Some people may be gone, but their names live on in the memories of many. Their famous lines still echo across time.
And some memes come wrapped in absurdity. Like whenever someone says "born from a mother," Nara Kazuki's mind conjures up the image of a grinning, bright-eyed boy who could've been a guest star in Splatoon.
At this point, the associations were automatic. Like genjutsu. Deep, reflexive, inescapable.
Still, two and a half months was plenty of time for Kazuki to grind out some missions and rack up kills. But missions involving direct shinobi conflict usually capped at B-rank. He could take one solo, sure—but some missions had team size requirements.
Escort missions, for example, typically mandated at least a full shinobi squad. Clients who knew they'd be targeted by enemy ninja wanted numbers—and they paid accordingly.
Kazuki stepped into the Mission Assignment Hall, hoping to find something with combat potential. He needed chakra gains, after all. No use spending the next two months lounging in Konoha.
[B-Rank: Escort a trade caravan to the Land of Rain. Possible threat: rogue ninja. Reward: ...]
[C-Rank: Protect merchants en route to Golden Sands Hot Spring Town. Bandit interference possible. Reward: ...]
He skimmed through a few listings. Most were escort jobs. Made sense—after the Third Great Ninja War, trade routes had taken a massive hit. Now that the world was enjoying a rare moment of "peace," caravans were once again on the move.
"Land of Rain, huh..." Kazuki eyed the B-rank job.
That land had once birthed a legendary ninja: Hanzo the Salamander, the man who gave the Sannin their title.
Though by now, Hanzo's grave was probably overgrown with weeds. Nagato had most likely taken control of Amegakure, and the Akatsuki were growing in secret. If Kazuki recalled correctly, Orochimaru had already joined them.
Too risky. Kazuki passed on that one. He wasn't ready to confront Akatsuki—especially not if Orochimaru decided to get handsy with Konoha shinobi for his experiments. That snake would absolutely use them for test subjects.
As for the C-rank job? Please. He wasn't Naruto, who could accept a C-rank and run into someone like Zabuza Momochi.
[B-Rank: Escort mission to the Land of Snow. Client: Kazahana Dotō. Objective: Deliver supplies by sea. Pirate interference possible. Reward: ...]
Now that one caught Kazuki's attention.
Land of Snow?
Not a major location in the main timeline. It barely featured in the canon—he vaguely remembered it was from one of the Naruto movies, something loosely tied to Naruto's future. The exact plot eluded him—it had been ages since he watched it.
He wasn't one to remember non-canon films in detail. Boruto didn't interest him, though he'd seen gameplay footage with a girl named Uchiha Mitsuki—or was it Hikari? No clue if she was even canon.
The only Naruto movie that stuck in his memory was The Last, that sappy one with Naruto and Hinata. Mostly because he'd seen fan compilations online with romantic BGM.
Right. Back on topic.
The Land of Snow mission involved pirates.
And normal pirates didn't warrant a B-rank. These had to be ninja pirates. The sea was vast in this world, and maritime trade routes were crucial—so naturally, shinobi pirates existed too.
Rumor had it that Kirigakure sponsored their own pirate crews, though the Mist Village officially denied it.
"I'll take this one," Kazuki said, pointing to the Snow mission.
Combat against rogue ninja on the high seas? Just his style.
"Wait, you need a full squad for this?"
Kazuki frowned. He thought someone already picked it up.
"Yes," the mission clerk smiled. "This mission requires a standard three-man team. Minimum rank: chūnin."
Kazuki scratched his head. Well, that made things tricky.
Friends? What friends?
He'd been in this world a while, but didn't have many close connections. The few who might help him on short notice…
Cue the next scene: Kazuki dragging Kakashi and Might Guy into the mission office.
Guy was overjoyed. He didn't hesitate.
"Refusing a friend's request isn't the Youthful thing to do!"
Kazuki gave him a thumbs-up and an exaggerated Power of Youth™ grin.
Kakashi, on the other hand, wasn't as easy.
He'd planned to spend his break refining Chidori and moping over Rin and Obito. But then Kazuki said two magical words:
"I've got new Icha Icha drafts."
Kakashi agreed immediately.
"Land of Snow?" Kakashi muttered as he read the details. "Ugh. We'll have to take a ship…"
"Oh, Kazuki! Kakashi! Why don't we freestyle swim there? It'll be great training!" Might Guy shouted with sparkling eyes.
"This mission's probably the best pick right now," Kazuki said after glancing over the rest of the B-ranks. The Land of Rain was on land, sure—but currently it was way more dangerous than the seas.
Even a jōnin-led pirate crew was preferable to running into Orochimaru.
That snake was probably deep into Immortality Jutsu research by now.
Kazuki had no intention of becoming his next test subject.
...Though, if he did sacrifice Orochimaru, he'd probably earn a nice karmic bonus from someone watching above.