Hokage: Immortal, I Open Unlimited Eight Gates

The Konoha gate stood tall as Chiba arrived. He noticed that not only Orochimaru and Nawaki were present, but Tsunade was also there, yawning and chatting with Nawaki.

Chiba approached and greeted them politely.

"Tsunade-sama, Orochimaru-sama," he said respectfully.

"Chiba, you're here!" Nawaki exclaimed, clearly relieved to see him. It seemed Nawaki was eager to escape Tsunade's nagging.

"Nawaki," Chiba responded with a slight nod.

Orochimaru, noticing that everyone had arrived, said, "Alright, everyone is here. Let's set off."

Chiba and Nawaki nodded in agreement.

Tsunade stepped forward and addressed Orochimaru, "Orochimaru, I'm leaving these two in your hands. Take care of them."

"Don't worry, Tsunade. I'll bring them back safely," Orochimaru reassured her with a wave of his hand.

Tsunade then turned to Chiba, placing an arm around his neck. Her tone turned serious as she said, "Chiba, you must listen to Orochimaru this time. Don't act without permission, understood?"

Caught off guard by her sudden gesture, Chiba froze for a moment. His face was pressed against a warm, soft sensation—unexpected and entirely flustering. He felt his breath quicken but managed to respond, "I understand, Tsunade-sister. I'll follow the instructions."

Tsunade, realizing the awkward situation, blushed slightly and quickly let go. "Alright, you should all get going. I'm heading back."

Without waiting for anyone to react, she turned and walked away hurriedly.

Nawaki tilted his head in confusion. "Why does Tsunade look so flustered? And her face was red…" He shook his head, dismissing the thought. "Anyway, let's go! Teacher Orochimaru, Chiba, I can't wait!"

Orochimaru chuckled lightly. "Let's go, then. I'll explain the mission details on the way."

As they approached the registration desk at the gate, Chiba noticed that the guards were unfamiliar faces, not the future Izumo Kamizuki and Kotetsu Hagane. It made sense—they wouldn't have even been born yet. After all, it was still Konoha's 33rd year.

Orochimaru completed the registration swiftly and gestured to them. "Alright, let's move out."

Nawaki could hardly contain his excitement. "Finally, my first mission!"

Once they had left Konoha's walls, Orochimaru began briefing them. "Our destination is the Land of Fields, located directly north of the Land of Fire. The Daimyo of the Land of Fields has tasked us with eliminating bandits causing chaos in their territory."

"Wait, we're leaving the Land of Fire?" Nawaki's excitement grew even more. He turned to Chiba and said, "Did you hear that, Chiba? We're going to another country!"

Chiba sighed. "I heard you the first time, Nawaki. No need to repeat it."

Wanting more details, Chiba asked Orochimaru, "Orochimaru-sama, what's the rank of this mission?"

"It's a B-rank mission. Normally, dealing with bandits is considered a C-rank task, but the sheer number of bandits in the Land of Fields has elevated it to B-rank."

"Bandits? That's easy! Chiba and I can handle them on our own. Isn't that right, Chiba?" Nawaki said confidently, his energy uncontainable.

Orochimaru smirked. "Oh? The number of bandits exceeds 200. Are you sure you won't need my help?"

"Two hundred?!" Nawaki's eyes widened in disbelief.

Orochimaru nodded, confirming the figure. Nawaki's earlier bravado vanished. "Well, since it's a mission, teamwork is important. Personal heroism isn't allowed, right, Orochimaru-sensei?"

Orochimaru ignored Nawaki's awkward attempt to save face and turned to Chiba. "What do you think of this mission, Chiba-kun?"

The question caught Chiba off guard. Why is he asking me? he wondered. After all, both he and Nawaki were still academy students.

Still, Chiba thought about it and responded, "Well, we could poison the bandits' water supply. While it won't eliminate all of them, it should drastically reduce their numbers. For the rest, we can use explosive tags to take out the remaining groups. Any survivors would be few in number, making it easy for us to handle them."

Orochimaru nodded approvingly. "That's an excellent plan, Chiba-kun. It's efficient and aligns with the principles of ninja strategy."

Chiba humbly replied, "Thank you, Orochimaru-sama, but it's just basic common sense we learned at the academy."

Orochimaru smiled, clearly pleased with Chiba's attitude. He was already considering recommending Chiba to join his team after graduation.

"Nawaki, what do you think of Chiba-kun's idea?" Orochimaru asked.

Nawaki hesitated. He couldn't understand how Chiba, who had often appeared inattentive in class, could come up with such a strategic plan. "I think it's a good idea… but wouldn't it be better to confront the bandits head-on?"

Chiba sighed and shook his head. "Nawaki, we're ninjas, not samurai. Efficiency is what matters in completing a mission."

Orochimaru smirked at the exchange, though he couldn't help but worry about Nawaki's reckless nature. This mission will be a good lesson for him, Orochimaru thought.

As the trio continued their journey, the excitement in the air was palpable, but so was the weight of the mission ahead.