From the night of genocide, marching towards the strongest.

However, based on Sasuke's speculation, Itachi Uchiha must have recently approached Granny Cat, which is why Granny Cat issued the request to collect paw prints at this time.

Is it because he heard that he had successfully graduated and wanted to use the cat to test his abilities?

Thinking of this, Sasuke looked at the trembling cat, tossed out the Paw Paw Encyclopedia, and said calmly, "Put your paw print on it yourself."

Seeing that the cat obediently left its paw print again, Sasuke continued, "If there's nothing else, you should go back to the empty zone as soon as possible. It's not good to wander around outside all day and make the elders at home worry."

After saying that, Sasuke left the palace with the collected paw prints, under the terrified gaze of the cat demon.

Chapter 73 Is he powerful?

A day later, the sky was high and the sun was shining brightly.

Early that morning, as usual, led by Kakashi, they arrived at the Hokage's office to hand over the task of collecting claw marks.

"Well done."

The Third Hokage smiled gently and offered a word of praise.

"I have a bunch of D-rank missions and one C-rank mission here. Which one do you want to do?"

"Grade C!"

As soon as the words were spoken, the members of Class 7 exchanged glances and spoke in unison, as if by telepathy.

Kakashi, however, continued to look at Icha Icha Paradise in his hand, seemingly unconcerned.

"Third Hokage!" Naruto shouted, rushing forward, "We've done so many D-rank missions already, give us that C-rank mission first!"

"Hehe." The Third Hokage looked at the blond boy in front of him and nodded with a smile.

"In that case, I'll assign you a C-level mission."

After saying this, the Third Hokage gave a few instructions to one of his advisors, who bowed and then hurriedly left.

A few minutes later, a short, disheveled old man, reeking of alcohol, walked in.

Tazna!

Sasuke looked at Tazuna, who appeared carefree and drunk, but whose eyes were clear, and a thought struck him.

Accepting this mission means that I will be able to face a truly evenly matched opponent and engage in a life-or-death battle between ninjas!

As for the allegations of feigning alcoholism, lying about missions, and even whether Konoha played a role in it, whether they were genuinely deceived by Tazuna or were simply acting in cooperation with him.

Sasuke didn't care at all; there was only one thing he cared about—the battle!

Because the current Class 7 has a completely different temperament and style from the original Class 7, nothing unpleasant happened. After agreeing on a meeting time, everyone went their separate ways.

The next morning, the sky was high and the sun was shining brightly.

The assembled Class 7 chatted for a while, and not long after, Tazuna arrived as well.

Amidst Naruto's shouts and Tazuna's unease, the group officially began their mission to the Land of Waves.

The Land of Fire is located in the center of the continent, while the Land of Waves is located to the east of the Land of Fire. It is a very small island nation, facing the Land of Fire across the sea. The strait on the coast of the Land of Waves and the Land of Fire is only a little over a thousand meters apart.

It is narrower than the mainland and Hong Kong in the previous life, and the narrowest point of the strait is where the bridge built by Tazna was located.

This wasn't the first time the Seventh Squad had left the village for a mission. Although it was their first mission abroad, the distance was less than when they had gone to Kofu, a border city on the frontier of the Fire Rain.

For ninjas, traveling from Konoha, the center of the Land of Fire, to the Land of Waves at full speed would actually take about 3-4 days. However, considering that Tazuna was an ordinary person, the group did not travel too fast.

The group traveled by day and camped by night, and after a full week, they finally arrived at the coastal border of the Land of Fire.

Along the forest path, the five walked quietly. Sasuke and three other genin formed a triangle around Tazuna, while Kakashi lagged two steps behind to bring up the rear.

This road is not a cement road, but a dirt road that has been worn down by people many times.

Just like in my previous life, the coastal areas of the Land of Fire are quite hot. It hasn't rained in the past few days. The sun is shining directly on the land, but a small puddle has appeared in the middle of the road in the distance.

The moment Naruto saw the puddle, his eyes lit up, and he glanced at his teammates who seemed oblivious to everything.

Naruto nodded to himself, feeling smug.

Sure enough, only I, Naruto Uzumaki, noticed something was wrong!

'Such inferior water-escape and transformation techniques?'

Sakura saw through the disguise in an instant. Others might recognize it as a trap, but they might not know exactly what it was.

But Sakura, who is an expert in water-style techniques, could tell at a glance that it wasn't water!

Seeing that Sasuke and Kakashi still seemed oblivious, Sakura swallowed her words and pretended nothing had happened.

'Kakashi-sensei is an experienced Jonin, and Sasuke is a genius ninja who combines wise judgment with decisive execution. If I've already figured it out, they must have figured it out a long time ago as well.'

'Kakashi-sensei and Sasuke must have their own plans or be considering something far-reaching!'

'Yes, that must be it!'

Kakashi secretly took in the expressions of the others.

It seems only Naruto is willing to take action!

With that thought in mind, Kakashi stepped across the puddle, seemingly focusing all his attention on the book in his hand.

boom!

As soon as Kakashi stepped over the puddle, the water droplets transformed into two rogue ninja from Kirigakure, who appeared with cruel and bloodthirsty smiles as they approached Kakashi.

"First prey secured!"

The Demon Brothers roared arrogantly, as if they could already see Kakashi being torn to pieces by them!

"Leaf Whirlwind!"

However, in the next instant...

A sudden howling wind arose, startling the Ghost Brothers. Out of the corner of their eyes, they saw a blurry figure rushing towards them.

Before he could react, he was struck hard in the face with a roundhouse kick, screamed and rolled away, crashing into a large tree behind him, losing consciousness and remaining motionless.

"Humph!"

After landing, Naruto snorted and looked at his unconscious Demon Brothers, as if he had already seen through everything.

"I must say, your disguise is perfect. You would have fooled an ordinary ninja long ago."

"But a genius ninja like me, Naruto Uzumaki, has already seen through the truth!"

Naruto stood with his hands behind his back, mimicking Sasuke's usual nonchalant demeanor, displaying the air of a master in charge.

Kakashi's lips twitched, he clapped his hands, and casually said, "Well done, Naruto, very good insight."

Then, Kakashi's expression turned cold as he looked at the pale-faced Tazuna: "Mr. Tazuna, C-rank missions do not involve ninja combat. Please give us an explanation."

Tazuna's face paled, and then, just like in the original timeline, Tazuna recounted the predicament of the Land of Waves and his own story.

Sasuke had no interest in listening to any of this and went straight to the Demon Brothers, activating his genjutsu.

..........

After Tazuna finished speaking, Kakashi remained calm, while Naruto, who loved to stand up for the weak, clenched his fists.

Seeing that his teammates didn't speak, he didn't speak immediately either. Instead, Sakura touched her chin, as if she had thought of something.

Seeing that Kakashi remained unmoved, Tazuna gritted his teeth and was about to kneel down when Kakashi was taken aback. He quickly stepped forward to help him up and sighed.

“Mr. Dazner, this matter cannot be decided by me alone. Let me consult my student and then I will give you an answer.”

After saying that, Kakashi led Naruto and Sakura to the side, and at that moment Sasuke also came over and said:

"I got some information from the Demon Brothers."

Everyone looked at Sasuke.

"The Demon Brothers' superior is Zabuza Momochi, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist!"

Upon hearing this, Kakashi's expression darkened slightly: "Zabuza? It seems we're in a bit of trouble."

Naruto hadn't thought that far ahead, or rather, he had no idea what the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were. He simply stepped forward and asked with a curious expression:

"Is Zabuza, the one you were talking about, strong?"

Chapter 74 This is my original motivation for learning physical martial arts

"It's not a matter of whether he's powerful or not."

Kakashi responded solemnly, pondered for a moment, and continued:

"He really is the kind of person..."

"He's amazing!"

Sasuke frowned and interrupted Kakashi and Naruto's conversation.

Their conversation seemed to give him a sense of déjà vu.

"There's another piece of information I need to share. Besides Zabuza, Gato seems to have recently hired a very powerful ninja. This guy is probably acquainted with Zabuza!"

"An acquaintance?" Kakashi's expression turned serious, and he said in a deep voice, "Do you know who it is?"

Sasuke shook his head: "We didn't get any information about who it was from the Demon Brothers' minds. We only heard Zabuza mention it. Judging from their memories, Zabuza seemed to dislike that guy very much."

“Alright!” Kakashi nodded.

"Let's put this issue aside for now. What do you think about our employer, Dazna, lying about the mission level? According to the village rules, we have the right to abandon the mission; the decision is yours."

As soon as he finished speaking, Naruto raised his hand and shouted:

"Kakashi-sensei, I think..."

"Wait a minute, Naruto!" Before he could finish speaking, Kakashi stopped him, saying calmly, "Let Sakura speak first, after all, ladies first, right?"

Actually, Kakashi knew Naruto's choice even before Naruto said it. He planned to hear Sakura's analytical skills and Sasuke's calm and collected answers first.

“Hmm…” Sakura pondered for a moment, organized her thoughts, and then said something surprising:

"Kakashi-sensei, if I'm not mistaken, the village already knew about the unusual level of this mission, right?"

"Oh? Why do you say that?"

Kakashi's expression remained unchanged as he calmly asked the question.