Whew--Whew--
As dusk fell, a figure ran frantically through the dim forest, occasionally turning back to check what was behind them.
No, it seems they escaped!
Just as the running figure was trying to comfort himself, he suddenly stopped.
A figure dressed in a black and gray uniform vest and wearing a fox mask appeared in front of him, waiting quietly.
The fleeing man was panting heavily, his eyes filled with panic as he looked at the figure before him.
"You've taken everything! You've killed our people! Why! Why are you still chasing me?!"
In an instant, the fleeing man screamed hysterically at the figure.
Hagoromo simply listened quietly to the words of the person in front of her, looked at the disheveled man, and slowly drew her standard long sword.
The next instant, Hagoromo's figure vanished, a blade of light slicing across the opponent's neck.
Glug--
A head rolled down to Hagoromo's feet like a soccer ball, its empty eyes staring directly at Hagoromo.
"Asking you probably won't yield any useful information, so it's better to take your head back."
Hagoromo looked at the head of the wandering ninja in front of her and murmured, then took out a scroll, squatted down, and sealed the head away.
"Mission accomplished."
After placing the scroll down, Hagoromo looked at the headless corpse lying on the ground and immediately released a small fireball to clean up the scene.
Hagoromo has been carrying out so many missions lately that she's almost lost count, and this time the mission is to investigate and clean up.
A group of wandering ninjas has recently been rampant in the Land of Land of Fire, selling Chakra Metal.
"It's time to go back."
Hagoromo looked up at the sky and prepared to return directly to the village.
Even he himself is finding it hard to adjust to the recent killings.
--
When they returned to Konoha, it was already the morning of the following day.
After handing the proof of her return to the village to the two Konoha gatekeepers, Hagoromo immediately disappeared in a Body Flicker Technique.
"This guy's been going way too crazy lately!"
As Kotetsu Hagane watched Hagoromo disappear, he couldn't help but speak.
Izumo Kamizuki said irritably, "Why do you always talk so much?"
That being said, this is also how the two of them usually spend their time.
Izumo Kamizuki responded to Kotetsu Hagane's question, saying, "It's not just madness; you should know that Kakashi was previously known as a mission maniac."
"This one is even more exaggerated than Kakashi- senpai."
Those who leave the village are all recorded by the gatekeepers, even if Hagoromo is wearing a mask.
After a few encounters, they figured out who this person was. As for Kakashi, with his signature hair, he was still recognizable even just by wearing a mask.
Hagoromo was naturally unaware of the discussion between the two Konoha gatekeepers.
He was already sitting on the sofa in the Hokage's Office, slowly sipping his tea.
Hiruzen Sarutobi was behind his desk, looking at the mission report written by Hagoromo.
After a long while, Hiruzen Sarutobi down the report and couldn't help but rub the bridge of his nose.
"We've already exhausted all possible leads on this group selling Chakra Metals, yet we still haven't found the real mastermind behind it."
The recent underground sale of Chakra Metal is also Hiruzen Sarutobi's biggest problem.
After all, these are military resources belonging to the ninja village.
"Master, I feel that we shouldn't just focus on the Land of Fire."
Hagoromo reminded her from the side, since she had been basically the one following along on these missions lately.
He had some knowledge of it, more or less; the Chakra Metals of several groups within the Land of Fire all had unknown origins.
However, once the goal is to investigate thoroughly, the target points entirely to the Land of Fire.
"Hmm, not bad."
Hiruzen Sarutobi had ruled for decades, nodded in agreement upon hearing this.
"By the way, Master, is there any news yet Jiraiya Jiraiya's side?"
Looking at the Toad dozing on the Hokage's desk, Hagoromo couldn't help but ask.
Hiruzen Sarutobi also looked at the Toad, shook his head, and said:
"No, according to the information Jiraiya received a few days ago, he searched almost the entire Otogakure in the Land of Rice Fields, but he couldn't find Orochimaru."
Upon hearing this, Hagoromo put down her teacup, unsure whether to speak or not.
As expected of Orochimaru, he has mastered the art of having multiple burrows.
The main base Otogakure, had only just been established, yet it was able to immediately hide there.
Jiraiya couldn't just blindly insist on investigating and finding out the truth, after all, the Land of Rice Fields was a small country.
However, they were also renowned figures, and Hagoromo estimated that Orochimaru had likely used Genjutsu on these people.
Otherwise, the Land of Rice Fields wouldn't have been putting constant pressure on Konoha through diplomatic channels.
Although Hiruzen Sarutobi didn't care, the Daimyo of the Land of Fire made an extra request, saying that they should refrain from taking any action for the time being.
"I've already instructed Jiraiya to approach this from other angles; for now, we can only wait for news."
Hiruzen Sarutobi, pipe in mouth, got up, sat down on the sofa, and slowly began to speak.
Hearing this, Hagoromo nodded, guessing that it would be impossible for Jiraiya and Kakashi to send back a message anytime soon.
However, logically speaking, Jiraiya should have started by Teuchi from the officials of the Land of Rice Fields.
"As for the head you brought back, let the Intelligence Division team decipher it."
"You've taken a break recently. You're almost at the target for all your tasks, so go back to school and rest for a while."
Hiruzen Sarutobi could naturally see that Hagoromo was now stained with an especially strong killing intent and bloodlust.
But this is the path that every ninja must take, and no matter how experienced you are, you will have to go through it.
However, his little apprentice needed to meet Jonin, otherwise Hiruzen Sarutobi wouldn't have assigned such missions to Hagoromo.
Therefore, we plan to let Hagoromo rest for a while.
"Sure, that'll give me a chance to relax."
As she spoke, Hagoromo handed a cup of hot tea to Hiruzen Sarutobi, who readily agreed.
--
Hagoromo quickly went to the Anbu base to change her equipment, then turned and headed towards the training ground.
Although Shadow Clones exist, Hagoromo hasn't seen her disciples for quite some time now.
On the training ground, Naruto and the others, who had just finished a period of training, were resting under a tree.
It's the weekend, so the group came here on their own initiative.
"Shikamaru, when do you think our teacher will be back?"
Naruto, with his hands behind his head, was sitting cross-legged under a tree. Feeling a little bored, he asked Shikamaru beside him.
"I don't know. I haven't seen the teacher since that one morning."
Shikamaru responded with his eyes closed, while Hagoromo's Shadow Clones were giving a lesson behind him.
Furthermore, to avoid unnecessary waste of Chakra, they did not come to the training ground.
"Naruto-kun, wipe your sweat first."
Hinata nearby, took out a handkerchief and handed it to Naruto, saying something as she did so.