"Really!" Kenji smiled and winked at Kushina.
Kushina immediately recalled the situation of her last meeting with Kenji. She couldn't help but feel annoyed and shot him a glare.
Tsunade looked at Kenji, then at Kushina, and asked, "You've met before?"
"Yeah, when we went to see Grandma before, she was there too!"
Hearing this, Tsunade said huffily, "Your ability to notice girls is really impressive. Did she leave such a deep impression on you the first time?"
Kenji glanced at Tsunade and shrugged. "It can't be helped. Who told her to have such obvious features? A head of bright red hair is very attractive to me."
Pausing for a moment, Kenji looked at Kushina again. "More importantly, she's also very pretty!"
Kushina was slightly stunned, and then her face turned red with a "swish." She lowered her head shyly, muttering in her heart.
This guy's skin is getting thicker and thicker. To actually say such things in front of so many people.
However, unbeknownst to her, compared to last time, she didn't seem to hate Kenji anymore.
With her red hair, when she first arrived in the Hidden Leaf, she suffered countless discriminatory and mocking gazes.
But Kenji actually said her hair looked good?
Smack!
Just as Kenji was displaying his flirting skills, Tsunade slapped him on the head and said resentfully, "Restrain yourself a bit. Get ready to hit the road."
The people of the Land of Whirlpools were born with massive chakra and excelled in mysterious sealing techniques. Feared by various nations, they were attacked by a coalition during the war, leading to their destruction.
The current Land of Whirlpools had long become a land of exile, chaotic and disorderly.
As the group approached the territory of the Land of Whirlpools, what they saw was devastation, the flames of war still burning, and countless wandering ninja.
When these hungry and cold ninja cast their gazes over, they all carried strange colors.
"This is not a C-rank mission at all. classifying it as a B-rank mission wouldn't be excessive, right?" Kenji felt a bit more vigilant.
Tsunade also instructed solemnly, "Everyone be careful. Protect Kushina well."
Dan Uchiha glanced around. Seeing mostly defeated soldiers who weren't even ninja, he was dismissive in his heart.
"Little Sister Kushina, what are we picking up here?" Although Dan Uchiha wasn't as direct as Kenji, he also thought Kushina was quite cute.
"Things my grandmother left for me. My home was destroyed; I don't know if those things are still there." Kushina looked a bit sorrowful.
Kenji understood. When the Hidden Leaf found Kushina, the Land of Whirlpools was in the midst of war. They left in a hurry at that time and didn't have time to take anything.
After the destruction of the Land of Whirlpools, only Kushina entered the Hidden Leaf. The rest of the Uzumaki clan were scattered across various countries and villages.
For example, Nagato's parents and Karin's parents.
"Little Sister Kushina, don't worry. As long as those things are there, I will definitely help you get them back," Dan Uchiha vowed solemnly.
"Thank you!"
Kushina gave a perfunctory thanks and looked back at Kenji.Seeing that Kenji showed no reaction at all, she couldn't help but be disappointed.
Does this guy not know how to please girls at all?
"Careful, someone has noticed us."
At this moment, Tsunade suddenly warned everyone gravely.
Dan Uchiha and Michiko both adopted defensive postures. Kenji's gaze swept over the hill in front, and he said solemnly, "It's not just as simple as noticing us. There's an ambush ahead."
"Ah... we're going to fight someone so soon? What level are the ninja?" Michiko felt uneasy.
This wasn't sparring with classmates at school where they stopped at the touch.
From this moment on, a single moment of carelessness could mean losing one's life!
"One Chunin, four Genin. The number is the same as ours." Tsunade frowned.
Although with her strength, given time, dealing with five people alone wouldn't be a problem.
But the enemy would definitely target her weaknesses and strike where she was vulnerable.
Kenji, Dan Uchiha, Michiko, Kushina—if any one of the four encountered danger, she would be very passive.
"Earth Style: Ash Dust Technique!" (Doton: Haijin no Jutsu)
While Tsunade and Kenji were thinking of countermeasures, the enemy acted decisively. Without saying a word, they directly unleashed a ninjutsu attack.
Instantly, dust filled the sky, not only obscuring everyone's vision but also making breathing difficult.
"Cough, cough... Kenji, take Kushina and leave. I'll bring up the rear."
Tsunade knew that the enemy's lineup wasn't bad, and their coordination was tacit. Fighting them head-on was very unwise.
After all, a mission involving a Chunin had a difficulty level that even surpassed B-rank; it was completely unsuitable for newly graduated Genin to participate in.
"Remember, your mission is to protect Kushina. As a ninja, the mission always comes first."
"Teacher..." Although Dan Uchiha and Michiko were timid, they still wanted to stay and help Tsunade.
However, Kenji didn't say another word. He directly picked up Kushina's thin body and sped off in another direction.
Kenji originally thought Kushina would offer some willful resistance, but unexpectedly, she was surprisingly quiet and very obedient.
"You two, go catch that brat. Don't let him escape."
Kenji looked back and saw two masked Genin moving to intercept him. He let out a disdainful sneer.
After running for about ten minutes, Kenji slowed down a bit. One of the Genin who was in hot pursuit saw the opportunity, leaped up, and blocked Kenji's path.
The two ninja, one in front and one behind, blocked Kenji.
"Kid, let's see where you run now. Hand over that little girl, or else..."
"She's your target?" Kenji pointed at Kushina in surprise.
He originally thought these ninja were just wandering bandits robbing people for money, but unexpectedly, they were after Kushina.
"People of the Uzumaki clan deserve to die!" the two Genin said viciously. "If you hand her over to me, I can spare your life."
"That's great. It's better for me to live than die. I'll give her to you!" As Kenji spoke, he seemed to really be about to hand Kushina over.
"Ah... you... you bastard!"
Hearing that Kenji was actually going to hand her over to save his own life, Kushina widened her eyes in fright, then angrily bit Kenji's shoulder.
"Hiss~ I'm not serving a woman who belongs to the dog family like you."
Kenji winced in pain and actually threw Kushina directly toward the ninja in front of him.
That ninja didn't realize what was happening and instinctively moved to catch Kushina.
However, at that moment, the "cowardly" Kenji suddenly erupted. In his hand, a spiral of chakra had condensed at some point.
"You... you dare..."
That ninja was terrified to the extreme. How could a mere Genin use this kind of ninjutsu?
"Idiot!"
Kenji cursed, and the Rasengan blasted mercilessly into his abdomen.
Bang!
Without a doubt, that Genin's internal organs were instantly pierced through, and he died a miserable death.