More Than A Name (Naruto Fanfiction)

Scattered Part 1

A couple months after the Flame Festival, Team 7 was coming back from a successful C rank.

"Man, what a disappointment! Literally, nothing happened. We just sat there guarding a herd of cows," complained Naruto.

"That's a good thing, Naruto. I thought we had already gone over this. You shouldn't go looking for a fight," scolded Anko.

"Yeah, but I wanted to guard something cool, like a bank or an artifact, not cows."

"As much as I hate to agree with Naruto, this mission was terrible; we've only fought bandits and people who barely have a grasp on chakra. I think we have grown strong enough to be tested by opponents near our level," voiced Sasuke

Anko glanced at Sakura. "Do you believe the same?" she asked, curious about her thoughts.

"Yeah, I do. I'm not saying our experience so far isn't useful, but we can never really know how strong we are until we face another ninja."

Anko looked over to Kakashi, and he shrugged.

"To be honest with you guys, our luck as a team has been very good; usually, by this point, we would have run into ninjas on one of our C ranks, while the ranking system is supposed to signify danger; it's not perfect, but if you guys really want to be tested, then I'll ask the Hokage for a B rank,"

The genin perked up

"Really, you're the best, sis," complimented Naruto

"Calm down. I can't make any promises, but I'll try to ask. Trust me, you guys are not the only ones bored with these missions. But don't think this is some sort of game. When I said we were lucky, I meant it. Don't forget the dangers that come with being a shinobi."

Kakashi was at the front, enjoying the banter from his team. It made him nostalgic for his Team 7. In Anbu, it was completely silent during travel, so this was a nice change of pace. They were jumping through a dense forest, and the sound of wildlife and them hopping from branch to branch filled the air.

Something peculiar caught Kakashi's attention, and he halted on a branch; the rest of the team mirrored his action, their curiosity piqued.

"What's wrong, Kakashi sensei?" questioned Sakura.

Kakashi stood for another moment. He had to make sure what he sensed was correct. He lifted his headband, revealing his sharingan, and looked east; it verified what he felt.

Kakashi's actions made everyone tense,

"Do we have enemies incoming, Kakashi?" asked Anko, as she put senbon between her fingers.

Kakashi pointed east

"Someone is emitting their chakra in a distinct pattern; I'm familiar with it. Anbu employ it as a distress signal, indicating a grave situation," Kakashi explained, his voice tinged with concern.

"Why does that mean someone needs help?" asked Sakura

"No, because Anbu never call for help if we are at risk of capture or death. They usually destroy their bodies; they only signal for help if they have essential info they have to pass on before their deaths."

"If someone is in trouble, then we have to help them," proclaimed Naruto

Kakashi looked at Anko. "Do you think it's a good idea to bring the team? I can just go check it myself,"

Anko looked over to the genin; they all did their best; please don't leave us face.

Anko sighed

"I believe in them, plus we just talked about them needing more formidable challenges."