Immortality begins with the ninjas of Konoha.

In early October of Konoha Year 47, conflict broke out again on the border of the Land of Rain. The Daimyo of the Land of Fire strongly condemned this and joined forces with the Daimyo of the Land of Rain to put pressure on the Land of Wind.

Such diplomatic efforts were largely ineffective, as Sunagakure continued to act as it pleased, even sending elite squads to raid Konoha's supply lines.

When news from the front lines reached the village, the "hardliners" protested again, believing that the Hokage was too weak.

Fortunately, Tsunade, who stayed in the village, stood up for her teacher, and the "hardliners" were eventually "suppressed" once again.

Although it wasn't a full-scale war at this time, Tsunade still felt exhausted, and more and more people were showing her goodwill.

What put even more pressure on her was the development of medicine. Tsunade felt that some people in the village had probably misunderstood her. In fact, she relied entirely on her own disciples for the cultivation of medicinal herbs.

The new drug that is currently showing great promise on the battlefield was originally intended to enhance "brain chakra." Osamu Furukawa hoped to accelerate the processing of nerve signals, but it resulted in a "berserk" effect.

Shizune looked at Tsunade standing by the window with some worry. It was unusual for her to have skipped lunch.

"Tsunade-sensei, are you still thinking about pharmacology?"

"The Nara clan recently added some more information to their pharmacopoeia, which may contain some useful knowledge."

Tsunade, dressed in a blue Jonin casual outfit, turned her head and saw Shizune's worried eyes. She immediately gave her a gentle smile and reassured her:

"The Nara clan's collection is indeed of great reference value, but what I'm really worried about is the dependence caused by the drugs."

"Even if the side effects are reduced, some ninjas may still become addicted to the false power."

"Like Sarutobi-sensei, I want to avoid war as much as possible, whether it is a large country or a small country. In the end, killing only leaves behind pain."

Shizune couldn't fully grasp the emotion, so she could only blink in agreement. Tsunade, seeing this, suddenly burst out laughing and leaned down to tease her:

"At your age, you don't need to think about so much. Children should live happily!"

"In a few more years, I'll be able to start dating, Jingyin. Do you have someone you like yet?"

Tsunade gently rubbed Shizune's face, and the latter seemed to realize something, her face turning bright red.

Watching Shizune run away shyly, Tsunade suddenly missed Osamu Furukawa; the two could talk about many things.

"Hopefully no one notices Xiu Zhen's true talent."

In Tsunade's view, Furukawa Osamu's chakra was very special, capable of catalyzing mutations in ordinary herbs.

The mutated herbs have doubled their efficacy, and Konoha's current herbal laboratory is almost entirely supported by mutated herbs.

Tsunade discovered this ability shortly after taking Furukawa Osamu as her disciple. Not wanting the higher-ups to "study" her disciple in the village's name, she kept it a secret.

"This is such a hassle. I should have just done it in private from the beginning."

-

On the Konoha border, near the Land of Rain's territory, a Sand Village ninja, fleeing with all his might, jumped off a tree trunk and screamed with a contorted expression:

"Come on, you scum! Sand Village ninjas won't die like cowards!"

Three young men wearing headscarves stood back to back, and after shouting, no one responded. Cold sweat broke out on their foreheads again.

"call out!"

Suddenly, the shuriken imbued with wind release chakra flew out from Furukawa Osamu's hand. The three of them immediately widened their eyes, one of them fell to the ground, and the other darted to the side.

The Sand Village Chunin, acting as the temporary captain, seized the opportunity and threw his short sword. The blades clashed and were instantly severed, while the shuriken in his hand also deflected due to the impact.

The protruding rocks on the ground behind them were instantly severed. The three men, having determined their direction, attempted a counter-charge. Just as their chakra was about to erupt, one of them noticed black insects appearing on his body.

"No!"

The Sand Village Chunin screamed in despair, then was "pounced on" by the parasitic insects. His body began to go numb, and he was unable to react.

The two people beside them felt their scalps tingle. Their team leader, a Jonin, had been "eaten" by the insects in the same way. Now, seeing the scene repeated, their legs wouldn't obey them.

"I was actually controlled by fear."

Hearing the voice behind him, the Sand Village boy felt a sharp pain in his chest. Looking down at the short sword that was spitting out chakra, a relieved smile appeared on his face:

"it's over..."

After whispering something, he fell to the ground. On the other side, a Sand Village ninja turned and swung his sword, but the blade was instantly severed.

Kakashi thrust his short sword horizontally, the lightning chakra attached to the blade vibrating at a high frequency, slicing a huge wound in the enemy's waist.

"Bang..."

The last Sand Village ninja fell, blood gushing from his body. Kakashi glanced down at him, then calmly sheathed his short sword.

Inuzuka Jaw jumped down from the thick tree branch, and the giant yellow dog beside him immediately rushed to Furukawa Osamu's side, wagging its tail. Seeing his beloved dog's behavior, the veteran Jonin smiled and said:

"Xiu has only been here a few days, and you're already getting close to him!"

"Woof!"

The big dog barked in dissatisfaction, while Yu Nu Zhiwei, who had stepped out from behind the tree, pushed up her sunglasses and explained in a cool manner:

"Senior, my parasites tell me that Xiu has a 'natural' scent! Animals love it!"

Kakashi looked puzzled, subconsciously concentrated his chakra on his nose, sniffed carefully, and then gave a deadpan look and complained:

"I don't smell 'natural,' what is that smell?"

Furukawa Osamu laughed heartily, patted the dog's head, and changed the subject, saying:

"Senior, this should be the last intrusion team. It seems we've completed our mission ahead of schedule today."

Inuzuka Jaw nodded in satisfaction. With parasitic insects, a sensory ninja, and two ninjas with keen senses of smell, this tracking team was extremely efficient.

"Thank you all for your hard work. We've finally managed to clean up all these stubborn sand spirits."

"We will await orders from the village for the next few days."

-

Late at night, in the Konoha camp, most of the Chunin were discussing the recent actions, and everyone believed that the village would launch an attack before the weather turned cold.

The recent sneak attacks by Sunagakure have been somewhat effective, resulting in injuries to some ninjas and a loss of supplies.

Might Guy didn't participate in the pursuit mission today, spending most of his time protecting the transport team. Upon seeing Kakashi and Furukawa Osamu, he immediately called out loudly:

"Are all the missions finished?"

Furukawa Osamu responded and quickly took the injured person next to Might Guy. The Konoha ninja who received treatment thanked him loudly, but his expression turned unfriendly when he saw Kakashi.

Might Guy scratched his head awkwardly, intending to explain, but Kakashi looked at the older Chunin and said expressionlessly:

"Since we acknowledge that we are merely tools, then let us fulfill our role as tools."

"Get injured again? Someone with no ninja talent like you should go back to the village as soon as possible. Staying here will only hold us back."

"If I were still fortunate enough to be your captain, I would still choose to abandon you to carry out the mission!"

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