Konoha: I have a clone in One Piece.

Chapter 144 The Watergate Team's New Mission

The Land of Wind, Sunagakure Village.

Scorpion, covered in dust and wounds, perched on the back of the running duck, returned to the village.

When Elder Chiyo of Sunagakure saw that only her beloved grandson had returned, she asked anxiously, "What's wrong, Sasori? Where is the others?"

"Oh, we've run into the Cloud Ninja Squad."

"Those three Cloud Ninjas seemed to have come to steal the ducks; they were all killed in the battle."

Scorpion's words are simple and frightening.

Chiyo frowned immediately upon hearing this.

The Cloud Ninja Squad? Running away quickly?

Looking at the wounds on Scorpion's body, Chiyo, a veteran of many battles, immediately recognized that they were injuries caused by lightning.

She didn't think her grandson would lie; the Hidden Cloud Village was indeed full of thugs who loved to steal, smash, and rob. Chiyo, seeing the still-bleeding wounds on Sasori's body, didn't have time to think too much and quickly grabbed her grandson's hand, asking with concern:

"Scorpion, are you alright? Let Grandma take a look at you!"

Chiyo was not only an excellent puppeteer, but also renowned in the ninja world for her poison skills and medical expertise, not much inferior to Tsunade.

However, looking at Chiyo in front of him, Sasori shook his head: "Don't worry, Grandma, my wounds have been almost stitched up. I can treat them myself when we get back."

However, Chiyo completely ignored Sasori's words.

She pulled her beloved grandson over and checked him over from head to toe. Only after confirming that his injuries were not serious did she feel relieved.

"Thank goodness, it's just some burns. There's a bottle of ointment on the cabinet at home..."

"Okay, goodbye Grandma~"

Before Chiyo could finish speaking, Sasori turned around, waved to her, and immediately ran home.

Chiyo paused for a moment, then laughed and scolded, "Heh, this brat..."

She quickly frowned again: "The Cloud Ninja Squad... those damned barbarians, no, I have to go and tell the Kazekage."

Chiyo hurried toward the Kazekage's office.

A short while later, in the office.

"What? Cloud Ninja?"

The Third Kazekage was furious upon hearing Chiyo's report.

"Those damned barbarians have done something so shameless again, they deserve to die!"

"The Runaway Duck belongs to our Sunagakure!"

Chiyo's face also turned ugly as she listened to the Third Kazekage's angry curses.

Indeed, the fast-running duck has become a major pillar of the Sunagakure economy, not to mention that many Sunagakure ninja consider it a good partner.

The Third Kazekage glared fiercely toward the Land of Lightning and said ruthlessly, "Elder Chiyo, let's make more preparations. I suspect that the other ninja villages are secretly training mutated creatures."

"Hmph, as expected, apart from us Sunagakure, they're all no good!"

The Third Kazekage paused, a thoughtful expression on his face, then added in a low voice, "Perhaps we should also go and plunder other countries..."

……

Land of Lightning, Border Guard Post.

Minato Namikaze arrived at this place with Choza Akimichi, Shiki Aburame, and Kakashi Hatake, who had recently been placed under his command by the Third Hokage.

Because Suzuki had already resolved the crisis in Loulan, Minato's team was now tasked with capturing the baboons from Kumogakure.

Recalling the furious expression on the Third Hokage's face when he gave him the mission, Minato Namikaze smiled bitterly to himself.

This mission is less about stealing baboons and more about taking revenge on Kumogakure!

Sigh, the Hokage still can't forget the bombing of the Hokage Building.

But is the culprit really from Kumogakure?

Minato Namikaze instinctively sensed that something was wrong.

However, although he is quite strong now, his achievements and contributions to Konoha are still very low, and he is a nobody with little influence. Minato Namikaze does not think he can influence the decisions of Konoha's higher-ups.

The four soon encountered the Cloud Ninja guards on guard at the border.

"Kill them all?" Kakashi said, his eyes flashing with malice as he looked at the guards.

Minato Namikaze frowned.

The disciple he just accepted seems to have a lot of resentment. Has he not yet recovered from his father's death?

Minato Namikaze sighed inwardly, looked at the Cloud Village guards at the checkpoint and pondered for a moment before hesitating slightly and saying, "No, let's go around them. Our mission needs to be kept low-key."

He then looked at his three teammates and asked, "Do you need me to use the Flying Thunder God Technique?"

Kakashi pursed his lips, didn't respond, and then turned his face away.

Having learned the truth about his father's death, Kakashi now dislikes all the Konoha ninjas.

"Okay." Akimichi Choza readily agreed, then glanced at the silent Aburame Shii beside him and said with a simple smile, "Shii is the same as me. Thank you for your help, Minato."

You're too kind.

Minato Namikaze smiled gently, then threw out a Flying Thunder God Shuriken.

The shuriken sliced through the air, swiftly passing through the warning point and landing in the grass not far away.

Minato Namikaze grabbed Kakashi's shoulder with one hand and put his other hand on Choza Akimichi, who was leaning close to Shimi Aburame.

The next second, the four figures vanished from their spot!

Having successfully bypassed the warning point and arrived in the bushes, Choza Akimichi, feeling the sudden change in scenery, couldn't help but exclaim, "Minato, your Flying Thunder God Technique is truly amazing! No wonder you're called the Yellow Flash!"

"Hehe, you flatter me. Compared to my seniors, I still have a lot to learn," Minato Namikaze said modestly with a smile.

"Hey~" Kakashi, sounding impatient, said, "Are we coming or not?"

"Okay, let's go." Minato Namikaze nodded.

However, just as the four were about to continue, a deep and loud voice rang out.

"Earth Release! Earth Flow Spear!"

The four of them quickly turned around to look.

At the border of the Land of Lightning, a guard hut was destroyed by several sharp clay spears. The Cloud Village ninja on guard duty was pierced through the body in an instant, and a large amount of blood flowed down the clay spears to the ground.

"That's... the son of the Third Tsuchikage, Hirotsuchi!" Akimichi Choza's good-natured face suddenly turned serious: "What are Iwa ninja doing here?"

Aburame Shiki, who had remained silent the entire way, finally spoke up: "Perhaps their purpose is the same as ours?"

Kakashi glanced warily at the sharp homemade gun, a hint of vigilance showing on his youthful face.

Minato Namikaze frowned, pondering the purpose of the Iwa ninja.

The next moment, a group of Iwa ninjas emerged from behind Huang Tu not far away, each leading a group of armed baboons towards the border.

"Baboons? So many?" Kakashi was somewhat taken aback, then his face lit up with excitement. He suggested to the three of them, "If we steal their baboons, wouldn't our mission be complete immediately?"

"No way!" Minato Namikaze refused without even thinking.

He looked at Kakashi seriously and earnestly warned him, "Konoha and Iwagakure have only just managed to ease tensions; we can't afford to start any more conflicts now."

Choza Akimichi and Shimi Aburame nodded in agreement with Minato Namikaze's words.

"Tch~" Kakashi's disdain vanished in an instant, and he quickly regained his cold expression.

Just then, Huang Tu also spotted Minato Namikaze and his group.

"Golden Flash - Minato Namikaze?" Huang Tu looked wary.

What are the Konoha ninja doing here?

Arrest me? Revenge against Kumogakure? Or is there some other conspiracy?

As Huang Tu recalled his time at the Konoha Root base, a multitude of thoughts flashed through his mind.

The several Iwa ninja behind him also became alert and prepared for battle.

However, Minato Namikaze simply smiled and nodded at the yellow earth, indicating friendliness, before leading his teammates away from the area.

Several Iwa ninja secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

If we were to actually fight this Golden Flash, we would probably all perish except for the yellow earth.

"..."

As Huang Tu watched the group from Konoha gradually walk away, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

To be honest, if they were to actually fight, he wasn't confident he could guarantee his teammates' safety, and as for the mission his father, the Third Tsuchikage, had given him, he would likely fail.

Once Minato Namikaze and the others were out of sight, Huang Tu waved to several Iwa ninja.

Then, the group, accompanied by dozens of armed baboons, headed towards Iwagakure Village.

Not long after.

Land of Earth, Tsuchikage's Office in Iwagakure (Hidden Rock Village).

After listening to his son's report about encountering Minato Namikaze's squad at the border of the Land of Lightning, the Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, frowned.

Onoki had always remembered the humiliation that Madara Uchiha had inflicted on him and the Second Tsuchikage. The recent incident in which his son, Kyoto, was imprisoned at the Root base in Konoha only intensified his hatred for the village.

"Hmph! The Yellow Flash? Konoha is really lucky. They lost White Fang and another Minato Namikaze has appeared. Hiruzen Sarutobi must be laughing in his sleep." The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, said with a hint of apprehension.

After he finished speaking, he looked at his son, Huangtu.

At this moment, Huang Tu was looking out the window at the noisy and lively baboons in the village. After watching for a while, he said calmly, "Father, it seems that these baboons need to undergo a period of training before they can be used in actual combat."

"I know." The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, nodded, then puffed out his beard and glared angrily.

"Those damned barbarians stole several crabs from us. Luckily, Huang Tu, you did the right thing and brought back quite a few baboons."

"Otherwise, I'm afraid I'd be so angry about this loss that I'd tear my beard off!"

"There are so many petty thieves in the ninja world these days. Not long ago, the Anbu even discovered Sand Ninja in the Land of Earth. Ha, apart from us Iwagakure, these bastards are all no good!"

As he spoke, Onoki looked at his son expectantly: "Kimoto, if you can capture these Sand Ninja again, it will be another great achievement for the village!"

However, Huang Tu was an honest and kind man. He didn't care about any Sand Ninja or any merits. His focus was entirely on Onoki's body.

Huang Tu replied with a serious expression, "Father, your health is related to the safety of our Iwagakure Village. You must not get too angry."

"..."

The Third Tsuchikage, Onoki, looked at his son, who was as wooden as a board, and felt a little disappointed. He sighed deeply.

He inexplicably thought of the Third Raikage's son, the kid who had recently been paired with the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki of Kumogakure as the Abby Duo.

Onoki frowned.

The Third Raikage, the Two-Tails Jinchuriki, and now this Abby duo has appeared...

No, the power of Kumogakure absolutely cannot be increased any further!

A cold glint flashed in Onoki's eyes.

……

On the other side, underground in a cave.

"Mr. Madara, it seems like the various ninja villages are starting to stir up trouble again lately."

"In their struggle to seize those mutated creatures, several ninja squads have already engaged in small-scale battles."

A white zetsu reported on the intelligence it had recently gathered.

"I reckon another war will break out soon. Hmph! These ninja villages shouldn't even exist!"

"I said from the beginning that I would take care of them all. The ninja world only needs Konoha. But that naive bastard Hashirama kept stopping me, insisting that we couldn't mess around."

"What utter nonsense! If we had done as I said back then, the ninja world might have enjoyed peace for a longer period of time!"

"That disgusting Tobirama Senju was right on this point."

A mocking expression appeared on Madara Uchiha's aged face.

Back when they were building Konoha Village together, he and Hashirama Senju had agreed that he would be responsible for eliminating external threats, while Hashirama Senju would be responsible for managing village affairs.

He also spent a good time in Konoha Village at that time.

Unfortunately, the differences between the two grew larger and larger from then on.

Just then, another White Zetsu returned, holding a piece of fragrant roasted meat in its hand.

"Mr. Madara—" The White Zetsu ran up to Uchiha Madara, grinning foolishly as it handed him the grilled meat. "Mr. Madara, this is the meat of a giant creature I bought from the Land of Water. The owner said it's especially delicious, very nutritious, and melts in your mouth. Would you like to try some?"

This……

It does smell quite fragrant, and it looks delicious...

Looking at the roasted meat brought close to his nose, Madara Uchiha frowned on the surface, but secretly swallowed hard.

However, this ninja demon still maintained a haughty demeanor, saying in an icy tone, "Put it on the ground with some paper as a pad."

"If there's nothing else, you can leave!"

"Continue with your surveillance mission."

"Yes!" the two White Zetsu replied, and then quickly burrowed underground.

Madara Uchiha looked at the roasted meat on the ground in front of him, then stretched out his old, withered arm and grabbed it.

"Seriously, it's been so long since I've had meat."

Madara Uchiha showed a nostalgic expression, then took it to his mouth and bit it.

"Hmm...it tastes good. Where did you buy this White Zetsu?"

"It really does melt in your mouth. The boss didn't lie to that idiot after all. Hmm, not bad. Maybe I can let it buy some more next time."