The Famous Scene Arrives

"You are?"

Karot looked at the Uchiha leader leading the way and asked.

"This Humble One is Uchiha Shisui."

Hearing this name, Karot couldn't help but take a few extra glances. The tragic hero, Uchiha Shisui—possessing the most powerful Genjutsu, yet ultimately falling to his death off a cliff. How pitiful.

Uchiha Shisui saw sympathy in Karot's eyes. He wondered—he and Karot weren't close, so why was this man looking at him with such pity?

"Is there a problem?"

Shisui asked.

Karot composed his expression and said.

"The famed Body Flicker Shisui of the Uchiha—I never expected you'd be the one to welcome me."

"Not at all, not at all. I'm nothing compared to you, Leaf's Red Demon."

"Huh? Who's the Red Demon?"

Karot asked, puzzled.

"You don't know, Hatake Jonin? That's the title the Raikage gave you. Encounter Leaf's Red Demon, and you can abandon the mission without penalty."

What an awful name. Just because I wear a red martial arts uniform, they slap a title like that on me? Judging by appearance with no culture at all.

"Ah—choo."

Far away in the Land of Lightning, the Raikage sneezed.

"Who's talking about me?"

"What's the situation with the Mist now?"

As the Supreme Commander, Karot still had to do his duty.

"The Mist has been very active lately, constantly harassing the border. Our losses are heavy."

"Have we taken any measures?"

Karot asked. Any ninja with a personal title in the ninja world was no ordinary talent.

"I've already given orders—no solo actions. Encounter Mist Ninja, and request support promptly."

"Good. Minimize our losses as much as possible."

As soon as Karot arrived on the battlefield, Uchiha Shisui handed over command to him.

Karot stopped in his tracks. He'd run into an acquaintance here.

"Guy, long time no see."

Karot greeted.

"Karot, big brother! It really is you. I almost didn't recognize you."

Karot had changed a lot—most notably, he'd gotten even better-looking.

"Karot, big brother, I heard you're a Jonin now. Congratulations!"

On this battlefield, meeting a familiar face was rare. The comrade who greeted you today might be lying in a body bag tonight, without even a chance to say goodbye. For Guy, fresh out of the Academy, the pressure was immense. Having witnessed the brutality of war, he feared the next one could be him.

"Thanks. I'm glad to meet you here too."

"Oh wow, you're a Chunin now."

Karot feigned surprise.

"Yeah, it's all thanks to your encouragement, big brother. You gave me confidence."

Guy said happily to Karot.

"You two aren't bad either—both Chunin now."

Genma Shiranui and Ebisu lowered their heads awkwardly at Karot's praise. They weren't familiar with him—after all, Karot had only attended class for a week before never coming back to the Academy. If Karot hadn't greeted them first, they wouldn't have dared approach. The ninja world had strict hierarchies.

Looks like the ninja losses are severe. Guy and the others had just graduated from the Ninja Academy and were already promoted to Chunin. Leaf fighting on four fronts had nearly drained their reserves. Karot sighed with emotion.

"You all go ahead with your patrol. I still have things to do."

"Alright. See you later, Karot, big brother."

Guy waved goodbye to Karot.

"Guy, are you that close with Hatake Jonin?"

Ebisu adjusted his glasses and asked.

"You mean Karot, big brother? He was the first person to acknowledge me. I've always looked up to him as my idol."

Genma rubbed his chin and said.

"Look beside Hatake Jonin—that's Uchiha Shisui. I heard command is sending down a new commander. Do you think it could be Hatake Jonin?"

"No way? He's only eleven years old."

Ebisu said in disbelief.

"Wow, Karot is really amazing."

Kai fully believed that Karot had this strength, precisely because Karot's unique insight had recognized him.

Two months had passed since Karot arrived at the camp. During that time, the Mist had also temporarily halted their harassment, and the entire front line was calm and peaceful. Perhaps the Mist had learned of Karot's performance on the Cloud Ninja front line and had no choice but to back off. After all, Karot also bore the title of Tailed Beast Killer, a name known across the battlefield. There were no mistaken names, only mistaken titles—all the Mist ninjas kept very quiet. This left Karot with nothing to do but fish every day to pass the time.

"Tch, still nothing."

Karot had come up empty again. A whole month, and not a single fish had taken the bait. Wasn't there supposed to be beginner's luck? Maybe it didn't exist in the world of Naruto. The real kicker was that right next to him was a fishing prodigy.

"Got one."

Shisui smoothly reeled in the fish and cast his line again.

"Senior Karot, you can't fish with a restless heart. Otherwise, the fish won't bite."

Seeing Karot's irritated expression, Shisui tried to console him.

"Shisui, kid, if only your judgment were as sharp as your fishing skills."

Karot said regretfully. In his mind, he thought:

The problem is, you keep catching fish right next to me while I catch nothing. It's not that I envy you, but that I'm stuck with nothing—how can I be in a good mood? It's a testament to my self-restraint that I haven't punched you. Look at you, no sense of the situation at all. The boss is right here, and you won't even jump into the sea, grab a fish, and hook it onto my line. Kid, you've got no future.

Just as Karot was grumbling to himself, a Konoha flare shot up from the forest.

"Shisui, watch the camp. I'm going to provide support."

Before Shisui could react, Karot vanished instantly.

Karot had no intention of going back empty-handed. Every ninja he passed looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze, saying nothing, which made Karot feel like he was being judged. The Uchiha were all so rigid and inflexible—didn't they understand that the boss needed to save face? So when the distress signal went up, Karot charged ahead to the rescue. I only failed to catch fish because I was saving people—you all better vouch for me.

Karot moved swiftly and arrived at the rescue site in no time. What a classic scene! The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had cornered Might Guy, and Might Duy was furiously opening the Eight Gates. Karot wasn't about to miss this rare spectacle. He hid behind a tree—as long as he didn't want to be found, no one could detect him.

"The Seven Ninja Swordsmen."

Ebisu stammered out the name of the Mist ninjas before them.

"Oh? Didn't expect a little Konoha brat to know our name. What reward should we give you?"

The speaker paused, then continued:

"How about we kill you last?"

With that, a wave of killing intent erupted from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. The intense bloodlust made it hard for Kai and the others to breathe. They sat down on the ground as if scared stiff.

"Cowards."

Seeing Kai and the others frightened, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen burst into unrestrained laughter.

Just then, a green figure stepped in front of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. Might Duy made his flashy entrance.