Shibi Aburame's Three Matters

"Social insects often have an instinct, and that is to protect their queen.

Take ants, for example. The queen ant's main duties are to lay eggs, reproduce, and oversee the colony, while the other ants will protect her at any cost."

"Teacher Shibui, are you saying there's a 'queen ant' among these insects too?" Uchiha Yuan asked.

"That's right." After he finished speaking, Shibi Aburame opened his hand, and an insect one size larger than the others flew onto his palm.

"It is the king of the swarm. The insects obey its commands and protect it at any cost.

Just now, when the other insects charged out of the Great Fireball Technique, it was also because it had issued an order to the swarm through some method.

If you had discovered this secret earlier, with the strength and coordination of the three of you, you could have completed this test more easily.

As long as you kill the king within the swarm, the other insects will fall into chaos."

"So this was the real way to pass the test?" Hyuga Asana murmured to herself.

"That's right. From the very beginning, I never thought a newly formed team like yours would have the tacit understanding to evade the swarm's attacks for twenty minutes.

So my test for you was actually your insight, to see whether you could discover the swarm's secret.

Uchiha Yuan, you should have noticed that there was something wrong with the swarm, but you simply attributed the problem to me directing it. That was your mistake."

Uchiha Yuan gave a bitter smile at that. Who could have imagined that the swarm actually had its own leader? The original work never said anything about that!

However, Shibi Aburame's test had also served as a reminder to Uchiha Yuan. He had been relying a little too much on information from the original work.

Shibi Aburame's swarm had made some abnormal moves, but Uchiha Yuan had never considered the possibility that there was a commander within the swarm itself. He had only assumed Shibi Aburame was controlling it remotely.

And the fundamental reason he had not considered that possibility was still because the original work had never provided that information. In turn, that had limited Uchiha Yuan's thinking.

"Although you did not directly find the king of the swarm, you passed this test in a way I am even more willing to see.

On the battlefield, trust and tacit understanding between teammates will help you survive far more easily than sharp insight. You pass."

After hearing Shibi Aburame's words, Uchiha Yuan smiled. Yamanaka Kizuki was beside himself with excitement, and even Hyuga Asana, who usually showed little expression, let out a long breath of relief this time.

"Teacher Shibui, I heard that when ordinary ninja teams pass their guiding teacher's test, the teacher treats them to barbecue," Yamanaka Kizuki said.

"I know. I'll treat you to barbecue tonight, but before we eat, there are some things I need to explain to you."

"Please go ahead, Teacher." Yamanaka Kizuki put on the manner of an obedient child as he spoke.

"There are three things I want to tell you. First, we will set out for the battlefield in three days."

"This time it's three days?" Uchiha Yuan said.

"Mm. The graduates from the class before yours were assigned to various battlefields two days after graduation. For you, it will be three days, because some of the village's resource allocations are not yet in place."

"What about the second thing?" Hyuga Asana asked.

"The second thing is that the battlefield we are going to is in the Land of Bears." After saying that, Shibi Aburame turned to look at Uchiha Yuan.

Hyuga Asana also seemed to remember something and turned to look as well.

"The Land of Bears? In other words, we'll run into the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, right?" Uchiha Yuan asked.

"That's right. The Land of Bears is the main battlefield between Konoha and Kirigakure, and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist are there too.

Uchiha Yuan, I heard that both your parents died at the hands of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist. I hope you can restrain yourself. You are a team now. If you act rashly, you may drag your two teammates down with you," Shibi Aburame said in an even tone.

"Teacher Shibui, don't worry. I won't drag them down. Besides, I probably won't have a chance to kill them anymore."

"No chance to kill them? Are you talking about the operation your Uchiha Clan organized to assassinate the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist? Although I don't want to discourage you, there are too few people from your Uchiha Clan in the Land of Bears. I'm afraid they won't be able to deal with the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist."

Uchiha Yuan said nothing at that, and Shibi Aburame did not say much more either. He only wanted to advise Uchiha Yuan not to let hatred implicate his teammates. As long as Uchiha Yuan agreed, that was enough.

As for why Uchiha Yuan had agreed, that was not something he needed to consider.

"The last thing. After we go to the Land of Bears, I will stay by your side for one year. During this year, I will lead you on various reconnaissance missions, and you can trust me one hundred percent.

However, during this period, if someone in your team is injured and withdraws from the battlefield, or if someone dies outright and causes the team to lose a member, I will leave your team immediately.

If the three of you are all still alive after one year, then barring any accidents, all of you will be Chunin. A reconnaissance team made up of three Chunin no longer needs any Jonin standing around giving orders, so there will be no need for me to stay."

"We understand. Teacher Shibui, please look after us this year." Uchiha Yuan gave Shibi Aburame a slight bow as he spoke.

Yamanaka Kizuki and Hyuga Asana followed suit, copying him as they spoke.

"I hope all of you can survive on the battlefield. In that case, I'll see you at the barbecue restaurant!" After saying that, Shibi Aburame turned into a swarm of insects and vanished.

"What was that? Insect Body Flicker Technique? Or Insect Clone Technique?" Yamanaka Kizuki asked, completely baffled.

"It should be Insect Body Flicker Technique. It works on the same principle as the Sand Body Flicker Technique that Sunagakure Shinobi often use," Hyuga Asana said.

"Looking at it that way, I'm the only one in our team who doesn't know the Body Flicker Technique," Yamanaka Kizuki said with a sigh.

"Listen to yourself, Kizuki. Don't tell me you thought Teacher Shibui didn't know the Body Flicker Technique. He's a Jonin," Uchiha Yuan said irritably.

The group chatted as they walked toward the barbecue restaurant.

When the three of them arrived at the barbecue restaurant, there were already only a few empty seats left. Most of the tables were occupied, and they were all guiding teachers with their students.

Shibi Aburame sat alone at a table near the corner. Uchiha Yuan, Hyuga Asana, and Yamanaka Kizuki hurried over.

"Order whatever barbecue you want," Shibi Aburame said expressionlessly.

Hyuga Asana was not particularly interested in barbecue, and Uchiha Yuan had never been to a barbecue restaurant in Konoha, so he did not know which meats were good. Thus, the task of ordering fell to Yamanaka Kizuki.

Yamanaka Kizuki did not stand on ceremony and picked a round of expensive dishes. Before long, the barbecue was brought to the table.

After Yamanaka Kizuki finished grilling the meat, Uchiha Yuan was just about to pick up his chopsticks when he suddenly saw a familiar figure at the entrance of the barbecue restaurant.