Mizukage's Pokémon Ninja Scroll

Chapter 97 Hiruzen! I am the one!

Within the territory of the Land of Hot Water.

None of the eight wore Kirigakure headbands, and their attire was that of ordinary samurai.

These three young warriors looked somewhat strange.

Zabuza kept adjusting the short sword hanging at his waist; he always felt a little awkward not carrying his weapon on his back.

"Teacher Qing, the town ahead should be where the mission contact person mentioned in the intelligence is located."

While cautiously observing her surroundings, Jianchuan Ju asked Qing for confirmation.

After landing on the coastline of the Land of Hot Water, the group made their way here, encountering ninjas from the Hidden Cloud Village twice along the way.

Fortunately, thanks to Qing's preemptive senses, they managed to evade their opponent without any serious injury. However, the group decided to change into the samurai outfits they had prepared beforehand for some disguise.

Although the eight-person samurai squad was somewhat conspicuous, it was still possible to reduce some trouble since daimyo from various countries often sent their own samurai out on business.

The Cloud Village is now scattered, definitely gathering intelligence. The importance they attach to hearing from town residents about a group of samurai passing by is certainly different from that of a group of ninjas passing by.

"Let's get here first. It seems there are some Cloud Village ninjas in the town as well."

Ao maintained his sensory ninjutsu. Although Ao's sensory ninjutsu could not distinguish very detailed information, its advantage was that the range of perception was extremely large.

However, the group was determined to enter the town, so they had to proceed with caution.

"The people of Kumogakure are really arrogant, conducting investigations so openly in other countries," Hozuki Shingetsu commented, baring his sharp teeth.

Looking at his sharp teeth, Tachibana Kenkawa really wanted to say, "Shut up already, are you afraid people won't know you're from the Land of Water?"

Fortunately, he didn't need to say anything more; Ken smashed Hozuki Shingetsu's head with another punch.

"New Moon! Shut up! Or you should learn from Zabuza Momochi and wear a mask!"

After Crescent Moon's mind returned to normal, she gave an awkward smile and fell silent.

"I'm very sorry, Jonin Ao."

After punishing his own teammates, Ken still pressed Xinyue's head down and bowed to Qing to apologize.

Qing didn't pay any attention to these things and still answered the other party's previous questions.

"The five great nations are worlds apart from these small countries. What surprises me now is Konoha, which is fighting against Kumogakure, ignoring the fact that the other side has been making underhanded moves behind the battlefield."

"Indeed, the commander within the Land of Hot Springs in Konoha is that 'Dark Ninja,' right? As a representative of the Konoha hawks, he doesn't seem like the type to tolerate this kind of thing," Ken also raised his question.

"This is what we need to investigate."

As Qingjian approached the town, he raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet and stop the conversation.

However, after listening to the two Jonin's thoughts, Tachibana Kenkawa did have some guesses.

"Danzo isn't just a simple hawk; he might do things that are incomprehensible to ordinary people in order to alleviate the pressure on Konoha's front lines. After all, with the strength of the A-B duo, plus two or three hundred ninjas deployed to a single battlefield, they could truly decide the outcome of a war."

As soon as they entered the town, they saw a group of Cloud Village ninjas walking towards them.

However, the other party merely glanced at everyone's appearances and then walked straight out of the town without making any further moves.

The group exchanged bewildered glances, their earlier suspicions beginning to waver.

Are the Cloud Village ninja really here to search for something? Why do they seem so casual?

However, the most important thing was to reunite with the intelligence agents within the Land of Hot Water, so the group didn't delve into the details.

The group stopped in front of an unremarkable sushi restaurant in the small town.

If the shop's dilapidated decor and deserted appearance are considered unusual, then perhaps this place is not so unremarkable.

After the group entered the store, the middle-aged owner, dressed in slovenly clothes, leaned against the counter behind it. He showed no fear or avoidance that ordinary civilians would have when they saw a samurai, and said something with a bored expression.

"We've run out of ingredients. You guys should check out another place. About 200 meters to the left, there's a good sushi restaurant called Daiyan's. The ingredients are fresh and delicious."

Qing hesitated for a moment before looking at the man, but still took out a special small scroll from his pocket and tossed it to him.

Unexpectedly, the middle-aged man, who had already lowered his head and continued to lie prone, was hit on the head by the scroll without any reaction.

"Hey, what are you doing? I told you we don't have any ingredients."

The disheveled middle-aged man got up cursing, but his expression immediately turned serious when he saw what had hit him.

With a single push, he deftly flipped over the counter and dashed to the store entrance.

He was just an ordinary person with no chakra, and he didn't even react to the scroll that was smashed into his head.

At this moment, however, he was agile and nimble, and his speed even impressed the ninjas present.

The man rushed to the store entrance, glanced around, his expression still indifferent yet his movements nimble, but his voice was discordant, casual and lazy.

"Sigh~ This beautiful weather is perfect for sleeping~ Guests, please head out~ Closing down~ Closing down~"

Only after the shop door closed did the man respectfully approach the group and bow to them.

"Gentlemen, you've come because of the Cloud Village matter, haven't you? Let's talk about it later."

After regaining their senses, the group entered the backyard of the shop under the man's guidance.

Kanakawa Tachibana couldn't help but sigh.

"This ordinary-looking intelligence agent is more like a ninja than any of the ninjas present."

Just as the group met with intelligence personnel to learn about the situation.

Meanwhile, in the command tent of the Konoha-Kumakushi (Hidden Cloud Village) front-line camp.

A ninja wearing a Konoha ANBU mask knelt respectfully on one knee, holding a scroll in his hands, and spoke.

"Lord Danzo, this is the intelligence sent back by the decoy squad."

With his hands behind his back, Shimura Danzo slowly turned around, took the intelligence scroll, and opened it to examine it.

"Three people died? But as long as the bait is still alive, there's no problem."

"Pass on my orders: have them hold out. They are not to leave the southern part of the Land of Hot Springs until they receive further orders."

A Jonin from the Nara clan standing nearby hesitated before speaking.

"Lord Danzo, should we launch our all-out attack prematurely? Otherwise, I'm afraid..."

Danzo Shimura waved his hand to interrupt the other person.

"Everything is proceeding according to plan. I believe they can persevere; it's all for Konoha!"

At this moment, another ANBU Jonin gritted his teeth and spoke up to dissuade him.

"Lord Danzo, the Third Hokage has sent two letters requesting the termination of the plan. What do you think?"

Danzo Shimura, who was already getting impatient, slammed his hand on the table in front of him, startling all the ninjas present into a moment of silence.

With his intact eye, Shimura Danzo stared intently at the ANBU ninja who had just spoken, and said, word by word.

"Then go tell Hiruzen! I am the commander on the front lines!"

(End of this chapter)