Chapter 304: 296. Holy Mission
"You can't protect him forever!"
Izuna stares into her slitted eyes.
"I won't!"
The old woman has a resolute expression on her face.
"For a thousand years, my Ryuchi cave never had a Human Sage who represents us in the shinobi world. But now there is a spark of hope!"
"I won't touch him for the sake of good faith you showed to me. But…"
Izuna gazes in her eyes as his left eye changes in Rinne-Sharingan.
"There is always a price to pay for everything!"
The White Snake Sage eyes narrow as she stares at Izuna's Rinne-Sharingan.
'This is the eye of Sage of Six Paths. No, these tomoes, it's even more powerful than him.'
A trace of fear reflects in her eyes, but soon calmness returns to her face.
"Fine! I will comply with your wishes." She nods her head.
"Good!"
Izuna's eyes return to normal as he demands.
"I want Ryuchi cave to train three members of the Uchiha clan in Senjutsu for me. Also, I will…" He states his conditions to her.
Swoosh…
Izuna takes out a scroll with Sasuke, Itachi, and Shisui's picture.
The old woman grabs the scrolls. Her slitted eyes scan the pictures.
"Alright! I agree with your condition."
Izuna turns around and steps out of the cavern.
Whoosh…
He teleports away from the Ryuchi cave.
The White Snake Sage stares at the empty space for a while.
'His powers are growing rapidly. I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing! But his awakening has accelerated the entanglement of fate and destiny as they rapidly intertwine and blur the thin outline of the distant future. I can hear the woes of countless souls echoing in my ears.'
----------------
Whoosh…
Izuna reappears in front of his house. He opens the gate with a smile.
"I am home!"
"Welcome back!"
Mei walks out of the kitchen with a spatula in her hand.
Sniff…
Izuna takes a deep whiff.
"It smells delicious!"
He salivates from the fragrance of the dinner.
"Go and wash yourself. I will put the dinner on the table."
"Alright!"
Izuna walks towards the bathroom as Mei places the food on the table.
Fifteen minutes later,
"Aha! That was a nice bath. I feel so refreshed."
Izuna walks out of the washroom. He walks towards the dining room with excitement.
Sob… Sob…
"Nee-san! Onii-chan bullied me. Sob… sob…"
Ayaka sheds some tears in front of Mei.
"What?! Did he bully you? Tell me more!" Mei places down the plate and sits beside Ayaka.
Sob…
"It's like this!" Ayaka recounts the entire series of the incident to Mei.
"What?!" Mei's brows scrunch up.
"He assigned your group to fight against an A-rank criminal right after your graduation!"
Some memories of Bloody Mist freshen up in her mind as her brows scrunch up.
"Hmph! How dare he bully my cute Ayaka like that?"
Mei pats Ayaka's head.
"There won't be any dinner for him tonight!"
Mei picks up the plate and passes it to Ayaka.
"Ayaka! You must be hungry. Nee-san prepared a sumptuous meal for you!"
"NO! My dinner!"
Izuna has a heartache as he stares at Ayaka gobbling his dinner.
He walks towards Mei.
"My dinner!"
"There is no dinner for you tonight!" Mei harrumphs at him.
"And don't you dare eat anything from outside or else forget about sleeping on the same bed with me!"
AH!
Izuna's expression freezes as something shatters in his heart. He walks towards a corner and draws circles with his finger.
"My wife doesn't love me!"
"My wife doesn't love me!"
"My wife doesn't love me!"
"…"
Mei rolls her eyes.
"Your drama won't work on me today."
Burp…
Ayaka burps loudly.
"Oops…"
She places a hand around her mouth.
"The food was very delicious."
Ah!
Izuna kneels down on the floor on all fours.
"My wife, my imouto doesn't care for me anymore!"
"Come Ayaka! Let's sleep together."
Mei ignores him and brings Ayaka to the bedroom.
Sigh…
Izuna sighs.
"Ah! I miss those old days when my Ayaka-chan was so innocent."
"It's the result of your bad company which corrupted her!"
Yin Kurama opens his eyes and sniggers.
"…"
---------------------
Next day in the morning,
Inside the Hokage Office,
"Good morning Tsunade!"
Izuna walks into the Hokage office with bags under his eyes.
"You didn't sleep last night?!"
Tsunade curiously stares at him.
"Sort of!"
Izuna nods his head.
Hehe…
Ayaka chuckles as she enters the Hokage Office with Hanabi and Yakumo.
After the previous day, the group has grown closer to each other.
"Oh, Ayaka-chan!"
Tsunade places down the paperwork and turns to Izuna.
"You here for a mission!"
"Yes!"
Izuna nods his head.
"Give me the Holy Mission of Konoha!" He asks her.
"Holy Mission?!" Tsunade raises an eyebrow.
"Are you sure you want that mission?"
"Yes, I am!" Izuna nods his head.
"I think these girls can handle it!"
Bang…
"I am back Granny!" Naruto slams the door open and enters the Hokage Office.
"Naruto! Keep your voice down in the Hokage Office!" Tsunade yells at him.
"…"
Naruto calms down after Tsunade's outburst. Sasuke, Sakura, and Kakashi enter the office.
"Lady Fifth! The escort mission in the Land of Snow is complete. Here is the report!" Kakashi passes a scroll to Shizune.
He turns to Izuna and throws a scroll at him.
"You might be interested in it!"
"This is…" Izuna tilts his head in confusion.
"This is a chakra Armor from the Land of Snow. It blocks most of ninjutsu and genjutsu below B-rank and it even strengthens user's chakra and techniques to another level." Kakashi explains to him.
Hmm…
"That's pretty good!" Izuna nods his head.
He inserts some chakra into the scroll. A black armor with multiple chakra nodes and inscription appears in his hand.
There is an opening near the chest area for the power source.
'Hmm… it follows the principle of Fuinjutsu and inscription. But there is also some craftsmanship and engineering involved in it. It's more like a whiplash's version of Iron Man's suit in Naruto.
A chakra ore can power this suit. But the energy conversion efficiency is quite poor. Also, it has some durability issues. This alloy has many impurities mixed within it.
Although, I have little engineering knowledge but I can improve its design.
Imagine a bunch of Iron shinobis battling against the Otsutsuki clan members.'
One of the most iconic Marvel scenes appears in his mind.
'Nah! That's not cost-efficient at all! The cost of production of even one such armor is phenomenal.'
He shakes his head to dispel his fantasies.
'Still, I can fulfill my wish of an Iron Man suit in this world.'
Izuna stores the scroll and turns to Naruto and the group.
"Ayaka-chan! What are you doing here?" Naruto curiously asks her.
Hehe…
Ayaka flashes her Ninja forehead protector.
"I am a ninja now. So, of course, I am here for a mission." She has a smug smile on her face.
"Wow! You graduated from the academy." Naruto stares at her in amazement.
"Of course!" Ayaka crosses her arms around her chest.
"Incredible!"
Naruto and Sasuke praise her.
"So… what mission are you going to pick?" Sasuke curiously asks her.
"Umm… Tsunade Nee-san mentioned something about the Holy Mission?" Ayaka tilts her head in confusion.
"I don't know what this Holy Mission is?"
"Ho… Holy Mission!!" Naruto and Sakura's expression turns pale.
"It still sends a shiver down my spine. After this mission, I doubted my abilities as a ninja!" Naruto gulps his saliva.
"Is it that scary?" Hanabi has a fearful expression.
"You will see for yourself!" Sakura nods her head.
"Alright, Here is your mission."
Tsunade takes out a pamphlet from her drawer. She passes the pamphlet to Ayaka.
Ayaka grabs the pamphlet. There is a picture of a cat with brown fur on it. The cat has a black line running down its forehead. Three lines run across the black line. The cat has amber eyes and a red ribbon is tied to the right ear of the cat.
"It's a cat!"
Ayaka, Hanabi, and Yakumo has a blank expression.
"No! This thing isn't a cat!" Naruto shivers from his post-traumatic stress disorder.
"Hmph… What's so different about a cat? Even I can easily catch it with no effort?" Yakumo scoffs at the picture.
"Then, it's decided. I will assign team three the Holy Mission."
Tsunade stamps the pamphlet and passes it to Izuna.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
ForgottenLife
ForgottenLife Check out my patre0n and read some advance chapters
www.pa treon.com/ForgottenLife
Chapter 305: 297. The Legendary Whisker
Beep…
"Ayaka here! I am at point C. Over!"
Beep…
"Yakumo here! I am at point B. Over!"
Beep…
"Hanabi here! I am at point A. Over!"
"Okay, Squad three!"
Hm?!
"The target has moved. Follow it! Out!"
Beep…
Izuna ends the radio conversation.
Whoosh…
A small agile shadow quickly dashes through the forest.
"Quick! Catch it."
Ayaka, Hanabi, and Yakumo dashes towards it.
"Yakumo! It's running towards you."
Ayaka informs Yakumo on the comms.
Whoosh… Haaah…
Yakumo dives into the shadow to catch her.
Swoosh…
The shadow performs a somersault in mid-air.
AH!
Bam…
Yakumo face plants on the ground. Dirt smudges on her face.
Fwoosh…
The cat jumps on top of her hairs.
Meow… MEOWWW…
It scratches its claws on Yakumo's head and face and makes a mess of her hairs.
MEOW…
The cat stands on its hind legs and swaggers away.
"Damn you! Just you wait! I will mess you up once I catch you." Yakumo grits her teeth in anger.
Whoosh…
The cat dashes away.
Yakumo takes out a painting from her bag. She quickly strokes with her brush to cast a genjutsu.
Beep…
"Yakumo! You aren't allowed to harm the target. She is the pet cat of Madam Shijimi. Besides, this cat is the bread and butter of countless genins in the village. Over!"
Izuna warns her.
"Fine!" Yakumo grumbles and stores her painting.
Beep…
The comms chortle again.
"Yakumo-chan! You are so slow. We missed the trail of the cat again." Ayaka complains.
"Let's reunite for now. We will start our search again after lunch."
Beep…
Izuna ends the conversation and walks out of his hideout.
Ayaka, Hanabi, and Yakumo walk out of their hiding spot. All of their faces are roughed up with dirt-smudged over their faces and hairs.
There are many scratch marks on their face and arms.
"Aw! My beautiful face."
Ayaka takes out a mirror from her pocket. She inspects the scratch marks on her face.
"Sensei! How is this a C-Rank mission? It's even harder than an A-Rank mission." Hanabi complains.
"I am exhausted!" Yakumo slumps on the ground.
"…"
Izuna silently stares at their antics.
Tok… tok…
Mei walks out of the forest with a basket in her hands.
"Alright, everyone. It's lunchtime!" She waves the basket at them.
"YEAH! Mei Nee-san!"
Ayaka hurriedly dashes towards Mei. Mei takes out a towel from the basket and wipes Ayaka's face.
"My cute little sweetie must be tired!"
She lays down the basket and turns towards Hanabi and Yakumo.
"Come join us! I have enough for you all!"
She takes out a bunch of sandwiches from the basket.
"I have a chicken sandwich, egg sandwich, fish sandwich, vegetable sandwiches, and some fruits and cream."
She lays down the lunch on a cloth.
Gulp…
Hanabi and Yakumo gulp their saliva. Hanabi quickly dashes towards her.
"I am quite hungry." She picks up a sandwich and munches on it.
"I am not feeling hungry." Yakumo turns away.
Growl…
Her stomach grumbles in hunger. Yakumo's face turns red in embarrassment.
"Now! Now! Yakumo-chan! It's not good to stay hungry before a mission. Come and eat your fill." Mei waves her hand.
Gulp…
Yakumo gulps her saliva as the enticing fragrance of sandwiches enters her nose.
"Then don't mind if I do!" She quickly sprints towards them and sits beside Ayaka and Hanabi.
Chomp… chomp…
The girls quickly munch one sandwich after another.
Whoosh…
Izuna flickers out of the forest.
"Leave some for me too!"
He walks towards Mei and opens his mouth.
Aah…
Mei tilts her head in confusion.
"Feed me!" He points towards his mouth.
"How shameless!" Mei snorts but feeds him nonetheless.
Ayaka cutely munches on her sandwich and stares at Izuna.
"Izuna Onii-chan is such a man child. Even as an adult he needs to be fed by others."
AH!
Izuna's expression freezes. He slowly turns towards Ayaka with a smile.
"Ayaka-chan, who told you that term?"
Hmm…
"It was Shisui's Nii-san. He was the one who called you with such a name." Ayaka happily sells out Shisui.
"SHISUI?!" Izuna's expression turns ugly.
Pfft…
Mei bursts out in laughter.
"Now that I think about it. It makes sense." She nods her head.
"Not you too!" Izuna grumbles.
He picks up a sandwich and stuffs it in his mouth.
'For some reason, this sandwich doesn't taste as good as before!'
Mei picks up a sandwich and takes a bite of it. She turns to Ayaka and curiously asks her.
"So, what's your current mission?"
Ayaka turns to Izuna for confirmation. Izuna nods his head.
"It's the Holy Mission!" she remarks.
"Holy Mission?" Doubts appear in Mei's mind.
"What kind of mission is that?" She asks in surprise.
"It is one of the sacred missions of Konoha and every genin has to perform it once or multiple times in their lifetime.
You won't be a true shinobi unless you complete this mission!" Izuna proudly declares.
"Really?!" Mei has a skeptical look on her face. She turns to Ayaka for answers.
Ayaka takes out the poster and passes it to Mei.
Mei glances at the poster and notices the cat.
"It's a cat! So, it's a cat hunt mission!"
"NO! This thing isn't a cat. It's the 'legendary whisker' of Konoha!" Ayaka shakes her head in trepidation.
"It's more agile than a ninja hound, cleverer than a fox, and it has more endurance than a horse!" Ayaka recounts the chase of the past few hours.
Ahem…
"Let me tell you the story of the immortal cat, the 'legendary whisker', and how this mission came to be known as the 'Holy Mission' of Konoha!" Izuna clears his throat and recounts his experience to the group.
Fifteen Minutes later,
"Haah… that hit the spot."
Ayaka pats her stomach and cleans her teeth with a toothpick.
"Hah… I am full." Hanabi rests against her.
Burp…
Yakumo burps and lies down on the grass.
"…"
Izuna silently stares at the trio.
'Are we on a picnic? We sure are not! Then why does it feel like one?'
Cough… cough…
Izuna coughs slightly to get their attention.
"Your mission isn't over yet. That cat won't return on its own."
"Sensei! We are exhausted after the previous chase. We will continue the hunt once we regain our peak condition!" Hanabi waves her hand.
'This girl! She is becoming a shadow of Ayaka. Even her actions are affected by her.' Izuna has an ugly expression on her face.
"See, I told you! It's the effect of your bad company on these kids." Yin Kurama opens its eyes and yawns.
Izuna glares at him.
Yin Kurama flashes his teeth and sniggers.
Izuna has a stern expression on his face as he turns to the girls.
"If you fail this mission, then the first-ever mission of Team three will be recorded as a failure and it will forever be a stain in your shinobi career."
"What?!"
The girls quickly stand up.
"Hanabi, Ayaka! Let's catch that cat before evening!" Yakumo takes the lead.
"OK!"
--------------
Later in the evening,
Inside the Hokage Office,
Hanabi has a brown cat with a red ribbon on its right ear sleeping in her arms.
"You found her!" Tsunade raises an eyebrow.
"These girls were lucky. They found it sleeping on top of a tree." Izuna shakes his head.
Bang…
The gate of the Hokage Office is slammed open. A corpulent woman with dark brown hair walks inside the Hokage Office.
"My Tora-chan?! My darling!"
Meeoww…
The cat's eyes open wide as it is startled by the voice.
"Tora-chan?! Give me a hug and a Kissy!"
The corpulent woman parts her lips opens and walks towards Hanabi.
MEEEOWW…
The cat's hairs stand up in fear. It freaks out at Madam Shijimi's appearance.
The cat jumps down from Hanabi's embrace and dashes towards the door to flee from the woman.
Excitement appears in Madam Shijimi's eyes as she stands near the door.
"Look how excited my Tora-chan is?! Looks like she missed me too!"
Before the cat could resist, she scoops her up and embraces in her hug.
MEEEEEOOOWW…
The cat chokes from the deadly embrace of Madam Shijimi. It wildly flails its arms in a struggle.
"Oh! Tora-chan wants a kiss!"
Smooch…
She kisses the cat and drenches her entire face in saliva.
"Thank you, Hokage-sama!"
Madam Shijimi takes out a stack of Ryo from her purse and passes it to Shizune.
Shizune counts the money.
"Madam Shijimi! It's twice the amount of the mission."
"It's alright! You can keep the change. Ahaha…"
Madam Shijimi folds a fan in front of her face and chuckles.
"Besides, my husband makes a lot of money! Ahaha…"
"Well!"
Tsunade has a conflicted expression on her face.
"If you say so!"
Madam Shijimi grabs the half-dead cat and walks out of the Hokage Office.
Pfft… Haha…
Ayaka and the group burst out in laughter as they snigger at the pathetic condition of the cat.
"Serves it right for its mischievousness!"
CREATORS' THOUGHTS
ForgottenLife
ForgottenLife
Check out my patre0n and read some advance chapters
www.pa treon.com/ForgottenLife
Weekly Power Status
200+ Power
Ranking 
0 Power
stone 
Paragraph comment