Starting with the Uchiha clan, they began cultivating demonic arts.

Chapter 23 First Mission

Among the members of Team 1, Asuma is the son of the Hokage, Hizashi Hyuga is the brother of the Hyuga clan leader, and even though they are from the branch family, they are still young masters. Even Kurenai has a father who is a Jonin, so they have basically never had to worry about money.

Uchiha Touyu was a different story. The Uchiha clan treated him like he was invisible. His parents were commoners and didn't receive any compensation. In recent years, apart from supplementing his family income by hunting, he had been living off the inheritance left by his parents, which could be described as living off his parents' wealth.

Under these circumstances, Uchiha Touyu was naturally quite interested in money, as money is considered a form of power in the Naruto world.

If Uchiha Hiu had been a wealthy man from the beginning, he would have hired ninjas like Kakuzu long ago, captured a large number of rogue ninjas of Chunin and Jonin level, extracted their souls one by one, and trained them in ninjutsu. He wouldn't be in a situation where he only has a Heroic Spirit like Hatake Sakumo who he can possess until now.

The enhancement effect of an ordinary Chunin soul on Uchiha Touyu is limited, and since Uchiha Touyu does not know how to use the Soul Absorption Technique on human souls, it seems to have little effect.

In reality, almost every Chunin has considerable ninjutsu experience, and more senior Chunin may even be involved in chakra nature transformation training. By learning from their experience and complementing their strengths, Uchiha Touyu is confident that he can reach the level of an elite Jonin in a very short time.

It was almost noon when Hyuga Hizashi led Uchiha Tou and the other two to have lunch before heading to the mission hall downstairs in the Hokage building.

Because of the war, Konoha has now canceled all D-rank missions, and basically all missions now start from C-rank.

The newly formed three-person team could only take on C-rank missions. Generally speaking, C-rank missions involve combat but not ninjas; they are mostly missions such as escorting bodyguards or driving away wild beasts.

Hyuga Hizashi glanced at the mission list, then accepted a mission to drive away wild beasts from the fields, and left the mission hall with the three little ones.

Escort missions often take a considerable amount of time, at least one or two days to complete, while driving away wild beasts is much easier because there are no ordinary people to hinder them, and if the distance is nearby, the mission can be completed in just two or three hours.

This time, Hyuga Hizashi found a village that wasn't far away. It was said that many of the villagers' cattle and sheep had been eaten by some kind of ferocious beast, and the traps set by the villagers were useless. Even two hunters who had trained in chakra had been eaten by the beast.

Chakra refining techniques are widely practiced in the Naruto world. Besides ninjas, many ordinary people also cultivate chakra, although most of them don't know any ninjutsu.

Even if he's just a second-rate swordsman with chakra, in the real world, he'd be a superhuman capable of taking on ten opponents at once; ordinary lions and tigers wouldn't stand a chance.

If a beast can devour a hunter who possesses chakra, then it must also be a chakra being. Hyuga Hizashi's choice of missions to train Asuma and Kurenai can be described as meticulous.

As for Uchiha Touyu, the only way he could get a training mission would probably be an A-rank mission or a direct mission to the front lines.

"We've arrived! This is the village!"

Hyuga Hizashi glanced at the village before him, stopped, and led his three subordinates inside.

"Are you ninjas from Konoha? You've finally arrived!"

An elderly man who looked to be in his fifties walked out of the village. This village was not too far from Konoha. The old man was obviously used to seeing ninjas, and even when he saw Hyuga Hizashi's Byakugan, he was not panicked at all.

"That beast is becoming increasingly rampant. Just last night, Jiro, who was hiding at home, was also devoured by that monster. We are truly helpless. Please, ninja sir, drive that monster away quickly!"

"That monster is eating people on its own?! It seems we really can't let it live!"

Hyuga Hizashi frowned and spoke.

For animals, chakra has the effect of enhancing intelligence. Even ordinary frogs and puppies will gradually gain a certain level of intelligence after obtaining chakra. Some chakra animals are even more intelligent than ordinary people. Even those with low intelligence are about the same as eight or nine-year-old children.

Chakra animals with this level of intelligence generally do not attack humans unless provoked. However, once they start attacking humans, it can easily become a regular occurrence, turning them into terrifying beasts.

"It's probably because those two hunters from our village angered it last time! Before, it only preyed on livestock, but now it's started eating people!"

"By the way, village chief, you keep talking about monsters, what kind of animal are you referring to?"

Faced with Asma's question, the village chief's face immediately showed a troubled expression:

"Well... to be honest, I really didn't know. The monster's claw marks looked like some kind of lizard or something, and it was nocturnal. Anyone who saw its true form is already dead."

"Most importantly, apart from the claw marks left at the crime scene, there are no other claw marks or footprints to be found anywhere else!"

"Looks like it's no ordinary chakra creature, but finding people is one of my strengths, so I'll leave this one to me!"

Hyuga Hizashi said, "Having the Byakugan makes you this confident!"

However, an hour later, Hyuga Hizashi felt that he had been proven wrong.

We've already searched several crime scenes, including the cowshed, the sheepfold, the place where the two hunters were killed, and the room where the villager named Jiro was eaten, but we haven't found anything.

Aside from the lizard claw marks left at the crime scene, there were no claw marks indicating either the arrival or departure of the other party. It was as if the other party appeared out of thin air, leaving everyone puzzled.

Hyuga Hizashi also used the power of his Byakugan to search the jungle near the village several times, but found no ferocious beasts with chakra other than some ordinary wild animals.

"Teacher, where is that monster? Can't we even find your white eye?"

Faced with Asuma's question, Hyuga Hizashi was also a little frustrated and shook his head helplessly.

"Uh... that is indeed quite strange..."

"If it didn't leave any tracks on the ground, could it be some kind of flying animal?"

Red frowned and asked, and Hyuga Hizashi immediately shook his head:

"You can tell the size of the animal from the claw marks. If it were a flying creature, it would have left traces in the jungle and inside the house; at the very least, there would be a hole in the roof!"

"What on earth is going on?? Could this animal possibly possess space-time ninjutsu?"

(End of this chapter)