Tazuna the Bridgebuilder

Deep in the forest lands that surrounded the Village Hidden in the Leaves, a shadowy form shuffled across the ground, darting from bush to bush as it endeavored to remain hidden. Upon hearing a twig snap, it dived into a bush, leaving the leaves quivering behind it. Its pursuers were close behind, pressed against the trunks of the trees closest to the bush.

“Reporting distance to the target,” chimed Sakura’s voice over the small earpiece microphone attached to Ichigo’s head. “Five meters! I’m ready any time!”

“So am I!” buzzed Naruto’s voice, and from his tone Ichigo could tell that he was grinning, ready for action as soon as Kakashi-sensei gave the signal.

“Me too,” added Sasuke in his smooth, level voice. Ichigo raised her hand to press the button on the microphone.

“I am also in position!” she reported, peeking around the tree trunk at the bushes where their target had hidden itself.

“Go!” shouted Kakashi into the microphone, and with lightning speed the four Genin dove into the bushes in pursuit of their prey. The bushes writhed as they struggled, and after a minute, Naruto emerged victoriously with a squirming, hissing cat with a pink bow tied around its ear in his arms.

“I got it!” he grinned, then cried out as the cat yowled angrily and began clawing his arms. “Ow! Owww! Stop it, you mangy cat!” he wailed as he collapsed to the ground. He managed to keep a hold on the angry creature, but it was busy digging its claws into his face. As Sakura and Ichigo looked on, unsure just how to help, Sasuke turned and spoke into the microphone.

“It has a ribbon on its left ear. It seems to be the target,” he told Kakashi-sensei.

“Perfect! Search for the lost pet complete!” their mentor chirped back happily. “Let’s head back.”

Later, in the office of the Hokage, a large woman happily rubbed her face against the retrieved cat, much to its distaste. Ichigo could now see why the poor creature wanted to escape, as it seemed very unhappy at the overwhelming, and frankly painful, attention. As the client continued to dote over her pet, the Hokage began listing off more of the tedious tasks that they had lined up for the day, and Ichigo couldn’t help but feel disappointed that they seemed more like chores and less like actual ninja missions. Naruto echoed her disapproval aloud, angrily crossing his arms.

“No way, you old geezer! I’m sick of just being a chore boy! Give us a better mission!” he shouted. From the look of Sasuke and Sakura’s faces, Ichigo could tell that they were just as eager for a chance to apply their ninja skills. Iruka-sensei, who was also helping with ninja assignments, instantly refuted Naruto’s demand.

“You’re just rookies, Naruto! You have to work your way up to bigger missions!” he snapped.

“We’ve done a lot of missions, Iruka-sensei. Surely we’ve qualified for at least a slightly higher-ranking one,” Ichigo persisted, trying to take a calmer approach. Iruka seemed surprised, and put his hands on his hips and shook his head.

“I expected this from Naruto, but not from you, Ichigo. Things like this don’t come easy,” he tutted; defeated, Ichigo hung her head and retreated in disappointment. Naruto was not pleased, and instantly began to argue. With a heavy sigh, Kakashi-sensei muttered, “Quiet,” and hit him in the back of the head. The Hokage began to calmly explain how ninja ranks and assignments worked, explaining that as rookie Genin D-ranked missions were all they could handle, but Ichigo still found herself itching to take on a higher mission. Naruto’s attention had wandered as well, it seemed, because the Hokage yelled at him to pay attention as he plopped on the floor and continued to complain. Kakashi-sensei began apologizing for his pupil’s rudeness, and Naruto was finally fed up.

“Look! I’m not the trouble-making brat I used to be! I’m not gonna mess it up!” he shouted, surprising his three teammates and his mentor. Ichigo saw the Hokage smile slightly.

“All right then. If you want it so badly, I suppose a C-rank mission will do. You have to protect a certain someone,” the old man relented, and the Naruto cried out in happiness. A beam split both Ichigo’s and Sakura’s faces, and even Sasuke seemed satisfied. As they excitedly exchanged ideas concerning what royalty they would be guarding, the Hokage welcomed their charge into the room.

“What’s this? They’re a bunch of brats!” cried the drunken man as he stumbled into the room, still clinging to a bottle of sake. The four of them stared with dumbfounded faces as he tottered forward. “Hey, shorty with the dumb face. Are you really a ninja?” he sneered, and Ichigo, Sakura, and Sasuke all glanced at Naruto, the shortest one in the room. Once he realized he was the butt of the joke, he erupted into a frenzy of complaints and insults. Kakashi-sensei managed to calm him down after a bit, and reluctantly they accepted the mission.

Later, once they were prepared to leave, they met the older man at the entrance of the village. He had sobered up, it seemed, and was ready to explain himself. “I am the bridgebuilder Tazuna,” he explained. “You will provide me protection until I return home and finish building my bridge.” Naruto was brimming with excitement, and happily threw his arms into the air.

“Alright! Let’s go!” he cried happily.

“What are you so excited for?” Sakura sighed, shaking her head and putting her hands on her hips.

“I’ve never left the village before!” he answered.

“Neither have I, actually,” Ichigo admitted, nearly bursting with similar emotion. “It’s quite exciting to be guarding someone, too!”

“Am I really going to be safe with these brats?” Tazuna muttered, and Kakashi-sensei looked a little embarrassed. Naruto was displeased with his lack of faith, and angrily pointed at the bridgemaker.

“Don’t mess with ninjas, old man! I’m amazing!” he shouted. “One day, I’m gonna be Hokage! My name is Uzumaki Naruto, and you’d better remember that!” Tazuna found this doubtful.

“Pfft, you, the Hokage? I doubt it,” he scoffed.

“But I will be! Then you’ll acknowledge me!” Naruto argued, and Tazuna glared levelly at the boy with such fierceness that he instantly closed his mouth.

“No, I won’t,” he answered and began walking. Naruto’s face erupted in rage, and Ichigo had to pin his arms behind his back to keep him from jumping on the old man then and there.

“Naruto, don’t mind him,” she murmured as the others began walking after the old man. “He’s just a grumpy old guy who’s trying to get under your skin. Besides, we have to protect him- you can’t kill him!” she reminded him gently. Naruto seemed to calm down after this, and with a sigh Ichigo released him and watched him stomp angrily after their comrades.

A C-rank mission, she thought, reaching behind her back to grip the sheath of her ninja blade. Something inside her told her that this mission would be a great adventure, and with a smile she ran after the others.