The small countries surrounding the Land of Rain had all been punished by Torifu, and they were still in their most primitive stages. They had nothing; they were the most backward places in the entire ninja world. It was inevitable that they would seek revenge out of resentment this time. However, they were just a disorganized rabble; ants, even united, would still be crushed underfoot, just as before. Torifu had never taken them seriously and only hoped he was overthinking things.
"The second mission is still locked? That probably means it'll only unlock after the first mission is completed, huh?" Torifu stroked his chin, thinking, "Then I hope everyone works hard. I'm quite curious about this second mission."
He was also very curious about the rewards. Last time the Chaos Event ended, it gave him a broken door, which still hadn't had any use. It had been gathering dust in Torifu's warehouse for several years. Torifu didn't even know what it was for, but he couldn't bear to throw it away. After all, it was hard-earned; who knew, it might be useful someday. But since then, the system had never issued another Chaos Event, and the ninja world had been peaceful for a while. The rare leisure made Torifu forget about that large door panel. It wasn't until today, when the Chaos Event reappeared, that Torifu remembered he still had that item in his ring.
"I hope the reward from this Chaos Event makes that door panel useful, otherwise it would be a wasted reward." Torifu shook his head, complaining, but he couldn't influence the system's rewards; he could only leave it to fate. Trying to find the system's patterns was impossible. Torifu hadn't even fully understood the system shop, let alone the rewards from Chaos Events.
The last group of shinobi left Konoha Village. Under Jiraiya's leadership, they should soon arrive in the Land of Rain and begin their mission. On Torifu's panel, the number indicating the clearance of rogue ninja camps was constantly rising. The speed wasn't very fast, but there was an average increase every minute. Thus, it became a task requiring patient, persistent effort. He hoped that after Jiraiya arrived, the clearance speed would increase.
The sun gradually revealed its full form. Torifu tidied his clothes, preparing to make a trip to the morning market. Naori and Akihara should be awake by now. Torifu could buy breakfast and return to eat with them.
Time quickly passed, and it was now noon. Jiraiya's group had already covered half the distance. If they hastened their pace, they would likely reach the Land of Rain before nightfall. However, the most important thing now was to take a short break and replenish their stamina. The ninja team stopped on a wide expanse of grassland. After using Earth Release ninjutsu to flatten a spot on the grass, everyone rested there and took out their food.
"Yahiko, Konan, it's time to eat. Kushina, you come eat with us too."
Hearing Jiraiya's call, the three gathered around. Kushina had also signed up for the mission, but she arrived very late this morning and quickly joined the team, so she didn't greet Torifu.
"What are we eating, Minato?" She grinned, looking at the scroll in Minato's hand, hoping he would produce something delicious. But what Minato pulled out instantly deflated her: "What? Still military rations pills." Complaining aside, there was nothing better than military rations pills for restoring stamina during a mission. So she could only take the military rations pills and start eating. Yahiko and Konan had already been mentally prepared, so they didn't show any particular expression. After taking the military rations pills from Minato's hand, they dug in heartily. After so many generations of improvements, the taste of military rations pills was quite good, comparable to everyday snacks, so they weren't necessarily unpleasant. It was just that everyone had eaten too well during the New Year, and they couldn't adapt to the change right away.
"Hahaha, little girl, it's good enough to have something to eat in the wild. When we reach the Land of Rain, there might be good food, but for now, just bear with it." Jiraiya said with a laugh. He often traveled around, so he could eat anything, as long as it filled his stomach and provided nutrition; he didn't care about the taste at all.
"Jiraiya-sama is right, I'll eat now." After saying that, Kushina stopped being coy and began to eat large mouthfuls. Seeing this, Minato smiled slightly, quietly took out a piece of dried meat from a scroll, and handed it to Kushina.
"Here."
Kushina looked at Minato, then grinned. Since her hands were full, she simply bit into the dried meat and pulled it from Minato's hand.
"Look at you, no ladylike manners at all," Minato teased.
But Kushina didn't mind: "This is called a female hero! Big Sister Tsunade is just like this."
After that, the conversation somehow died down. Everyone began to focus on eating and resting, with little chatter. After quickly eating his military rations pills, Minato also pulled out a large handful of kunai and used ninjutsu to engrave his Flying Thunder God mark on them. Although he had already made some at home, it was always necessary to stock up on such consumables. For a moment, the grassland was serene and vast. A gentle breeze swept by, tousling everyone's hair. Kushina gently tucked her loose hair behind her ear, but one strand refused to stay in place. Seeing this, Minato took a small piece of red string and tied Kushina's hair back for her.
"Tha... thank you."
Kushina's face flushed for a moment. She didn't know why she felt so nervous. When they were children, she never felt this way even when they held hands and went out to play together. As they grew older, this inexplicable feeling only grew stronger. It was the same for Minato; although he didn't say anything, his earlobes had subtly reddened. Yahiko and Konan were still young, so they naturally didn't understand what was going on between their Elder and Big Sister Kushina. The other shinobi were also focused on their own affairs.
Only Jiraiya took it all in: 'The awkward innocence of youth, how wonderful. What if I wrote this into my new book?' Then, he chuckled to himself and dismissed the thought: "Never mind, this type of novel isn't for me, and besides, the theme for the next novel is already decided, isn't it?"
'Legend of the Gallant. I'll gather some material and start writing.' Jiraiya chuckled, "Youth is truly wonderful."
Minato and Kushina both turned to look at Jiraiya, not understanding what he meant: "Jiraiya-sama, you're not old either! You're a few years younger than my Big Brother."
Hearing this, Jiraiya's smile grew even wider: "Children wouldn't understand these things. We'll talk about it when you're older."
[T/N: I don't know whether this Legend of Gallant is The Tale of the Utterly Gutsy Ninja. The Chinese for both is different. Could be AU thing. ]