Chapter 55

Leaving from the entrance of Konoha at noon, it would take at least ten hours of travel to reach the front lines of the Fire Country.

By evening, the six people, including Shiroishi, found a defensible position to rest for the night, planning to set off again at dawn the next day, and by evening, they should be able to reach the Konoha camp at the front lines.

This war between the Sand Hidden Village and Konoha took place along the border between the River Country and the Fire Country.

This is a small country situated between the two major nations of the Fire Country and the Wind Country, with its northern part bordering the Rain Country. It has a certain level of ninja power, but the organized ninja village is too weak and has no reputation in the ninja world.

Therefore, in this war, the ninja power of the River Country can almost be ignored.

On the open ground, the six people were resting, but their desire to communicate with each other was not very strong.

Firstly, after a long day of travel, everyone's body was already tired, and they all hoped to rest well.

Secondly, the two teams were not very familiar with each other.

Perhaps Jiraiya and Shomu had a good relationship, but the three people, Shiroishi and the others, and Minato, had no connection.

Even if they knew each other, it was only by hearing each other's names by chance, and they were just nodding acquaintances, not even ordinary friends.

"He is very strong."

Shiroishi, leaning against a large tree, was frowning and thinking about natural energy when Ryuri suddenly said this.

"What?"

Shiroishi stopped thinking and subconsciously raised his head.

"This guy has no weaknesses at all. Even when resting, he chose a defensible position for defense, and he made this judgment in the first moment, showing his excellent analytical skills. When facing Teacher Shomu, he remained calm and was not intimidated by Teacher Shomu's presence. He is very confident in his own strength."

Shiroishi understood who Ryuri was talking about, it was Minato on the other side.

Shiroishi nodded in agreement with Ryuri's evaluation.

A ninja who could be brought along by the Three Sages, how could they be simple?

Moreover, in the ninja academy, the other party had already shown his talent and was a well-known genius.

According to Shiroishi's estimation, Minato's current strength might already have reached the level of a jōnin.

"But compared to you, Ryuri, he should still be a bit lacking, right?"

Ayame said with a smile at this moment.

Ryuri's strength in Shomu's team was second only to the team leader Shomu. With the excellent bloodline ability of the Uchiha clan, it was difficult for ordinary jōnin to gain any advantage against Ryuri.

"Only a battle will tell."

Ryuri, though proud, felt that Minato, who could be with the Three Sages, was not comparable to ordinary jōnin.

However, Ryuri was also very confident in her own strength, especially after mastering natural energy. Just her taijutsu ability alone would give jōnin-level ninjas a headache.

Moreover, in battle, they would have to constantly pay attention to her Sharingan.

Overall, if a real battle were to occur, Ryuri did not think she had any chance of losing.

But the other party's strength was also a fact.

If the situation allowed, she would like to test him, but at this time and place, it would be more appropriate to be a bit restrained.

"Alright, it's about time for the patrol."

At this moment, Shiroishi stood up, ending the conversation about Minato.

Even though the last mission eliminated a Sand Hidden elite unit, and there had been no reports of destruction within the Fire Country recently, they could not relax.

As long as they were on a mission outside the village, they had to be 200% alert to prevent any accidents.

Shomu's team's patrol duty was always done in pairs.

Shiroishi and Ayame were responsible for the first half of the night, while Ryuri and Shomu were responsible for the second half.

The sky was already dark, and Shiroishi and Ayame began their patrol for the first half of the night, checking the surroundings to see if any enemies were lurking.

Nodding to Ryuri, Shiroishi and Ayame disappeared from the spot and began their patrol.

Ryuri glanced at their backs but said nothing.

The patrol task for Shiroishi's group was relatively simple, after all, with Ayame's Byakugan, any enemy within a five-kilometer radius would be visible.

Although it could not compare to the range of sensor ninjas, sensor jutsu could only determine distance, direction, and the number of targets, while the Byakugan's all-around surveillance ability could see what techniques the enemy was using and what methods to use to gain the upper hand, quickly suppressing the enemy's morale.

Thanks to the Byakugan, Konoha could avoid the traps carefully set by the enemy in every war, making the enemy's schemes ineffective.

"Let's stop here."

In another forest, Shiroishi stopped.

Ayame had already activated her Byakugan, and anyone approaching would be detected.

Next, they just needed to circle the area periodically to complete their patrol for the first half of the night.

Shiroishi took a piece of paper from his ninja tool bag and placed it in Ayame's hand.

Ayame tilted her head in confusion but still took it, looking around and seeing no abnormalities before opening the paper.

It read: "Are there any toads around?"

"..."

Toads?

Ayame did not understand why Shiroishi was asking such a question, but she shook her head lightly.

There were many insects around, but the nearest toad was over a hundred meters away, in the river.

"It seems there are no toads."

"Yes, I haven't detected any toad tracks. But why are you particularly concerned about toads, Shiroishi?"

Ayame blinked, asking her question.

"That's because recently, there have been many toads suddenly appearing in Konoha, and I'm worried that someone is setting up spies."

"Using toads as spies?"

"Yes, the one doing this is likely Jiraiya, one of the Three Sages, who has a summoning contract with the toads of Mount Myōboku. Toads are easily overlooked and are convenient for gathering information, right?"

This is similar to how Ryuri trained her cats, and it's possible that someone is using toads to gather information.

"Are they looking for something?"

Ayame looked thoughtful.

"I'm not sure, but they might be monitoring something. Anyway, the toads are not our concern. We just need to be cautious when exchanging information in the future."

"I see, indeed."

Ayame nodded in understanding.

There were no abnormal situations around them, and no Anbu were monitoring them, which meant their secrets had not been exposed.

Excessive actions would be counterproductive and draw unnecessary attention.

At this time, even if unexpected things happened, they just needed to maintain their usual pace.

"By the way, there's one more thing I need to tell you."

Shiroishi scratched his head and sighed, not knowing how to start.

"Trouble?"

"Yes, it's about Ryuri."

Shiroishi's eyes shifted to the side.

Ayame thought of a possibility.

"Could it be..."

"Yes, just as you thought, our secret has been exposed. So in the future, when we act as a group of three, I don't need to hide my strength and will use my full power in battle."

Shiroishi continued to scratch his head, feeling the situation becoming more complicated.

He couldn't guess what Ryuri's attitude towards this matter would be.

But this is good, in the future, he wouldn't need to hide his strength when acting as a group of three.

This might help them complete their missions better.

After that, he just needed to attribute the credit to Ryuri and Ayame, and he could continue to be a low-profile presence.

After all, safety first.

"I see."

Ayame lowered her head slightly, making it hard to see her expression.

She didn't ask why it was exposed, as such questions were meaningless.

So, they just needed to relax and get along.

But thinking about it, she felt a bit resentful.

The one who should have been the first to know Shiroishi's true secret should have been her, Ayame thought with some distress.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Seeing Ayame lower her head, Shiroishi was worried she might be overthinking.

"No, I'm fine. Actually, I think Shiroishi should have been more honest with Ryuri earlier."

Ayame looked up and smiled, having already put her disappointment aside, not showing it on her face. Only she knew what she was thinking.

Unable to read anything from Ayame's smile, she had indeed grown a lot compared to before.

So, it was best to quickly end this topic.

He felt that continuing this conversation about another woman in front of a woman would become abnormally terrifying.

After that, Shiroishi handed Ayame the method for natural energy training and the auxiliary drugs.

He wanted her to quickly master natural energy.

To be honest, among the three of them, Ayame might be the one most favored by natural energy.

Because the main combat style of the Hyuga clan is taijutsu, specifically the Gentle Fist technique used in conjunction with the Byakugan.

Shiroishi couldn't guess how much Ayame's Gentle Fist technique would improve after mastering natural energy, but the benefits she would receive would definitely surpass his and Ryuri's.

Shiroishi was looking forward to seeing how Ayame's strength would increase using natural energy with the Gentle Fist technique.

Ayame took the items but did not immediately start training. Instead, she and Shiroishi continued their patrol work.

There were no issues during the first half of the night's patrol. However, since Jiraiya's team was also involved in the patrol, the night was divided into three shifts.

So, Shiroishi and Ayame finished their patrol two hours earlier than usual and returned to the camp to rest.

Nothing happened during the night.

At dawn the next day, the six people set off again.

They traveled all day and finally reached the border area between the Fire Country and the River Country by evening.

The main base for Konoha's resistance against the Sand Hidden Village was located here.

There were over two thousand Konoha ninjas here, and the commander was Orochimaru, one of the Three Sages, with Tsunade as the deputy commander assisting Orochimaru.

Despite this, the front-line situation was still not optimistic.

After a strict review, the Konoha ninjas guarding the large camp began to let them in.

Upon entering the camp, Shiroishi felt a completely different oppressive atmosphere compared to Konoha Village.

Medical personnel carried injured on stretchers into the tents.

Ninjas gathered in groups beside the tents, holding simple hot food, with their faces numb and emaciated, eating dryly.

Some ninjas vomited, pounding their chests and drinking large gulps of water, either because they couldn't eat or because the food was too bad.

Passing by the medical area, they could hear the agonizing screams of the injured coming from the tents.

Everyone's nerves were stretched to the limit, and it would only take a trigger to unleash the negative emotions they had been suppressing for a long time, leading to a breakdown.

This is war.

Shomu and Jiraiya needed to meet with the commander Orochimaru, so Shiroishi and the others, including Minato, had to wait outside the camp.

The waiting time was not long, and a few minutes later, Shomu came out of the tent with a scroll in his hand, detailing the mission for Shomu's team.

"Let's go."

"Yes."

Time was tight, and Shomu planned to explain the mission details to Shiroishi and the others while on the move.

"See you later, Minato."

"Sure, see you. Be careful."

Minato smiled at Shiroishi's well-wishing and watched as Shomu's team of four left the camp.

◎

"Next, we will split into two groups. The mission is to cut off the Sand Hidden Village's supply lines."

Without wasting time, a few kilometers away from the Konoha camp, Shomu stopped in a river valley and briefly explained the mission.

"Are we the only team?"

Shiroishi and the others were slightly taken aback.

"Along the way, we will have Anbu assistance. One more thing, this mission is crucial, and we cannot reveal any information. Therefore, if we encounter anyone who is not one of us... kill them all!"

Shomu's face was stern, and Shiroishi and the others were solemn.

The Sand Hidden Village's supply lines could not be within the Fire Country, so they had to enter the River Country to cut off the supply lines.

In other words... even if they encountered ordinary civilians in the River Country, they had to eliminate them all to prevent the mission from being exposed.

"From this direction, about fifteen kilometers away, a team of Anbu will be waiting to assist us."

Shomu pointed southwest.

Shiroishi and the others looked in the direction Shomu pointed, and ahead was the River Country, outside the Fire Country's territory.

"If you understand, let's start."

Shomu finished speaking and disappeared in another direction.

Shiroishi and the others looked at each other, seeing the serious expressions in each other's eyes.

Not only had they been given the cruel order to eliminate all witnesses, but the mission's goal was to cut off the Sand Hidden Village's supply lines, which was an incredibly difficult S-rank mission.

Even with Anbu assistance, the mission was full of danger.

Shiroishi sighed and said, "There's no need to worry too much. Since we've been given this mission, it means it's possible to complete. The most important thing now is to meet up with the Anbu."

Indeed, Shomu had given them the mission, but not the specific steps.

It was clear that Shomu had his own mission and knew only this much.

Shiroishi and the others needed to meet up with the Anbu to know how to proceed and work with them.

Ryuri and Ayame had no objections, so they immediately set off.

It took them about ten minutes to reach the fifteen-kilometer distance southwest.

As Shomu had said, there were Konoha Anbu waiting there, a total of four.

However, there was something strange about the masks they wore, which were slightly different from the masks Shiroishi had seen on Anbu before.

The patterns on the Anbu's masks gave a sense of oppression and coldness.

Especially the eyes behind the masks, cold and emotionless, like a group of machines.

"Who are you?"

"We are Anbu 'Root' ninjas. This mission to cut off the Sand Hidden Village's supply lines will be carried out in cooperation with you."

The leader stepped forward and said indifferently to Shiroishi and the others.

"Root?"

For Shiroishi and the others' confusion, the leader did not explain further, continuing in an indifferent tone, "You three will be responsible for the feint attack to draw the enemy's attention, while we will be responsible for the destruction."

As he spoke, the leader lifted his shirt, revealing a dense array of explosive tags on his body.

The three Anbu behind him did the same, lifting their shirts to reveal similar explosive tags on their skin.

"..."

"So, once the feint attack is successful, you need to quickly escape the battlefield. The explosive tags on our bodies are specially made and have immense power. Don't blame us if you die accidentally."

"..."

It seemed that in this mission, the ones they should be most wary of were not the Sand Hidden ninjas but themselves.

Who would normally cover themselves with explosive tags that could detonate at any moment?

A group of lunatics! Shiroishi and the others felt a headache.

They suddenly had the urge to immediately run far away from these lunatics, fearing that one wrong move could lead to an impromptu explosion, sending everyone to the sky.