The Military Ration Pill research base was a hive of activity.
No matter how Byakuya looked, he couldn't see any sign that it had been damaged.
He cautiously waited another day, practicing the Storm Release technique dozens of times in the meantime.
The next day.
The base remained completely unchanged.
A Konoha logistics unit did arrive, loaded with supplies and heading for the battlefield.
"Could those two Anteater Bounty Group shinobi be planning to target the supplies during transport?"
The more Byakuya thought about it, the more likely it seemed. He quietly followed the unit, but even after it passed through a valley that was particularly well suited for an ambush, his targets never appeared. A sudden thought struck him: Could the enemy have spotted me? Are they waiting for me to leave before sabotaging the place?
He immediately raced back to the Military Ration Pill research base.
The scene was still peaceful and busy.
Nothing seemed out of place.
"Did they decide there were too many people here to sabotage the place and move on to somewhere else?"
He spread out the map.
The Combat Uniform Factory was the closest location.
Byakuya hurried there next.
But just like at the Military Ration Pill research base, workers at the Combat Uniform Factory were sweating as they worked, while all kinds of materials for making Konoha Ninja combat uniforms were delivered in an orderly fashion. Everything was running smoothly.
Now he was completely at a loss.
He simply completed the Fate Grid mission in the forest beside the factory.
Heaven Rewards Diligence, Perseverance Leads to Success Time limit: 3 days: Practice the Storm Release technique (50/50) Reward: Slight increase to ninjutsu talent
Only after receiving the reward did Byakuya understand what "ninjutsu talent" meant.
It affected his chakra advantage, how efficiently he learned and understood things, and his ability to make creative breakthroughs in ninjutsu, among other things.
"The Storm Release: Torrential Lightning Flash I developed from Water Release: Water Wave has a lot of flaws. I waste chakra unnecessarily, my control isn't good enough, and I misjudge its strength... I could have done much better, but my ninjutsu talent held me back. I could only get it to this point. But things will be different from now on..."
As for his mission for the Root Organization, Byakuya eventually had no choice but to put on his Konoha forehead protector and ask around at the Military Ration Pill research base.
Only then did he learn that someone really had attacked the base, injuring several people, but Konoha shinobi had arrived in time and killed the attackers.
With that information, Byakuya could return to Konoha without worry.
Wearing his Shuten-dōji Mask and a black windbreaker, he showed his credentials, ignored the Konoha shinobi guarding the gate as they questioned him, and took a side path to the Ninja Academy, where he climbed over the wall.
He opened the storeroom, took off his windbreaker, put away his weapons, and set the Shuten-dōji Mask in a corner. Then, carrying the iron nameplates he had taken from his targets and the Bounty Exchange mission scroll, he went to Hiroya's office.
He knocked on the door.
"Come in... Oh, it's Byakuya! You're finally back! Come in, come in!"
As Hiroya, that sly old fox, examined the Anteater Bounty Group's nameplates and the Bounty Exchange mission scroll, he listened to Byakuya report the details of his mission.
"So you used a Shadow Clone to lure them into an ambush, then killed them both with an Explosive Tag Ninja Sword from the Ninja Academy storeroom?"
"Yes! That's exactly what happened."
"You haven't left anything out?"
"I wouldn't dare, sir."
Hiroya patted him on the shoulder. "Well done, son. I knew I hadn't misjudged you. You've got a bright future ahead of you! That Explosive Tag Ninja Sword seems to have been destined for you. It's yours."
"Thank you for your guidance, Principal."
"Right. You don't have to work today. Go home and rest."
"Really? Is that all right?"
"I'm the principal. I make the rules."
"Yes, sir!"
Back in the storeroom, Byakuya locked the three heavy doors. He suddenly remembered the defensive ninjutsu Triple Rashomon that Orochimaru had used and wondered whether Konoha had it.
On the Way of Survival, the more defensive techniques, the better.
While he'd been away from the village for a few days, the Ninja Academy had lost even more students.
Teacher Izumi Orange was just coming downstairs with her lesson plans when they ran into each other.
"Teacher Izumi Orange, isn't it still class time?"
"Oh, Byakuya. You didn't know? A lot of the students have graduated, so there's less teaching to do. By the way, I went to the storeroom to find you yesterday. Why weren't you at work?"
"The weather's been turning colder, and I got sick by accident. I took a few days off to recover."
"Are you feeling better?" Izumi Orange touched his forehead, then felt her own.
"I'm fine after taking some medicine. Thanks for asking."
Izumi Orange's baby face dimpled when she smiled. "We're just sitting around anyway. Let me treat you to barbecue."
Byakuya shook his head. "If you're paying again, I'm not going."
"Fine, fine. I'll treat you this time, and you can pay the bill."
"Let's go. I've been eating bland food while I was sick, and I've been craving barbecue."
Izumi Orange suddenly asked in surprise, "It's only been a few days, but you seem different, Byakuya."
"It's probably because I was sick."
"Maybe."
Izumi Orange returned to her office to put down her lesson plans, then left the academy with Byakuya.
Hiroya had also left the Ninja Academy and was heading straight for the Root Organization base.
"I wish to see Lord Danzō!"
"Lord Danzō is busy."
"I have something important to report!"
"Wait here."
Nearly half an hour passed.
"Come with me."
Danzō was gazing up at the calligraphy hanging on the wall, the four characters "Heaven Rewards Diligence." Without turning around, he asked, "Hiroya, what do you want?"
"Lord Danzō, Senkaku Byakuya has returned."
"Mm." Shimura Danzō gave a noncommittal response.
Hiroya's main purpose in coming was to clear himself of blame, even though he didn't know whether he was at fault.
In any case, since Lord Danzō had personally asked about Byakuya's mission, it was best to be cautious.
He told Danzō everything Byakuya had reported about the mission, word for word.
"I only knew the mission concerned wandering shinobi. I never expected it to involve the Anteater Bounty Group and the Bounty Exchange."
Danzō closed his eyes for a moment, then glanced at Hiroya. He still had a use for him. "Stop kneeling. Get up."
"I wouldn't dare, sir."
"Root's people are stationed elsewhere. It's inevitable that we'll miss things that aren't important. You're not to blame."
Only after hearing this did Hiroya rise, as cautiously as if walking on thin ice.
"Did you teach Senkaku Byakuya the Shadow Clone Technique?"
Hiroya hurriedly explained the whole story, from beginning to end, without concealing a thing.
Danzō asked, "Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Hiroya knelt again. "I deserve to die."
"From now on, report anything concerning Senkaku Byakuya directly to me."
"Huh?"
"Are you unwilling?"
"No, I was just surprised."
In seven days—a week—he had learned the Shadow Clone Technique and killed two Chunin-level shinobi with considerable combat experience, proving his strength.
Danzō took Byakuya's file from his desk drawer and murmured, "One mission doesn't prove anything. I'll see whether you're a little fox hiding its tail or just lucky, like a rotten log."
"This is Senkaku Byakuya's new mission. Give it to him in seven days. Also, ask whether there's any ninjutsu he wants to learn, as compensation for what went wrong on his last mission."
"Yes, sir."
"Carry out my orders properly."
"Yes!"
Byakuya and Izumi Orange walked into a barbecue restaurant and happened to see Yuhi Kurenai and her friends there too.
Izumi Orange greeted her warmly. "Yuhi Kurenai, congratulations on graduating."
"Oh, Teacher Izumi Orange! Byakuya?"
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