Naruto: Passerby and Returnee

Chapter 223 Revisiting an Old haunt

"Ah! It really is Naruto-nii-san!"

The surprised child's voice made Naruto look up from his documents. He saw a child wearing a fisherman's hat clinging to his desk, trying to get closer to him.

"Iruka? You've grown quite a bit taller." Naruto called out the child's name after only a moment of confusion.

"I told you not to run around." The woman, who was also familiar with the child, hurriedly grabbed the child's hand and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Naruto-kun, this child just misses you too much."

"No need to apologize, Mrs. Tsunami. I'm happy to see you all." Naruto said sincerely. Of course, he also saw Keisha, who was handing over materials to the receptionist on the other side of the office. The sight of the three of them traveling together was indeed the scenery he most wanted to see.

The mission allocation department's office is arranged in a circular layout, with everyone working here to ensure the real-time availability of all information and to facilitate clients in issuing missions. The ninja who received Keisha seemed to be under a lot of pressure, so Naruto had to politely decline Inari's request to chat with him during working hours and asked them to wait for the evaluation results in the lounge.

Without even reading the letter of authorization, Naruto knew why they were there. The Land of Waves' "Spring Festival" was a recent event, and a festival planned as a major event naturally required sufficient security. While they had their own people, it couldn't compare to the intimidation of having a powerful ninja from a major nation as their backer. This mission wasn't just about bodyguards; it was about cultivating relationships. The mission was approved by Hidden Light's headquarters, and the assessment would most likely be B-rank. Naruto had considered the personnel lineup beforehand, but the final decision rested with the Hokage.

"The follow-up to the Land of Waves mission," Tsunade said, calling Naruto aside. "According to convention, I should send ninjas who participated in the last mission. But you and Kakashi are both Jonin, and a B-rank mission doesn't need that many Jonin to cover for you."

Naruto immediately replied, "It's all up to Granny Tsunade."

Tsunade glared at him. "You little brat, you must have something on your mind. Hurry up and tell me, or I won't let you go."

“Although the festival is quite large, the Land of Waves has been peaceful for the past year and hasn’t encountered any further attacks. So we can assign more genin with reconnaissance abilities to the personnel.” Naruto answered instantly again. He had even sent out invitations, and even if he didn’t take on a mission, he would find an excuse to ask for leave.

"Hehe, it seems you already have someone in mind. You'll be the team leader for this mission. Organize your own team."

Since Team 8 was away on a mission, Naruto only managed to capture Sakura, Team 10, and Team Guy. He then submitted a personnel request directly to the Hokage, specifically for Aburame Torune from Root. Root members have their own evaluation system, which doesn't apply to the standard rank of ninja (upper, middle, and lower). Since Danzo always tries to send people abroad anyway, he figured he might as well ask for them himself, which would also make the habitually suspicious Danzo doubt his trusted aide.

This was also a plan that Tobirama had devised after his last "New Year's visit." Tobirama knew exactly how to deal with his students.

So, the number of free laborers increased from one to two, and Shan Zhongfeng was added to the ranks. They claimed that their team lacked a perceptive type, and one perceptive wasn't enough.

It's unclear what Danzo was thinking, but he certainly wasn't in a good mood. Danzo's unhappiness delighted Naruto; he never expected a buy-one-get-one-free deal. Naruto didn't know much about Yamanaka Fu's personality, but he glimpsed a resemblance to Torune in Uncle Shiguro. Uncle Shiguro was the only high-ranking member of the Mission Allocation Department who hadn't crashed; he genuinely cared for the village. Even after Naruto destroyed so many of his old friends, Shiguro simply applauded silently, and even became a little closer to Naruto.

As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. Uncle Shiguro's children are probably not much different from him, and Kaze, who can be friends with Torune, is probably one of those people who have been misled.

That's all for the mission.

The first meeting of this amazing team after their formation went fairly well. With their goals in mind, Tone's attitude was somewhat restrained, and Kaze was immediately informed by Yamanaka Inoichi that even if they were biased towards Danzo, they wouldn't cause trouble for the mission.

"We'll discuss the specific task assignments after we assess the environment. Everyone should have their luggage ready, right?"

Seeing everyone nod, Naruto smiled and stretched out his hand. His close friends who had been on missions with him before understood and reached out, while only their clients and two Root members looked puzzled. But it didn't matter; the fiery red Tailed Beast Cloak was also an extension of him. Naruto quickly grabbed the rest of them, and the scene before them instantly changed.

They landed on a main road, bustling with people on both sides. The group was a little startled by the sudden attack, but seeing the Konoha headbands made them seem unfazed, and they continued with what they were doing.

"Huh? Has it changed that much?" Naruto's surprise was, of course, feigned. As someone who hadn't been here in a long time, he had to show surprise at this road that hadn't been there for a year and a half.

"Wow...wow! What is this? We're almost home now!" Inari jumped up, still as mischievous as ever despite losing her father. She grabbed Naruto's cloak, looking at it from left to right. "Naruto made this, right? Where's that red thing from earlier?"

"This is a ninjutsu, the Flying Thunder God Technique. It's a very difficult technique to learn~" Naruto ruffled Inari's hair and said before his parents could stop him, "Aren't you going to show us around the new Land of Waves, Inari?"

"Then you'd better stay close, or we won't be responsible for finding you if you get lost!"

Children's behavior and values ​​need guidance, and Naruto has learned this after experiencing a crushing defeat.

Inari, the little guide, was very competent. They were first taken to the border to complete the immigration procedures, where Haku, who had grown a bit, was waiting. He had grown quite a bit taller, and his handsome face had matured; one could now tell he was a teenager. Upon hearing Inari's request, Haku arranged for someone to take the ninja team's luggage to their lodgings, and then he accompanied them on their journey through the Land of Waves.

They first walked through the festival venue, which was surprisingly built on the sea. It was so novel that even the most resolute ninjas were curious about what it would be like to sit on it.

"See that super cool track? It's called a roller coaster, and it feels amazing to ride it! But scaredy-cats shouldn't ride it, or they'll cry when they get off~" Inari proudly raised her head.

"A roller coaster? Will there be cars running on tracks?" Ya reacted quickly, immediately grasping the key point.

"Yes, the car is over there!"

As far as the eye can see, there is the starting point of a steep slope, where a long bus with five rows of seats is parked on the tracks.

In the silence of everyone, Bai smiled broadly and asked, "Want to give it a try?"