The Movable Armored Person

Yamei and Shikamaru, along with the other three, quickly moved through the forest and soon arrived at the sandy beach.

The sea was calm, and there were no traces of anyone having walked on the beach. However, without confirming the situation, they wouldn't be fooled by appearances.

"You guys search the coast, and I'll go scout the sea," Yamei said, looking at Shikamaru and the others.

Currently, besides himself, even if the others had mastered the skill of walking on water, they would still be struggling against the unknown waters of the sea.

Shikamaru nodded, "Okay!"

Ino and Hinata looked over with worry, "Yamei, be careful!"

"Don't worry, I'm not a reckless person," Yamei reassured them, and his figure shot towards the sea like lightning.

"Let's get moving too, look for any signs of human activity! It would be even better if we could find some items!" Shikamaru waved his hand, and the four quickly dispersed.

Stepping onto the sea, Yamei activated his Byakugan, and his vision extended clearly for about ten kilometers around, even to the seabed.

"This mission didn't appear in the original plot at all. Could this be a correction to the Land of Waves mission?"

While observing, Yamei pondered, trying to find some useful information in his memory.

To Yamei's regret, after all these years, while he remembered much of the plot, he had forgotten many of the details or minor subplots.

"Forget it, could it really be the arrival of the Otsutsuki clan!?" Yamei shook his head and stopped thinking, his Byakugan scanning over area after area.

"Huh!? What's this..." Suddenly, Yamei's gaze focused on something beneath a coral reef.

Attaching Chakra to his body's surface, Yamei dove rapidly as if he had transformed into a fish, quickly reaching the coral reef he had spotted.

As he got closer, Yamei saw the mysterious object clearly – it was a long-handled spiked iron hammer!

He reached out, grabbed the hammer's handle, and pulled hard. The coral reef was directly broken, and the hammer fell into his hand.

He scanned the surroundings again, finding no other traces.

When he returned to shore, Hinata and Ino, along with the other two, quickly gathered around him.

"Yamei, what did you find!?"

"This..." Yamei tossed the hammer over.

"It's the same as what we found..." Shikamaru frowned. Choji was holding an identical one in his hand.

"It seems this is their weapon, but..." Choji stroked the hammer and then sniffed it, "This craftsmanship doesn't seem like it's from the Five Great Nations!"

"So this operation is a conflict between smaller nations?" Ino asked, half-understanding.

"Not necessarily. The Land of Rivers hasn't offended any other small nations recently," Shikamaru shook his head.

"Let's go find Naruto and the others first and see what they found." The three picked up the hammers and returned to the temporary camp.

A moment later, Naruto's excited voice could be heard from outside.

"Yamei! Yamei, come out quickly and see what we found!"

The five heard the voice and rushed out, immediately seeing a tall 'corpse' that Naruto was dragging.

"This... isn't flesh and blood!!"

Hinata activated her Byakugan and took a look, looking somewhat surprised.

"It's covered in armor! There seems to be some padding inside... it's not flesh and blood... and it's not armor worn on the body! Could this thing move on its own!?"

Ino stepped forward and tapped the armored person's head. The muffled sound indicated it was solid.

"Perhaps... it really can move?" Shikamaru's expression turned serious. He approached the armored person and opened a piece of heavy armor.

Inside was an unknown material, but the residual energy on it felt familiar to everyone.

"Chakra! But this Chakra is like an ownerless object... there's no human presence!" Sasuke's twin-ringed Sharingan opened, observing.

Yamei, carrying a hammer, came before the armored person and placed the hammer into its palm. It fit perfectly...

"Then it seems these things attacked this village!"

"Record this down, Kiba, Shino. Put this armored person away; it needs to be handed over when the mission is submitted."

"No problem!"

As night fell, the ten sat together, eating grilled hunted game, their faces filled with excitement.

"I thought it was some dangerous mission, but it's just this?? It looks like we'll finish the mission tomorrow!"

Naruto was full of disdain, seeming to feel he was being underutilized.

"Naruto, don't be careless! We've only confirmed that armored people were responsible, we don't know the organization behind them yet!" Sakura said helplessly, tugging at Naruto.

"Sakura, don't worry, with me, Naruto, here, everything will be revealed tomorrow!"

"Idiot, if it weren't for Shino, we wouldn't have found this armored person today..." Sasuke scoffed, clearly displeased with Naruto's bragging.

"Ah!! You damn Sasuke! Don't you trust me!?" Naruto roared furiously.

Yamei sat with Hinata and Ino on either side, enjoying their leg-massaging service while happily watching Naruto and the others bicker, finding it quite amusing.

Suddenly, Yamei felt a strange gaze on his back, sending a chill down his spine. A figure suddenly appeared in his mind.

"Ahem, well, you guys eat first... I'll take some things to Teacher Kakashi and Teacher Kurenai."

As he spoke, Yamei stood up and took away the barbecue he had just finished grilling.

With a flash of movement, he appeared on a tree. Kakashi leaned against a branch, reading Icha Icha Paradise, while Kurenai watched him with a smile.

"Ahem, Kurenai, Teacher Kakashi, I brought you something to eat."

"Ah... thank you, Yamei..." Kakashi thanked him and took half of it.

He had long heard Naruto talk about Yamei's barbecue skills, and now he finally had the chance to try them.

After receiving the barbecue, Kurenai smiled and said, "You're living quite a comfortable life, having someone to relieve your fatigue."

"It's her kind gesture..." Yamei chuckled sheepishly.

"Hmph! You bad guy!" Kurenai took a fierce bite of the barbecue. "This is an outdoor mission, so behave yourself!"

"Yes!" Yamei immediately stood at attention.

"Let's go back." Kurenai gave the unreliable guy a look.

Returning to the camp, after eating barbecue with everyone, they all went back to their tents, leaving Yamei and Ino on watch.

After all, being in the wilderness, and in an unfamiliar environment, was a necessary precaution for everyone.

The two snuggled together, whispering sweet nothings, and Ino would occasionally blush and shyly shrink into Yamei's arms.

It wasn't until the middle of the night that Naruto and Sasuke came out and took over their shift.

The next morning, just as dawn broke...

BOOM!!

"Who is it!? Stop right there!!"

The huge commotion instantly alerted everyone. Yamei and the others immediately sprang up! Coming out of the tent, they saw Naruto running away.

"Naruto, don't chase him!" Shikamaru shouted, but it was too late.

"That idiot!!" Sakura was both angry and a little worried.

"Where's Sasuke?" Shino suddenly asked, puzzled.