Mission:

Why was he getting paid for this? No seriously, why was this a paid job? He did this everyday for free, it was just part of being Inuzuka, you walked the dogs; plural because you walked entire packs at once, not just your own dog. No Inuzuka did just one dog at a time, there were too many dogs to get away with that. Everyone picked up the slack, if you didn't carry your weight you didn't eat. Or that's how it was supposed to be. He didn't even live in the clan compound and he knew that, he lived that; he was Inuzuka in name and clan markings only at this point, but he still tried his best to embody that philosophy. So why in all the various hells was there a paid mission to walk the clan's dogs?

It made no sense. None of the cousins were injured far as he knew, nor was anyone sick or even out of the village on missions. There were plenty of clansmen around. Who wasn't pulling their weight?

Or he was just completely insane and missed a memo. The hell was this? He'd just walked through the gates of the clan's main compound and it was a ghost town, literally. Outside of some elders babysitting the younglings and a few genin... the place was empty. Joy. No wonder they needed help.

Thanks for saying something, guys.

Oh well. He didn't bother bitching about it, anymore than he had anyway, and went right to the kennels and enclosures and rounded up a nice pack of pups and elders to walk. He didn't need to be strong for this, anyone with Inuzuka blood and heart could control even the rowdiest pup without a word, merely a look and maybe a sharp whistle and they would fall in line. Simple, easy money. He'd grabbed a good ten dogs; six pups, three adults, and a grizzled old dog that had been around when his grandmother was a pup. A good mix, the elder wasn't hobbled by any standards, and he'd keep the pups properly in line while the adults dicked around and had their fun.

"Elder."

"Pup."

"Shall we?"

"Yes, before it gets too hot."

"As you wish, sir."

He gathered the various leads and leashes together and assembled them in a way that would make a sled team envious; it would give them all plenty of slack to move, but it allowed him to hang onto a single lead and share the burden of the various pulling leashes with the adults and the elder; that way if the pups tried to take off they wouldn't get far, nor hurt anyone. More to the point, he made sure to keep the harnesses on the pups comfortably... snug. They wouldn't be able to get out without using some sort of jutsu, and the moment they'd try the elder would ream them into the dirt; so they knew better than to try.

He allowed the dogs to choose their own route by majority vote; or rather, whatever way the elder wanted to go, they followed. The pups tried to change that route a few times, but the adults kept them from being stupid and annoying the old man. A solid hour of walking was enough to have the pups panting heavily, the adults winded, and the elder happily stretched and ready for a nap. Bringing them back to the kennels, he shoved the pups into their place and grabbed the water hose, rinsing them down and setting up the misters so that they wouldn't be too uncomfortable in the heat; the pup kennels got a lot of afternoon sun, so even with the shade it could be pretty damn toasty in there; better to be safe than sorry. The adults and the elder were left to their own devices loose in the fenced areas; it was rare for adults and elders to be put into the kennels during the day, so he didn't bother himself.

It was one of his great-uncles that was handling the genin coming into the compound to handle the dogs; he paid off the boy and signed his paperwork with a knowing wink. An Inuzuka getting paid to dog walk, outrageous.

729/600 D-rank Mission