In Naruto, the System Asks Me to Entrust Pokémon

A week later, in the morning, the sun hung high in the sky, and gentle sunlight bathed the village of Konoha.

In a certain forest within Konoha, Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura stood with serious expressions, their eyes fixed on a patch of grass in front of them.

Meow~

Suddenly, a plump cat emerged from the bushes. Sensing danger, its fur stood on end, and it bolted away at full speed.

"Not good! It's trying to escape!"

Sakura's face filled with concern as she glanced at Sasuke and Naruto.

Naruto grinned confidently. "No worries, Sakura. Watch me!"

He grabbed the Pokéball hanging from his waist and threw it in the direction of the fleeing cat. A moment later, Bulbasaur appeared in the forest, looking around curiously.

"Bulbasaur, help me catch that cat!"

Bulba?

Bulbasaur tilted its head, looking at the running cat with growing confusion.

"Come on, Bulbasaur! Hurry up and catch it!" Naruto urged, his anxiety rising.

Bulbasaur rolled its eyes at Naruto, then quickly chased after the escaping cat.

Compared to the fat cat, Bulbasaur was noticeably faster.

In the blink of an eye, the distance between them closed significantly. Bulbasaur's vines shot out from its back, aiming straight for the cat.

The cat, sensing the danger behind it, began weaving left and right through the trees, dodging the vines.

Meow!

The cat turned back to glance at Bulbasaur, a smug, human-like expression of mockery on its face.

Seeing this, Naruto nearly exploded with anger. "You won't get away! I'll catch you for sure today!"

Bulba!

Even Bulbasaur nodded in frustration, retracting its vines as it resumed its pursuit.

"Charmander, block its path!"

Suddenly, Sasuke's voice rang out. He threw a Pokéball into the air, and with a flash of light, Charmander appeared right in front of the cat.

Char!

Without hesitation, Charmander raised its claw and smacked the cat to the ground.

Naruto ran over, grabbing the cat and bursting into laughter. "Nice one, Sasuke! Hahaha, that'll teach you to mock me!"

Bulba! Bulba!

Bulbasaur nodded in agreement, smiling at the captured cat.

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered, walking over. He tossed a treat to Charmander, who caught it and happily munched away.

Naruto's face darkened. "Hey, what did you just call me, Sasuke?"

Sasuke ignored him, turning to pet Charmander.

"Ugh!" Naruto scratched his head. "Fight me, Sasuke! One-on-one!"

"Childish."

"Ahhhh!"

Thud!

Before Naruto could continue, a fist landed on his head. Sakura's stern voice followed. "Be quiet and behave!"

Naruto rubbed his head, falling silent.

Cough, cough—

At that moment, Kakashi appeared beside them with Pikachu perched on his shoulder. "From now on, no using Pokémon for D-rank missions," he said with a cough.

D-rank missions were meant to improve team coordination. What was the point if they used Pokémon? How would the team learn to cooperate?

"Huh?" Naruto stopped rubbing his head and looked at Kakashi in confusion. "Why not, Kakashi-sensei? Pokémon are our partners too!"

Sasuke and Sakura also turned to Kakashi, curious about the reason.

Kakashi didn't answer their questions. "No means no. Now that the mission is complete, let's go submit it."

With that, he turned and walked away.

Naruto and the others followed without further questions, each accompanied by their respective Pokémon.

Under Kakashi's lead, they soon arrived at the Hokage's office.

"Kakashi, mission complete?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen looked up from his report, his kind eyes landing on the group.

Kakashi nodded. "Yes, Hokage-sama. We're ready for another mission."

Sarutobi smiled, pulling out a stack of files from his desk. "Here are some D-rank missions. Pick one."

Naruto immediately stepped forward. "Grandpa Hokage, isn't there a more advanced mission? I'm tired of these D-rank ones!"

"Oh?"

Sarutobi stroked his beard thoughtfully. "You want a higher-level mission?"

He looked up at Kakashi. "Kakashi, what's the strength level of your team's Pokémon?"

"They've all reached the level of Genin. They're as capable as well-trained Genin in combat."

Sarutobi nodded and pulled out another file. "In that case, take on this C-rank mission."

"C-rank? Really?"

Naruto's eyes lit up with excitement before Kakashi could respond.

Sarutobi smiled again. "Yes. It's a protection mission."

Kakashi's eyes flickered with a trace of confusion, but he quickly nodded in agreement.

Following Sarutobi Hiruzen's arrangements, the team was introduced to their mission target.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the village, in the Pokémon Home, Ryo was busy welcoming his first customer in a week.

"Boss, is Kakashi's Pikachu from your place? Can my students pick one too?"

Might Guy stood there in his signature green spandex suit and bowl-cut hairstyle, smiling brightly as he spoke to Ryo.

Sitting on the couch, Ryo's eyes lit up with joy at Guy's question.

He immediately stood up, nodding enthusiastically. "Of course! As long as the Pokémon accept you, you can take them with you!"

After a whole week without a single customer, how could he not be excited to see one now?

Guy, equally thrilled by Ryo's response, nodded eagerly. "That's fantastic, Boss!"

Having already learned about Pokémon from Kakashi, Guy wasted no time bringing his team over right after finishing his latest mission.

Such incredible creatures—there was no way he would miss this chance!

Ryo handed over four Pokéballs with a smile. "Here, take these. Go to the back and find the Pokémon. If they agree to join you, the Pokéballs will capture them automatically. Then you can take them home."