Excitement of spirit

In the morning, I woke up lying on the flat doorstep, hugging the doormat...

- Yeah... - I got up from the floor and went to take a shower. When I was washing, I decided to enter the sennin mode again. I had to collect sen-chakra for a few minutes before I managed to accumulate the minimum required amount of natural energy for the hermit mode and after a few minutes. This sen-chakra ran out.

From the spatial pocket, I took out a crystal that I took from the temple under the mountain Korju; with its help, I managed to enter the sennin mode in a few seconds... but these crystals were not endless at me; I could go back to the temple and collect more, but there they are also a finite number of them, and probably they feed the dragon gate. So far, I have solved the problem of collecting sen chakra with the help of shadow clones, I will always have a few clones sitting in meditation and collecting natural energy, and as soon as I need to enter the sennin mode, one clone will disperse and transfer the natural energy to me.

As I was towelling off after my shower, I also checked my Status, which had changed slightly in three years:

"Status"

Life 323/323/80 per hour.

Mana 1992/1992/206 per hour

Psi 693 330/17.5 per hour

Reatsu 844/844/140 per hour

Chakra 2615/2615/435 per hour

Chakra Cogenryu (500)/5000/800 per hour

Skill Points 158

Characteristics:

Strength 540

Dexterity 586

Endurance 646

Intelligence 280

Wisdom 563

Magic 498

So far, I have only a small portion of the Dragon of Light's power available, as it has only recently been sealed inside me. However, I can't help but admit that Cogenriu himself is only twice as powerful as me in terms of Chakra, which isn't surprising given his condition. However, extra energy is still not bad. Despite the small amount of Chakra, Cogenrew's Chakra was dense and full of life energy. I would rather call him not the Dragon of Light, but the Dragon of Light of Life, for all his energy consisted of Yang chakra. Still, there was no Yin chakra... probably because the Dragon of Light suffered in the battle with the Dragon of Darkness and his mind was destroyed.

Usually, in Irienjutsu, Yin Chakra is used to take control of the medic's control over the patient's body and make it heal itself; essentially, the medic takes manual control over the injured person's body and activates the natural regeneration mechanisms. But Yang Chakra in Irienjutsu is used to directly stimulate cells and accelerate wound healing. Still, such a method though effective, but very tiring for the doctor, and all other things, gradually shortens the doctor's life, which literally gives his life forces for healing the patient. That's why in most cases, irienins use Yin-Chakra techniques and, in some cases, use Yang-Chakra, and now I have a source of Yang-Chakra, perfect for healing.

While brushing my teeth, I saw in the mirror that I now had horns growing on my head like every other member of the Ryu clan, I could use Henge to cover them up, but I decided to cut them off with Ryujin's blade... it was unpleasant. Still, I also used irjunjutsu to slow down the regeneration of the horns, so they wouldn't grow back for a while.

When I got out of the bathroom and started making breakfast, I noticed I had woken up in the morning. Still, after the meal, I decided to head to the Hokage Residence, where I met my team and Kakashi.

- Naruto, why didn't you attend the missions for three days? - Kakashi asked me, who had just arrived at the Hokage Residence.

- Don't you care? - I clarified.

- You're right. I don't care, but the Hokage asked about you, so you'll tell him where you've been and why you're looking more mature. Let's go take the mission. - Kakashi led us inside the building. Mito tried not to look at me; Sasuke was not interested in me, though he looked at me for a few seconds. When he noticed that I saw his gaze, he turned away in the other direction. Only Sakura wanted to ask me something but decided to do it later. Just when Kakashi was in the Hokage's office, the pink-haired girl asked a question:

- Naruto, where have you been disappearing for these three days? - The girl asked.

- I've been out with the ladies. - I answered, and Mito growled angrily, "Just kidding, I've been training; what else could I do? I don't know if Kakashi trained you anyway, so I didn't miss anything important.

- Well, we were just doing missions as usual, but without you doing them until tonight. - Sakura replied, "Why have you changed so much? You've obviously started to look more mature, haven't you? - Sakura said.

- I've aged three years, but I've become stronger... I've almost turned to stone, but that's okay, no big deal; no one cares if I'm alive or dead; who cares? - Mito looked at me for a moment but then looked away again.

- By the way, Naruto, what happened between you and Mito? She couldn't get away from you with a crowbar, and now she's not even talking to you, and she's trying to ignore you and not look at you.

- Mito and I had a little fight. - I said the obvious.

- A little bit. What did you do that she's ignoring you so blatantly? - Sakura nodded at Mito, who was eavesdropping but pretended not to be interested in our conversation.

- I called her into the harem.

- Oh, Naruto, you're making harem jokes again. - Sakura rolled her eyes.

- It's as much a joke as you want to marry Sasuke. If you fail, I have a place reserved for pink-haired girls in my harem. - I smiled at Sakura, and now Sasuke pretended not to hear our conversation.

- Naruto, I'm not joining any harem, especially not yours. I love Sasuke and will be with him only, without any harems. - Sakura looked lovingly at the Uchiha, who was ignoring her as usual.

- Well, suit yourself, suit yourself. Sasuke's been ignoring you for six years, and I don't see much improvement in your relationship. And anyway, he said that he needed to rebuild the clan, and with a harem, it can be done very quickly, in just one generation. - I said.

- Naruto, I won't talk to you either, like Mito. - Sakura took offence at the truth and went to make fruitless attempts to attract the Uchiha's attention.

Soon Kakashi came out of the Hokage's office and said:

- Okay, we have a capture mission.

- A mission to capture a criminal? - I clarified.

- Cat. - Kakashi replied, "Or rather, the favourite cat of the Fire Nation Daima's wife. Naruto, go to the Hokage's office, tell him where you've been, and I'll get a radio in the armoury to coordinate our search; Madame Shijimi is very worried about her pet and wants it back as soon as possible. - Kakashi went to the ground floor while I entered the Hokage's office.

- Good morning, Hokage-sama. - I greeted the old man.

- Naruto, you last visited Konoha a few days ago, I sent a Cat to your flat, and she found a draft contract scroll there, so I figured you did a Callback, didn't you? - Hiruzen asked.

- You're right. - I replied.

- It's dangerous... but since you've returned successfully, you found what you were looking for, didn't you? Will you share with me who was your summoner? - the old man asked.

- No one. I wanted a dragon summoner, so I travelled to the dragon world, but they all seemed extinct; I found only dragon skeletons and stone statues. I was in that world for three years before I could get out.

- Hmm, I noticed you've gotten older... so what, you took a risk for nothing? Dragons are a weak draft, but I can let you sign a draft contract with Monkeys if you want? Better that than you trying to do a reverse draft again. - the Hokage offered me.

- Well, some good came out of that failed conscription. - I went into hermit sage mode, causing my face to have a dark turquoise mask over my eyes.

- You've become a sennin? - Hiruzen realised and was clearly surprised by this fact.

- Yeah, in that world, the sen-chakra was very dense, I had to learn how to control it so I wouldn't turn to stone, and I basically just sat in a meditative trance for three years. - I came out of sennin mode;- Well, about the proposal of a contract with the monkeys, I think I agree; I read that they are masters of fighting with a pole; you can take lessons from them to fight with a pole weapon. - I replied.

- Hmm... well, I'll talk to Monkey King Enma about you. I'll let you sign a contract with the monkeys if he agrees. For now, go do the mission with the team. - The Hokage replied and puffed on his pipe, looking at me and the portrait of the Fourth Hokage.

- Well... and also, Hokage-sama, can't we change the team's mentor? Because Kakashi doesn't teach us anything, and that's why I decided to use Callback to find a teacher among dragons... or other animals, for that matter. - I asked.

- Eh... I'll talk to Kakashi. - replied the old man.

- Okay, I'll go catch a cat. - I left the office and went to my team, where Kakashi gave us a walkie-talkie with an earpiece to stay in touch and quickly find Daima's wife's cat. We were also given a picture of a cat named Tora, and she looked like a red, fat, fluffy cat with five stripes on her head and a red bow on her right ear.

As I noticed, the sennin mode in this world was harder to use, for here, I had to gather and absorb natural energy myself, whereas, in the summoning world, the sen-chakra would flow into me on its own. Also, my sennin mode sensor is a hundred times weaker in this world. The background of natural energy is less dense, so my internal radar only works within a radius of five kilometres, but that was enough to find the cat fairly quickly. I simply checked all the cats in the area that my Sensorica had sensed, and the tenth cat was Tora, who I picked up and reported my find to the rest of the team.

When we met, Mito took the ginger cat from me, for Mito loved everything orange. My sister looked at me with great resentment and anger.

We all returned to the Hokage Residence, where we handed the cat over to a fat woman covered in jewellery and had a gold ring with a huge gemstone on each of her fat fingers. Madame Shijimi saw her pet, happily grabbed it, and started strangling it... or rather, she was hugging it. Still, by the look of Tora, she wasn't enjoying the hug.

The Hokage, ignoring the suffering of the innocent animal, turned to our team:

- Well, Kakashi's seventh team, your next mission... hmm... you need to babysit the headman's grandson, go shopping in the neighbouring village and help with the potato harvest. - the Hokage explained the mission.

- No way, Datebayo! Thank you, I've had enough! I want to finally do shinobi missions, not peasant missions, dattebayo! Find us a worthy mission. A better mission than this one, dattebayo! - Mito snapped at the Hokage.

- Uzumaki, you're just beginners. Everyone starts with simple missions that get more complicated. - replied Iruka, who was sitting here helping the Hokage distribute missions to the Genin.

- But I'm sick of this nonsense, datebayo! - Mito continued to insist.

- Mito, calm down. What serious missions if our sensei has never trained us? - I tried to calm her down.

- You shut up, dog! And don't you dare address me, dantebayo! - Mito shouted at me.

- Okay, that's enough. Stop arguing in front of the Hokage. - Kakashi put a siege on everyone.

- Mito, I have to give an explanation about all these missions. Listen to me carefully. - Said the Hokage.- Every day, the village receives many orders, from childcare to assassinations. All the missions are listed and categorised: A, B, C, and D, depending on the difficulty. Our ninjas are also divided by level, starting with me, Kage, then jounin, chuunin, Genin, and the academy apprentice. The mission's difficulty is set according to the skill level; if the tasks are successfully completed, the client pays the village. But you've only recently become the least ninja, i.e. Genin. D-level missions are perfectly suited to your abilities. - explained the old man.

- I'm so sick of this. All you can do is talk, dattebayo! I won't always be a little girl; I'll grow up as the Hokage, Dantebayo! - Mito angrily proclaimed and sat on the floor, adding, "I will become Hokage, and I will pass a law making harems illegal, Datebayo. - The red-haired girl looked at me with anger and jealousy.

- Well...I agree. I'll give you a mission, category C, to protect one person. - said the Hokage.

- Really, Dantebayo?! Well, who are we supposed to protect? Could it be a daimyo? Or a princess? Or a prince, dantebayo? - Mito started to guess.

- A prince? Heh. Calm down. I'll introduce you to him now. - replied the Hokage with a smirk, -Come in, please. - He said, and an old man in a hat, reeking of alcohol, walked through the door, and when he saw who we were going to protect, Mito's fervour was gone. And the person being defended came in and said:

- "So, what have we got here? It's a bunch of kids, half of whom are girls. - I'm architect Tazuna, a specialist in bridge construction. I hope you will protect me well until I return to my homeland and finish the construction there. - he added and took another swig of the bottle.

- Well, Foxy, I hope you are satisfied? - I said.

- Shut up, dattebayo. - Mito snapped sluggishly.

Hokage introduced us to our customer and sent us off to get ready for the mission, we had to do a mission in a neighbouring village recently, and thanks to Mito's efforts, we now had to go to the small island country of Waves, where Tazuna lived. By the way, there was an island nearby where the Whirlpool Village was built and where the Uzumaki clan lived.... but no one lives there anymore.

This escort mission is tricky, but thanks to the sennin mode, I can handle it, especially since I can get a lot of bonuses during this mission.

Unlike my teammates, I didn't go home because I had the necessary things in my spatial pocket... and there were also huge stones in there to ensure the load on my body, so I went straight to the gates of Konoha. Our customer went to the nearest bar... well, I decided to go to that bar as well.

- Oh, you're one of the shinobi I hired. - What are you doing in a bar? You can't drink alcohol for such a young man; you still have your mother's milk on your lips," said Tazuna. - said Tazuna.

- Huh, that's funny, considering I'm an orphan. - I walked up to Tazuna and used phasing to shove my hand into his chest, "Old man, be nice to me, or I'll rip your heart out. I'm a ninja medic, so I'll shove your heart back in and make it like it was.

- Ahem...got it, I'll be polite. - Tazuna nodded, and I removed my hand from his chest.

- Good for you, now get out of the bar; I wasn't hired to drag your drunken old arse to the Land of Waves. - I pointed to the exit.

- Are shinobi allowed to treat customers like that? - Tazuna obediently walked towards the exit.

- Man, you hired strong shinobi, so if you want them to be polite, you'll have to pay extra. If you don't like it, complain to the Hokage, we have yet to leave the village. - I replied.

- ... tsk tsk... - Tazuna looked at me unhappily and took out a flask of sake from his rucksack.

- No alcohol. - I sent out a small wind sickle that cut the bottle, leaving only the neck in Tazuna's hand. In contrast, the bottle of alcohol fell to the ground and spilt out," "If you don't agree, the Hokage Residence is that way. - I added, pointing to the tower of the ruler of Konoha.

- ...I hope, despite your rudeness, you are strong enough to protect me. - Tazuna replied and drank alcohol, but he was holding only a cut bottleneck, "Oh, right... ahem. - he examined the neck and threw it into the bushes.

- Old man, what bridges do you make if you're always under the influence? Can they even stand for a month without falling apart? - I asked with a sneer.

- You can't beat the craftsmanship. - replied Tazuna.

- But you're actively trying, aren't you? - I clarified with a smile on my face.

- You're a shinobi, right? An assassin for hire? And how many people have you killed? - Tazuna asked and smiled wryly, for he knew that his S-rang mission would be given to Genin, who had only recently graduated from the Academy.

- Well, I crippled a traitor once, a former chuunin teacher who wanted to escape from the village and steal a scroll of shinobi techniques. He wanted to blame it on Mito, my redheaded teammate. So, I crippled that traitor with this thing. - I would have killed him but I needed him alive for interrogation. I've seen corpses and dismembered bodies at the hospital, so taking a life isn't a problem. - I said and twirled my kunai on the ring.

- ... ahem..." Tazuna stammered and fell silent.

After about forty minutes, my team gathered at the Konoha gate, all carrying backpacks, except for me. Mito had the biggest one, always glaring at me with annoyance as she carried it.

We left Konoha, and Sakura asked Tazuna about the Land of Waves. Still, I was the last to go and didn't participate. Our customer told us his country was very poor, so he had to order a security mission in Konoha and the cheapest C-rank. Kakashi informed the team that we would only encounter common bandits on such C-rank missions. Still, no shinobi fights were expected... and Tazuna was visibly nervous.

When we got a few kilometres away from Konoha, I put on my mask, which Sakura immediately noticed:

- Oh, Naruto, you're wearing that scarecrow again. - Naruto, you're wearing that scary-looking thing again," said the pink-haired girl.

- Sakura, when your undoubtedly beautiful face is hit by a sharp, deadly iron, you will regret that you don't have a mask as fearsome as mine. My mask can withstand a blow from a kunai and a sword. After all, how will I have a harem if my face is scarred? Although I've heard that some girls like scars, they say scars make a man look good. But still, I like my face the way it is. - I replied and began to gather sen chakra for sennin mode... and outside Konoha, the density of natural Chakra is even less, so it took me almost five minutes to accumulate natural energy and mix it with my internal energy to enter sage hermit mode.

I wore the mask because my face was marked in sennin mode. I didn't want to show my Hoshingan in a fight with enemies; those enemies were already on the horizon, and I could sense them with my sensors.

Two shinobi began to follow us, and after a while, they ambushed us on the road, hiding in a deep pit of water that looked like an ordinary puddle... except for the fact that it was over thirty-six degrees outside. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky, so any puddle would have dried up long ago.

I picked up a pebble and embedded a simplified blast-seal structure into it; only the Chakra is transformed into Water and Wind. I threw this pebble into the puddle as I walked past it.

If you don't use chakra-conducting materials, they deteriorate quickly, destabilising and exploding more often than not. However, this was just what I needed. When the pebble exploded, it formed a geyser that threw the two chuunin from Hidden Mist to the surface, which had been stunned by the underwater explosion. They quickly tried to get up, but it was obvious that they couldn't fight due to the concussion. Each enemy had a massive metal-clawed gauntlet connected by a spiked chain.

When the opponents wanted to attack us, they tried to throw the chain on Tazuna. Still, due to the stun from the explosion, they didn't even reach the chain. In a moment, they fell to their knees, took off the respirators that had helped them underwater recently and started vomiting.

- Guys, what kind of unprofessionalism is this? They started vomiting right before the person they were supposed to kill. Mokuto: Woven Trees. - I formed the Serpent Seal, and my opponents were enveloped in trees that bound them securely... but they kept puking;- I'm so glad I built an air filter into my mask.

- They stink. - Sakura complained, and Mito almost started to vomit at the sight.

- Suiton: Water Flow. - I formed a couple of seals and used the water technique, which caused a stream of water to come out of my palms, which I used to wash my opponents and bring them to their senses. - I said and looked at Tazuna suspiciously.

- You're good, Naruto. - Kakashi praised me." "Well, Tazuna-san, I think we need to talk seriously with you," he said. - said Jonin, and our customer began to get nervous.

- How did you find us? - One of the enemy ninjas asked me.

- I am a sensor and noticed you when you were following us from the forest. And your this ambush in a puddle - it's a cretinism, considering that now it's hot and all the puddles would have dried up long ago. - I replied.

- They seem to be chuunin from Kiri; their shinobi are known for following orders no matter what. But I still wonder who those two were waiting for and who they are hunting? - Kakashi spoke and squinted his eyes at Tazuna.

- What do you mean? - The bridge builder asked, drenched in sweat.

- Simply put, were you or someone else the target? Do you understand me? I heard there were shinobi on your trail; our job was simply to protect you from thieves and bandits. That's becoming a minimum category B mission. Your order required normal protection until the bridge was completed; if it was known that you were being followed by ninjas, this mission would have gone to a more expensive category. I'm sure you had reasons to lie, but your lies about the mission are causing problems. We operate outside our mission and are no longer obligated to protect you. - With every word Kakashi said, Tajuna grew sadder and sadder.

- We're still getting ready for this mission. Let's finish it. Sure, Naruto handled these opponents, but next time we might be attacked by an even stronger enemy, shinobi. - Sakura said.

She's right; this mission is still beyond us. We should go back to the village. - said Kakashi.

- Go back to the village, and I'll do the mission myself. - I replied.

- You're overconfident, kid. You took us by surprise, but after us, Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Mist, one of the Swordsmen of the Mist, will come to fulfil the order. He will cut you into a cabbage... Argh-g! - shrieked in pain from the too-talkative chuunin, whose body sprouted a wooden spike.

- Cover your mouth, or I'll put wooden spikes on you. - I told the chatterer, "Look how he's talking. He scares me with some lousy Swordsman of the Mist... Demon of the Mist, I'll show him who's a demon and eat his soul. - I approached the chuunin and tried to press my aura on him, and judging by the fact that he twitched in fear, the intimidation worked.

- Naruto, Mist Swordsmen are not just any swordsmen, only the greatest master swordsmen of the A-rank, and together with the special swords called the Seven Swords of Mist, they are dangerous S-rank shinobi. An opponent like that would be difficult for even me to deal with, let alone you. - Kakashi enlightened me.

- Oh, S-rank shinobi, I eat them for breakfast. Remember when I almost killed you on your bell test? I was holding back at the time. I'll continue this mission because there's a great chance to make money here. I've heard that the bodies of strong shinobi and various rare weapons can be sold for a profit, and I need the money to build my palace.

- Naruto, if you die, you won't need the money. - said Sakura.

- In our world, there is danger at every turn; even our village is unsafe. You know, the attack of the Nine-tailed Demon Fox, the slaughter of the Uchiha clan. So, we took the mission, and we have to fulfil it... but if you don't want to, I'll do it myself. - Because the customer withheld information and underestimated the danger of the mission, I'm telling you that anything can happen in life. A simple passer-by may be an S-rank psycho-nuke who didn't like how you looked at him, and he'll try to kill you. And here, I already know who I will be dealing with. I don't know about you, but I'm sick of digging gardens, tearing up grass and doing other farm chores. If I get a real shinobi job that will allow me to gain experience and become stronger, I will do it," I said, folding my arms across my chest. - I replied, folding my arms across my chest.

- I want to continue the mission. - Sasuke said.

- I... me too. - Sakura hesitantly supported the Uchiha.

- ...I also want to continue the mission, dantebayo. - said Mito, she agreed with my words, but these words were spoken by the one she was offended by. However, still, she also supported me in wanting to continue the mission.

- Okay, you win. - Kakashi replied, -Team number seven, continue the mission. - He added, and Tazuna exhaled a loud sigh of relief at those words.

- Let's move on. My clone will seal these losers. Yes, guys, I'll sell you and make money from you; I hope they'll pay a couple of thousand Ryo for you. - I patted the enemy chuunin on the cheek and knocked him out with a blow to the head; I knocked out the other one as well; after that, I created a clone, gave him a couple of scrolls, and continued walking with the team.

- Naruto, did you want to continue the mission alone, or did you say that on purpose so that we would agree to continue? - Sakura asked me.

- Sakura, I just defeated two chuunin from Kiri. I don't want to brag, but it was extremely easy, so I could have done the mission by myself and wouldn't have to share the reward with you. I should become a chuunin soon so that I can do missions myself. - I replied, and soon a clone came to me that sealed the two opponents from Kiri in two scrolls and sealed their ammunition separately in a third scroll. Just as we are walking, we can study the wristbands of these two losers, I don't know how they are in battle, but they look intimidating. And they can be tested in battle soon.