Uchiha Shūichi glanced at the three shinobi who had entered the Hokage Office.
One was a beautiful young woman with a cheerful, outgoing air and eyes like red agate.
Another was a Yamanaka Clan shinobi who remained silent, seeming somewhat gloomy and numb.
The last was a Byakugan-wielding Hyuga Clan shinobi, with his Konoha forehead protector tied neatly around his forehead.
"Yūhi Kurenai, Yamanaka Fū, and Hyuga Homura are your teammates. All three are Special Jonin of Konoha, each with their own strengths. I'm sure you'll be able to complete the mission safely."
Uchiha Shūichi knew a fair amount about all three. There was no need to say much about Hyuga Homura. He was a standard branch-family shinobi of the Hyuga Clan, currently a Special Jonin, skilled in close-quarters Gentle Fist combat and reconnaissance with the Byakugan.
Yamanaka Fū was one of Shimura Danzō's subordinates, and one of the very few shinobi in Root with the potential to reach Elite Jonin level. The Yamanaka Clan's Mind Secret Technique was quite sophisticated, and Yamanaka Fū had even found ways to innovate upon it.
His performance in the original story had already reached the level of an Elite Jonin. The original story was still eight or nine years away, yet he was already a solid Special Jonin.
The one Uchiha Shūichi understood the least was Yūhi Kurenai. It wasn't that he didn't understand her as a person; he simply didn't understand why she had been assigned to this mission.
In the original story, Yūhi Kurenai was indeed the teacher of the Konoha 12, but among the four Jonin, she was undoubtedly the weakest. If Kakashi and Might Guy were Kage Level Jonin, and Sarutobi Asuma was an Elite Jonin, then Yūhi Kurenai was a standard Jonin.
What's more, her specialty was genjutsu. That wasn't to say genjutsu wasn't powerful, but even after a lifetime of studying it, Yūhi Kurenai could at most match an ordinary Three Tomoe Uchiha. She also needed hand seals to use it, making it far less effective in actual combat than the Three Tomoe Sharingan.
It could be said that Uchiha Shūichi covered every one of Yūhi Kurenai's abilities. Her only real advantage was that she was thoroughly part of the Hokage lineage, and enjoyed more of the Third Hokage's trust than anyone else present.
In the original story, Yūhi Kurenai even became the Third Hokage's daughter-in-law. That alone showed that the Third Hokage trusted her far more than he trusted an ordinary shinobi.
Hyuga Homura was a member of the Hyuga Clan, and he himself was a member of the Uchiha Clan. Yamanaka Fū belonged to Root. In that light, the Third Hokage really did need to place one of his own people on the team.
As for why he hadn't assigned a strong shinobi like Kakashi, it was probably because the mission was extremely dangerous. The Third Hokage knew what he was doing and didn't want his own inner circle to suffer too many losses.
In just a moment, Uchiha Shūichi had figured out what the Third Hokage was thinking. But he didn't refuse the three shinobi. Instead, he put away the intelligence scroll.
"If that's the case, Hokage-sama, you can rest assured. We'll do our best to complete this mission!"
The Land of Lightning, Kumogakure.
"Raikage-sama, be that as it may, it's rather excessive for you to go on this mission yourselves!"
At the entrance to Kumogakure, Mabui, with her white hair and chocolate-colored skin, was trying to stop the Fourth Raikage and Killer B from leaving.
"All Five Great Shinobi Villages will be going all out on this mission. And the Rinnegan isn't something to take lightly. Apart from me, I don't think any other shinobi could complete a mission like this!"
"Besides, I've gone into action plenty of times before. Why should this time be any different? The Raikage is Kumogakure's strongest shinobi, not a rubber stamp!"
The Fourth Raikage was resolute. In truth, Kumogakure had been collecting the secret techniques of other minor villages and factions for a long time, leaving a trail of bloodshed in its wake. The Fourth Raikage himself had personally gone into action on many occasions.
The reason Mabui, the Raikage's secretary, wanted to stop him this time was precisely because the mission was so dangerous.
"Raikage-sama, Kumogakure can't afford to lose you right now. If something happens to you in the Land of Rain, our village will be thrown into chaos!"
Though Kumogakure appeared powerful, its only true top-tier fighters were the A and B combination.
Both the Fourth Raikage and Killer B were now at the peak of their strength, at thirty years old. Their abilities were among the best even at Kage Level. It was precisely because the two of them worked together that Kumogakure had begun to show signs of surpassing Konoha.
If anything happened to either of them, Kumogakure would probably fall into decline, just like Konoha.
At the end of the day, Kumogakure's apparent lead among the Five Great Shinobi Villages at this stage was only because the other villages had declined for various reasons.
Sasori of the Red Sands had defected from Sunagakure and even killed the Third Kazekage. Iwagakure had a shortage of young talent, leaving Ōnoki to shoulder everything alone. Kirigakure had fallen into Uchiha Obito's hands and was being put through the wringer.
There was no need to say more about Konoha Village. The number of powerful shinobi killed off or driven away by their own people exceeded the total number of Kage Level shinobi from other villages who had been killed by Konoha.
In truth, the other villages were hardly lacking in strength compared with Kumogakure. They had simply encountered all sorts of unexpected setbacks as they developed, and gradually fallen into decline.
But the Fourth Raikage didn't care in the slightest. His will was as unyielding as iron.
"According to Eight-Tails Gyūki's intel, there's a high probability that the Rinnegan and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path are real. If Kumogakure gets its hands on them, we'll have the power to unite the entire Shinobi World. That's more than enough reason for me to take the gamble."
"And if this falls into the hands of another village, the threat to Kumogakure will be unimaginable. This is the most critical moment—the very survival of our village is at stake!"
Mabui opened her mouth, but in the end she had nothing to say. The Fourth Raikage led Killer B and several Kage Guard shinobi out through the gate.
"While I'm gone, Mabui and Dodai, you can discuss things and handle whatever comes up!"
With that, the Fourth Raikage disappeared from Mabui's sight, taking his sworn younger brother Killer B and his subordinates with him.
Mabui sighed. Though she was worried, she had long since gotten used to the Fourth Raikage's ways. She shook her head and returned to Kumogakure to deal with the paperwork.
It wasn't just Kumogakure. Iwagakure and Sunagakure also sent their most elite shinobi to the Land of Rain, though neither village's Kage went in person. Kirigakure was the only village that had remained completely silent from beginning to end.
Kirigakure was isolated overseas and rarely exchanged intelligence with the mainland. Not only was it difficult for the other villages to get information about Kirigakure, but Kirigakure also had a hard time learning what was happening in the other villages.
What's more, the mastermind behind Kirigakure was Uchiha Obito. He certainly wouldn't let anyone get involved in this turmoil.
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