Chapter 7

"One more thing." Tsunade started, taking her seat. "Under no circumstance must the Kazekage find out. You are dismissed."

We turned to leave when I heard my name come out of Tsunade's mouth.

"Sukuna, wait. I want to have a chat with you. Alone."

Oh fuck! What now?

I stood confidently with my hands crossed over my chest. I could tell by the serious look on her face that whatever she was about to say was definitely going to annoy me.

Seeing as we got here before that stupid guard it's safe to say she doesn't want to scold me for leaving the village to train and the former owner of this body didn't do anything to warrant a private talk with the Hokage before I took over.

That means there's a very high possibility that whatever she's about to say is concerning the mission.

I dropped my hands and took a step back as a very logical thought came to me.

Wait a second, she wouldn't.

"You won't be joining the rest of your team on this mission, Sukuna," Tsunade said, eyes fixed on me. "It's too dangerous. I can't risk…"

"I'm going," I countered with a firm voice that gave no room for opposition.

"Being stubborn won't change my mind, son. I can't let you charge into what might be a very dangerous situation." She stood up and pounded a fist on her table.

"One, you don't get to call me 'son'. The fact that I'm under your care doesn't mean we're a family. Two, you don't want me to go as the Hokage? Or as my guardian?" I asked, putting her in a tight corner.

The shock in her eyes was clear. She opened her mouth to speak but didn't know what to say.

As the Hokage, it is her duty to put aside personal feelings and do what's best for the village. But as my guardian, she feels obliged to keep me out of harm's way, especially since she has a soft spot for me.

"Seeing as there's no one else around to go for the mission, you have to let me go. You know very well that I can take care of myself," I said with a tone of finality, turning to leave.

"Fine, you can go. But I'm assigning one more person to join your team."

"Who?" I asked, with my back to her.

"Naruto Uzumaki."

This just got interesting.

"No problem." I opened the door and walked out.

I looked around but couldn't see Kakashi or the girls. They should be outside. I made my way to the front of the building where I finally saw them chatting with a fourth person.

Yellow hair, orange clothes, goofy as fuck. Who else would it be other than the jinchuriki of the nine-tailed fox demon, Naruto Uzumaki?

"Sukuna, hey. The Hokage told me…"

"Shut up and let's go," I shot out, cutting him off. I walked passed the quad, heading to my house.

"Sukuna, wait." I stopped on hearing Kakashi's voice. "Don't mind him, Naruto. He gets like that whenever he has a misunderstanding with his mom. Everyone should pack for a seven-day trip. We meet at the gate in 10 minutes."

"Yes, sensei!" They all chorused before going their separate ways.

A seven-day mission? That's a lot of time to plan my moves, and of course, do some training.

It didn't take long before I got to the apartment I lived in with Tsunade. It was decent enough for a home, but still had the lush the house of the Hokage was expected to have. I went through my stuff and packed everything I deemed a necessity- Clothes, food, and a few others.

While I packed, I did some thinking concerning the mission and a few things came to mind. An underground Senju chamber wasn't included in the manga so I can only assume that this world isn't the same as the one I know. I can't take the risk of being overconfident or too trusting of people.

For all I know, Konoha can actually be where the bad guys are.

Seated on my bed, I stretched out my hand and a ball of fire the size of a tennis ball formed. It wasn't as big as I wanted it to be, but it confirmed my thoughts. I can still control cursed energy in this world. It's just not as powerful here, and I'm guessing that's because the main source of energy here is Chakra.

With my abilities as the God of cursed energy greatly weakened, I have no choice but to master Chakra perfectly.

With my things packed with necessities and weapons, I got out of the house heading for the front gate of the village.

With every other Genin away on a mission, it made sense I didn't see anyone important on my way. I was really looking forward to meeting Sasuke Uchiha. I'll just have to wait a little longer.

"Great. Everyone's here. Let's go," Kakashi ordered, commencing the mission.

For the next few hours, he led at the front running so fast, it was difficult for Ino and Hinata to keep up with him. At a point, we got high up in the trees and started leaping off their branches.

As you would expect, Naruto turned the whole thing into a competition and there was no way I was going to lose, making it even worse for the girls.

I stopped when I noticed Hinata was nearing her limit. She had the least stamina among us.

"Get on my back, I'll carry you," I offered with a soft smile. She had stopped on a tree branch to catch her breath.

"No, thanks. I can still go on," she said when her panting decreased enough for her to speak. In an attempt to leap off the branch, she slid on some tree sap. Instinctively, I caught her before she could fall off the tree.

"If you keep pushing yourself, you'll get hurt soon enough," I warned, helping her stand.

"Both of you should hurry up," Ino yelled from in front of us.

"We haven't travelled long enough to make camp and I don't think sensei plans on stopping anytime soon. You can rest, while I carry you." I said, trying to sound as caring as possible.

She didn't want my help but the red color coming up on her ankles told me she was at her limit.

"Okay. Thank you, Sukuna," Hinata consented bashfully with her head bowed.

"It's fine. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't help you? Besides, I really care about you." I flashed her another warm smile.

I turned so she could get on my back and when she was set, I continued the journey. It didn't take long before I caught up with the others.

"She's not the only one tired, you know," Ino pouted, noticing Hinata on my back.

"You should've asked," I replied, then passed her.

The look of jealousy on her face was clear. She wasn't tired from the journey. She just wanted to be the one on my back instead of Hinata.

"If you want Ino, I can carry you on my back," I heard Naruto say from behind me.

"Mind your business, blondie," Ino answered, ignoring Naruto. "What a pervert."

Somehow that made me feel good. Both girls seem to have a soft spot for me. If only they knew I'm only keeping them close as pawns for my brewing plan.

Watch as I manipulate and charm them into my villainous harem.