Thus, after successfully recruiting Kakuzu and Uchiha Shisui, the [Cinder] organization once again welcomed its third core combatant—Deidara, the Explosion Release genius from Iwagakure.
After the awe-inspiring "artistic display" in the desert, Menma looked at Deidara, whose gaze was almost burning with fanaticism and adoration, and knew with certainty—even if he told him to leave now, the blonde teenager would absolutely find every way to cling to him until he was acknowledged.
After that, things became simple and natural. Menma, as he wished, activated the Flying Thunder God Technique again, bringing the still-euphoric Deidara directly back to the [Cinder] organization's hidden underground base in the Land of Hot Springs.
He introduced Deidara to Hizashi, giving a brief overview. Hizashi looked at the young man, who had only recently been a direct disciple of the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki on intelligence scrolls, and was now truly "recruited" so swiftly by their leader. A feeling of genuine admiration welled up in his heart. The leader's decisiveness was always so astonishing.
However, after a brief moment of admiration, a rather awkward practical problem arose: currently, the [Cinder] organization didn't seem to have an immediate use for Deidara.
Unlike Kakuzu, who could immediately take charge and display astonishing talent in financial management and business operations, and Shisui, who possessed leadership skills to quickly organize the Uchiha clan, form, and train Anbu, Deidara's highly destructive Explosion Release art didn't have a suitable role where he could fully display his talents during the organization's current phase, which focused on infiltration, development, and accumulation.
Facing this situation, Menma offered a pragmatic and long-term solution. He clearly stated that Deidara was currently in a golden period of rapid growth in strength, and rather than forcing him into unsuitable tasks, it would be better to let him focus wholeheartedly on his own improvement.
"At this stage, your mission is to diligently cultivate your art, deeply develop and research your Explosion Release, and continuously refine it," Menma told Deidara. "What you need is a place where you can fully unleash yourself without worrying about attracting outside attention."
Hizashi immediately understood the leader's intention and efficiently utilized the organization's resources in the Land of Hot Springs. Soon, in a remote mountainous area far from towns and people, a fully equipped private training ground was specially built for Deidara.
It was spacious and secluded enough for him to freely experiment with various explosives and develop the higher-level "art" he envisioned.
Menma also fulfilled part of his promise, explaining the core principles of the Spiral Wheel Ring's most basic energy compression and form stabilization to Deidara in an easy-to-understand manner. Deidara listened with intense focus, his eyes gleaming with insight, nodding thoughtfully.
Finally, he clapped his hands sharply, his face beaming with extreme excitement and a surge of inspiration.
"It's decided! The ultimate secret of my future art will be called 'C5 · Explosive Spiral Wheel Ring'! Hmm!"
…Well, as long as he's happy. Menma looked at Deidara, who was utterly pleased with himself, as if he had already witnessed the blossoming of a new art, and decided not to dwell on the naming issue.
Before leaving, Menma finally reminded Deidara that if he encountered any technical difficulties that were hard to understand or overcome during his training, he should record them in detail, and Menma would address them collectively during his next visit.
At this point, Menma's mission to recruit Deidara on this outing finally came to a successful conclusion.
— — — — — —
The scene shifts back to Konoha Village. During this period, Naruto, Satsuki, Sakura, and their Jonin instructor Kakashi, were almost completely immersed in a repetitive "worker bee" mode.
Finding cats, finding dogs, helping villagers purchase items, taking care of noisy children… The daily D-rank missions were infuriatingly monotonous. Today, Team 7 still took on a seemingly ordinary cat-catching mission.
However, this time the employer was no ordinary person. The client was none other than the Daimyo of the Land of Fire's wife, and the target to be found was her beloved Hachimi, Kotora.
What kind of cat is this? Naruto was very puzzled. He remembered that the Daimyo of the Land of Fire's residence was in the Fire Capital, wasn't it? Why did this cat run all the way to Konoha?
The mission itself wasn't difficult. Using Ninja tracking skills, they quickly found the runaway Hachimi in the forest at the edge of the Village.
But as they watched the plump Daimyo's wife affectionately and almost suffocatingly nuzzle the clearly frightened and struggling cat with her heavily powdered face, Naruto seemed to understand why this cat chose to run away again and again.
After completing the mission and receiving a rather generous reward, Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was sitting behind the mission desk, and Iruka-sensei, who stood beside him, both looked at them with approving eyes.
"Kakashi, Naruto, Satsuki, and Sakura," Third Hokage said slowly, taking a puff from his pipe, "Your team's mission completion efficiency and performance have been quite excellent and stable during this period. I think it's time to assign you higher-level missions."
Hearing this, Satsuki and Sakura, who had been somewhat listless from long-term odd jobs, instantly had their eyes light up, and expressions of anticipation appeared on their faces.
"Wait, Hokage-sama," Iruka-sensei, however, seemed somewhat concerned. "Is it a bit too early for them? After all, they only recently became Genin…"
"Don't worry, Iruka." Third Hokage gently interrupted him. "Naruto and his team are not ordinary Genin. Besides, the C-rank mission we're about to assign them is merely an escort mission, and theoretically, they won't encounter Ninja combat. With Kakashi personally looking after them, there won won't be any problems."
After Iruka was reassured, Naruto immediately understood. It seemed the Land of Waves arc was about to officially begin. That famous NPC, the bridge builder Tazuna, who was good at moral blackmail and misreporting mission ranks, was finally about to make his appearance.
But at the same time, another thought arose in Naruto's mind. This time, if the mission destination really was the Land of Waves… it would be an excellent opportunity. He could just bring those two into the [Cinder] organization. It would also save Naruto the trouble of searching for them all over the world.
Just as Naruto was secretly calculating, Third Hokage spoke towards the door. "This C-rank mission requires you to escort someone. All right, client, you may come in."
As his words fell, the office door opened. An old man, reeking of alcohol and stumbling slightly, walked in. He wore a straw hat, carried a simple backpack, and most conspicuously, he was still clutching a sake bottle, unashamedly guzzling its contents, looking completely drunk.