Strength From Within (A Naruto Neglect Book)

24

Daidai was in the Hokage's room, after having gotten his tattoo which was on his shoulder similarly to other Anbu members. He had his first mission, and though he didn't think it would be anything too hard he would still give it his all.

Minato looked at the pair, nodding at the two of them. "Hebi, Hitsuji, the two of you will be joined by Weasel on this mission," he told them, giving them a warm smile. The other anbu knelt down to the Hokage and then stood up once more, nodding at the two other people in the room. He himself was quite young, only about twelve, but he was clearly experienced and strong. "Normally I would not allow people younger than thirteen to join Anbu, but Hitsuji here is quite exceptional. Weasel, as you are also young, I believe it would be good if you two paired up from time to time, as you two can understand each other better than adults."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," the weasel masked boy said, nodding and keeping his eyes on the Hokage. "What is our mission, sir?"

"Seeming as Hitsuji scored particularly well on tracking and stealth, that is what you will be doing. It is a B rank mission. There are a group of bandits that are starting to take over Wave country, their leader being a man named Gato. While it doesn't seem like much, I need to know if any of the other nations have anything to do with this. As you know, we have a strong trading relationship with Wave, and if another country is interfering with their ability to fish and trade with us then that will mean most of our seafood supply will be limited, thus effecting our economy. Additionally, many of the people in Wave are reliant on fishing and trade for their own economy. Once you find out what is happening behind the scenes, it is your choice what action to take, but I would prefer not to have political distrust between another great nation if we kill their shinobi. More details are in this scroll, you know the drill. Dismissed."

With that, Hebi retrieved the scroll, nodding and looking towards the two other members in their team for the mission. "You have your provisions in storage scrolls, correct? Then let's move out," he told them with a nod. It was midday, and if they moved quickly they could get there by evening, which was the perfect time to do some investigating.

The group shunshined to the edge of the village, and headed off into the forest, jumping through the trees silently and at a good pace. A couple of times they stopped to have a break, but their stamina was good enough that it wasn't too much of an issue. The hardest part was staying concealed whilst running across the water to get to their country, as the bridge hadn't been built yet and there were only plans being made. Still, the heavy mist allowed the group to make it there unnoticed before sundown. Once they scouted out the building that Gato and his men were in, a luxurious house with a large backyard that about thirty bandits were camping out in. They hid in the forest, having their dinner and discussing plans for that night.

"In the scroll it says that there has been more crime in Wave country, and there have been a couple of smaller businesses taken over by this man named Gato. More bandits have been in the area, and they have been destroying stores, stealing, and generally causing trouble. A troubled owner sent us a message, and a chūnin team came to investigate. They discovered from talking to the people that they seem to be working for a man named Gato, or at least be associated with him.

"Hitsuji, I want you to send in a transformed shadow clone into their camp when the time is right. I know you can keep your chakra concealed well, but it's safest to use them as the memories they give us can allow it to simply disappear when you find out what we need to know. That way we only need to worry about getting you inside. I'll be keeping guard of the building from the outside, and Weasel, you'll be keeping an eye on the bandits that are camping out back. If they start a fuss, cast a genjutsu and keep them from causing too much noise that will alert Gato of our presence," Hebi told them, drawing out their plan on an empty scroll with the positions they were in. The man had a photographic memory and so was good for scouting out places, though he wasn't the most suited to stealth and rather fighting.