After removing all traces of the poison, the bugs left the dead body and returned to Katsumi. Ryota had finished applying the first aid and he sealed Korenaga's body in a scroll.
Ryota said, "He is sure to have a good bounty."
Fujin picked up the chakra sword and said, "I don't think it would compare with this sword though."
He began flowing his chakra through the sword and changed its nature to wind. He was surprised, 'Wow! So smooth! I thought my swords were good. This one is probably better than the one Hiruzen asked to be made for me!'
Noticing that Fujin's attention was on the sword, Tamotsu coughed and said, "That's our mission requirement Fujin."
Fujin looked back and chuckled, "I know, just saying. Haha"
He thought, 'Oh well, if I need such a sword in the future and I can't get it any other way, I can just steal this sword from that old guy. It's not like he would ever use it anyways.'
Since Katsumi and Tamotsu were injured, they decided not to hunt that last rogue ninja. The group began returning. Katsumi couldn't walk properly, so he rode on Kenta.
They return the chakra sword to Konda Kunio. Understanding the difficulty of the mission, Kunio increased the mission ranking from B to A and increased the mission rewards to 2 million Ryo. He handed them the book that had theories and research on learning the Ice Kekkei Genkai and made the arrangements to help them claim the bounties.
He also invited their medical ninjas to treat Katsumi and Tamotsu. Tamotsu's wound healed properly. They bandaged his arm. It would leave 2 scars on his arm, but he didn't mind it.
Katsumi's injuries, however, were serious. He was wounded down to the bone. They healed him as well as they could. The healer said, "That's as much as we could do. Your village has the best healers. So I would recommend you to get treated by them as well. Also, I would recommend you take a few months break."
Katsumi nodded and thanked them. They rested in the Land of Frost for some time. In this period, they went through the Ice Release book.
Fujin was the first one to read. He analyzed, 'Hmm, this book is good. It contains research of over a dozen ninjas. And still, none of them managed to create the Ice element. Kinda shows how tough creating a Kekkei Genkai will be. Though I don't have the Water affinity needed for the Ice element, this book could give some insights if I try to create Scorch or Magnet elements.'
The others read the book as well. Only Ryota and Tamotsu were interested in a Kekkei Genkai and neither had the Wind or the Water element. So after reading carefully, the book was given to Fujin for keeping.
After resting for a couple of days, they began moving back to Konoha. Their speed was a bit slower as they had to ensure that Katsumi didn't strain his leg. He rode on Kenta the entire journey.
He was admitted to Konoha's hospital after returning. The group decided to meet after 2 days in the hospital.
Fujin continued his training to improve his control over the Lightning element.
He brought some fruits and visited the hospital at the decided time. Others had already gathered.
Fujin placed the fruits on the table next to Katsumi and asked, "How is your leg?"
He said, "It has been treated properly. Unfortunately, I have to rest for a couple of months for the damage to the bones to be healed and for the bone to become strong once again."
Fujin replied, "Oh, that's bad. I'm glad that there are no permanent injuries though. Take a good break."
Katsumi nodded.
Tamotsu said, "I have something to discuss."
The entire team looked at him.
Tamotsu said, "We have been taking missions continuously for quite a long time. I was thinking that it would be best for our team to take a few months off. I was thinking about a 3-month long break."
The group was surprised. Tadashi asked, "3 whole months?"
Tamotsu nodded. He said, "Along with missions, it's also important to build up your strength. Take these 3 months to train newer skills or master the old ones further. In that time, Katsumi will also get healed, so we won't have any issues with team composition. Also, we do need a break from the missions."
The group began analyzing. Ryota, Tadashi and Katsumi were thinking about the things they could learn in the 3 months. Meanwhile, Fujin thought, 'Seriously? Another 3 months break? I didn't think completing 50 rank B missions would be so challenging!'
As no one spoke anything, Tamotsu said, "The last mission gave all of us 2.5 million Ryo. So we shouldn't have any monetary issues. Once we get stronger, we could try to do tougher missions more frequently. A substantial increase in strength could improve your chances to become Elite Chunins or even a Special Jounin."
The prospect of promotion excited them slightly. They agreed. Tamotsu looked at Fujin who hadn't said anything yet. He said, "Fujin, your strength is already very high. Perhaps if we had you in the team that faced Korenaga, we might have killed him without taking any injuries. And I understand that you may want to take multiple rank B missions to reach close to the 50 missions mark."
Fujin nodded. Tamotsu continued, "If you want to, you can form or join other teams in this time period. But we would love it if you join us again after 3 months. But we would understand if you don't."
Fujin smiled and said, "You are thinking too much Tamotsu. I'll be back in this team."
Tamotsu and others smiled. The group talked for a bit before leaving. Fujin thought, 'Now I have to find a new team again… Though this may not be all bad. I should try to form a new team. A younger team that would want to take continuous missions. That way, we could reach the 50 mission criteria soon.
If I get promoted to Elite Chunin, my sword and sensor skills would get me promoted to Special Jounin rank too. Then I could join teams that do rank A or even rank S missions.
Still, doing more missions would mean getting less time for training… What to do?'
Fujin analyzed his situation. In the end, he almost pulled his hair as he couldn't decide. He thought, 'Ugh! This is so fucking confusing. Missions give me combat experience that no amount of training would provide me. On the other hand, training will increase my strength and skills which would be useful for missions! Fuck it. I'll first master the control over the Lightning element. Then I'll try forming the team and doing a month or two of non-stop missions.'
For the next 10 days, Fujin devoted the majority of his time to mastering his control over the lightning element. He practiced with 10 Shadow clones at all times.
Finally, he sighed in relief, 'Finally done! I can freely control the electric current from 10 milliAmpere to 10.5 Amperes. I can also control Voltage from 200 Volts to 840 thousand Volts. Time to head for missions.'
He left his basement. He was about to send clones when he heard his doorbell. He opened the door to see Mieko. His eyes involuntarily twitched as he thought, 'I was just about to send a clone to her.'
He waved his hand and asked, "What's up?"
Mieko entered his house and asked, "Do you have any missions lined up?"
Fujin shook his head and said, "No, my team just took a break."
Her eyes sparkled. She said, "Great! I am recommending you to my team."
Fujin observed her carefully. He asked, "What do you mean?"
She said, "I was assigned to a team that is planning to undertake a rank A mission. Unfortunately, the member that specializes in Wind jutsus is injured. And we need a replacement to take that mission. So I recommended you to my team. Come with me."
Fujin locked his home and followed her. He asked, "They just agreed?"
She sighed and said, "No, I had to convince them a lot. The injured guy is a Jounin. But, they couldn't find any other option. So they had to accept my recommendation."
Fujin nodded. He knew that Wind users were too rare in Konoha. Not a single clan specialized in the Wind element.
He said, "Actually, I was about to look for you too."
She looked back at him and asked, "Why?"
He said, "My team has taken a 3-month long break. I was thinking about forming a team with you, Teru and Hoka to undertake rank B missions continuously. We could undertake 15-20 rank B missions in around 2 months. It would help us secure the Elite Chunin Promotion quicker."
Mieko's eyes widened. She asked, "15-20 rank B missions in 2 months? I only do 3 every month."
Fujin nodded and said, "Most rank B missions are very easy. We could focus on doing missions that take less time to complete and are easier. Unless the mission gets upgraded to rank A, we should be able to complete it with ease.
Once we get the Elite Chunin promotion, the promotion to Special Jounin wouldn't be far. So we can start taking rank A and even S missions."
The thought of undertaking rank S missions excited Mieko. She said, "Alright. Let's do it after this mission!"
Fujin smiled and said, "Great. I'll try to convince Hoka and Teru after this mission."
Mieko said, "I'll join you."
Fujin said, "That will be helpful."
The two reached the Uchiha compound. Mieko led Fujin to a house where her team was gathered.
