of Rivers."
Minato nodded and asked, "So, Shisui, which possibility do you think it is?"
Shisui thought for a moment and said, "Sunagakure!"
Kurama asked, "Shisui, why Sunagakure?"
"Hanzō of the Salamander from Amegakure is known as a legendary shinobi. It wouldn't be surprising if he wanted to make a comeback and take over the Land of Rivers."
Shūichi analyzed, "But if it were Hanzō, he would be facing us and Sunagakure. That wouldn't be a wise move."
"Sunagakure, on the other hand… It has been quite some time since the Second Shinobi World War. Their ambitions may have reignited, and it wouldn't be surprising if they wanted to take over the entire Land of Rivers."
"And the current situation fits Sunagakure more."
Kurama was puzzled and asked, "Why is that?"
Shūichi explained, "Because if it were Hanzō from Amegakure, he wouldn't need to use such methods. He could just send people south to reclaim the Land of Rivers directly."
"Sunagakure, however, might not have the determination to confront us directly, so they might use such methods instead."
"This bandit group might not be simple."
Shisui quickly asked, "Shūichi, are you saying there might be other issues with these bandits?"
Shūichi replied, "It's just a guess."
"For instance, if these bandits have legitimate identities in the Land of Rivers, and we deal with them there, the Land of Rivers' daimyo might be displeased and deteriorate relations with the Land of Fire and Konoha. At that point, Sunagakure could easily align with the daimyo of the Land of Rivers and take over all the missions there."
Kurama was astonished, "How… How did you come up with this, Shūichi?"
Shisui was also surprised.
Minato was equally astonished, as Shūichi's final analysis was something he hadn't considered yet.
Of course, he was aware of the hidden aspects of this mission.
"The Third Hokage was right. Shūichi's level of maturity in thought is on par with that of an adult. His insights are precise, and his analytical abilities are remarkable."
Minato marveled privately and then said to Shūichi and the others, "Shūichi's analysis is excellent. It looks like this mission won't be too simple."
"Therefore, we need to be extra cautious once we enter the Land of Rivers."
"After we find the bandits, the first step is to thoroughly investigate their situation."
Shūichi and the others responded in unison, "Yes, Minato-sensei!"
---
They set off at 9 a.m., rested for two hours at noon.
By evening, Shūichi and the team reached the border of the Land of Fire but did not immediately cross. Instead, they set up camp at the border.
Early the next morning, after having a meal of fish soup, the four crossed the border and entered the Land of Rivers.
(End of Chapter)
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