Transformation Infiltration

As the Genjutsu was activated, the eyes of the three people in front of them became increasingly unfocused, quickly revealing their true nature.

"... The war has begun, but our strength is limited, and no one is willing to hire us. Not long ago, Konoha Ninja were in the mountains ahead..."

Shuichi and his two companions listened to what they had to say with furrowed brows, realizing that the truth was still shrouded in mystery.

These people were all Rogue Ninja. According to their descriptions, powerful Konoha Ninja were recruiting them to carry out missions, ostensibly to collect resources, but in reality to rob civilians who had fled to non-war zones.

"This behavior is outrageous! How could Konoha do such a thing!" Hyuga Akiha's face turned cold after hearing this. Someone must be deliberately trying to ruin Konoha's reputation.

Shuichi walked behind him, pulled off his cloak, and opened the bamboo basket to take a look.

The contents were mainly various kinds of grain and fodder, along with some miscellaneous iron tools. These people had already plundered a refugee settlement and were now returning to their base Yamanaka.

"Kill them!"

These Rogue Ninja deserved to die. Upon hearing Shuichi's order, Aburame Shihei released Kikaichū that drained all their chakra. The three corpses lay lifeless in the heavy rain.

"Captain, it seems we can't ignore this matter. We need to find out who's behind it."

"Okay, let's go over there now."

The three-person team began to venture into the deep mountains. They were originally supposed to head west, but this unexpected event changed their plans.

The information obtained through interrogation revealed that this group's base was located just a few kilometers from the border. Now that Byakugan is monitoring the surrounding area, he will surely be able to discover the ninjas' tracks first.

"Target spotted, approximately 1 kilometer ahead at the 11 o'clock position. Initial assessment indicates slightly weaker than Jonin."

Shuichi waved his hand, signaling the team to stop. They were now about this far from their destination, so it seemed this was one of the enemy's members.

"Although it's a bit troublesome, I've decided not to get close yet. I'll circle around that area and let Akiha see where the other accomplices are."

Aburame Shihei quickly understood his considerations: this person might be Sensory Ninja, which was why he was scouting at the entrance to the mountain range.

"But this terrain, with its surrounding terrain, is putting a lot of strain on Akiha's chakra!"

They were now surrounded by high mountains on both sides, and a light rain was falling from the sky. Even for ninjas, it wouldn't be easy in such a complex environment. To circle around the area with a radius of 1 kilometer, they would have to cross several mountains and go up and down.

"Don't worry, I was prepared. Today's situation is just right." Shuichi smiled confidently. Luckily, he liked to daydream when he had nothing to do, and he had done quite a few odd things.

Take out the Storage Scroll, open it and a large, rectangular, emerald-green umbrella will appear.

"This was specially ordered by me so I could still use the Super Beast Imitation Drawing when it rains. It's a super lightweight waterproof plastic umbrella made with the latest technology from the Land of Fire. What do you think? Pretty good, right?"

"..."

"Ninja Super Beast Imitation Drawing!" This time, Shuichi summoned a large bird just big enough for three people to ride, and then raised the umbrella, so that he could use his Byakugan to complete the reconnaissance.

After takeoff, Shuichi struggled to keep it close to the edge of the hillside.

From a distance, the green of the forest blends almost seamlessly with their tiny dot, and with the added obstruction of visibility due to the rain, they are virtually indistinguishable to the naked eye.

When they reached the other side, Hyuga Akiha reported, "Multiple targets spotted. One is estimated to be Jonin, and there are quite a few others gathered in another location, but none of them are very strong."

"Judging from this, it must be the work of other hidden villages," Shuichi his mind. "Continue."

Not long after, another Jonin was discovered near this Jonin, and judging from the intensity of their chakra, their strengths were not far apart.

"What do we do now? Should we just take action?" Hyuga Akiha asked after flying back to the starting point.

"Hmm... how about this, I'll go try it first, and you guys keep an eye on things..."

Once everything was arranged, Shuichi immediately began to act, "Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

A total of four Shadow Clone appeared around, but they did not act immediately; several of Shuichi's seemed to be standing still.

"How about it?"

"Not yet, Captain." Hyuga Akiha kept staring at him with her Byakugan. "Your chakra strength is too high. Even diluted many times, it's still stronger than those Rogue Ninja."

"... This is troublesome. I never thought that being too strong would cause problems." Shuichi was helpless. To deceive the enemy's senses, he could only transform into the group of middle-aged men with mustaches. Fortunately, weakening chakra was much easier than strengthening it, and he was ready after a while.

"It's really not used to this. I'm going to make my move!" The main body also controlled the chakra in place, and then used Earth Release to burrow underground.

The three Shadow Clone above, having completed their transformations, carried bamboo baskets and moved forward, quickly entering the enemy's base.

"The three opponents are being very cautious." Hyuga Akiha observed the situation. "When the captain's Shadow Clone entered within about 500 meters, the other two Jonin joined up with the person ahead."

"So, this person really is Sensory Ninja!" Shuichi remained in place, used Shadow Clone to take over the temporary command. "Then let's move forward a bit, to about 600 meters away."

At this moment, the Shadow Clone as a wandering squad, arrived at the entrance of the stronghold. In front of them was the entrance to a huge cave. Judging from its completeness, someone must have been here before, but now it was occupied by this group.

"Master Koshi, it's us." The middle-aged man with the mustache shouted as he entered, and continued deeper inside after hearing a response.

Koshi was a tall, slender young man with slightly dark skin. Akiha's Byakugan spotted him first, so he must be a Sensory Ninja.

"Put down your loot." Koshi had already sensed the chakra of the newcomers and realized they were the people he had sent out earlier. He immediately began to take inventory without any hesitation.

"Yes, please take a look. We were able to obtain all this thanks to your intelligence, sir!" The middle-aged man with the mustache had a fawning smile on his face.

"Wait!" A shout came from the cave next to us. Looking in that direction, we saw a strong, spiky-haired man.

"So it's Lord Hoga. What are your orders?"

Hoga said with an extremely cold expression, "It's nothing, it's just that many people on my side have reported that you like to keep things to yourself, so I came to search personally this time."

Koshi's heart skipped a beat, then he calmly thought, "I didn't expect they could fool me too. They must be quite strong."

"Well... alright, feel free to look around."

Hoga slowly walked to the bamboo basket, raised his hand to open it for inspection, and suddenly lunged forward, punching the middle-aged man with the mustache.

"BOOM!"

The Shadow Clone, struck by immense force, vanished after suffering a fatal blow. At the same time, Koshi, holding a Kunai, began to act, slashing at the remaining two. The Shadow Clone, with its extremely low chakra strength, was incredibly weak and was almost instantly annihilated.

"Their Shadow Clone technique is highly skilled, and they can even control its intensity freely. They must be Konoha ninjas." Hoga's expression remained unchanged. "Be prepared. If they're not strong, we'll take them out."

"They'll definitely rush this way once they find out. Let me search." Koshi Hand Seals, preparing to use his Sensory Ninjutsu again.

"Boom!" Before the Ninjutsu could be activated, the ground beneath Hoga's feet suddenly cracked open, and a short sword pierced directly into his calf.

Unexpectedly, the injured Hoga also turned into a puff of smoke and disappeared. Koshi, who was standing next to him, was startled and then quickly jumped backward.

"Is it also Shadow Clone? So cautious?" Shuichi himself was also taken aback. He never expected to be fooled by this technique today. Experiencing it firsthand, he found it quite disgusting.

At this moment, a few hundred meters away, Hyuga Akiha and Aburame Shihei were rushing towards them, while Shuichi's Shadow Clone, which hadn't disappeared yet, was also running alongside them.

"Oh no, that Jonin on the other side used Shadow Clone. I didn't notice because of the large amount of chakra he used." Hyuga Akiha with some regret.

"Captain, there's another enemy Jonin might be hiding underground that I can't see. The one using Shadow Clone is also on his way. Your main body is very likely to be ambushed. Quickly dispel the Shadow Clone!"

"No rush, don't worry." Shuichi's Shadow Clone remained calm. "My main body has special reconnaissance skills. Although I chose the wrong target for my previous attack, it didn't have a significant impact."

"The timing is perfect. The enemy should be in a greater hurry than us. The best option is to eliminate any lone enemies before reinforcements arrive."