Chapter Text
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(See author notes, credits, jutsu descriptions, and the video link if available at the end of the chapter).
Naruto climbed the steep path leading from the roof of a Leaf Village outpost to the messenger bird delivery station. Somewhere else in the village, his teammates were doing the same thing. Kakashi-sensei made this lousy mission sound super important when he passed his students the Hokage’s summons and sent them on their way. They’d rushed to the Hokage Tower, eager to receive an assignment more exciting than the half dozen mundane ones they completed since forming Team 7. Little had they known how far their assumption was from the truth.
* * *
[FLASHBACK]
Naruto hopped in place, buzzing with anticipation. Even Sasuke, though nonchalant as ever, stole occasional glances when The Hokage and his supervising Chunin whispered amongst themselves. Sakura was the only one who managed to remain composed while they waited for the panel’s deliberations to end. Beneath it all, a glint in the well-behaved Kunoichi’s eye betrayed her hidden impatience.
The Third Hokage ink-stamped three scrolls and handed them off to a silent staff member, who walked across the room and hand-delivered one to each team member.
“Team 7,” the old man said, clearing his throat, “This is a very important mission. You see, our messenger birds’ handlers are concerningly few as of late. What with the recent increase in extended-absence missions for our Chunin who are specifically trained to perform this duty, we’re running short. As such, I’ve elected to send a team of Genin to train under our birdwatchers and fill this critical need for the next few weeks. Your tasks will include monitoring the perches, keeping the messenger birds and their holding cages clean, and rewarding them for their efforts with treats. You’ll track their daily performance and flight patterns, as well as report any injuries sustained.”
Mouth twisted in disinterest, Naruto scoffed. “Wow. Bird watching, old man? Something that lame isn’t what I thought we were in for when you called us here!”
Sasuke hung his head. “As much as this pains me to say, I agree with the expired milk carton for once.”
“Hey! Stop insulting me, Duckbutt.”
His rival chuckled and gave no response.
“Not in front of Lord Third, please, you guys,” Sakura pleaded, holding out her hands. She cracked an awkward smile as if to apologize for her partners’ behavior.
Hiruzen pressed his forehead into one of his palms, taking in a deep breath before praying under his breath for strength. Seated on either side of him, equally frustrated Chunin assistants shook their heads or clicked their tongues in disapproval.
Kakashi burst into the room and knelt. “Please forgive my lateness, Lord Third.”
The Hokage nodded. “Forgiven.” He leveled a serious glare at the Genin, silencing them with an overpowering rush of chakra. “But, enough out of you three! Time is of the essence. Please report to your assigned stations.”
* * *
[PRESENT DAY]
Gagging as a bird flapped its wings and hit him in the face, Naruto sputtered out a mouthful of feathers. He wrangled it into his grasp and forced it into its freshly cleaned cage.
“Ouch! Sorry Daijiro, but they told me I have to give you a bath! Just cooperate already, believe it.”
The bird continued to resist. Naruto left to prepare the bath while it rattled the cage bars.
Another shinobi approached and inspected the several other cages full of well behaved birds before stopping on Naruto. “Ah, stuck with Daijiro again, eh?”
“Oh,” Naruto said, looking up as he slipped on an oversized pair of gloves, “what’s up, Mr. Aoba? Yeah, he just won’t behave no matter what I do.”
Aoba chuckled and walked over to the cage. He tapped it to get Daijiro’s attention, which seemed to make it forget why it was causing a ruckus in the first place. He smiled and made a clicking noise to beckon it closer. Daijiro hopped closer to the cage door, softening its rowdy behavior at the sight of his raised hand. Slipping a treat from within his sleeve, he gently pulled open the door and coaxed Daijiro to perch on his wrist.
After only a moment’s hesitation, the bird hopped up and clung onto Aoba’s bird handling glove. Naruto stood openmouthed, quickly growing more than a little annoyed.
“Wha-What the hell?!” he snapped. “I’ve been fighting like crazy to get him to come to me.”
Aoba winked. “Ah, you see? That’s the rub. You can’t get a wild creature to trust, or even love you, by forcing things.”
Still fuming, Naruto shook his head. “Sounds like a bunch of crap to me, believe it.”
Aoba looked down at the bird that was gobbling up the treat he presented to it and shrugged. “Tell that to this rowdy little fella.”
Naruto ground his teeth and crossed his arms in indignation. “He’s never trusted me though. He had it out for me right from the beginning!”
“How could you know that for sure? Carrier birds don’t talk, do they?”
This fact was indisputable and shut Naruto right up. Aoba caressed the soft feathers along Daijiro’s back, applying just enough pressure for the bird to feel his presence. Aoba made another clicking noise, which managed to keep the bird distracted while he lowered it into the bath. Though it did flip its wings in protest a few times, in the end the non-combative approach Aoba employed was a success. He lowered Daijiro into a shallow, lukewarm pool of water, whispering calming words every so often. Aoba silently signaled Naruto, who stumbled over to assist. Uncertain at first, he took a firm grasp of the spray bottle set aside for the bath and lifted his trembling hand. He let off two puffs of water that showered Daijiro like a relaxing mist.
A couple more rounds of this awkward process saw Daijiro with a glistening coat of striking plumage. Aoba demonstrated how to properly check the bird’s talons, then supervised Naruto on the proper way to reintroduce Daijiro to his cage. The clasp snapped shut and they moved on the next bird in the lineup.
“There, that’s it,” Aoba congratulated, keeping his voice low. “Good. Now you take over for this one.” He pointed to Naruto. “Ready?”
“Wait, what?” Naruto exclaimed, just a little louder than was necessary. “I’m not ready to take over yet!” A string of squawks and ruffling feathers made Aoba wince. He shushed Naruto, but the damage was already done; Daijiro got worked up, then passed his frenetic energy to the rest of the group.
Aoba pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a long breath. “Looks like we’re gonna be here a while.”
* * *
“Are you kidding me old man!?”
The next day, Team 7 stood reported to Hokage Tower again. The rest of the team was quite passive compared to Naruto, who voiced his displeasure to all in earshot.
“First it's the bird mission, and now we have another one of those D ranks? We haven’t even finished the first one!”
Iruka was none too pleased with the behavior of his former student. “Naruto! You will be respectful to Lord Third or I’ll personally make sure you are stuck with D ranks for the next year!”
Naruto fell silent without a single word of protest.
“Actually, with all due respect, sensei, Naruto does sorta have a point,” Sakura chimed in, “Why are we being assigned a mission if we already have one?”
Hiruzen, pleased to address a less argumentative team member for a change, smiled as he finished taking a hit from his pipe. He raised a hand to stop Iruka and answered her question himself.
“The mission you were assigned only requires a few hours each day to complete. That, along with the lack of physical exertion, allows you the freedom to take on multiple duties at once. Though admittedly, this is a less common practice at higher levels, it makes for a wonderful way to get fresh Genin like yourselves more experience.”
Sasuke perked up at this. “I assume more experience leads to higher level missions?”
“That is correct,” Hiruzen replied.
Now emboldened by his teammates, yet tempered by Iruka, Naruto begged the question, “Okay, I guess that makes sense. But still! Just how much experience do we need for a good mission? One that isn’t just a chore?!”
Hiruzen sighed. “How about this? If your team can manage to complete 5 D rank missions, including those you are currently assigned, I will consider giving you a C rank.”
“Deal!” Naruto blurted out.
“At least ask us before saying yes on our behalf, you idiot!” Sakura chastised. “What if we aren’t ready?!”
While yes, it was important for their careers to take up higher-ranked missions, they were all still pretty new at this. Sakura recalled that from what the academy taught, C rank missions and onward involved combat. This wasn’t something to just rush into!
Sasuke huffed. “I must have hit my head, because the chocolate teapot is sounding way too agreeable lately.”
“Hey!” Naruto bit back.
After sharing a glare with him, Sasuke returned to the matter at hand. “I’m fine with the deal. I’d rather not get stuck on these baby missions longer than I have to.”
Sakura’s cheeks flared pink and she looked away. “Well, if Sasuke says it's fine, I suppose I can agree to it…”
Kakashi frowned at what he deemed to be a gaggle of buffoons masquerading as ninja. His visible eye squinted in a mix of astonishment at their immaturity, embarrassment for his own reputation, and, though he’d never admit it, a bit of amusement. “Alright then, it’s decided.”
Hiruzen was endeared by the sound of that, and not afraid to show it. Getting this mission out of the way would help lighten his burden, and it always fascinated him to see the fire that burned brightly in the village’s youth. “Very well. Now, settle down with the complaints and allow me to inform you of the intricacies of your next mission.”
* * *
Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura passed a series of random objects to one another across a stream. Each of the items was either dripping wet, covered in mud and filth, or both.
“Eww, eww, eww!”
Sakura looked like she was going to be sick. She held a torn rag that had found its way into the river between two fingers. Despite being the least dirty of the trio, she was still the least comfortable.
“Naruto,” she bemoaned, “can’t you just have your Shadow Clones deal with this!?”
She glared over at the infamous orange menace, who was clad in a thin layer of grime that wouldn’t wash off despite him being knee-deep in running water.
Naruto squinted, slumping his shoulders a bit as he moved to hand Sasuke a plastic wrapper that was covered in filth. “Trust me, I tried!”
* * *
[FLASHBACK]
Before Naruto joined the rest of team 7 on their reluctant trip to the river, Kakashi had pulled him aside.
“Naruto, I forbid you from using Shadow Clones during these missions.”
The boy’s face twisted in irritation. “Oh, what the hell, Kakashi Sensei?!”
“Watch your language.” Kakashi sighed. “Look—on future missions I will not restrict you this way. However; I’d rather all of you take this time to improve your teamwork abilities, not just individually.”
* * *
[PRESENT DAY]
Sakura looked down at her mucked-up hands and winced. Sasuke adopted a pensive look, considering Naruto’s story as he continued passing along the trash. He froze mid-bend, having come to a realization.
“Hold on. Couldn’t this be another one of Kakashi’s tests? Maybe you should just use the clones anyway.”
Naruto slumped. “Believe me, I thought of that, too!”
* * *
[FLASHBACK]
“Oh, and just to be clear-” Kakashi remarked, interrupting Naruto’s attempt at a hasty exit, “I am being completely serious about my order. If you so much as form that hand seal while on these jobs, I’ll know. And I’ll personally petition the Hokage to hand you a hundred more D ranks. It’ll be months before you can even dream about anything more flashy. Got it?”
* * *
[PRESENT DAY]
A shiver trailed down Naruto’s spine as he retold the events, visibly sweating at the prospect of being stuck in D ranks for what, from his perspective, might as well have been the rest of his life.
Naruto and Sakura pouted. Sasuke stayed silent, though he secretly shared the sentiment.
Naruto couldn’t believe it, but he was beginning to understand his old classmate Shikamaru. This busy work really was a drag.
CHAPTER END.
Credits:
Chapter Writers - AxleBoost, FuriousFusion
Chapter Editor - Mimi, Ketto
Project Planning - Mr Spiralling, AxleBoost, FuriousFusion, Lupin, ZenithV2, Shadow Astro, Ketto