Eight days later, morning, Death Forest.
"Puchi~"
Lin Ke, wielding a Kunai, pierced the skull of a black bear standing upright, narrowly avoiding the swat of its paw.
"Thump!" The black bear, over three meters tall, collapsed, its body twitching intermittently.
He withdrew the Kunai, wiped it on the fur, and returned it to its sheath. The weapon was sharp and durable, penetrating a skull with virtually no damage. After a quick rinse, it could be reused. It would be a waste to discard it.
No wonder combat-related missions offered higher rewards. In the past few days, both Yuan Wei and Xia had used up a considerable number of ninja tools. Only he was frugal enough to avoid using even a single Shuriken, relying solely on thrusting with his Kunai, washing it afterward for reuse.
If it were a battle against other ninjas, he probably wouldn't be able to save so much. Alas, there's no reimbursement for normal combat losses.
"Including this one, that should be about right," Lin Ke said, looking up at his two teammates.
Clearing out the beast horde wasn't a task with specific quotas. As long as it was roughly done, it would be sufficient. The mission assignment office wouldn't particularly demand evidence of the task. However, if the ninjas responsible for maintaining the training ground discovered an excessive number of beasts afterward, the team that carried out the mission would be in trouble.
It was a system of using trust to secure rewards. This worked well within the relatively closed system of Konoha Village ninjas. Would anyone defect for a few tens of thousands of Ryo? With a Jonin instructor, there was even less need to worry about this issue.
The village's estimate of the excess number of wild beasts was surprisingly scientific. Based on the analysis of the traces and droppings left by the beasts, as well as the behavior of some herbivores, they provided a rough figure. Fifth Squad's mission to clear out the beasts was also based on this.
As long as they killed a reasonable number of beasts, whether they killed too many or too few didn't really matter. The village wouldn't investigate. If there were too few beasts, they would simply capture some from outside or other training grounds and release them here.
Although Lin Ke's words were phrased as a question, his tone was assertive. After a month and a half of joint missions and living together, his comprehensive strength, calm command, and arrangements had long accustomed his two teammates to being dominated.
Or rather, being led?
The three of them took a short rest near the river before setting off to leave Death Forest.
...
Nara Yan Shui appeared in due course, tucked his notebook into his bag, and smiled. "You three did well."
He wasn't the type of superior who would try to build rapport with his subordinates unnecessarily. He was responsible, but his personality was rather serious. He didn't want to turn a simple superior-subordinate relationship, combined with temporary babysitting, into a closer relationship. Therefore, he was unwilling to mention what he had done to his subordinates.
In his interactions with Fifth Squad, he was more like a silent father figure, even though he was only in his twenties, while his subordinates were only nine and eleven years old.
This was their first C-rank mission. Even against ordinary beasts, there was still a chance of injury due to slight carelessness. Completing the mission unscathed and with ease meant that Fifth Squad possessed the characteristics of a mature Genin team.
Yuan Wei wanted to say a few words to express his joy, but he held back in the end. His rash and lively personality gradually became more steady under the suppression of his two cold-faced teammates and aloof instructor.
Xia breathed a sigh of relief. From the first day she became a Genin, she had been holding her breath and working hard. It couldn't be helped that the gap between her and Lin Ke was getting bigger and bigger, but she couldn't stand becoming a burden.
Being praised now really made her feel much lighter.
Lin Ke listened calmly, without any reaction.
"Well then, see you at the Hokage Building the day after tomorrow morning." Nara Yan Shui locked the gate, clapped his hands, and said, "You've worked hard these past few days. Get a good rest."
With that, he disappeared from the spot with a poof.
Yuan Wei subconsciously glanced at Lin Ke, wanting to signal with his eyes to leave after the boss, but he heard the boss say, "Are you two free this afternoon?"
"Yes," the first to answer was actually Xia.
"Me too," Yuan Wei raised his hand.
Lin Ke paused and said, "Come to the Seventh Training Ground this afternoon. We'll start special training."
"Special training?" Yuan Wei's voice suddenly rose a few degrees. Seeing both of his teammates looking over, he chuckled awkwardly, "Isn't that unnecessary, boss? We're not first-day Genin anymore."
He was a little afraid that it would be like the first day, where he would just get beaten up like crazy. As a ninja, his tolerance for pain had long been developed in mental training, but...
Who likes to be beaten up? "We've already completed our first C-rank mission." Lin Ke glanced at him and explained, "We'll probably be leaving the village soon to do missions. You and Xia still have many shortcomings. Leaving the village means we might encounter other ninjas, so I hope I can help you a little."
In the nine days of hunting beasts, his two teammates had performed well according to Genin standards, but there were still too many flaws.
Such as the difference in Chakra gathering to activate the body, the control of Ninjutsu release, unnecessary movements in combat, and poor concealment of aura, etc.
Lin Ke really wanted to help his two teammates improve, because even if he was promoted to Chunin and Fifth Squad was disbanded, he would probably still briefly form 'Lin Ke Squad' with his two teammates. When they went out to perform missions, he couldn't be a babysitter like Nara Yan Shui the whole time.
Making up for the shortcomings of his two teammates in advance was like investing in his own future.
When everyone was Chunin, or when he became Chunin and his two teammates found other jobs, such as in the hospital, Anbu, Interrogation Department, Barrier Team, Medical Team, etc., that would be considered a formal parting of ways.
Lin Ke didn't plan to find new teammates after being promoted to Chunin. Where would he find so many reliable teammates? It was better to cultivate and build two qualified meat shields himself.
If they encountered someone like Mizuki, they wouldn't even have time to cry.
At least the two current classmates each have their own personality problems, but they aren't terrible people. They are willing to change for the better, and it's already showing initial results. It wouldn't hurt to invest a little more effort in nurturing them. At worst, it'll just be a waste of time.
Yuan Wei was stunned for a moment, then said happily, "Thank you, boss." His personality is relatively simple. Being rash means he doesn't have many tricks up his sleeve. Having a powerful... Genin like the boss to help guide him is definitely a good thing, no matter how you look at it.
"..." Xia hesitated slightly and said, "Thank you, boss." The main point of her hesitation was the title.
"Then, see you at two o'clock in the afternoon." Lin Ke said goodbye to the two and left without any hesitation.
Now that the mission is over, I'll go grab a meal, go home and wash my clothes and Kunai holster. I'm constantly running around in the forest killing wild animals every day, and my clothes are full of all kinds of smells. It's impossible not to wash them. And the Kunai holster stained with blood is even more troublesome to wash...
Sigh, other transmigrator colleagues are worried about the Ninja War, the survival of humanity, and the Ōtsutsuki family affairs. Why am I dealing with daily life necessities every day?
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