Chapter 74: Continuing C-Rank Missions
Upon arriving back at the town, Renjiro announced, "Let's take a break for today. You can explore this town freely. However, you must stay together as a team. We'll meet at 1 PM at the same restaurant as yesterday."
After he departed, Hodaka observed, "You know, because so much happened, I didn't even notice that we completed the mission and returned to this town in just two hours!"
Mieko also nodded in agreement. Kaito sighed and said, "Yes, and the actual combat didn't even last a few minutes. While killing is difficult to process emotionally, the battle itself wasn't challenging at all."
Hearing this, Mieko inquired about the specific details of the battle. Hodaka had already witnessed everything with his Byakugan, so he didn't need to ask.
After hearing the complete account, Mieko felt that the C-rank mission was somewhat anticlimactic. Kaito smiled and joked, "Next time, you should get angry at that coordinator again and force him to assign us a B-rank mission."
Mieko, hearing this, loudly protested, "Hey, who got angry?"
Her shout attracted attention from nearby townspeople, making Mieko blush with embarrassment. She thought for a moment and said, "But, yes, I actually think we should request a B-rank mission eventually."
Afterward, the three genin explored the town together. They sampled various local delicacies and played several carnival games.
At 1 PM, they met Renjiro at the restaurant as scheduled. After they were seated, Renjiro looked at Kaito and asked, "How are you feeling now?"
Kaito replied, "Sensei, I'm fine now. Nothing's wrong."
Renjiro nodded with satisfaction and said, "Good, you handled your first kill admirably. I'm proud of you."
He then looked at Mieko and Hodaka and stated, "It's your turn next. You need to mentally prepare yourselves."
Both genin nodded nervously.
Lunch arrived, and the team began eating. During the meal, Mieko suddenly asked, "Sensei, when can we accept a B-rank mission?"
Renjiro narrowed his eyes and asked, "What's this about?"
Mieko explained, "We want to fight actual enemy shinobi. Fighting only bandits isn't particularly exciting."
Renjiro scoffed and stated, "You're not ready for that yet."
However, he noticed Mieko's determined expression. Knowing she would likely cause problems, he quickly added, "If you ask this again, or pester me for a B-rank mission, I'll make you perform D-rank missions exclusively for an entire year."
This threat immediately silenced Mieko.
For the remainder of that day, Team Renjiro didn't accomplish much.
The next morning, Team Renjiro undertook a similar mission. They concealed themselves in a bamboo grove, observing the bandit hideout.
The bandits had cleared a small area and constructed three small huts and one medium-sized hut as their base. The medium hut stood in the center, with the three smaller huts surrounding it.
Kaito sensed a total of twelve people within these structures. Renjiro asked, "This time, who wants the assignment?"
Mieko spoke before Hodaka could respond, "Me!"
Renjiro nodded and said, "Alright, this bandit hideout is yours to clear."
Mieko began advancing stealthily. But she quickly stopped and returned. She looked at Hodaka and asked, "Hodaka, do they have any hostages?"
Hodaka checked with his Byakugan and replied, "No, all twelve people appear to be bandits."
Mieko asked, "How many people are in each structure?"
Hodaka reported, "The middle hut contains nine, that hut has two, the right hut has one, and the last one is empty."
Mieko nodded and advanced stealthily using Earth Release: Subterranean Voyage.
She stopped five meters from the hut containing two bandits and emerged from the ground.
From her position, the large hut stood directly behind the small one. She rapidly formed hand seals and launched Fire Release: Fireball Technique.
The fireball quickly passed through the smaller hut. As it penetrated, two people screamed loudly.
Since the fireball hadn't detonated yet, it only burned them severely without killing them immediately.
The fireball passed completely through the smaller hut and reached the larger structure. It exploded in the center of the main hut.
The explosion completely obliterated the structure. Kaito observed four bodies thrown outward by the blast. The explosion instantly killed seven bandits.
The two bandits who were thrown clear remained alive, screaming as they burned. The same was true for the other two bandits in the small hut.
Since the huts were constructed from bamboo and leaves, they offered no resistance to the fireball whatsoever.
Hearing the agonized screams, the last bandit fled from his hut, only to see both structures engulfed in flames.
He looked around frantically and saw his comrades burning and screaming. This sight filled him with absolute terror.
Before he could decide his next action, Mieko flickered behind him using Body Flicker and employed Fire Release: Flame Finger to generate a concentrated heat beam that pierced his heart, killing him instantly.
Now that all the bandits were either dead or fatally wounded, Mieko surveyed her surroundings. She stared at the burning bodies, smelled the nauseating scent of charred flesh, and heard the dying screams of three bandits.
This horrific scene instantly made her want to vomit.
Renjiro quickly appeared behind her to offer comfort. Kaito had already experienced killing, so he remained relatively unfazed by this scene.
But Hodaka struggled with the overwhelming smell of burned bodies and the terrible screams.
Soon, the screaming subsided completely, and all the bandits were dead.
After allowing Mieko several minutes to compose herself, Team Renjiro retreated from the location.
Before departing, Renjiro used Earth Release techniques to bury the entire site underground.
The next day, Team Renjiro executed a similar mission again. This time, the assignment was capturing bandits alive.
Hodaka systematically incapacitated all the bandits and bound them securely, completing the objective.
However, Renjiro made Hodaka execute two of the captured bandits so he could also experience his first kill.
Renjiro granted the squad a full day off on the fourth day.
On the morning of the fifth day, Renjiro announced, "Today is our final mission here. All three of you have performed excellently. Let's move out."
During transit, he explained, "Today's bandit hideout is substantially larger. You'll need to coordinate your efforts."
The genin nodded in understanding. After two and a half months of continuous intensive training, their team coordination had become excellent.
Their shared experience of first kills had brought them emotionally closer as well. So cooperation wouldn't be an issue for any of them.
Upon reaching the hideout, the genin discovered that the entire base was actually located underground.
Kaito scanned the entire structure with his sensory abilities. He reported, "I can sense sixty-three people total."
He then looked at Renjiro and added, "There are also five individuals with noticeably higher chakra levels, though they're only at genin-level."
Renjiro nodded in acknowledgment, while Mieko exclaimed happily, "Yes! Finally we get to fight actual shinobi!"
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