After successfully recruiting Kisame Hoshigaki, Uzumaki Jiuming and the others set off on their journey back to Konoha. Along the way, Rin Nohara gained a teacher who could instruct her in Water Style, while Uehara Akina, who had defected from Kirigakure alongside Kisame, gradually opened up to Rin and the others over the course of those few days.
The journey back to the Land of Fire wasn't simply a matter of traveling. To help Kisame and Uehara Akina fit into his little group, Uzumaki Jiuming organized plenty of team-building activities. He did all this so that the two Mist Ninja would feel closer to the rest of them.
And as everyone enjoyed the scenery along the way, Uzumaki Jiuming's carriage slowly drew closer to the Land of Fire.
Konoha.
Inside the Hokage Building, Minato Namikaze sat in his chair, one hand propping up his chin and the other holding a pen. His eyes were unfocused.
The Fifth Hokage of Konoha was actually daydreaming in his office.
At a desk not far from Minato, Nara Shikaku picked up a pitch-black scroll and unfolded it with a serious expression.
It had just been delivered by Anbu. Scrolls of this color usually contained extremely important news. As the Hokage's aide, his job was to help the Hokage analyze which intelligence was important and which wasn't. The Hokage would decide on important matters himself, while Shikaku would deal with the less important ones in advance.
This black scroll contained the piece of intelligence Shikaku had paid the most attention to that morning.
"Suikazan Fuguki of the Land of Water was actually assassinated?"
"The missing rogue ninja's whereabouts are unknown, and Samehada has gone missing with him?"
"This is major news!"
After reading the scroll, Shikaku rubbed his chin. In the peaceful Shinobi World of