Konoha's Hextech Ninja

"It can be confirmed that the Cloud Ninja rested here briefly before leaving by boat."

Ryota Hinata said, "Although the Cloud Ninja carefully erased the traces, they could not completely cover up all the clues. Under my Byakugan, even the slightest trace cannot hide."

“The parasitic insects told me that there are at least 952 chakras from different ninjas, and the number and information match up.” Aburame Keima turned his head, raised his hand and pointed to the vast sea, saying, “A creature with an enormous amount of chakra once passed by there, and the chakra traces it left behind can still be detected now.”

“I found this.” Inuzuka Tsurugi held a tattered piece of cloth and said, “I found this in the hands of a villager’s corpse. This kind of cloth is only produced in the Land of Lightning, so it must have come from a Cloud Ninja. With this, as long as we can detect the same scent, Kuromaru will definitely be able to track down the enemy.”

In just a short while, each of the three found some valuable clues.

In summary, although we still cannot accurately determine the whereabouts of the Cloud Ninja, we can already pinpoint a general direction.

The Cloud Ninja Force departed from the sea and headed south.

"Did they leave by sea?" Yagami Yoruichi nodded and asked, "In your judgment, should we pursue them by sea or follow the coastline overland?"

“I suggest tracking them from land,” said Aburame Keishin. “The reason is that the waves at sea will erase all traces. If the Cloud Ninja are going to invade the Land of Fire, they will definitely need a landing point. We just need to follow the coast and find out where they land.”

“We can travel faster by land,” Inuzuka Tsuru added. “We can’t find a fast ship right away; ordinary ships are too slow.”

Ryota Hinata remained silent.

Throughout the journey, unless Yagami Yoruichi actively inquired or assigned tasks, he remained there like a wooden figure.

Yoruichi Yagami had never dealt with the Hyuga clan before, so he didn't know if this was their usual practice or if only Ryota Hyuga was like this.

However, Yagami Yoruichi wasn't interested in asking any more questions and directly ordered, "Then head south along the coast! Keep tracking, and if you encounter any clues, immediately confirm whether they are related to the Cloud Ninja!"

"Yes, Captain!"

……

The border of the Land of Lightning.

Inside a large camp.

The advisor of Yunyin Village, Tutai, was compiling the intelligence he had on hand.

"Konoha's offensive is fierce. It seems they intend to drive us out of the Land of Rice Fields and the Land of Hot Springs in one fell swoop."

As Tsuchikage flipped through the documents, he sighed, "The Raikage-sama is really something, insisting on attacking Sunagakure. It's just a desert, there's nothing to gain from it, and even if we win, what's the point? The people left behind have to defend against Iwagakure and put pressure on Konoha, there aren't enough people..."

"Lord Tsuchidai!" A ninja rushed over and handed a scroll to Tsuchidai.

After inspecting the scroll, Tu Tai removed the seal and opened it. Upon seeing the contents, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Troy...is dead?!"

"what?!"

The ninja who delivered the information was also surprised.

He was only responsible for delivering information, but he never expected to hear such terrible news.

Troy, the Magnet Release ninja, is quite famous in the ninja world.

With his Magnet Release technique, he performed exceptionally well in the last Shinobi World War and was even considered one of the strongest contenders for the next Raikage.

It wasn't until the even more talented Fourth Hokage, A, emerged that the attention of the Cloud Village ninjas was diverted.

However, it is undeniable that Troy, who performed outstandingly in the Second Shinobi World War, had a very high reputation in Kumogakure and was respected and admired by many Kumogakure ninja.

But now, Troy is dead?

Moreover, he died in a seemingly harmless diversionary or feint mission.

"Who did this?" the messenger ninja asked hurriedly. "Was it one of the Legendary Sannin? Was it Konoha's White Fang? Or did the Third Hokage himself take action?"

There are many famous strongmen in Konoha.

But there were only a handful of ninjas capable of defeating or even killing Troy, and he named almost every one of them.

"neither."

Tsuchida blankly threw the scroll on the table and said, "According to the ANBU's investigation, it was a boy who looked to be in his teens who killed Troy using fire and water ninjutsu. All the ninjas we sent to the capital of the Land of Rice Fields have disappeared, and it's estimated that he was the one who did it."

"A teenager? Skilled in fire and water techniques?"

The messenger frowned, unable to think of any of Konoha's younger generation's geniuses who could match the name.

"Konoha truly has a constant stream of geniuses."

Tsuchikage gritted his teeth and said resentfully, "The commander-in-chief at the front is said to be a disciple of Jiraiya, one of the Legendary Sannin, and possesses a terrifying Body Flicker Technique. Now another young genius has emerged who can kill Troy. These two alone are already a huge problem!"

"Advisor to the local government, advisor to the local government!"

A voice rang out from afar, and a burly, dark-skinned man burst into the command tent, shouting, "Brother Troy is dead?! Who did it? I'll avenge Brother Troy!"

Upon seeing the person who had arrived, Tu Tai's face darkened.

Another reckless brute like the Third Raikage!

Your fists always beat your brains!

"Calm down, Ai!"

The earthen platform sternly rebuked, "The Third Hokage told you before he left that you should obey my orders. What did you say?!"

"I promise I will obey orders."

The fourth-generation Ai's momentum faltered for a moment, but then he stretched his neck and argued, "But aren't we going to avenge our brother Troy?! He's our brother Troy!"

"I'm not saying I won't take revenge, but I need to find out the enemy's situation first."

Earthen platform with wrinkled eyebrows.

The one who killed Troy was an unknown young genius.

In the ninja world, the unknown is often equated with danger.

In the ninja world, there are many strange abilities that can achieve the effect of 'killing on first sight'.

He wouldn't dare let the village's future successor take risks without figuring out the other person's identity and abilities.

but……

Tsuchida looked at the fourth generation Ai, and then thought about it.

The fourth generation Ai is a rare genius in the village. At just over twenty years old, he has already shown amazing fighting power.

In Tsuchikage's opinion, the Fourth Raikage A was stronger than the Jinchūriki of the Two-Tails and Eight-Tails, second only to the Third Raikage.

The only thing lacking is prestige.

If he could kill that mysterious enemy and successfully avenge Troy, and then publicize it well, his reputation would be greatly enhanced.

There will be far fewer obstacles in succeeding the Fourth Raikage in the future.

Thinking of this, Tsuchikage said to the Fourth A, "A, don't rush. We will definitely avenge Troy, but we must first find out the enemy's identity. How can we take revenge if we don't even know the enemy's identity?"

"How awful."

Although the fourth generation Ai was all brawn and no brains, he understood that Tsuchikage was right.

Unable to immediately avenge his respected "elder brother," the fourth generation of Ai was very angry and frustrated.

But he could only suppress his anger and said, "Then please find out the enemy's identity as soon as possible, Uncle Tutai! If you don't have enough manpower, I can also investigate!"

"You don't need to go. I'll arrange for people to investigate." Tsuchitai rejected the Fourth A's idea of ​​personally going without hesitation, saying, "It's more important for you and Bi to practice your teamwork as soon as possible! I'll let you know when I have definite news. Go train with Bi now. Your 'Extreme Thunder Plow Hot Blade' is still far from perfect!"

"I understand." Hearing that Tsuchikage was about to start lecturing again, the Fourth Generation Ai felt a headache coming on. He quickly made an excuse to leave, shouting as he ran, "I'm going to find Bishuren. Uncle Tsuchikage, you must tell me if you have any news. I want to avenge Brother Troy with my own hands!"

"That guy."

Tsuchikage shook his head somewhat helplessly and instructed the messenger ninja, "Go and inform..."

……

Southern part of the Land of Fire.

On a beach, Yagami Yoruichi sat by the sand, lit a bonfire, and leisurely grilled a sea fish more than a meter long on a wooden stick.

Over several days, they traced the trail from the northeastern corner of the Land of Fire to its southern part.

Yoruichi Yagami didn't feel too tired, but it was quite a test of the physical strength of her three subordinates.

After a while, when the grilled fish was almost fully cooked, Inuzuka Tsurugi and the other two returned one after another.

"Captain, the Cloud Ninja did indeed land here to rest and replenish their supplies. There are signs of logging in the forest over there. We also heard from the town in the distance that someone bought a large amount of food a few days ago."

Inuzuka Tsurugi quickly reported the group's discovery.

They haven't caught up with the whereabouts of the Cloud Ninja Force yet.

But the distance between the two sides is getting closer and closer.

"Let's eat first, and talk while we eat." Yagami Yoruichi took out a kunai, divided the huge grilled fish into four portions, gave one to each of the three, and kept one for himself, grabbing it with his hands and stuffing it into his mouth.

Grilled fish made with only coarse sea salt is not particularly flavorful.

But compared to the unpalatable military rations, it was a rare delicacy.

After enjoying the grilled fish, Yagami Yoruichi looked at the three of them and asked, "Can you confirm the direction and approximate distance from where the Cloud Ninja left?"

"They must have bypassed the land of tea and the land of hot springs and continued westward."

Keima Aburame began, "We cannot yet confirm whether their destination is the southern coast of the Land of Fire."

The Land of Fire is located in the southeast of the Ninja World Continent.

However, in the southeastern corner of the Land of Fire, there are several small peninsulas extending into the sea, dividing the Land of Fire's coastline into eastern and southern parts.

These small peninsulas include the Land of Waves, the Land of Tea, the Land of Bears, and the now-extinct Land of Swirls.

Aburame Keishin washed his hands, took out a map, and pointed to the locations of several small peninsulas on the map, saying, "According to the current clues, the Cloud Ninja bypassed these peninsulas and headed west. We are currently here..."

Aburame Keima was pointing to the location of the Land of Tea.

It is also the westernmost small country among the peninsulas.

A bay lies just beyond the strait from the land of tea.

To the north of the bay lies the southern coastline of the Land of Fire, while to the west lies the eastern coastline of the Land of Wind.

At this point, Yagami Yoruichi was basically certain that the Cloud Ninja's target was most likely the Land of Wind.

However, Yagami Yoruichi did not reveal his judgment, but instead asked, "Based on the clues you have found, how far are we from the Cloud Ninja?"

"The speed of the Cloud Ninja is not fast. Over the past few days, we have caught up very closely."

Inuzuka Tsuru interjected, saying, "If we travel at full speed from now on, we can catch up with the Cloud Ninja by tomorrow night or the day after tomorrow. Of course, that is, provided we don't go in the wrong direction."

The bay doesn't appear very large on the map.

But in reality, it is a very vast area.

If the tracking direction is slightly off, we might just miss the Cloud Ninja.

"About a day's journey?" Yagami Yoruichi nodded, glanced at the three of them, and asked, "How are you feeling? If you rest briefly and then travel through the night, can you manage?"

"Traveling overnight?" Inuzuka Tsuru and the other two were all taken aback.

“Although the Cloud Ninja are not fast, this strait is not very big.” Yagami Yoruichi pointed to the southern coastline of the Land of Fire on the map and said, “If they choose to land here, they can arrive tomorrow.”

In fact, Yagami Yoruichi was basically certain that the Cloud Ninja would not land here.

Moreover, this group of Cloud Ninja poses virtually no threat to Konoha.

If they were to slowly investigate and confirm their target, and ultimately witness the battle between the Cloud Ninja and the Sunagakure ninja, without orders from higher-ups, they would certainly stand by and do nothing, which would be more in Konoha's interest.

However, Yagami Yoruichi had no intention of letting the Cloud Ninja off so easily.

Even with thousands of enemy ninjas, who were notorious for their wanton slaughter of civilians, Yagami Yoruichi would not feel the slightest psychological burden when he killed them.

This is a great opportunity to farm system rewards and mission experience.

At the same time, it was also an opportunity to demonstrate his formidable strength in front of his subordinates.

Not to mention Inuzuka Tsuru, the future head of the Inuzuka clan. Although the Inuzuka clan has limited influence in Konoha, it is still a medium-sized ninja clan.

The Aburame clan is even stronger and can be ranked in the second tier of Konoha.

As for the Hyuga clan, they are one of the only two powerful clans in Konoha.

Although Aburame Keima and Hinata Ryota did not have high status in the clan, their publicity greatly benefited the spread of Yagami Yoruichi's reputation.

If she could establish a strong image among these three ninja clans, it would greatly benefit Yoruichi Yagami's future struggle for power in Konoha.

In the struggle for power, force is merely the foundation.