Doubts

An A-Rank Mission?

Kagura's heart skipped a beat when he heard those words.

Without waiting for any response from Kagura inside the room, Danzo left after saying those few words.

Only after sensing his departure did Kagura slowly rise from the bed.

After thinking for a moment, he began packing his gear.

Ten minutes later, Kagura hid in a large tree, squinting as he observed the situation at the Konohagakure Main Gate.

When he saw three familiar figures arrive, he could not help but breathe a sigh of relief.

He could not be blamed for being overly cautious.

After all, what kind of person was Danzo?

If he was not as careful as possible, Kagura feared that one day he might die without even knowing how.

When Danzo notified him in the middle of the night to gather somewhere, Kagura's first thought was whether there might be an ambush waiting there.

However, when he saw The Other Three from Team 7 arrive as well, he knew he had been overthinking things.

After all, even Danzo could not casually kill someone from the village in front of others.

Especially when someone with Tsunade's background was among them.

After seeing the three of them, Kagura landed and walked toward them.

They did not wait long. Less than a minute after the four gathered, Danzo appeared before them.

He swept his gaze around, looked at the four who were already prepared, and nodded.

"Good. Time is tight, so we'll set off first.

"I'll tell you the specific details of the mission as we travel."

Within the pitch-black forest, several black dots continuously leaped between the trees. They were Team 7, hurrying on their way.

During this period, Kagura and the others learned the details of the mission from Danzo.

Simply put, the cause of this mission was that the Forbidden Sealing Technique had been stolen.

Just a few hours ago, the Scroll of Seals, which had been kept in the Hokage Office Building, was confirmed missing.

Through investigation of the scene and the search for clues, the Konoha higher-ups determined that it had been stolen by spies from another country.

And only an hour later, they discovered that the thief was a Chunin named Shota Futa, who worked at the Hokage Academy.

After searching his residence and reconstructing the entire theft, the Anbu had reason to believe that he was a spy from Sunagakure.

This operation had nearly exposed all of Sunagakure's spies in Konoha. Aside from Shota Futa, who had been operating openly, several Hidden Nails that had lain dormant for a long time had also surfaced.

Based on traces at the scene and confirmation through ninja techniques, the group was fleeing westward. Judging by their route, they intended to pass through the Land of Rain and enter Sunagakure.

After confirming these circumstances and holding a meeting among the higher-ups, they temporarily issued an A-Rank Mission.

At the same time, the Anbu and several squads were deployed to capture Shota Futa and the others.

"The Scroll of Seals..."

Kagura recalled some information about the book from his memories.

Simply put, the Scroll of Seals recorded every forbidden technique Konoha had created up to that point.

Of course, at present, the book could also be said to be the work of the Second Generation, Senju Tobirama.

In fact, many of the famous so-called forbidden techniques in the world of Hokage had been created by the Second Generation.

Whether it was the Multiple Shadow Clone Technique Kagura had learned, or the Flying Thunder God Technique used by Namikaze Minato, the Yellow Flash.

Even the Impure World Reincarnation used by the Villain to summon numerous predecessors during the Fourth Shinobi World War.

The creator of all these famous ninja techniques was Senju Tobirama.

It could be said that most of the ninja techniques this man had created in his lifetime had been classified as forbidden techniques.

Looking at it that way, the Konoha higher-ups' reaction to the book being stolen was understandable.

Moreover, the Scroll of Seals had appeared in the Original Plot as well. It was the very book Naruto, the Protagonist, had stolen at the beginning.

For such an important book, could they not guard it properly?

Were the guards at the Hokage Office Building just there to collect a paycheck?

It was either stolen by a Child or by a mere Chunin. How was that any different from having no defenses at all?

While silently mocking them in his heart, Kagura had an even bigger question.

Why had the system not issued him a mission this time?

Of course, it was not as though every B-Rank Mission or higher would necessarily come with a system mission.

But when he had accepted his first B-Rank Mission last time, the system had issued a mission at the same time.

At the very least, it could be inferred that accepting a B-Rank Mission or higher for the first time should trigger a response from the system.

Yet this was clearly his first time accepting an A-Rank Mission, so why had the system not reacted?

In his confusion, he could not help glancing at Danzo's back ahead of him. He had the faint feeling that there was something suspicious behind this incident.

Clearly, since the thief had dared to act, he must have prepared himself.

They pursued the route for an entire day, yet they still did not see the target.

Danzo removed a note from a Ninja Dog, opened it, and examined it. After pondering for a moment, he spoke.

"According to reliable information, Shota Futa has already entered the Land of Rain.

"But the good news is that the teams sent out ahead of us should be able to reach the target first.

"We need to pick up the pace from here on. At the very least, we must be able to support the teams ahead."

Watching everyone nod at him, the squad, which had rested for only a quarter of an hour, set off once more.

A day later, within the Land of Rain.

A light drizzle fell across the vast plains as five figures sped across the damp ground.

They were Kagura and his group, pursuing the target.

After running at high speed for two days and two nights, they had finally arrived in the Land of Rain from the Land of Fire.

And the place truly lived up to its name. The moment they entered this land, the previously clear sky instantly turned gloomy.

After continuing onward for a while, a fine drizzle began to fall from the sky, completely defying the laws of physics.

After stepping over another puddle, Kagura kept both arms behind him and did his utmost to keep up with Danzo ahead.

Even for him, two days of uninterrupted running had nearly drained his stamina.

At the very back, Jiraiya already wore a pained expression.

Fortunately, Danzo did not keep accelerating the entire time. He seemed able to adjust his speed according to their limits.

Thus, the four behind him could always continue following with the feeling that they could barely keep up.

Danzo, at the very front, stepped through another patch of water. His expression suddenly changed, and a sharp whistle rang from his mouth.

Upon hearing the whistle, Kagura and the others immediately stopped.

Sure enough, following Danzo's warning, dozens of Ninja emerged from the puddles surrounding them.

These Ninja wore white, skintight suits resembling diving gear. Massive Respirators and goggles concealed all their features.

This was the typical attire of Ninja from the Land of Rain.

Danzo raised his head and scanned the area before speaking in a low voice.

"What do you people from Amegakure mean?

"Are you planning to make enemies of Konoha?"

The Amegakure Ninja did not answer his question. They merely drew their weapons, making their stance clear.

At this sight, a trace of gloom flashed through Danzo's eyes.

He clenched his Right Hand into a fist and raised it above his head.

Seeing this, Kagura and the others drew the Kunai from their waists.

That gesture was a signal telling everyone to prepare for battle.

As Danzo's figure suddenly vanished, the battle erupted at once.

As a Ninja on the same level as Hiruzen Sarutobi, Danzo's Combat Ability was naturally Not Bad.

Although in the anime's plot, he seemed to fight only with the Sharingan he had acquired.

But that was Danzo in his old age, and there was also the suspicion that the author had deliberately sacrificed him for Sasuke's plot armor.

In reality, as the leader of the Root organization, Danzo was among the very best in the current Shinobi World, whether in taijutsu or ninjutsu.

Each time his figure Appeared, an enemy fell in response.

After only Several Minutes, more than a dozen corpses lay ahead.

On Kagura's side, although the four of them were not as overwhelming as Danzo.

With their coordination, they also defeated the Remaining enemies.

This was the result they had achieved purely through coordinated taijutsu.

It was not that Kagura and the others were deliberately concealing their abilities. Rather, the continuous journey had already consumed most of their Chakra.

But since they had yet to officially encounter their target, conserving their Remaining Chakra as much as possible was the wisest choice.

Looking at the enemies sprawled across the ground, Danzo's expression became even more solemn.

Because these people's appearance meant that Amegakure had already intervened in this incident, making the pursuit far more dangerous than anticipated.

Unlike the Five Great Nations, Small Nations like the Land of Rain had never held firm positions.

Amegakure's Ninja in this era, in particular, were more like mercenaries.

As long as someone was willing to pay, they were willing to work for them.

So although he found it somewhat troublesome, Danzo was not too surprised that Amegakure had joined the fight.

Kagura beside him likewise looked at the fallen enemies, then at the Dark Cloud-filled sky in the distance.

It seemed this mission would be more dangerous than he had imagined...