Konoha: Uchiha, I get stronger by causing trouble.

Chapter 65 Returning to Konoha

As Kakashi was leaving, he happened to run into Iwa ninja, and fortunately Minato arrived in time.

The Iwa ninja initially thought they had just encountered a Konoha ninja in the wild, but Minato's sudden appearance caught them off guard and left them momentarily stunned.

It was this moment of hesitation that gave Minato the opportunity to bring Kakashi back using the Flying Thunder God Technique.

This is why he came from the direction of the battlefield of Muli Jinba.

Because they were rushing to support Chiga, they didn't clean up the battlefield; they just carried the corpses with them.

Unexpectedly, the specially made kunai that was not retrieved became the key to their escape.

Needless to say, their escape route was a long one.

Those three teams of Iwa ninja lived up to their reputation as a demolition squad, relentlessly pursuing and intercepting them, frequently using Earth Release to alter the terrain, causing Chiga and his companions considerable hardship.

Moreover, they were accompanied by a ninja with exceptional sensory abilities, making them impossible to shake off.

Fortunately, Minato used his Flying Thunder God Technique well, and he also ate the soldier's rations like chocolate beans, which allowed him to bring Chiga and Kakashi back to the Land of Fire.

With the help of ninjas from the border of the Land of Fire, the three were able to completely shake off the three teams of Iwa ninjas.

When the gates of Konoha appeared before the three of them, Chiga and his companions finally showed expressions of relief.

"Finally back!"

Minato looked up at the gate inscribed with Konoha Village, and a sigh appeared on his slightly gaunt face.

It has been about ten days since I accepted the task.

This wasn't the longest mission for Chiga and Kakashi, but it was definitely the most memorable one.

They were filled with many emotions, which were beyond words.

After completing the village registration, the three wounded individuals staggered inside, much to the astonishment of the ninja registering them.

Minato didn't talk to anyone along the way until he entered the Hokage's office.

At this moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi sat at his desk, which was always piled high with documents.

He was smoking his pipe when he saw someone come in, and only then did he look up.

"It's a water gate!"

However, when he saw who it was, he was immediately stunned. "What are you doing here?"

Even Hiruzen Sarutobi was a little confused when he saw Chiga and the other two.

At this moment, the three were either injured or listless, and even Minato's cheeks had become thinner, making him look as if he had been completely drained.

If Hiruzen Sarutobi hadn't known Minato's personality, and if it weren't for the fact that he had personally assigned the task, he would have thought Minato had gone to the red-light district to have a good time for a few days before returning.

How did a mission that was supposed to be just a B-level intelligence gathering mission end up in such a mess?

He was well aware of Minato's strength; even in the event of an emergency, he wouldn't be unable to escape.

Judging from the appearance of the three, they not only went through an unimaginable battle, but also seemed to be the ones who suffered losses.

Is this really the Minato he knows?!

Hiruzen Sarutobi snapped out of his daze and asked with a grave expression, "You encountered a Kage?"

"No, Hokage-sama, after we left the village, we rushed to the mission location without stopping. After completing the mission, we were resting in the town when we were ambushed by Sand Ninja."

Upon hearing this, Minato recounted his experience of being ambushed by Sand Ninja and Mist Ninja, and his escape from the pursuit of Iwa Ninja.

Of course, he didn't mention the flag that was raised that night.

After listening to Minato's report, Hiruzen Sarutobi remained silent, only glancing at Chika and the other two.

Sasori of the Red Sand from Sunagakure, Jinpachi Munashi and Kushimaru Kurihara from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, plus the third demolition squad of Iwagakure.

Even if the Hokage himself were to personally intervene, he wouldn't receive such treatment.

"Third Hokage, this is the information scroll for our mission!"

Seeing that the Third Hokage remained silent, Minato placed the scroll of the mission on the table.

Then he glanced at Chiga again.

Seeing this, Chiga nodded and took out three sealing scrolls.

Minato was taken aback and looked at Chiga with a puzzled expression.

Chiga explained, "I'm sorry, Minato-senpai. My ninja tool pouch broke during our escape, and I accidentally lost one of the tools. It was Kushimaru Kurihara's corpse."

Chiga hadn't anticipated this during the pursuit by the Iwa ninja.

When they returned to the Land of Fire, Chiga remembered that Kushimaru Kurihara had seen him use the Flying Thunder God Technique before he died.

If we hand over Kurisakushimaru's body, who knows if the Yamanaka clan will find out?

So Chiga found an opportunity to destroy Kushimaru Kurihara's body on the way back to the Land of Fire.

Minato didn't say anything more after hearing this.

Kushimaru Kurishari himself didn't have any bloodline limit, so there was nothing special about the corpse. It was only brought back to investigate the information that Kushimaru Kurishari knew.

This information is probably also in Wuli Shenba's mind.

Chiga unrolled the three scrolls one by one.

Then, two ninja swords and a corpse appeared in the Hokage's office.

Hiruzen Sarutobi stood up, ignoring the quest scroll on the table, and walked to the corpse and the ninja sword. After confirming their identities, he nodded and said, "That's right, it's indeed the Longsword - Sewing Needle and the Exploding Blade - Spray!"

After saying that, he remembered that in Minato's report, Chiga had killed Kushimaru Kurishari alone. He turned his head and carefully examined Chiga.

Back then, under Kushina's guidance, Chiga already possessed the strength to kill Jonin.

Although Kushina had two ANBU members keep it a secret, Hiruzen Sarutobi still knew about it.

Therefore, he knew that Chiga was quite capable.

However, unexpectedly, Chiga's strength was so great that she could kill Kushimaru Kurihara.

Hiruzen Sarutobi praised Chiga, "I never imagined that in just a few months since graduation, Chiga, you would have grown to the point where you could kill Kushimaru Kurihara on your own. You truly are a genius of the Uchiha clan."

Upon hearing this, Chiga humbly replied, "You flatter me, Hokage. It was Kushimaru Kurihara's carelessness that gave me the opportunity to kill him."

"Good, young man, you are not arrogant or impatient. You will definitely become a powerful ninja in the future."

Hiruzen Sarutobi nodded in satisfaction upon hearing this.

Then he addressed Chiga and the other two, explaining, "These two ninja swords were originally supposed to be your spoils of war, but the Land of Water probably won't give them up easily. What are your thoughts?"

Minato and Chika exchanged a glance and understood what Hiruzen Sarutobi meant: he wanted them to hand over their ninja swords to the village so that the village could then extract some benefits from the Land of Water.

Neither Chika nor Minato had any objections to this.

Then Minato said, "It's entirely up to the Hokage."

Upon hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi shouted to the ANBU members at the door, ordering them to take the two blades and the corpse away.

He then pondered for a moment before speaking to Qianhe and the other two.

"Although the village has not issued any missions targeting the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, your ability to kill Kushimaru Kurihara and Jinpachi Murashi and bring back these two swords is a great achievement for Konoha. It would be unreasonable not to reward you."

(End of this chapter)