Bab 25: From D-Rank Missions to B-Rank
The next day.
Asuka was not woken up by noise this time. He covered his head with a pillow, keeping his eyes tightly shut, and planned to continue resting for a while.
Last night had really worn him out.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Scrape! Scrape! Scrape!
The kitchen was filled with the sounds of chopping vegetables and clattering pans.
Smash!
And the sound of dishes breaking.
Asuka removed the pillow and groggily walked to the kitchen. Seeing Yugao busy inside, he mumbled, "Actually... you could have just made me some instant noodles."
"No!"
Uzuki Yugao wiped the sweat from her forehead and decisively refused.
Asuka leaned against the wall, yawned, and after sniffing the aroma in the air, he looked satisfied.
"Thank you for your hard work. What's for breakfast today? I think I smell tomatoes and eggs, tomato scrambled eggs?"
She looked at the tomatoes in the pan, now turned into mush and unable to retain their original shape, and fell silent.
She had originally intended to make tomato scrambled eggs, but somehow ended up with a tomato paste instead.
After a moment, she stirred the spoon a few times and said with a hint of hesitation, "Tomato-flavored egg soup."
"Not bad. I haven't had soup in a while this morning. I'll go wash up first, and then we can head out for a mission after breakfast."
With that, Asuka turned and left the kitchen.
Is there any difference between tomato egg soup and tomato scrambled eggs? One is thick soup, the other is thin.
Hmm.
After Asuka finished washing up and saw the tomato egg soup on the table, he fell silent.
He couldn't see any tomatoes in the soup.
After scooping a few spoonfuls and taking a sip, he said immediately with a sense of accomplishment.
"Yugao, you really are meticulous. You even used a juicer for the tomatoes. When I used to make this, I just chopped up the tomatoes and stir-fried them casually."
"Is it really good?"
"Mm! Mm!"
Asuka nodded. As long as someone else makes him a meal, he always praises it, regardless of whether it's good or bad. It's always better to give compliments.
It's just a bit sweet.
In Konoha Village, at the park.
Asuka walked slowly along the path, digesting his food, while explaining today's task to the three students behind him.
"Today, the task you have is not difficult; it's a D-rank [Behavior Investigation] task. A villager who is about to get married has recently noticed some unusual behavior from his girlfriend and wants us to help investigate her behavior to see if she is suitable for marriage."
"Behavior investigation tasks test your tracking skills, intelligence gathering abilities, and interrogation skills."
Asuka hesitated for a moment, then pointed towards the police department's prison and explained,
"Interrogation ability is about extracting the answers you want from the [interrogation target]. The [Great Memory Restoration Jutsu] is a Ninjutsu commonly used in interrogation and is also a relatively simple Ninjutsu."
Uzuki Yugao searched her memory but couldn't determine the rank of [Great Memory Restoration Jutsu], which sounded quite advanced. Is it an A-rank?
She then asked her question.
"Sensei, what is the Great Memory Restoration Jutsu?"
"The Great Memory Restoration Jutsu, well..."
Asuka stopped, turned to face the three, and, after organizing his words in his mind, explained,
"It's the advanced form of [Secret Transmission Mind Body Switch Jutsu], which is the Yamanaka clan's secret Ninjutsu."
Its lower-level expression is Taijutsu, which is exactly the Taijutsu you practice daily."
"So…"
At this point, Hyuga Hanabi had a few black lines appear on her forehead. Using her Byakugan, she looked at her sensei and said coldly,
"So, the so-called interrogation is literally just beating the crap out of the person??"
"You could say that."
Asuka nodded, then pulled out a scroll from his pocket, unfurled it, and read aloud,
"Randomly beating up villagers results in a 20-day detention, a fine of 100,000, and covering the villager's medical expenses. You are also banned from accepting tasks in any form for three months.
If you beat up villagers at will and end up forcing a confession, and if they later report you to Hokage-sama, you'll be in trouble. When I encountered some irritating idiots back in the day, I always went with the answers in hand. Even if they did report me to Hokage-sama, Lord Third couldn't fault me."
"Alright, I've shared the key to doing the mission with you."
Asuka handed the mission scroll to the three of them, clapped his hands, and commanded,
"Disperse!"
Whoosh!
As soon as the words left his mouth, the three exchanged glances and quickly jumped to a nearby tree, heading towards the village.
Watching their retreating figures, Asuka put his hands behind his back and gazed nostalgically at the clouds in the sky.
When he used to take on such missions, he would gather evidence first, then carry it in his pocket before interrogating the individuals.
Usually, these people had a lot of false hopes. Then came the time to use the Memory Restoration Technique.
With his superb Medical Ninjutsu and the Memory Restoration Technique, doing such tasks felt as refreshing as eating chilled watermelon on a hot summer day.
Refreshing!
Thinking of this, he lay on a park bench, took out a medical book from his bag, and began to flip through it slowly.
As his Medical Ninjutsu approached the pinnacle of this world, Asuka's curiosity about the secrets held by Tsunade grew stronger.
Her childhood photos were clearly as straight as a coffin board, but in a very short time, such a big change occurred.
Although his Medical Ninjutsu skills were somewhat inferior to Tsunade's, they were not out of reach.
There must be a big secret behind this.
If he could uncover this secret, it would be like finding a bag of money.
At this moment.
Uzuki Yugao, Hyuga Hanabi, and Iruka had arrived at the mission location.
The mission they were given was not difficult.
The employer had already provided the daily schedule of his girlfriend. They just needed to follow, record, and interrogate.
This task was so easy it could be done with their eyes closed.
"Hanabi, don't lose track."
"Got it!"
Seeing Hyuga Hanabi's cold expression and the prominent veins around her eyes, Uzuki Yugao knew she had activated her Byakugan. She then turned to Iruka and said quietly,
"Iruka, go ahead to the bathhouse where the target frequently goes. If the target is going there today, then you book the bathroom next to hers and wait for us."
"Understood!"
With that, Iruka left the group and arrived at the bathhouse first.
As time passed, he soon saw the target arriving at the bathhouse with her bathing supplies.
Hmm?
Just by herself?
Seeing her enter the women's bathhouse alone, Iruka furrowed his brow.
The mission briefing mentioned that his girlfriend seemed to have developed an obsession with cleanliness recently, coming to the bathhouse every morning, spending several hours there, and getting very close to a stranger. This was why the task was to investigate her conduct.
"Hey!"
At this moment, Hyuga Hanabi and Uzuki Yugao also ran in from outside. Seeing Iruka standing there in a daze, they approached and asked in a low voice.
"Is she in the mixed-gender bath?"
"No!"
Iruka shook his head in confusion. He pointed inside and said quietly.
"She went into the women's bath."
"Woman??"
The two of them blinked, looking at their companion with confusion, and asked in unison.
"You didn't see something wrong?"
Iruka shook his head.
He had indeed seen the person lift the curtain to the women's bathhouse, which was why he was lingering in the lobby.
At this moment, Hyuga Hanabi suddenly began to do some calculations.
"The reward for this mission is a total of 5000 ryo. After deducting the village's handling fee, we can earn 4000 ryo. Sensei will take 1000, so we three will each get 1000. The entry fee for the women's bath is 150 per person, so for two people, it's 300. Since Iruka, you can't go in, you need to give 50 ryo each to Yugao and me.
You contributed very little this time. Even among teammates, we need to keep clear accounts to avoid disputes."
Huh??
Iruka scratched his head, then his face showed a look of realization. He took out 100 ryo from his bag and handed it to the two of them.
After the two entered the bathhouse, Yugao looked at the white mist inside and then glanced at the basket of bathing supplies in her hand, hesitating.
"Is this okay?"
"Well, well!"
Hyuga Hanabi waved her hand casually.
"We're doing the task while soaking in the hot spring. Besides, I feel like we won't finish the task today. His girlfriend has already gone to the women's bath, and the task description clearly says she has an ambiguous relationship with a stranger. That person is most likely a man."
"Alright then!"
Yugao thought about it for a moment and agreed with this reasoning. She put down the basket, placed her hands on her pants, and was about to undress when she heard a commotion coming from next door.
"You're so bad, let's go to your place later."
"Isn't it okay here?"
Upon hearing a particularly rough voice, Hyuga Hanabi's arm, which was lifting her top, froze in mid-air. She then expressionlessly put her clothes back on, radiating a "don't come near me" aura.
Seeing Hyuga Hanabi pick up a Kunai and move toward the next room, Uzuki Yugao frowned and said, "Isn't it unnecessary to use a Kunai?"
"No."
Hyuga Hanabi tightly gripped the Kunai and replied coldly, "We cannot tolerate perverts who intrude into the women's bath."
With that, she lifted the curtain and entered the adjacent single bath.
"Ah~"
A piercing scream rang out. Hyuga Hanabi glanced at the task target, who was covering themselves with a towel, and then her gaze shifted to another person.
Hmm?
A woman?
No, it's Transformation Jutsu.
With her Byakugan activated, Hanabi could see the Chakra inside the target.
Seeing the Chakra flowing within, Hanabi's expression darkened.
This person is actually a Ninja.
"Who are you?"
Upon hearing the task target's question, Hyuga Hanabi looked at the Ninja with vigilance, clutching the Kunai tightly.
"I'm a Ninja hired by your boyfriend to investigate your recent strange behavior."
"You actually have a boyfriend??" The Ninja asked.
At this, the Ninja in the bath stood up, looking at her in shock.
"No, don't listen to that woman. It's just a boyfriend; I'm breaking up with him right now."
With that, she stood up and walked over to Hyuga Hanabi, sneering, "Go back and tell your employer that he doesn't have a girlfriend anymore, and your task is over."
Hyuga Hanabi's eyelid twitched. She looked at the task target, then at the Ninja behind her, silently mourning for her employer for a moment before shaking her head.
"It's no longer about the employer; it's about the person behind you who intruded into the women's bath."
She then looked at the Ninja who had dressed but had not yet dispelled the Transformation Jutsu, continuing, "Show me your identification."
"Identification?"
She turned to look at her male companion, surprised.
"Do you have an ID ? Isn't it still not processed?"
Hyuga Hanabi was confused. "No identification? Illegal resident?"
"No, Ninja-sama, please listen to me."
Before he could finish, the woman immediately became upset. She pointed at Hyuga Hanabi's nose and shouted, "What do you mean by illegal resident? Why are you speaking so harshly? He wants to get a certificate, but you wouldn't allow it. You say he's a foreigner, and because his information is incomplete, you're not processing it."
"No, no."
The Ninja quickly waved his hand towards Hyuga Hanabi, sweating profusely. "What illegal resident? Ninja-sama, please listen to me."
"You're still a foreigner and an illegal resident."
Hyuga Hanabi nodded in understanding. She took out another Kunai from her bag and said seriously.
"You're going to be detained and investigated by the Konoha Police Department for a while."
"Don't detain me. I'm a merchant. I came to Konoha for business."
"Why are you arguing with her?"
The woman pointed at the Byakugan user and turned to her male companion, dissatisfied.
"You let her detain you. Didn't you sell all the gold you secretly brought? You've laundered all the money you had on you. Why are you afraid of the Police Department? Let them investigate."
"Laundering money??"
"You're laundering money? Come on, let's go to the Police Department."
Seeing Hyuga Hanabi's increasingly displeased expression, the man quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead and began to explain. "No, no, Ninja-sama, please let me explain. Let's not escalate this to the Police Department."
"Why are you so annoying? What's the point of explaining to her? Why are you afraid of her? You're not going anywhere, not even to the Police Department."
After interrupting her male companion, she still felt a surge of frustration. She then pointed at Hyuga Hanabi's nose and turned to shout at her male companion.
"Didn't you say you're a Ninja? She's a Ninja too. Why are you afraid of her? You're from the Sand Village, and it is one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. Why are you scared of her?"
Hyuga Hanabi looked at the two people inside with a puzzled expression. She rubbed her cheeks, which had become somewhat stiff from shock, and asked.
"Hey, do you work for the Hidden Sand Village?"
"No, no. I don't work for the Hidden Sand Village."
The man's face was sweating more as he spoke. He had known this woman by accident for several years. His original plan when coming to Konoha was to create a new identity, but he didn't expect this woman to be here.
Upon seeing her, he immediately had an idea. If he obtained a marriage certificate with her, he could enter Konoha openly, making his undercover identity much safer.
To be extra cautious, he even revealed his true identity to her and forcefully tied her to his ship.
After all, Being accused of colluding with foreign ninja was something they couldn't bear.
Moreover, after his hypnosis, this person suddenly became infatuated.
He had been too hasty. His hypnosis had been too severe, turning her into a lovesick fool.
"He's a Ninja from the Hidden Sand Village. Didn't the Shinobi World achieve peace, He came to Konoha this time, isn't this a sign of peace in the ninja world?"
"Shut up!"
The man roared, slapping the noisy person away.
Damn it! I'm already exposed for intruding into the women's bath.
At this moment, Uzuki Yugao also took out a Kunai and stood beside Hyuga Hanabi, looking at the Sand Ninja with a wary expression.
This mission had gotten somewhat out of control. It involves ninjas from outside the village. And they are Sand Ninjas who sneak into the village.
No matter how you look at it, this doesn't seem like a D-Rank Mission. It might even be B-Rank.
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone