Arriving in the Land of Lightning

"Danzo, you must have seen wrong."

Hiruzen Sarutobi silently stepped between them, shooting Danzo meaningful looks. "With Uchiha Ao's strength, why would the village send him to the front lines?"

Kagami Uchiha's tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

Thinking about it calmly, before leaving the village, he had already notified the Clan Head. Ao shouldn't have been sent to the front lines.

Still, to be safe, he stepped past Hiruzen Sarutobi and stared hard at Danzo, his voice cold.

"Danzo, this joke isn't funny. I'll ask you one more time. Are you sure you saw Ao?"

"Heh..."

Danzo seemed not to have noticed Hiruzen's signal at all. A sneer rolled from his throat. "I've seen that face once before, in front of the Hokage. How could I forget it?

"If you don't believe me..."

As he spoke, he turned his head and nodded toward the several subordinates behind him.

"Ask them."

The several Jonin's gazes all fell on the group at once, and the Ninja immediately grew uneasy. After shoving one another for a moment, one finally steeled himself and spoke.

"We don't know the name of that scout, but he was very handsome, with deep-set eyes. He seemed cold from his appearance, but once we spoke with him, he was surprisingly easy to get along with.

"Also... his Taijutsu was impressive. When Lord Danzo and we were pursuing that fleeing Cloud Village Ninja, that man showed up and killed him in an instant."

At that, the several Ninja beside him all nodded in agreement.

Although the Cloud Village Ninja had already been seriously wounded, cornered as he was, the power he unleashed had been terrifying. The fact that the Ninja called Ao had dealt with him so quickly was proof of his strength.

Hearing this, Hiruzen Sarutobi and the others looked surprised. The description did sound a lot like Uchiha Ao, but if it really was him, how had his strength become so formidable?

And his Taijutsu, no less...

At the thought, their expressions turned strange. They had never seen an Uchiha Ninja who trained their body before.

"So it really was him!"

Kagami Uchiha was surprised too, but the features those men described were indeed very similar to Ao's. He stared hard at Danzo and asked, each word deliberate:

"Three days ago, there was a clear order to escort the scout, exchange intelligence, and guide him along a safe route! Don't tell me you never received it!"

"Hah!"

This time, Danzo didn't even bother hiding his sneer. His lips curled into a mocking smile.

"I have no obligation to answer that question. If you're dissatisfied, you can report this to the Hokage and let him decide how to punish me.

"As for what happened at the time..."

His gaze swept over Kagami's reddening face as he spoke unhurriedly. "My squad still had patrol duties and couldn't spare any attention. That was only to be expected."

The Ninja standing behind him looked awkward. They clearly hadn't had any patrol duties at the time; they'd only been assigned to watch over a very small area.

But none of them dared say so. Danzo's viciousness was well known among the Jonin. Chunin who crossed him would soon die in all sorts of "accidents"...

"Danzo!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to smooth things over again. "You were clearly in the wrong. Tell us where it happened. Kagami and I will go provide support..."

Shing!

At that moment, Kagami Uchiha's pupils abruptly contracted. Three deep Tomoe began spinning in his eyes, and Danzo, who had just been sneering, suddenly looked dazed.

"Genjutsu! Kagami, calm down!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi reacted fastest and hurried to stop him, though he took a step backward.

After all, he'd made a show of trying to stop him. No one could blame him.

Thud!

At the same time, Kagami Uchiha's fist landed on Danzo's face. With all his strength behind it, the punch sent Danzo flying several meters into the rocks behind him.

Stones scattered everywhere.

But that wasn't enough to satisfy him. Kagami Uchiha rushed after Danzo and punched his already swollen face several more times. The surrounding Jonin only stepped in once Danzo looked half like a pig's head.

"This isn't over!"

Kagami Uchiha shook off the Ninja trying to break up the fight and said coldly. Then he headed for the area Danzo had patrolled that day, with the Ninja following him.

Danzo had already been knocked out of the Genjutsu. But some bastard had used Ninjutsu to bind his hands and feet the whole time, so he hadn't been able to fight back.

"Kagami Uchiha!"

Watching Kagami Uchiha's retreating back, Danzo bellowed through his swollen, piglike face. "You dared to assault a Jonin on the front lines without authorization! I'll report you to the Hokage and have him execute you! Execute you!"

Hiruzen Sarutobi signaled to the several Chunin behind him. They hurried over, took hold of Danzo, and tried to calm him down. The farce only ended once they had dragged him a long way off.

"Koharu, stay here and calm Danzo down. I'm going to find Kagami," Hiruzen Sarutobi said, turning to her.

Utatane Koharu nodded and led several Ninja toward Danzo.

Earlier, while the two men had been fighting, Hiruzen Sarutobi had taken the opportunity to question Danzo's Chunin subordinates and find out where they had encountered Uchiha Ao.

It was too late in the day. The Cloud Village's harassment had eased considerably lately, but searching at night was still too dangerous.

"You several, come with me to find Kagami!"

"Yes!"

Two days later, at noon.

Shimosaka Raiden Castle, on the border of the Land of Lightning.

This coastal city stood atop steep cliffs along the Land of Lightning's shoreline. Built against the mountainside, it climbed upward in tier after tier and sprawled across a vast area.

The city's outermost wall was built from rough-hewn boulders. The tense situation between the two villages in recent days didn't seem to have affected the city's prosperity; the crowds at the gates were still bustling.

Besides the Samurai at the gate, a Ninja stood at a high post on either side, constantly covering their eyes with Chakra as they scanned everyone who entered.

Just then, a commotion suddenly broke out in the crowd pressing into the city.

"Why is my stuff with you?"

"What are you talking about? Are you calling me a thief?"

Before long, the area around the two burly men who'd started arguing descended into chaos.

The two Ninja who had been watching the gates immediately turned their attention to the commotion, but the crowds entering ahead of it kept moving.

"What brings you to Shimosaka Raiden Castle?"

The Samurai at the gate seemed curious about the commotion behind him, and he asked the question distractedly.

The person he questioned was a young man with blond hair and blue eyes. He waved the goods in his hands before the Samurai. "I'm here to sell some odds and ends."

"Mm, go on in. Don't cause any trouble."

"Thank you."

The young man nodded in thanks and entered the city.

As soon as he stepped inside, a sea breeze tinged with brine and Strange Metal swept over him. The streets teemed with people.

Most of the women on the streets had snow-white skin and gleaming blond hair. They wore northern-style Corset Skirts or Leather Armor, their figures curving alluringly.

As for the men of the Land of Lightning, Uchiha Ao hadn't paid much attention to them after transforming. They were all dark as pitch anyway.

He hadn't traveled alone. Instead, he'd joined a caravan. It was slower, but safer.

As it turned out, his plan was right. Although he occasionally encountered Cloud Village Ninja questioning travelers on the road, they mostly questioned the Merchant Group's leader. He followed the caravan and recorded what he saw and heard in the villages along the way.

Most of this information wasn't very valuable, but it was better than nothing. His ultimate goal was to slip into the nearest border city in the Land of Lightning.

With this information, his scouting mission would surely be much easier.

"Where should I start..."

As he pondered, Uchiha Ao followed the crowd deeper into the city.

Grumble...

He rubbed his stomach and looked toward the Ramen Shop not far away.

"I'd better take care of lunch first."

A place to eat was always full of people coming and going. He might be able to gather some information there too.

"Boss, the usual. Two bowls of ramen."

Hearing the voice as he approached the Ramen Shop, Uchiha Ao looked over. Two people stood at the entrance, one with silver hair and the other with blond hair. Each had three whisker-like marks on either cheek, making them look like members of the cat family.

"Could they be?!"