Shizune suggested, "Lady Tsunade, can we get support from the Ninja stationed at the border?"
Tsunade shook her head directly: "The Ninja at the border are generally not strong; they primarily serve for reconnaissance and intelligence transmission, so they can't help much. Currently, the Jonin and Special Jonin in the Village are all assigned to various tasks, and we don't have enough manpower... Wait a minute! There are still people! Our negotiations with the Hidden Sand Village have concluded, and war will not break out, so we don't have to fear attacks from other villages. Team Might Guy doesn't need to continue guarding; let them support Team Kakashi!"
That's quite a thought!
Team Might Guy is on the northwest border, and Team Kakashi is on the northeast border. How can they support each other?
Shizune's mouth twitched: "Lady Tsunade, why don't we have Xia Mu provide support? He's in the Land of Rice Fields, so he can support them faster."
Tsunade, however, smiled: "Shizune, are you being silly? Xia Mu can use the Flying Thunder God Technique, so he can provide support at any time. The reason he hasn't moved is to keep a close eye on Orochimaru; that poisonous snake is the real threat. And while Team Might Guy is far away, have you forgotten that Tenten has the Giant Mountain Eagle Summoning beast?"
"Oh right! How could I forget that! Then quickly notify Team Might Guy!"
Shizune finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Reading these messages daily in the Hokage Office was quite nerve-wracking; she hoped everyone would be alright.
Shizune went to arrange the notification, and Tsunade opened other documents. When she saw the recent mission status of the Genin, her eyebrows twitched involuntarily.
Team Aoba's missions were completed well. Although Lee joined temporarily, he played a significant role as a combatant and cooperated quite well with Runya. Megumi was also continuously improving, not only in terms of strength but also diligently studying Medical Ninjutsu; she was a very positive and motivated good child.
As for Team Asuma, the situation was somewhat dire. Sakura's strength was lacking, and her cooperation with Ino and Choji was very poor.
When it came to Team Kurenai, the mission completion rate was almost zero, mainly because Naruto's performance was too poor.
For example, in enemy reconnaissance, Kiba and Hinata both did very well, but only Naruto seemed unable to detect enemies, reacting only when the enemy was right in front of him. Another example is stealth; Kiba and Hinata were both competent, but Naruto was loud and boisterous, often causing trouble, even Akamaru did better than him.
Tsunade finally understood Kakashi's assessment of Naruto: number one in unpredictability.
There were always surprises in missions, yet sometimes in critical situations, he would unexpectedly be reliable, which was incredibly frustrating.
However, if the mission completion rate continued to be zero, Tsunade wouldn't dare let this team participate in the upcoming Chunin Exams; it would be too worrying!
In reality, this was precisely the case.
Team Kurenai used to have Shino, who was reliable, so everything would be fine.
But now that Shino had become a Chunin, Tsunade had specifically assigned Naruto to the team. Hinata didn't even dare to speak loudly to Naruto, and Kiba couldn't control Naruto, so it would be a miracle if things didn't go wrong.
"This can't go on! I need to specially arrange a mission to test them. If they don't cooperate well, then they'll be reorganized again!"
Tsunade made up her mind and began contacting some old friends.
Although those old friends weren't strong, they had various abilities. Having them set up a mission would be enough to give Naruto and the others a hard time.
One day later, near the northeast border.
Shino's insects discovered the Sound Four and immediately relayed the message to Kakashi and Sasuke.
Sasuke's lips curved into a smile; he had been eager for this, but he remained still, waiting for the other party to arrive.
Ten minutes later, the Sound Four arrived and stood on a large tree, observing Sasuke. Their gazes were filled with doubt and mockery, making Sasuke very uncomfortable.
"Who are you?" Sasuke's tone was icy.
"Us? Heh heh, we're here to test you!"
Kidōmaru chuckled, "To see if you are worthy of Lord Orochimaru's regard. You've obtained the power of the Cursed Seal, yet you still hide in this gentle and peaceful Konoha Village. You must be weak."
Tayuya grumbled, "Kidōmaru, stop talking nonsense. Let's beat him up first, then tie him up and bring him back!"
Sakon and Ukon and Jirobo naturally had no objections.
The four immediately leaped towards Sasuke, intending to surround him. However, the next second, the sound of mechanisms reached their ears, and sharpened wooden stakes shot from all directions, completely enveloping the four.
"A trap? Did they know we were coming in advance?"
The four were startled and immediately began to display their unique abilities.
Kidōmaru opened his mouth and spat out sticky silk, wrapping it around Jirobo's waist, then he used force to swing him around, while Jirobo, with brute strength, swept away the wooden stakes.
But the four didn't dare to be careless and immediately chose to scatter.
Sasuke's Great Fireball just happened to hit the spot where they had just landed. His timing was excellent, and it was a good thing they dodged quickly, or they might have been scorched.
As Jirobo landed, he heard a buzzing sound.
His expression changed, and he quickly rolled on the ground, just managing to avoid the insect swarm's attack.
He looked up and saw a well-wrapped man in sunglasses standing on a nearby tree, seemingly appearing silently. They hadn't noticed him at all.
A master!
Shino indicated that he simply had a low presence.
Shino formed a few hand signs, and countless insects immediately surged from his body, heading straight for Jirobo, who could only continue to evade helplessly.
Jirobo could use brute force and Earth Release, and he could also absorb others' Chakra using Earth Release, which was originally very difficult to deal with, but Shino 523 used insects for long-range attacks, so it would be strange if Jirobo didn't get into trouble.
Meanwhile, Sakon and Ukon and Kidōmaru were intercepted by Kakashi.
As soon as Kakashi appeared, he unleashed several Storm Leg attacks at the two, forcing them to stop.
Sasuke silently drew his short sword and stared at Tayuya, saying coldly, "You are the Sound Four. Orochimaru sent you to capture me and take me to the Hidden Sound Village, intending to take over my body? However, he underestimates me too much. Sending only you four small fry is completely meaningless."
Tayuya retorted, "You don't understand how formidable Lord Orochimaru is. He granted us power, and he also bestowed power upon you, yet you don't know how to use it. You will regret it soon; I will defeat you with this power, Uchiha genius!"
Saying that, she quickly formed hand signs and slapped her palm on the ground.
"Summoning Technique! Doki!"
She summoned three tall, humanoid Summoning beasts, which looked very eerie.
Tayuya then took out a flute and began to play. As the music started, the three Doki began to attack Sasuke.
Sasuke instantly understood: "Controlling these three monsters to attack through sound? If that's all you've got, then you can die!"
He completely ignored the Doki and immediately used the Body Flicker Technique, heading straight for Tayuya.