Chapter 75: Declining Standards
"That was... Water Release: Water Severing Wave?" Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes narrowed, his pipe momentarily forgotten. The A-rank, purely offensive water technique was notoriously difficult, requiring Jonin-level chakra control and precision to wield safely, let alone masterfully.
Yet a freshly-graduated child had just executed it—not just executed it, but with surgical accuracy. He'd dispersed a dozen shadow clones encircling a civilian without so much as ruffling the man's hair, then instantly dissipated the water's force to avoid collateral damage to the office. The control was... unnerving.
Perhaps, the Hokage thought, a chill unrelated to the morning air tracing his spine, he surpasses even Minato at this age.
Kakashi, by contrast, merely raised an eyebrow. After witnessing Flying Thunder God and Rasengan, an A-rank Water Release felt almost mundane. Impressive, but expected from the anomaly that was Ren Arakawa.
The rest of the room was frozen in varying degrees of shock. Iruka's jaw was slack. Yugao's masked head tilted in reassessment. Sasuke's competitive fury cooled into a sharp, analytical focus—He's further ahead than I thought. Reassessment required. Sakura just stared, the conflicting parts of her heart momentarily united in awe.
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[VIP Highlight: Tobirama Senju - "MY technique?!"]
Tobirama Senju (VIP5): You dare flaunt my Water Release in front of my own student? The audacity!
Ren Arakawa (subvocalizing): It was a rescue. The display was incidental. And it's just a water technique. Their reaction is disproportionate.
Tobirama Senju: Don't play modest with me! I know your type!
Hashirama Senju (Regular Viewer): Tobirama... you didn't...?
Tobirama Senju: I DID NOT! Brother, silence your insinuations!
Hashirama Senju: How do you know what I'm insinuating?
Tobirama Senju: How do you know I don't know what you're insinuating about me knowing— DAMN IT! CEASE!
Uchiha Madara (VIP1): A disdainful snort. Pathetic. Modern shinobi quail before a single A-rank technique. In my day, I faced ten thousand such opponents alone.
Ren Arakawa: You'll get your chance at the ten-thousand-man battle. Later.
Uchiha Madara: Boy. Your words grow more cryptic. Are you taunting me?
Ren Arakawa: Not yet. The time for taunting is later.
Uchiha Madara: ...
"Hey! Jiang Cheng! Why'd you pop my clones?!" Naruto's indignant shout broke the stunned silence. He was, notably, the only person present not awed by the technique's grade. To him, it was just a skinny water jet—neat, but not that neat.
"Naruto," Ren said, his voice calm and patient. "If you murder your client on your first escort, what do you think happens? You spend the rest of your career on D-ranks. Is that what you want?" He glanced at Kakashi. "Sensei, let him go. Let him choose his path."
Kakashi released Naruto's collar.
Naruto didn't lunge. He stood still, his face scrunched in thought. The threat of eternal D-rank purgatory was a potent deterrent.
Reverse psychology. Basic, but effective on a straightforward mind, Hiruzen observed, his estimation of Ren's tactical acumen rising another notch.
"Thanks, Jiang Cheng," Naruto mumbled finally, his fire banked. "You're right. I don't wanna weed gardens forever."
"Then take this mission seriously. Protect your client." Ren gave Naruto's shoulder a firm pat. In his inherited memories, their childhood friendship was a real, if simple, bond. Helping Naruto now felt like... balancing a ledger. Compensation for wife-stealing, he thought wryly. Hinata was supposed to be his.
"Ahem!" Tazuna, having been helped to his feet (and given a spare pair of trousers by a blushing Iruka), cleared his throat. The fear was still in his eyes, but it was now mixed with a desperate hope. "Well! You brats are... capable! You'd better protect me properly!"
He didn't mention the lie. The mission scroll listed it as a C-rank: protection from bandits and thugs during bridge construction. The truth—that he was targeted by a missing-nin of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Momochi Zabuza, and his demonic apprentice, in a plot orchestrated by a shipping magnate—was an A-rank nightmare he couldn't afford.
Ren knew. The Land of Waves. Zabuza. Haku. An S-rank threat disguised as a C-rank milk run.
Zabuza, an elite jōnin specializing in silent assassination, was a nightmare in the mist-shrouded wetlands of Wave. Haku, a kekkei genkai user with Ice Release, was a wildcard of unknown but certainly jōnin-level power. In the original story, they'd only been thwarted by protagonist plot armor and Haku's own merciful heart.
Ren had techniques, bloodlines, and dead mentors. But against a silent killer who could eliminate targets stronger than himself? Overconfidence was a quick path to a watery grave.
"The mission is accepted," Kakashi said, his voice lazy but his single eye sharp. "Team 7, plus Ren. We depart in one hour. Gather your gear. Meet at the main gate. Dismissed."
As the group filed out—Naruto chattering, Sasuke brooding, Sakura stealing glances, Tazuna smelling faintly of urine and hope—Hiruzen called out.
"Ren. A moment."
Ren turned back.
The Hokage met his gaze, the grandfatherly mask gone, replaced by the weary, calculating leader of a military village. "Quadruple pay carries quadruple responsibility. You're not just support. You're my eyes, my contingency. The jinchūriki cannot be compromised. The client's mission, for the stability of a neighboring land, cannot fail. Am I understood?"
Ren nodded, his own expression neutral. "Understood. Protect the asset. Complete the objective. Report anomalies."
"Good." Hiruzen took another long draw from his pipe. "Dismissed."
Ren left the office, the weight of the unspoken settling on his shoulders. He was a guard, a spy, a hidden weapon, and a wildcard, all for the price of four C-rank missions.
In the hallway, Uzuki Yugao fell into step beside him. "You showed off," she said, her voice low.
"Necessary demonstration. They needed to see the gap. Naruto needed a reason to listen."
"Always calculating."
"Isn't that the job?"
She was silent for a moment. "Be careful in Wave. The mist there... it hides things."
"I know." He glanced at her. "I'll be back. Someone has to keep you from getting bored on stakeout."
A faint huff escaped her mask—almost a laugh. "Just don't get yourself killed, brat. I've gotten used to the annoyance."
As they parted ways, Ren felt the familiar buzz of the live stream in his mind, the ghosts already debating the coming mission, the displayed power, the hidden dangers.
Minato Namikaze: He handled that well! Defused the situation, guided Naruto!
Uchiha Fugaku (VIP1): He revealed a significant technique prematurely. A tactical error if enemies are observing.
Tobirama Senju: The technique was applied correctly. The objective—preserving the mission and the client—was achieved. Efficiency over secrecy.
Uchiha Madara: All this talk for a babysitting mission. How the mighty have fallen.
Ren ignored them, focusing on his mental checklist. Weapons. Seals. Rations. First-aid. And... a little something for a certain wealthy shipping magnate.
A slow smile touched his lips. The road to Wave promised danger, blood, and a very, very fat sheep.
He couldn't wait.