The Cruel Ninja World!

The Land of Grass!

A small nation situated between the lands of Earth and Fire, serving as a buffer zone.

Usually, conflicts between the two great powers are fought within the borders of the Land of Grass.

Therefore, the reason these small nations on the fringes of great powers survive without being swallowed up is not because the great powers are kind-hearted, but simply because it is necessary.

In such a battleground, one can imagine the level of development.

Let alone comparing it to Konoha, even some small towns within the Land of Fire could be called prosperous places compared to a location like the Land of Grass.

At the same time, thieves, refugees, and displaced people are everywhere, with corpses visible at every turn and a desolate landscape.

This is the true reality of the ninja world!

Ninjas are only a small part of the ninja world, but because the power is in their hands, they are the focus.

A carriage slowly traveled along a narrow, muddy road.

"This..."

Izumi withdrew her gaze from several naked corpses by the side of the road and glanced at White Dove, who was leaning against the carriage wall, looking as if she had more to say.

Previously, when executing missions, she had also been active in the Land of Fire for a period, but it was only around Konoha, where the situation was naturally not this dire. Thus, she had no profound impression of the underlying reality of the ninja world, and only now did she understand how cruel it truly was.

"Do you know? Over ninety percent of the resources in the ninja world are controlled by less than ten percent of the nobility, while the rest naturally starve to death or die of illness... the average life expectancy doesn't even exceed thirty!"

White Dove naturally knew what Izumi wanted to say and spat out the cold statistics.

Propaganda can lie, but data does not.

In the propaganda of those nobles and daimyo, the ninja world is completely "peaceful and tranquil," and this credit is supposedly due to their governance.

So, he really wanted to laugh.

If it weren't for these nobles and daimyo, the ninja world would only be better; in any case, it couldn't be worse than it is now.

Unfortunately, the group that holds the strongest power—the ninjas—actually recognizes the rule of the nobles from the bottom of their hearts, feeling that it is only right for the ninja world to be managed by them.

Regarding this, White Dove almost wanted to ask if they had also been caught in the nobles' "Infinite Tsukuyomi."

In any case, as a transmigrator, he did not recognize these nobles. In the future, when he rises to power, the nobles will be nothing but fat pigs and ATMs; that is when their "good days" will arrive.

While thinking about this, the carriage, driven by Tekka, arrived at Kusagakure.

Kusagakure!

It had taken them several days to travel here from the border of Fire and Hot Water.

The carriage had been acquired upon entering the Land of Grass.

As for the captive Samui, he naturally let Inabi take her away, leaving him to watch over her and Kakashi, to be reunited later before returning to the village.

In fact, in White Dove's view, the Land of Grass was full of potential, but no one knew how to develop it.

Mentioning this country, the first thing that comes to mind is naturally the grasslands that cover its territory.

In White Dove's view, this is a heaven-sent place for farming.

Yet, the Land of Grass is incredibly poor.

It is not that no one is willing to farm, but in this "battleground," the level of danger involved in farming here is simply off the charts.

Therefore, one cannot blame the Land of Grass for not farming; it is entirely a case of having the life to plant, but not the life to harvest!

"What a sin!"

With this thought, White Dove and his group entered Kusagakure.

Compared to the prosperous Konoha, Kusagakure was incredibly shabby, with rows of low wooden huts and sparse, thin pedestrians on the streets, with only the occasional Kusa ninja passing by.

As soon as White Dove's carriage entered the village, it was noticed immediately.

However, they were all disguised now.

White Dove was currently a "one-eyed" burly man with his left eye wrapped in bandages, while Izumi was dressed as a maid.

Tekka was dressed as a "rogue ninja," as if he had taken a mission to protect them.

This combination is quite normal in the ninja world.

Not everyone has the money to commission the Five Great Ninja Villages, so it is not uncommon for rogue ninjas to take missions, though the risks are somewhat high.

The carriage stopped in front of a "Tsumago Inn."

"Tekka, it's up to you later!"

White Dove said.

Tekka did not answer, only nodding imperceptibly.

Later, he would be responsible for "covering" their actions.

Kusagakure is still a ninja village, after all, and the total number of ninjas definitely exceeds a thousand; it is truly not a place where they can act recklessly, which is why they had to formulate such a strategy.

Soon, the disguised one-eyed merchant and his maid, under the protection of the rogue ninja, stepped into the inn protected by Kusa ninjas.

Staying here, there was absolutely no need to worry about safety.

The price was a bit high, but after all, it came with the official guarantee of Kusagakure.

The carriage was naturally parked in the stables.

A while later.

White Dove and Izumi emerged from the stables.

The two who had just entered the inn with Tekka were merely "Shadow Clones"; as for their true bodies, they were naturally off to hunt for their target.

Karin!

This "innate medical prodigy" was a target White Dove valued immensely.

High potential and easy to mold!

She was a seed "strictly selected" by that renowned master of the ninja world, Orochimaru.

Furthermore, in the original plot, most of her potential had been squandered.

Having lived in Kusagakure since childhood, not only did she lack resources for cultivation, but she was also treated as a human blood bag, draining her own vitality to heal others.

Yet, even so, she had still managed to shine.

Now that White Dove had transmigrated here, he would naturally not let such a high-potential asset go to waste.

Once he had Karin in hand, he could continuously track down the Uzumaki Clan and make them into an affiliated ally of the Uchiha.

Just as the Sarutobi Clan had a covenant with the Ino-Shika-Cho trio, this was the very foundation of their influence, which could be called the strongest in Konoha.

If the Uchiha wanted to rise to power, besides strengthening their own clan, they also needed to win over more allies.

While contemplating these things, White Dove and Izumi began their infiltration and reconnaissance.

It must be said... it was fortunate that Kusagakure was not large and its defenses were not particularly strict, at least not for him and Izumi.

Otherwise, it would have been impossible to finish the search in such a short time.

White Dove and Izumi were, naturally, not searching house by house.

They could at least rule out areas outside the village; such a precious medical "resource" would certainly not be left to roam freely, nor would she be hidden too deeply.

By eliminating possibilities in this way, the search area was drastically reduced, which was why there was hope of finding her.

When they arrived at a rooftop overlooking the street.

"Sigh, Yoshimura was injured quite badly on this mission. Where is he going to get treated this time? The village charges so much every time, it's truly detestable!"

"Forget it, being able to have a way to get treated is good enough. In the past, an injury this severe would have required at least a few months of recovery. Now, being fully healed in a day is already quite good!"

"Hmph, the big shots in the village are too greedy. I am clearly a resource of the village, yet they charge us such high fees."

"Alright, the village high-ups are not for the likes of you and me to discuss. Let's go grab a few drinks!"

Hearing the faint voices drifting up from the street below, a flash of joy crossed White Dove's eyes.

It was effortless!

Thinking of this, he gave Izumi a look. She nodded slightly, and then the two quickly moved to the alley ahead.

After estimating the timing, the two stepped out of the alley, bumping right into two men wearing Kusagakure forehead protectors.

"You..."

Just as one of the Kusagakure ninja was about to curse, he noticed three tomoe appearing in the eyes of the maid before him, and the same was true for the one-eyed man beside her.

Consequently, the expressions of the two Kusagakure ninja turned vacant, and they silently followed them into the alley.

A few minutes later!

The two Kusagakure ninja walked back out.

However, the genin and chunin from before had been replaced.

White Dove and Izumi!

After subduing the two, they had used a genjutsu to knock them out, tossed them into the alley, and covered them with some trash; at the very least, they wouldn't be able to wake up on their own for a day or two.

If these had been elites from a major ninja village, trained in genjutsu resistance or possessing extraordinary strength, they naturally wouldn't have been so easy to deal with.

But Kusagakure?

Their strength was only slightly better than rogue ninja, and they couldn't compare to the Five Great Ninja Villages in any aspect.

For instance, a chunin from Konoha might be able to fight to a draw with a special jonin or even a jonin from Kusagakure.

Yes, the disparity in strength was that exaggerated.

And the Sharingan was simply too useful for interrogation; after using a few genjutsu, the targets would spill every piece of intelligence they had.

Now, White Dove and Izumi were heading toward the "Medical House" of Kusagakure.