"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Clang!
Almost the second after Maruboshi Kosuke parried the pursuing katana, a scorching airwave came roaring and sweeping through!
A giant fireball with a diameter far exceeding the norm, so bright it was impossible to look at directly, pressed down on the ground, making sand and stones roll. With a hiss that seemed to swallow everything, it crashed down toward Maruboshi Kosuke!
A Ninjutsu chain attack!
Triple pursuit!
"Impressive coordination!"
Not a hint of panic could be seen in Maruboshi Kosuke's eyes; instead, a flicker of sincere praise flashed through them. Simultaneously, his hands also rapidly formed two seals.
"Water Release: Water Wall!"
Splash!!
In an instant, the ground beneath his feet churned, and a majestic flow of water surged into the sky. It wasn't just a thin shroud of water; instead, with his position as the core, it spun and interwove rapidly in a circle!
Layers of turbulent currents formed a high-speed rotating vortex wall of water, tightly filling every gap like a mobile, circular fortress of water!
Boom!!!
The flames and the water wall collided violently! A blinding white light exploded, and a deafening blast, accompanied by the sound of intense "sizzling" evaporation, echoed across the training ground.
Orange-red tongues of fire frantically licked the rotating water wall, sending up a dense white mist that completely engulfed the figures of the two men.
However, that vortex water wall remained as steady as a rock, firmly isolating the violent flames outside.
After a moment, the steam dissipated slightly.
"Clap, clap, clap."
Crisp applause rang out from the thinning white mist. Maruboshi Kosuke walked out slowly, a warm yet deeper smile on his face.
"Good, truly very good." He nodded, his gaze falling on Shinichi, whose breathing hadn't changed much. "The coordinated use of kenjutsu, taijutsu, and ninjutsu, the decisiveness in adapting to the situation... I have a rough idea of what level your strength has reached."
He gently slid the katana back into the large iron pot on his back.
"Well then, the test ends here. Get ready; it's time for us to carry out our first mission."
"Yes, senpai."
---
Unlike most newly graduated Genin who start by catching cats, finding dogs, or doing chores for villagers as Shinichi had imagined, his first mission was a C-rank mission that required leaving the village.
As they walked along the road out of the village, the lush trees on both sides gradually receded. Maruboshi Kosuke began to introduce the mission in his calm and soothing tone, neither too fast nor too slow:
"Our mission rank is tentatively set as C-rank. The location is in the northeastern part of the Land of Fire, in an area near the border of the Land of Hot Springs called Narumi Town. The clients are representatives of several villages near Narumi Town who have banded together. Recently, several cases of child disappearances have occurred there in succession. The employer's request is to investigate the cause of the incidents and recover the missing children if possible."
"Child disappearances?" Shinichi keenly caught the key point. "Did the local villagers not report it to the local magistrate or the lord to have them intervene in the investigation?"
"They did." Maruboshi Kosuke nodded, then shook his head slightly. "The lord of Narumi Town sent out local guards to search and investigate, but they came up empty-handed, finding no valuable clues. Therefore, the villagers from several villages pooled their funds and officially issued a request to Konoha."
"If even the local organized soldiers can't find a single clue..." Shinichi frowned slightly and mused, "I'm afraid this isn't something ordinary human traffickers or bandits could do. Senpai, this matter very likely involves ninjas, or at least an organization with certain unconventional means. Normally, this would exceed the scope of a C-rank mission."
"Your judgment is very accurate." Maruboshi Kosuke glanced at Shinichi with praise in his eyes. "The employer is also aware of this and has promised in the request that if ninjas or unconventional forces are encountered during the mission, they are willing to provide additional commission. The village considered the initial intelligence and the employer's promise before tentatively setting this mission as C-rank and giving it to us. Of course,"
He paused, his tone still calm but with an added touch of solemnity.
"Once it is confirmed that ninjas are involved, the mission rank will be immediately adjusted upward, and our response strategy must change accordingly. This is also the first thing we need to find out on this trip."
'The first mission starts at C-rank, and might even be higher.'
'The village really thinks highly of me.'
Shinichi understood, but there was no anxiety in his heart; instead, he felt a faint urge to give it a try.
On one hand, his teammate was Maruboshi Kosuke, whose strength was that of an elite Jonin.
On the other hand, he also had considerable confidence in his current strength.
Not to mention, he was now a being who held destiny in his hands!
Well, maybe that was a slight exaggeration...
---
By evening, the two men, who had been walking all day, stopped at the edge of a forest to set up camp.
Maruboshi Kosuke went out for a circuit and returned with two plump wild goose and a handful of fresh wild vegetables.
He unstrapped his signature large iron pot and skillfully started a fire to prepare the ingredients. Shinichi was also proficient in cooking, so he naturally stepped forward to help, his movements quick and efficient.
The campfire crackled, and an inviting aroma gradually wafted from the pot.
"Senpai's skills are truly excellent," Shinichi praised sincerely after tasting a spoonful of soup.
Maruboshi Kosuke smiled and poked at the fire. "When traveling abroad, one must know how to take care of one's own mouth."
At that moment, as if suddenly remembering something, Shinichi spoke with a bit of curiosity: "Senpai, I've read in some books that there seems to be a very special kind of ninja in the ninja world called a Ninja Chef. I wonder if you've heard of them?"
"You, are you trying to ask this old man if I'm a ninja chef in a roundabout way?" Maruboshi Kosuke glanced at him, his smile carrying the realization of having seen through his thoughts.
Having been found out, Shinichi wasn't embarrassed and nodded frankly. "I am indeed a bit curious."
"A ninja chef..." Maruboshi Kosuke's movements paused slightly, and his gaze turned toward the dancing campfire, seemingly falling into some distant memory. His tone carried a faint sigh of emotion: "Speaking of which, I suppose I could barely be considered one."
"Oh?" Shinichi immediately sat up straight, showing intense interest on his face.
He was truly curious.
According to his explorations over the years, for a profession to generate an entry on his panel, the prerequisite was that it must be formally "recognized" and "accepted" by a system or authority with a complete inheritance.
And this inheritance system should involve the application of supernatural power or chakra.
So, did ninja chef count?
After all, a ninja chef could be said to be a chef who uses chakra.
If ninja chef didn't count, and perhaps even medical ninja wouldn't count in the future...
Then that would mean the profession must be an independent, complete supernatural inheritance system, rather than a derivative of one.
This would mean the inheritance system was older than ninjas, possessing stable applications of supernatural power before chakra became widespread.
It was just that after chakra, a more efficient and versatile form of energy, became popular, these professions replaced their internal energy with chakra.
Like swordsmen or samurai!
Seeing Shinichi's serious expression, Maruboshi Kosuke smiled and explained slowly: " ninja chef's are a special group that combines ninjas and chefs. Their primary responsibility isn't combat, but rather cooking food containing chakra or special nutrients to quickly replenish the physical strength and restore the chakra of ninja squads performing long-term, high-intensity missions."
"The essence lies in applying chakra control, especially the micro-manipulation of Fire Release, to precisely control the heat and energy activation of the ingredients."
He paused, sprinkled a handful of salt into the pot, and continued: "However, with the rapid development of medical ninjutsu and pharmacology in the ninja world, especially after the large-scale development and application of military rations pills, which are easy to carry and have concentrated effects, the ninja chef's method of supply—which requires on-site cooking and relies on fresh ingredients—became inefficient."
"Over time, this group completely declined. In today's ninja world, unless it's some ancient family heritage or an extremely obscure niche inheritance, they are almost never seen. So it's only natural that you've heard of them but never seen one."
"Senpai, then what does it take to be considered an official ninja chef?" Shinichi asked.
Although he had already roughly judged in his heart that a derivative profession like culinary ninja, which combined ninja and chef, probably didn't meet the conditions for the panel to generate a professional entry.
He still decided to test it out for himself.
'What if?'
There was no harm in trying.
"Become a ninja chef?" Maruboshi Kosuke laughed in spite of himself. "Shinichi, although I don't know why you're so serious about this, in my eyes, you are already a culinary ninja."
"Oh?" Shinichi's eyes moved slightly. "Why do you say that, senpai?"
"Look, you are a ninja yourself, you've mastered Fire Release, and your cooking skills are quite good. Doesn't that count as being a ninja chef?"
"But senpai just said that a ninja chef's food can quickly replenish physical strength and restore chakra..."
"Food itself possesses these effects, it's just a matter of degree. If you want the effect to be more significant, just add some medicinal herbs to the cooking and make it into medicinal food. It's not difficult." Maruboshi Kosuke waved his hand dismissively.
Shinichi didn't stop there; instead, he looked at him more seriously, his tone formal: "So in senpai's view, I can already be considered a formal culinary ninja, is that right?"
Hearing this, Maruboshi Kosuke was stunned for a moment. Although he didn't understand why Shinichi wanted to confirm this so solemnly, he still smiled and nodded:
"Yes, Shinichi. I acknowledge that you are now a ninja chef."
After speaking, Maruboshi Kosuke then looked at the sky and portioned out the remaining soup in the pot. "Alright, finish eating and get some rest early. We still have to travel tomorrow. As for the night watch, I'll take the first half of the night."
---
At night, deep within the lord's mansion in Narumi Town.
Lord Kurokawa Yasumasa suddenly felt a bone-gnawing pain surge through his body. His face turned pale, and he immediately dismissed his attendants, stumbling alone into his study, then opening a secret room that only he knew about.
As soon as he closed the door, he could no longer hold it in, curling up on the floor and letting out suppressed, painful groans—it wasn't an ordinary illness, but a torturous agony as if his bones were being crushed and pierced inch by inch from the inside.
Trembling, he crawled toward a wooden cabinet by the wall and fumbled a porcelain bottle out from the depths of a drawer.
The bottle was opened, and a heavy scent of blood immediately filled the air.
Kurokawa Yasumasa couldn't wait to pour the dark red liquid from the bottle into his mouth. A moment later, his rapid breathing gradually leveled out, and the intense pain throughout his body receded like a tide, leaving only a cold sweat of exhaustion.
"I told you a long time ago... to be more restrained in your actions."
He supported himself against the wall and slowly stood up, speaking in a raspy voice to the empty shadows:
"Now look at this. I just heard from my subordinates that those peasants pooled their money to hire Konoha ninjas to come and investigate... If this blows up, you are finished."
"You? Hehehe..."
A man draped in a black cloak slowly stepped out from the shadows, his voice low and cold:
"My dear lord, don't forget, you've long been a member of the church. We... are on the same side."
Kurokawa Yasumasa kept a stiff face and didn't argue, his eyes merely dark. The cloaked man didn't care and continued in a casual tone:
"As for the Konoha ninjas?"
He gave a low chuckle, as if talking about the weather:
"Just kill them."
"Are you crazy?!"
Kurokawa Yasumasa's expression changed abruptly, his voice almost impossible to suppress:
"This is the Land of Fire! Not the Land of Hot Springs! Killing Konoha's people will bring down a full investigation from all of Konoha! This won't be a simple case of missing children anymore!"
The robed man remained silent for a moment. The shadow under his hood seemed to move slightly, and that cold voice rang out again, carrying a hint of mockery: "Then in your lordship's high opinion, what should we do? The matter of the holy son can never stop. Don't forget, my dear lord, your bone cancer is a terminal illness among terminal illnesses in the ninja world. Only when the holy son descends and you receive divine grace can your illness... be completely cured."
"I know that! You don't need to tell me!" Kurokawa Yasumasa growled, pacing anxiously in the small secret room. "Because it can't stop, we must be even more cautious! Listen, from now on, until the Konoha ninjas leave or the truth is uncovered, all of you must remain completely dormant. You must not touch another child! I will make arrangements to find some suitable culprits and reasons to bring this disappearance case to an end and deal with the immediate trouble first."
Obvious dissatisfaction appeared on the face under the robed man's hood. Kurokawa Yasumasa saw it, stepped forward, and said sternly:
"I'll say it one more time, I am not joking!"
"Think about the cult leader's original intention in sending you here. It was to take root here, to open up a new land of faith for the church, to operate long-term, and to plan slowly! If you, through a moment of recklessness, attract an uncontrollable powerful enemy and destroy the foundation of this place, ruining the cult leader's long-term plans, can you bear that responsibility?!"
He took a deep breath and gave a final, decisive warning: "Konoha is the leader of the five great ninja villages, with unfathomable strength. If we truly provoke their real elites, those Anbu who follow like shadows, over a few lives... at that time, not only will our lives be forfeit, but even the cult leader far away in the Land of Hot Springs and the headquarters the church has operated for years will likely be exposed to a thunderous strike and face total destruction! Do you want to see that happen?"
Seeing that the robed man, Elder Takahashi, remained silent, a cold light flashed in Kurokawa Yasumasa's eyes, and he decided to apply another drastic measure.
He stepped half a pace closer, his voice even lower, but carrying a naked threat:
"Elder Takahashi, you wouldn't want the cult leader..."
"How do you know that…
Elder Takahashi's expression under the hood suddenly changed, and he instinctively questioned him sharply.
Halfway through his sentence, he suddenly realized his slip of the tongue and immediately clamped his mouth shut.