"Guy, which direction?"
Inside the dense forest, Shiranui Genma lowered his voice while keeping the toothpick clenched between his lips. The surrounding woods were dim beneath the night sky, and aside from the occasional rustling of leaves, almost no sound could be heard.
However, before Genma could even finish speaking, Guy had already moved.
He did not answer verbally.
His figure shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring.
Three dark figures suddenly burst out from the nearby bushes while clutching rusted machetes in their hands. They clearly had not expected someone to rush at them head-on so quickly. The man in front only managed to widen his eyes slightly before seeing a green blur flash before him.
Bang!
Guy's kick landed squarely against the center of the man's chest.
The impact sent him flying backward several meters before crashing heavily into a tree trunk. His eyes rolled upward instantly, and his entire body slid limply down the bark without even managing to scream.
The two men behind him froze for a brief second in shock.
That single second was already too late.
Bang!
A second kick swept across violently.
Another bandit rolled several times across the ground before collapsing unconscious into the grass.
The final man immediately panicked and turned around to flee. However, Guy had already stepped off the ground and leapt into the air before spinning rapidly.
"Konoha Senpu!"
Whoosh!
The top of his foot smashed directly into the back of the fleeing man's head.
The bandit flew forward face-first into a pile of fallen leaves before collapsing motionless onto the forest floor.
From beginning to end, less than three seconds had passed.
Ebisu hurried over from behind while clutching a thick rope in his hands. His movements had already become so practiced over the course of the operation that it was almost painful to watch.
Without wasting time, he immediately began tying up the unconscious bandits one by one.
After securing the first man, he looked up toward Guy with a helpless expression.
"Could you try being gentler next time? If they die, all our work capturing them becomes meaningless."
In an era of war like this, the fate awaiting captured bandits was not necessarily much kinder than death itself. However, these people had already slaughtered merchant caravans and innocent civilians before, so none of the students felt much psychological pressure regarding this mission.
Guy simply grinned.
"They won't die. I'm holding back."
Ebisu curled his lips before continuing to tie the others tightly.
The second one.
Then the third.
Once everything was finished, he stood up and brushed dirt from his hands while staring at the three tightly bound bandits lying on the ground like rice dumplings.
"This is already the third wave."
Shiranui Genma walked over calmly before lightly kicking the nearest bandit to confirm the bindings were secure.
"Team Six. Three captured."
Then he glanced sideways toward Guy.
"How many did you take down already?"
Guy lowered his head slightly and thought for a moment.
"The first wave had two people. The second wave had four. Including these three..."
He counted briefly on his fingers.
"Nine total."
Ebisu's mouth twitched violently.
"The three of us are operating together, yet you've already personally taken down nine people by yourself?"
Guy scratched his head awkwardly.
"It... seems like it?"
Genma remained silent for several seconds.
Then he slowly removed the toothpick from his mouth, stared directly at Guy for a moment, and quietly placed it back again.
"...Fine."
Only one word.
Yet his expression clearly carried the meaning of, "Is this monster really human?"
In the distant forest, faint sounds of movement and occasional clashes could still be heard from other directions.
Today was the very first real combat mission for the Ninja Academy students.
The twenty-one students had been divided into seven three-man teams before spreading outward in a fan-shaped formation to surround the bandit hideout hidden within the forest.
Teams One through Seven spread from left to right.
Umino Iruka personally positioned himself at the center, Team Four, ensuring that he could support either side quickly if danger appeared.
Theoretically speaking, the ideal strategy should have been forming a complete encirclement to prevent any enemies from escaping. However, Iruka did not dare use such a formation.
After all, these were still children.
The oldest among them was only eight years old.
The youngest was merely six.
If they spread too far apart and something unexpected happened, Iruka would not necessarily be able to reach them in time.
At the very least, the current fan-shaped formation ensured every team remained within his support range.
Guy's team happened to draw Team Six.
Second from the far right.
Even farther right was Team Seven.
Gekkō Hayate.
Yūgao Uzuki.
And another child whose name Guy could no longer remember clearly.
That child rarely spoke during class and possessed almost no presence at all. Under normal circumstances, Guy probably would not even notice him.
Yet for some reason, at this exact moment, that forgotten face suddenly surfaced inside his mind.
What was his name again...?
"Hey."
Ebisu lowered his voice suddenly.
"Doesn't it feel a little too quiet over there?"
Guy immediately snapped back to reality before turning his gaze toward the right side of the forest.
The woods there were pitch-black beneath the night sky.
No movement.
No sound.
Quiet.
Far too quiet.
Not even a single trace of activity could be heard from Team Seven's direction.
"Maybe they just didn't encounter anyone," Genma said calmly.
Ebisu nodded in agreement.
"That's possible. We've already run into three separate groups over here, so maybe their side simply doesn't have many patrols."
After speaking, he stretched lazily while brushing dust from his clothes.
"Honestly, this mission doesn't seem all that difficult."
There was obvious confidence in his tone now.
"When Teacher Umino explained the mission earlier, I thought things would be dangerous. But these guys are just ordinary bandits."
He casually kicked one of the tied-up men nearby.
"They aren't even Shinobi. Between the three of us, Guy already took down nine people by himself."
Ebisu adjusted his sunglasses proudly.
"At this rate, clearing the entire camp will only ta—"
"Ebisu."
Guy suddenly interrupted him.
Ebisu turned around.
"Hmm?"
Guy looked directly at him with an unusually serious expression.
"Don't get careless."
Ebisu froze briefly.
Then he curled his lips stubbornly.
"Who's being careless? I'm just stating facts."
Guy's gaze remained steady.
"Teacher Umino already said this before."
He paused slightly.
"On the battlefield, the careless ones die first."
Ebisu opened his mouth instinctively, clearly wanting to argue back. However, after seeing the seriousness in Guy's eyes, the words abruptly stopped in his throat.
Finally, he clicked his tongue lightly before turning his head away.
"Yeah, yeah. I got it."
Although he sounded annoyed, his tone had already become noticeably more serious than before.
Guy did not continue lecturing him.
Instead, he quietly turned toward Genma.
Genma happened to be staring at him as well.
Their eyes met briefly.
Then Genma nodded almost imperceptibly.
Clearly, he also sensed that something felt wrong.
Guy quietly lowered his gaze before glancing toward the System panel inside his mind.
[Mission: Eliminate the Bandit Group]
[Reward: 100 Monk Value, Random Intermediate Gift Pack]
This mission notification had appeared before they departed from Konoha earlier that day.
And this was the first time the System had ever rewarded an Intermediate Gift Pack.
Every previous mission until now had only provided Elementary Gift Packs.
Yet this single bandit suppression mission rewarded an Intermediate one instead.
Guy's fists slowly tightened.
What did that mean?
It meant this mission's danger level far exceeded everything before.
It meant people could actually die here.
No.
Guy immediately corrected himself internally.
The System never used uncertainty.
Within the System's judgment, there was only "possible" or "impossible."
A reward of one hundred Monk Value and an Intermediate Gift Pack...
This mission was definitely not as simple as eliminating a few ordinary bandits.
Just as that thought surfaced
Swooshhhhhhhhh!!!
A piercing whistle suddenly exploded through the distant forest to their right.
All three of them instantly looked upward.
Above the treetops, a bright signal flare shot high into the night sky while trailing a crimson tail of light behind it.
The red glow illuminated nearly half the forest canopy.
That signal
"Team Seven!" Ebisu shouted immediately.
The location flashed through Guy's mind instantly.
Far right.
The outermost edge of the formation.
The position furthest away from Iruka.
Team Seven.
Gekkō Hayate.
Yūgao Uzuki.
And the nameless child Guy could barely remember.
The flare continued rising.
Red light.
An emergency distress signal.
"Move!"
Before anyone could discuss anything further, Guy had already rushed forward again.
No hesitation.
No wasted words.
Genma and Ebisu immediately followed behind him without even exchanging glances.
Three shadows burst through the forest at full speed.
Guy led from the front.
And throughout his entire mind, only one thought remained.
Don't let anything happen.
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