Martial Virtue in Abundance

Soji didn't ask the mysterious man about the ninjutsu that had killed the Earth Grudge Fear user.

Just as the other party had never directly probed the principles behind the boy's Kekkei Genkai.

As potential collaborators, they had both remained restrained, tacitly avoiding topics that might be impolite to discuss with each other. It was as if they had truly achieved some kind of unbreakable, stable arrangement.

But in truth, this mutually respectful approach to privacy was nowhere near as fair as it seemed!

The crux of the problem lay with this elusive messenger...

The mysterious man, who served as their go-between, seemed like a neutral tool in their dealings, but in essence, he still answered only to Director Inoue.

He faithfully reported every detail of the two men's exchanges to Director Inoue, while the boy had no equivalent way to learn the other party's most genuine, unfiltered reactions.

In the long run, their means of gathering intelligence would inevitably fall out of balance over time, and the initiative in their dealings would keep shifting in a direction that favored Director Inoue alone.

And that was exactly what Yamada Soji couldn't accept.

He couldn't entrust his life and fortune to an opportunist like Inoue Hisahide!

But given his own position, the boy objectively lacked the means to copy the other man and cultivate his own pair of black gloves to counter him.

So Soji could only find another way, choosing a more aggressive solution.

Imagine...

If the mysterious man's loyalties were reversed, the entire balance of power between the boy and Director Inoue would change!

To achieve the ultimate goal of turning him, the first thing Soji had to do was learn more about the elusive messenger in front of him. He would try, in a way both parties could accept, to "reasonably" cross the social boundary between them.

"My sensory abilities aren't very good. Aside from this one, are there any other survivors nearby?" Soji returned his hands to the Hand Seals position and asked the mysterious man, whose form was still unstable.

The mysterious man answered almost without delay. "Rest assured. I haven't detected any other signs of life in the area. This was the last one."

"Good... At least I haven't let down the Nara Commander's trust."

"You're too modest. A shinobi capable of inflicting such precise, widespread damage on a battlefield would be considered elite anywhere. This truly was a task only you could accomplish."

The mysterious man's outline finally stabilized. As was his habit, he stood at the boundary between light and shadow, delivering his praise without the slightest hint of emotion. It was impossible to tell whether he meant it or was being sarcastic...

Fortunately, more than half a year had been enough for Soji to get used to his manner, so the boy had no intention of taking the bait. Instead, he steered the conversation in the direction he had planned.

"A shinobi's worth can't be judged by one or two missions... I care more about preserving our immediate fighting strength than about those vague assessments."

Soji lowered his hands and moved toward the mysterious man. "I don't know where you were hiding before you appeared, but the secret technique I just used really does have an unusually wide area of effect. To make sure there aren't any lingering problems from accidental injuries, I think it'd be safer for you to get examined as soon as possible."

"Accidental injuries" was naturally just an excuse.

In fact, after Soji had completely mastered the Extracorporeal Transformation Method by taking the Superman Drug, the "Sudden Rain" form of the Rain Woman's Heart Technique had become even more stable than its original version.

After all, the damage caused from within by Glass Fiber relied on exceptionally precise chakra control...

If the user couldn't even tell whether enough Glass Wire had entered the target's body, how could he possibly take down all the Waterfall Ninja lying in wait nearby at once?

Soji's real intention was to use the examination as an excuse to check the mysterious man's chakra flow and uncover the truth behind that parasitic-looking killing technique.

—A ninjutsu with such a distinctive style couldn't possibly have gone unnoticed.

As long as he could find credible leads, Soji was confident he could use indirect means to further identify the mysterious messenger.

Unfortunately, the other party didn't respond to this seemingly considerate, reasonable request...

"Thank you for your concern, but I don't think that's necessary."

The mysterious man remained dressed like a medical worker, with a mask over his face and a white coat covering him from head to toe. As Soji approached, he once again used that eerie way of moving to put more distance between them.

"Rather than worrying about my own safety, it's more important that I report the battle situation to the commander as soon as possible."

"What, you're not coming back with me to report?" Noticing the other man's deliberate evasiveness, Soji didn't press the issue.

The boy carefully measured how far to go. He had long been prepared to probe the limits of Director Inoue's wariness, so there was no need to rush.

"Thanks to you, the most troublesome enemy was dealt with just in time. I wouldn't be able to explain everything that happened here on my own."

"Please understand. This 'secret mission assignment' came directly from the Hokage Office. Officially, it belongs to a separate chain of command from Commander Nara Motonari's.

"Although I provided assistance to protect the Frontline Support Battalion, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to show myself in public."

"All right, if you insist..." Soji stepped back, making his position clear. "Since we're all here for the mission, I shouldn't pry.

"But once everything has settled down, I still recommend that you get checked for injuries. The wounds caused by the Rain Woman's Heart Technique are unusual, and if they aren't treated promptly, follow-up care can become very troublesome."

"Thank you for your concern... In that case, I'll take my leave."

Before he had even finished speaking, the mysterious man's outline blurred again... He was like a drop of ink falling into a pool, vanishing swiftly amid a ripple.

As usual, Soji, whose sensory abilities left much to be desired, watched intently for a while but still couldn't find a trace.

With no other choice, the boy hurriedly left a marker at the scene and returned to the camp as planned to lend a hand.

However, since the whole operation had been part of Konoha's plan from the start, the battle on the main front had already been decided by the time Soji returned to camp, even including the delay on the way there and back. His comrades had won through their hard fighting.

Aside from Nara Motonari and the three squads publicly assigned to security, the two other full-strength Chunin squads in camp—who had earlier disguised themselves as doctors—had provided support as soon as the battle began.

Once their numerical advantage had been completely erased, blindly attacking the Frontline Support Battalion's camp had become a reckless, practically suicidal decision.

With reliable Teacher Motonari and the short-haired kunoichi he'd met once before working together, they quickly routed the audacious assassins.

...And inside the camp, the Konoha Medical Corps, who also wielded knives for a living, displayed impressive tactical discipline!

They not only kept their composure when the enemy suddenly struck, but under Director Chosokabe's leadership, they did everything noncombatants could possibly do.

Director Usami Hanbei even took a moment to show off his unique Scalpel Draw Technique, personally taking down a Land of Waterfalls spy who had tried to sneak in disguised...

By comparison with Konoha Village decades later, weakened by years of internal strife, the shinobi forces of the Land of Fire in this era were undeniably a formidable fighting force!