Iwa Camp, Mindset Change

Within the Iwa Camp, the Armory.

The Iwa shinobi were stationed in concentric rings, with the innermost circle housing the Armory, the command post, and the quarters for high-level combatants.

Beyond that, layer after layer of troops were encamped.

Now, Hyuga Ao had landed in the darkest spot in the camp—the Latrine.

Surprisingly, Ao didn't detect any foul odor.

She had to admit, ninjutsu made things convenient. The Iwa shinobi had placed the Latrine and Bathhouse together, dug a large pit underground to drain the wastewater, and built two tall chimneys to vent the air.

Simple and effective—it was an eye-opener for Ao.

Enough digression.

It was already two or three in the morning, the time when people slept deepest, so Ao had chosen this unoccupied spot to land.

She retracted her Chakra metal, shook the excess fabric into dust, and groped her way through the Iwa Camp in the darkness.

Ao gradually dialed down the penetration of her Byakugan, reducing its presence to avoid alerting anyone with sharp instincts to the feeling of being watched.

Keeping her Byakugan active at the bare minimum, Ao used the cover of night to creep toward the center of the camp.

From the air, Ao had roughly observed the layout of the Iwa Camp.

The outer perimeter consisted of identical, mass-produced Barracks Camp structures.

The further in she went, the sparser and more refined the buildings became, with a few large warehouses scattered beyond them.

Ao guessed that the high-level combatants had keen reflexes, so the logistics supplies were placed in the camp's center, under the watchful eyes of the strong, to prevent any incidents.

Ao's destination was the kitchen at the heart of the camp.

The Iwa shinobi weren't a people's army; they had no tradition of officers and troops eating and living together. High-ranking personnel ate from the Officer's Kitchen.

So all Ao had to do was stake out the kitchen, see how many people's meals were prepared each day, and then track down those individuals.

Someone might ask, "Since you're already inside the camp, why not just sweep it with the Byakugan?"

But Ao couldn't do that—it would be suicide, like a paladin casting Detect Evil on sight.

Any elite Jonin could sense the gaze of the Byakugan. Activating it in the middle of the camp? Wasn't that just asking for a group beating?

Ao couldn't take on an entire camp of shinobi.

And so, relying on her Byakugan's limited probing and her equally sharp hearing, Ao evaded watchful eyes and found the Iwa Camp's Officer's Kitchen.

Once inside the kitchen, Ao began counting the seasonings. She was looking for the cooking station with the most condiments.

The more seasonings, the better the food, and the higher the status of the person eating it.

In the shinobi world, status was often tied to strength.

After identifying her target, Ao found the Cold Storage where fresh ingredients were kept for the Officer's Kitchen and hid there.

Even with a brief lull, Ao couldn't rest. She had to keep watching the kitchen, because some dishes required advance preparation, and a cook might start work soon.

From the level of care put into the dishes, Ao could track and observe who was eating them.

But she still used this idle time to think about the mission.

Why did Orochimaru send her on this kind of task?

First, did Konoha really need to know exactly how many high-level combatants the Iwa shinobi had?

No!

Since Konoha had prepared two contingencies, they clearly weren't afraid of how many people the enemy fielded head-on. In fact, the more, the better—as long as Konoha didn't collapse instantly, Kumogakure would surely send troops against Iwa.

So, what was Orochimaru's motive for making Ao carry out such a dangerous mission?

A test?

Ao carefully recalled Orochimaru's personality. He had a tendency to burn bridges once he crossed a river. For him, only profit and self-pursuit were real.

So, was Ao valuable to Orochimaru?

Not really. Orochimaru couldn't actually dissect and study Ao right now, and Ao had already exhausted her immediate value. Without the ability to conduct further research, Ao wasn't worth much to him.

Thus, the purpose of this mission was a test—to see what other value Ao had and how she would react.

Just like how he later wanted to see what changes Sasuke could bring to the shinobi world, he wanted to see what Ao was made of.

Normally, as a partner, Ao could have directly refused.

But instead, Ao just... accepted! Just like that!

She hadn't even thought it through. Orochimaru told her to go, so she went.

This was a very dangerous sign.

It meant Ao had no will of her own right now, drifting with the current. Before, she slacked off when she could and did whatever she was told.

So, was she a naive sweetheart? Ao found it hard to believe.

Ao realized her mindset had a serious problem.

Looking back on her journey, she thought about how easily she had obtained this level of power.

Shikotsumyaku was the golden finger granted at the start, and Embryonic Breathing came directly as a power-up. Because of the Embryonic Breathing cheat, Hyuga Ao stood at a high starting point from the very beginning.

The Wind Cloak was even something she comprehended by chance, and it too was tied to Embryonic Breathing, relying on its foundation.

So from start to finish, Hyuga Ao had only put real effort into undoing the Caged Bird.

Earlier, she said she wanted to save Minato and his wife, but that was just the arrogance of a transmigrator, or maybe self-gratification. She hadn't actually made any real effort.

Hyuga Ao had indeed set goals: I want to go home, I want to save Minato and Kushina in the future.

But those goals were all stuck in the daydreaming phase.

On the battlefield, she slacked off when she could, and only at the last moment suddenly thought, I need to work hard. It was no different from her past life when she'd say I need to study seriously—thinking it in the moment, then going back to her usual routine a few days later.

Hyuga Ao realized she lacked something that many novels from her past life talked about: a strong heart.

Right now, Hyuga Ao just wanted to lie low and undo the Caged Bird. She hadn't truly clarified her goals or her responsibilities, nor put in the effort to achieve them.

The battlefield slaughter she'd experienced before didn't leave a deep impression on her either. A single palm strike, instant death—no special feeling, just a bit of disgust. Once the disgust faded, it was over, with no real insight gained.

Hyuga Ao was precisely lacking a strong heart, lacking the drive to work clearly toward her goals.

This won't do, Hyuga Ao murmured to herself.

What am I even doing? A sudden wave of regret and shame surged in Hyuga Ao's heart, embarrassment at her own behavior.

Hyuga Ao fell silent. Things she'd usually ignored suddenly weighed on her heart.

All this wandering around, aimlessly—what was I thinking? Hyuga Ao questioned her own heart.

At first, the Caged Bird forced Hyuga Ao to face reality, but Embryonic Breathing made her float again.

A series of inner interrogations snapped Hyuga Ao awake.

It was hard to believe Hyuga Ao had accepted this mission without thinking at all—it was an extremely irresponsible act toward herself.

Hyuga Ao felt her mind suddenly liberated. Problems she'd never considered, things she'd never thought about, all surfaced in her mind, pulling her out of her previous dazed state.

"I really..." Hyuga Ao shook her head with a bitter smile.

"Alright." Hyuga Ao dismissed her thoughts. "Let's finish this mission first."