Chapter 30

Amid the vast curtain of rain, a person had appeared at some unknown point. Through the hazy downpour, a hint of deep red could vaguely be seen.

Even with the heavy rain falling like a curtain, Ye Zi could still feel that gaze fixed on him.

"Heh..."

He let out a low, cold laugh, which was instantly drowned out by the roaring rain.

The gale, thunder, and torrential rain—this storm that had brewed for an entire day—was neither accidental nor hastily formed. He did not want to know when that person had arrived or what they were thinking at this very moment.

Rain pelted his body in clusters. Ye Zi strode forward, and within a few breaths, he could clearly see the person standing in the rain and watching him.

Without stopping or even looking toward the girl, he walked through the rain and thunder, brushing past her.

Kushina ignored the rainwater flowing from her hairline across her eyes and stubbornly stared into Ye Zi's dark eyes. Yet, until that figure strode past her, all she could see was an abyss of darkness and a glimmer of indifference.

At the instant they brushed past each other, she clearly sensed the aura of rejection that was usually faint and indistinct expand infinitely within the cold rain. In an instant, it chilled her to the bone, seeping all the way to the edge of her heart.

He seemed to be telling her in this way: stop.

She bit her lip and lowered her eyelids slightly, concealing the gloom that had just surfaced.

The doubts that had arisen after that night would always resurface in her mind from time to time.

What had happened? Why had he changed so suddenly? Why had he become so inexplicably strange? In the rain at this moment, it was even more impossible to understand.

After more than a year together, she had thought she understood him well enough. In the end, she discovered that he might not be the same person she thought he was.

Suddenly, Kushina turned around. Her gaze pierced through the curtain of rain. Her lips parted, but it was as if a thorn had lodged itself in her throat. She wanted to say something, yet could not get a word out, and could only silently watch that figure vanish into the downpour.

Her open eyes finally could not withstand the rain's assault, and everything before her blurred.

It was as if the person who had always brought Bei Xingye to knock on her door had been fake, as fragile as a bubble.

"If this is how it is, why did you come save me?" Her low voice was instantly swallowed by the wind and rain.

That sight of him leaning against the tree trunk with blood covering his entire body had long been etched deeply into Kushina's mind. Perhaps she would never be able to erase it.

She stood alone in the rain, wrapping her arms around her shoulders. Even with the torrential rain helping to conceal everything, she still tried her best not to let her tears fall.

She simply did not understand. She did not understand how Ye Zi had become like this.

When she had first arrived in Konoha, everything had been unfamiliar.

Unfamiliar people. An unfamiliar environment.

And more than that, there had been inexplicable malice.

So she had deliberately ignored everything around her and gradually begun to resist it all.

Until she began to have people she cared about.

But this precious presence in her life seemed to be inexplicably slipping away, while she had no idea why.

Rumble...

The wind and rain grew louder.

Her ears were filled with the sound of rain.

The raindrops that had been continuously falling onto her head suddenly stopped. An umbrella that remained firm even under such a downpour shielded her from the rain.

Kushina looked up blankly and saw only the umbrella. Her heart suddenly warmed, and she abruptly turned toward the person holding it. What entered her eyes, however, was that gentle face she had once hated so much.

It was not him.

Minato silently held the umbrella, simply watching Kushina with concern.

"Has no one ever told you that being this gentle makes you look like a woman?" Kushina said quietly. The large umbrella blocking the rain finally stopped the cold from slowly eroding her heart.

Amid the tremendous roar of rain, Minato somehow heard every word she murmured. He could only smile gently without saying anything.

At that moment, he was watching Kushina, but he was also thinking about Ye Zi.

He was just as puzzled. Like Bei Xingye and Kushina, he was equally unable to understand.

After the Second Ninja World War ended, small-scale conflicts showed no signs of stopping. Within the territories of the five great nations were countless small countries and bloodline clans. They were weak and unable to shake the great nations, but they could turn their eyes toward other equally weak existences.

Devouring, plundering, or simple desire.

Regardless of the reason, conflicts between the small countries had never ceased. They seemed to have become creatures of the natural world, following the law of survival of the fittest.

The great nations and hidden villages, which had already begun focusing on recuperation, merely watched the small countries collide. On the surface, they did not interfere, but in secret, they had their villages accept missions from them for profit. Konoha was no exception. Most of the more difficult missions came from the small countries, including no shortage of missions to assassinate the ruler of a nation.

Hokage's office.

The Third Hokage slowly tapped his index finger against a sheet of paper on the desk. After pondering for a moment, he looked up at the team before him. Their leader was his favored student, Orochimaru. Although Orochimaru's team had performed exceptionally well during this period, carrying out a mission whose difficulty was nearly S-rank still posed enormous risks. He was not worried about Orochimaru, but about the juniors who had already grown considerably.

At a time when everything was waiting to be rebuilt, new blood was crucial.

This generation had produced many outstanding talents, led by Ye Zi, Minato, and Kushina. They were all precious assets of Konoha. Although Konoha urgently needed to accept missions for profit, it also had to place greater importance on preserving its talents.

After thinking for a long time, the Third Hokage decided not to let Orochimaru's team accept this mission. After all, there were two geniuses in the team, one of whom was the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki.

"Orochimaru, this mission isn't suitable for your team," the Third Hokage said slowly.

A trace of mockery flashed deep in Orochimaru's eyes. He said coldly, "Ye Zi is skilled at assassination, Kushina has excellent sensory abilities, and Bei Xingye's ears can catch the slightest sound. With me leading the team, exactly what part of this is unsuitable?"

The Third Hokage was rendered speechless. Looking at Orochimaru's cold expression, he rubbed his forehead helplessly.

Orochimaru knew that the Third Hokage placed greater emphasis on talent. Compared with the profit from a single mission, preserving talent was more important. But in Orochimaru's eyes, having grown up amid war since childhood, if someone could not even carry out a mission that was not certain to end in death, could such a person really be called a talent?

Death meant failure.

Survival meant value.

"Third Hokage, I'm afraid you've still underestimated them." Orochimaru gave a cold laugh.

The Third Hokage glanced at Ye Zi and the others before looking at Orochimaru. He asked seriously, "Orochimaru, are you certain?"

"Of course." Orochimaru answered at once.

"Hmm..."

The Third Hokage pondered. His tapping index finger suddenly stopped, and his eyes gradually turned stern. He stared at Orochimaru and said heavily, "I agree to let you accept this mission."

He did not say what came next, because he knew Orochimaru would understand.

The corner of Orochimaru's mouth lifted slightly. After collecting the relevant mission details, he led Ye Zi and the others out of the office.

The Third Hokage watched Orochimaru and the others leave, then let out a quiet sigh.

Would that man, who had never had a student survive since becoming a team leader, really be serious this time?

Risk always accompanied reward. For a ninja to grow rapidly, war was the fastest shortcut. Likewise, the risk of death was also the highest.

"Don't disappoint me..."

The Third Hokage murmured quietly. He had noticed that the difficulty of the missions Orochimaru's team accepted had been gradually increasing. Somehow, he also sensed that the cold-hearted Orochimaru seemed to have developed an expectation in his heart—and that expectation was most likely the child who resembled Orochimaru when he was young.

"Will he become a second Orochimaru?"

The Third Hokage shook his head slightly, then thought of another genius—Minato Namikaze...

Ye Zi and the others had no objections to Orochimaru accepting a highly difficult mission, because he had already informed them beforehand.

Perhaps because they trusted Orochimaru's strength, even Bei Xingye felt no fear toward this mission.

In fact, after so many missions, Bei Xingye himself had not realized that he was no longer the person he had once been.

"The mission is to assassinate the ruler of the Land of Ash. I'll explain the relevant details on the way. Prepare to leave immediately."

Orochimaru looked at the three of them and spoke coldly.

Upon hearing this, Ye Zi immediately turned and walked toward their residence. Kushina and Bei Xingye did the same. They had known in advance that they would receive a difficult mission, but they had not known it would be an assassination mission requiring them to travel to another country.

As a qualified ninja, geographical knowledge was something one had to master.

The Land of Ash lay in the gap between the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth. Calling it a gap was only in terms of the map's divisions. The region was not small, and many small countries existed within it.

This time, the mission had been issued by the Land of Grass, which stood opposed to the Land of Ash. The Land of Grass had always been suppressed by the Land of Ash, and its disadvantage had become increasingly obvious after multiple battles. Only when the situation became critical had the Land of Grass spent all its remaining funds to issue a mission at Konoha Village, hoping to achieve victory in the war by assassinating the ruler of the Land of Ash.

Generally speaking, assassinating a nation's ruler did not necessarily lead to victory in a war. However, for the current Land of Ash, if its ruler were successfully assassinated, it really might allow the Land of Grass to obtain victory, because the ruler of the Land of Ash was an exceptionally capable person.

After making preparations for the long journey, Orochimaru's team walked out through the gates of Konoha Village.

Along the way, Orochimaru gave a detailed account of the limited information provided by the mission issuer. The more useful details were that the Land of Ash had quite a few ninjas under its command, and that its ruler himself possessed considerable strength.

These few pieces of information alone were enough to show the difficulty of the mission.

The Land of Grass lay in the gap between the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth. It was territory not included among the five great nations. The Land of Ash bordered it, and the two countries had never stopped fighting since their founding. Due to the effects of the Second Ninja World War, both nations had suffered a considerable decline in national strength.

Being caught between great nations was not pleasant. To break free of this shackle, they could only annex others, grow stronger, and strive to one day possess enough power to contend with the five great nations.

The Second Ninja World War had brought disaster, but it had also brought opportunity.

With the great nations lacking the strength to spare, this was the best time for small countries to annex others and grow.

After a dull, long-distance march, Orochimaru's team arrived at the Land of Grass's guarded border at dusk, surrounded by countless plants.

A ninja wearing a forehead protector emerged from the glow of the setting sun and shouted at Orochimaru and the others, who had stopped, "Stop!"

Orochimaru looked at the ninja and said coldly, "We're ninjas from Konoha. We came here to accept your country's commission. This is the token."

With that, Orochimaru took out a scroll. Rather than recklessly throwing it at the ninja, he tossed it onto the ground a short distance in front of him. The latter's body instantly tensed. After quickly scanning the scroll on the ground, he made a strange hand sign, then flicked out a thorn-covered vine. With practiced ease, he used it to reel the scroll back into his hand.

Holding the scroll, the ninja slowly retreated two or three steps. He then opened it, and after confirming everything was correct a moment later, he put it away. The hostility and wariness in his eyes weakened considerably.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, ninjas of Konoha."

After signaling to his companions in the darkness, the ninja forced out a faint smile and said politely, "Please follow me."

Orochimaru nodded slightly and followed behind the ninja. Seeing this, Ye Zi and the other two relaxed a little and honestly followed behind Orochimaru.

The last rays of dusk soon faded from the world, and night slowly descended.

Orochimaru walked through the forest, his gaze occasionally sweeping across the darkness. It was easy for him to detect the ninjas hiding there.

"There are quite a few of them... Has the Land of Grass's ninja system already developed to this extent? Yet even so, they're still suppressed by the Land of Ash. It seems the ninja systems of the small countries are growing rapidly." Orochimaru's eyes flickered with thought.

It was not until the silver moon hung in the sky that Orochimaru's team arrived in the Land of Grass proper. They received a welcome that was neither warm nor cold. Even during wartime, however, the Land of Grass still properly arranged food and lodging for Ye Zi and the others.

"Whew, this is the first time I've felt that lying in bed is a wonderful thing." After eating his fill, Bei Xingye sprawled across the bed with an unabashedly satisfied expression.

Kushina sat on the bed near the corner of the wall, complaining that the Land of Grass had arranged for all of them to stay in one room. However, as ninjas, this was not difficult to accept.

"Get some rest. We might have to head to the Land of Ash first thing tomorrow morning." Kushina patted the dust from her pillow.

"Mm." Bei Xingye rose from the bed and looked toward Ye Zi, who was standing silently before the window. "Ye Zi, what are you looking at?"

Hearing this, Ye Zi turned his head slightly and glanced at Bei Xingye. "Nothing."

Hearing Ye Zi's cold tone, Bei Xingye sighed inwardly, but still said with a smile, "Then get some rest. This is the most difficult mission our team has ever taken. We need to regain our strength first."

Kushina's hand abruptly stopped as she patted the pillow. She stared at it in silence, but the corner of her eye remained focused on Ye Zi.

Ye Zi turned his head and looked out at the large swath of unknown plants under the night sky. "I'm not tired. You two rest first. I'm going out for a walk."

With that, he walked directly toward the door.

Bei Xingye watched Ye Zi open the door and leave, then looked toward Kushina with a dejected expression.

"Get some rest." Kushina resumed patting the pillow as if nothing had happened, seemingly wanting to beat every last bit of dust from it.

Bei Xingye sighed, obediently lay down on the bed, and stared blankly at the ceiling.

The Land of Grass coexisted with plants. Insects chirped endlessly at night, and a rich, fresh fragrance could be smelled the moment one stepped outside.

Since the Land of Grass had not told them they could not walk around at night when it received them, Ye Zi did not hold back. While Orochimaru had yet to return, he wandered around.

Suddenly, something tore through the air beside his ear.

Ye Zi's expression did not change. He tilted his head aside, and a black shadow skimmed past his neck before landing on the sandy ground. Under the light, it turned out to be a green thorn. It seemed to be a concealed weapon made from some unknown plant, shaped like a senbon.

After being inexplicably ambushed, Ye Zi was not angry. He turned and looked toward the roof of a vine-covered house.

"Who are you? How come I've never seen you before?" On the roof, a remarkably beautiful young woman stared at Ye Zi below. Her tone was puzzled and wary, yet in the darkness, a hidden slyness flashed through her eyes.

Ye Zi did not notice the slyness in the woman's eyes. Assuming she had misunderstood, he politely explained, "I'm a Konoha ninja."

He thought that explanation would be enough. However, the woman took out another green senbon and said ominously, "How do I know whether you're telling the truth?"

Only then did Ye Zi somewhat understand that she seemed to be deliberately picking a fight.

His gaze gradually turned cold. Looking at the woman's posture, which was brimming with the desire to attack, Ye Zi did not draw his blade. He merely stared coldly at the woman on the roof.

"I can understand the first ambush as a misunderstanding. But if you attack again, then even if this is your territory, I won't hold back!"

"Hee-hee."

Under the bright moonlight, the girl was unmoved by the chill in Ye Zi's voice. She giggled, her eyes filled with intense battle intent, while her attacking stance became even more pronounced.

Ye Zi took the movement in at once. His right hand had already reached toward the short blade hanging at his waist, ready to counterattack at any moment. If this had not been the Land of Grass, he would never have waited to counterattack after she chose to attack. He would have struck first.

Ye Zi raised his head and stared fixedly at the girl. Threads of killing intent brewed in his dark eyes. Once someone posed a threat to him, he would not consider any other factors. He would simply eliminate the danger.

"I've wanted to see just how powerful the ninjas of a great nation really are."

The girl drew several dark-green senbon from a specially made ninja tool pouch. They glimmered faintly beneath the moonlight.

"Don't blame me for not warning you, Konoha ninja. This thorn is poisonous!"

As soon as her clear, melodious voice fell, the girl standing on the roof suddenly transformed into countless dancing fireflies, slowly drifting through the air.

"And I... am poisonous too."

While Ye Zi was astonished by the girl's sudden transformation into a swarm of fireflies, a low, cold voice sounded beside his ear. The girl had appeared behind him at some unknown point. Ye Zi's expression shifted slightly. The hand gripping his blade moved in an instant, then stopped just as quickly. A slender white hand lightly pressed against his palm, yet it carried a force as heavy as a thousand jun, making it impossible for his hand to advance even an inch.

"This girl..."

Surprise surfaced in Ye Zi's eyes, while his left hand quickly formed a seal.

"You've lost, Konoha ninja."

Accompanied by a crisp laugh and smug words, the girl leaned against Ye Zi's shoulder. One hand held down the hand he had placed on his blade, while the other pressed a green senbon against his neck. Her soft lips lightly brushed past his ear.

Ye Zi's face remained expressionless. Just as he was about to complete the seal, an angry shout rang out.

"Kotoha, stop!"

A middle-aged man with the same hair color as Kotoha strode over, his face filled with anger.

At that moment, Ye Zi suddenly stopped forming the seal and silently watched the newcomer.

Thank this man for saving you, naive girl. He thought silently. Although the girl behind him was soft and warm, and although she held no killing intent toward him, once he regained the initiative, he would not show mercy.

"Oh."

Kotoha curled her lips and obediently released both hands, retreating several steps.

The middle-aged man glared at her, then cast an apologetic look at Ye Zi's expressionless face. "I'm sorry. My daughter is rather mischievous. Please believe that this action was not carried out under my instruction."

Ye Zi nodded and said coldly, "May I leave now?"

"Of course. That is your freedom." The middle-aged man smiled faintly.

At this, Ye Zi lifted his foot and left. Then the girl behind him asked, "Hey, Konoha ninja, what's your name?"

Ye Zi stopped. After a brief pause, he answered coldly, "Ye Zi." With that, he did not linger.

Watching Ye Zi's back, Kotoha giggled. "My name is Bōjiān Yán Yè. Remember it. That's the name of the person who defeated you. I'll remember you too. You're the first ninja from a great nation I've ever defeated!"

"Bōjiān Yán Yè..."

Ye Zi ignored Kotoha's seemingly childish taunts. In fact, this person's strength might not be any weaker than Kushina's. If she had not been so naive, Ye Zi might really have suffered an unexpected defeat.

After Ye Zi left, the middle-aged man slapped Kotoha on the head without warning. She nimbly dodged, avoiding the blow.

When the middle-aged man's palm missed, he awkwardly withdrew it and barked, "Do you want to die?"

Kotoha rolled her eyes and curled her lips. "Is that any way to speak to your own daughter?"

The middle-aged man was instantly rendered speechless. He was completely helpless against Kotoha.

Kotoha giggled, stretched, and yawned before lazily saying, "Dad, the ninja from Konoha doesn't seem like much, does he? I even warned him beforehand, but that boy was still subdued in one move. If I'd wanted to, I could have killed him easily just now."

The middle-aged man patted his forehead. She makes it sound as though she's older than him. He glanced in the direction Ye Zi had left and said solemnly, "Don't underestimate anyone in the world. If I hadn't stepped in and ordered you to stop just now, who knows what technique the hand seals he was forming would have unleashed."

"Hand seals?"

Kotoha was startled, then shot her father a look. "I had one of his hands pinned down. How could he form hand seals? Dad, you're trying to scare me again."

The middle-aged man fell silent. After a moment, he said seriously, "One-handed hand seals. Perhaps my experience is limited, but at least among all the people I've fought, no one has ever formed hand seals with one hand."

Seeing how serious her father was, the smile slowly faded from Kotoha's face. She tilted her head slightly and pondered the possibility of one-handed hand seals. But after only a moment, she seemed to realize something and suddenly shouted, "Then doesn't that mean our fight just now doesn't count?"

"What doesn't count?" The middle-aged man did not understand what Kotoha meant.

"Our fight just now." Kotoha puffed out her cheeks like an angry pufferfish. "No, I have to go find him again."

The middle-aged man immediately slapped Kotoha on the head.

Kotoha leaned backward and easily dodged the blow again, leaving him to awkwardly withdraw his hand once more.

Kotoha cast her father a disdainful glance and said lazily, "Dad, don't be so childish next time."

"..."

At the same time, after exchanging the intelligence, Orochimaru returned to the residence arranged for him in the Land of Grass.

On the way back, he did not take the nearest route. Instead, somewhere between deliberately and casually, he chose a path that was neither too far nor too near.

Along the way, he constantly observed the many strange plants growing throughout the Land of Grass.

Some of these plants clearly showed signs of being cultivated, while others had been left to grow freely. Clearly, the plants that had been deliberately tended to must have some use—poison, for instance...

Compared with biological toxins, the toxins of some plants might be no less potent. Orochimaru himself was also rather skilled at using snake venom. However, with a poison expert like Tsunade on the team, he had not devoted too much energy to poisons. That did not stop him from being interested in them. Or rather, he was even more interested in what these plants could be used for.

"If I get the chance..."

Deep interest flashed through Orochimaru's eyes. At that moment, he began to take an interest in these small countries he had never paid much attention to before. To survive in the cracks between great powers, they naturally had to possess something extraordinary.