"Are you ready, you two?"
Kawakaze stood at the camp's entrance, his face serious as he addressed Nawaki and Minato.
"Yes, we're ready," they answered in unison, each with a Han sword strapped to their waist.
To them, Kawakaze's back seemed imposing—he was already taking on two rookies for an exciting mission, despite their recent arrival. He truly deserved to be their Sensei, their Big Brother.
"It's no use if you're not ready. Let's go," Kawakaze said, slowing his pace slightly as he led the way north, just ahead of the two smaller figures.
The forest was humid despite the absence of rain, and the tree trunks were slippery. Nawaki nearly lost his footing, but Minato quickly grabbed him, preventing what could have been a nasty fall.
"How many times have I told you to pay attention to details?" Kawakaze snapped, turning back to lecture Nawaki. "Chakra should be distributed to the soles of your feet. Don't get distracted. If your stance is shaky, what's the point of learning to use a sword? Your horse stance is a mess!"
His tone was sharp—harsher than when training at home. Nawaki, still just a boy, looked aggrieved and muttered, "I'll pay attention next time."
Minato, standing silently nearby, dared not speak. This was the first time he'd seen Kawakaze so grumpy. Even when they were scolded or sparred with back home, their sensei had always smiled.
"Minato did well," Kawakaze acknowledged, softening slightly. "First, you need to adapt to the environment. The air here is humid, and the terrain is nothing like Konoha. If you don't even have that much awareness, you might as well turn back now."
His frustration stemmed from Nawaki's carelessness, a habit Kawakaze feared could become fatal. It was no wonder the boy had died to an explosive tag in another life—a tragic, unnecessary end. If Nawaki didn't learn to be vigilant, he would repeat the same mistakes. Minato, on the other hand, already showed the sharp instincts that would make him a legend in the Third Great War.
"Got it, Big Brother," Nawaki finally responded, his voice small but resolute after hearing Kawakaze's tone ease.
Kawakaze said no more, resuming his lead.
"Nawaki, be careful," Minato warned gently. "Sensei is right. This is a battlefield—people can die here. Do you remember how the wounded looked back at camp?"
Nawaki's expression turned pale, and he nodded heavily. "Don't worry—I know Big Brother is just looking out for me."
The two walked side by side, expending considerable effort just to keep up with Kawakaze's brisk pace. The humidity grew oppressive as they moved deeper into the forest, with puddles scattered across the muddy ground.
Kawakaze's sharp eyes caught subtle signs etched into the environment. They weren't immediately clear, but they appeared to be signals—likely left by Amegakure ninjas. His instincts sharpened, and his mind grew tense.
He couldn't afford to let anything happen to the two young ones under his care.
"Be on alert and pay attention to your surroundings," Kawakaze reminded the two young ones.
Nawaki and Minato heeded his warning, but their heightened vigilance quickly drained their energy. Kawakaze noticed their fatigue but sensed no immediate Chakra activity nearby. Maintaining his pace, he led them forward.
After several more miles, Kawakaze began to faintly sense unfamiliar Chakras in the distance. Although he wasn't a sensory-type ninja, the proximity of the sources meant the enemy was close.
"Be careful," he cautioned.
Without warning, several kunai came flying toward them. Kawakaze dodged effortlessly, and an Amegakure ninja wearing a gas mask emerged from the shadows.
"Ninja from Konoha, daring to wander here on your own?" the enemy sneered. "Are you here to die?"
The ninja's taunting tone irritated Kawakaze, who instinctively gripped his Eight-Sided Han Sword, prepared to strike. But as he sensed something amiss, a thought crossed his mind: Let's play along for now.
"Hiding behind a mask and spouting arrogance—pathetic," Kawakaze retorted, his voice laced with mockery.
Infuriated, the Amegakure ninja began forming hand seals. "Water Release: Water Dragon Bomb Technique!"
A massive water dragon surged toward them, roaring as it crashed down.
"Trivial skill," Kawakaze muttered, stepping forward. With a sharp arc of his lightning-imbued Eight-Sided Han Sword, he cleaved the water dragon, scattering it harmlessly.
Behind him, Nawaki and Minato unsheathed their swords, their eyes sharp with readiness.
"Hmph, so you're a Jōnin," the masked ninja scoffed, arrogance still dripping from his tone. "Let's see how many Konoha Jōnin I can cut down today."
Kawakaze had had enough. This guy talks too much.
With a single Body Flicker Technique, Kawakaze closed the gap in an instant, driving his sword toward the ninja's heart—only for the target to dissolve into water.
A water clone.
The real body emerged from behind, a smug grin forming under the gas mask as he prepared to strike.
But Kawakaze didn't even turn around. His right leg lashed out with a precise backward kick, slamming into the ninja's chest and sending him flying. The force of the blow cracked ribs and left blood trickling through the mask, despite Kawakaze holding back most of his strength.
Realizing he was outmatched, the Amegakure ninja scrambled to retreat.
"You two stay alert. I'll be right back," Kawakaze said calmly, dashing after the fleeing enemy without hesitation.
Minato watched in disbelief. It was uncharacteristic of their shrewd and calculating Sensei to leave them alone like this. Still, he remained silent, knowing his responsibility was to keep himself and Nawaki safe.
"How dare you chase after me? As long as I delay you, your men will be left waiting to collect your body," the Amegakure ninja taunted as he turned, smugly watching Kawakaze pursue him. Initially, he'd thought this mission was doomed to failure, but now he saw a glimmer of hope.
Kawakaze's lips curled into a faint smirk. "If I don't chase you, how can you signal your men to attack?"
Dropping all pretense, Kawakaze unleashed his full strength. His hand gripped his Eight-Sided Han Sword tightly as he performed a devastating Quick Draw Slash.
"Thunderclap and Flash: One Flash of Lightning, Sixfold."
The Amegakure ninja panicked and summoned a Water Clone to defend himself. But two arcs of lightning zigzagged through the air, slashing both the ninja and his clone in half in a split second.
The Land of Rain's Jōnin—a mere pawn—was no more.
"Remember to greet the Shinigami when you meet him," Kawakaze said coldly, sheathing his blade. "And next time, don't be so arrogant. No one in Konoha is allowed to outdo me in arrogance."
He activated the Flying Thunder God Technique, instantly returning to the marked spot where he'd left Nawaki and Minato. It had been only a moment since he'd gone after the fleeing ninja, but to his satisfaction, his students were already showing promise.
Minato and Nawaki stood back-to-back, tense and alert. Nawaki had his eyes locked on a suspicious puddle of water clinging unnaturally to the rounded surface of a tree trunk.
"This isn't right," Nawaki murmured, hurling a kunai at the puddle.
Before it could land, an Amegakure ninja emerged from the water, deflecting the kunai effortlessly.
"Too crude," the enemy sneered, his voice suggesting he wasn't much older than the two younglings. Two more Amegakure ninja rose from hiding, joining the first. The unnatural puddle of water vanished.
Nawaki and Minato now faced three Land of Rain Chūnin, the tension mounting.
"Your Jōnin team leader actually left you behind? What a joke," one of the masked ninja mocked. "Don't blame us for being merciless when you die."
With that, the lead ninja lunged at the two boys, kunai flashing in his hand. The two behind him followed, forming a triangular formation to surround their targets.
Kawakaze observed from the treetops, rolling his eyes at the arrogance of these Chūnin. Their chatter grated on his nerves. Does everyone in the Land of Rain learn to trash-talk like this?
If it weren't for the need to train the two boys, he would've gone down there already, taking them out one by one with his sword and sending them off to reunite with their chatterbox Jōnin.