Yusuke rubbed his face without thinking. Just a second ago, he'd been lying on his back, reading a novel.
The next second, his phone smacked him in the face, and he found himself in the Naruto world. (Not recommended.)
And what came with him was a greatsword in his mind, with three coffins floating behind it...?!
He was very familiar with the greatsword's design. It was Incursio, the only growth-type Imperial Arm from the healing manga Akame ga Kill!, which he'd read.
After calling out its release phrase, he could transform into its armor and get a taste of what it felt like to be an armored hero.
But first, he had to withstand the armor's terrifying burden. Otherwise, putting it on would kill him.
As for the three coffins, he had no idea what was inside them.
Yusuke recalled the fragmented memories of his predecessor. It was now the 34th year of Konoha, and he was a proud civilian Chunin of the village.
In short: cannon fodder.
He was eighteen or nineteen, wearing a loose hooded cloak and a white fox mask.
At that moment, he was listening alongside four other ninjas as a woman in the same attire spoke to them.
As he listened to their conversation, the information was rapidly processed by his brain, and their movements seemed to slow down in his field of vision.
Perhaps this was the talent he'd gained after absorbing his predecessor's soul: exceptional comprehension and lightning-fast reflexes.
I wonder how my reaction speed compares to the fastest man in the Ninja World—Minato Namikaze. Yusuke thought on two tracks at once.
"Our mission is to investigate the unusual activity in Amegakure."
"If Hanzo the Salamander, the leader of Amegakure, is planning to start a war, we can assassinate him and take care of the problem."
The woman spoke nonchalantly, her voice full of swagger, as if taking out Hanzo were a piece of cake.
But the moment Yusuke heard the keywords, he instantly went on alert.
"Hanzo the Salamander? The one who started the Second Ninja World War?"
"The demigod who gave Konoha's Legendary Sannin the humiliating title of 'gambling, drinking, and drugs'?"
"You want a lowly Chunin like me to fight Hanzo the Salamander? You've got to be kidding me."
Aside from the protagonists, the meat grinder of the ninja wars would fairly crush every little nobody with a dream, body and soul alike.
With no sense of belonging to Konoha, all Yusuke wanted to do was grab his bucket and run.
"Number Six, you seem to have some concerns." The woman's words drew the other four's gazes to Yusuke.
"N-no, of course not."
Seeing them all look his way, Yusuke realized they were talking to him.
He forced himself to look calm, but inwardly he couldn't help marveling. Is this woman a demon? How did she even notice that?
The woman glanced at Yusuke, then continued giving her orders. "We'll split into three teams, two to a group. Number Six, you're with me."
"Numbers Three and Four together, Numbers Two and Five together. We'll infiltrate Amegakure separately, with a two-hour interval between each team."
After agreeing on their code words and meeting signals, the captain turned with a flourish and walked into the rain ahead.
Yusuke's heart gave a thump. This is bad. The captain's got her eye on me.
How am I supposed to run now... I mean, make a strategic retreat?
If circumstances allowed, he'd have loved to light a cigarette and calm down, but the captain had already set off, so he had no choice but to hurry after her.
The closer they got to the Land of Rain, the heavier the rainfall became. Raindrops pattered against the trees, creating a unique white noise.
It helped Yusuke, who was focused on figuring out how to stay alive, concentrate and think through a way out of this mess.
Thanks to his exceptional comprehension, all kinds of information flashed rapidly through his mind.
First, he had serious doubts that his current physique could handle releasing Incursio.
He'd very likely try on Incursio's armor and die, so it could only be a last-resort measure.
And given his ninjutsu and Taijutsu skills, he was sure that if the captain chose to assassinate Hanzo the Salamander, he was doomed to be the team's cannon fodder.
What if he simply told the captain that Hanzo the Salamander was going to start a war?
Even worse. Where would a civilian ninja have gotten that information? Would she think he was a spy from another village sent to stir up trouble?
And even if she believed him, Konoha's Pot Kage might take him away to dissect and study him once they verified it. That was even more likely.
It was like he was trapped in a vicious cycle. Things had really gone south.
"Hey, Number Six, take off your mask. This time, we'll pose as a married couple of merchants traveling to the Land of Rain to buy local specialties."
As Yusuke pondered, the captain's voice reached him. She'd already taken off her white mask.
A delicate yet spirited face was revealed to the open air.
She looked to be around twenty-two or twenty-three. Her short golden bangs swayed gently in the breeze, mingling with the rain.
"Are you... Lady Tsunade?"
Yusuke recognized the woman at a glance, but it definitely wasn't because of the magnificent bosom rising beneath her loose hood.
Definitely not!
Yusuke felt a little more at ease. This was the only good news he'd had so far.
With the team's healer along, their safety on this mission was at least somewhat assured.
"So you know who I am."
"Then what's your name?"
Tsunade asked in a clear voice.
Yusuke removed his mask and introduced himself. "Lady Tsunade, I'm Yusuke."
"I'm a Chunin, skilled in genjutsu, reconnaissance, sensing, and interrogation techniques."
Tsunade nodded, momentarily drawn to Yusuke's ruggedly handsome face.
Yusuke thought for a moment, then took the initiative to ask, "Lady Tsunade, actually, what I'd like to know is why a Chunin like me was chosen for this S-rank mission."
After all, Konoha had strict rules about mission ranks. Chunin could only take on B-rank missions and below; A-rank and S-rank missions required the strength of a Jonin.
He really couldn't understand how a nobody like him had ended up on this S-rank mission.
Tsunade looked at him, seeming a little disappointed. "What? Are you afraid?"
She didn't look down on people for lacking strength. What she couldn't stand were those who gave up before even trying.
"Of course not. I'm just worried my strength is too weak and I'll hold my comrades back."
"Even if I die, my soul won't rest in peace if I cause the mission to fail and bring losses to Konoha."
With his survival instinct in overdrive, he turned the tables with an impromptu performance.
Yusuke's display of the Will of Fire had been exceptionally convincing.
Tsunade saw the sincerity in his eyes and the way he'd answered without thinking, and approved of his Will of Fire.
She said quietly, "I don't know why you were chosen for this mission either."
"You should know that ninja records are kept under seal."
"By rule, outsiders aren't supposed to know about the missions you've done before, even if you've handled a lot of dirty work."
"Before the mission, all I knew as your captain was what skills you had and how many missions you'd completed."
Yusuke scratched his head, playing it off. Well, damn that sealing policy. It means he doesn't know his teammates' abilities or character either.
The two fell silent, with nothing left to say, until Amegakure came into view ahead.
Tsunade shed her aloof demeanor from the road and took the initiative to link her arm through Yusuke's, pressing her whole body against him.
Feeling the softness of her arm and her warmth, Yusuke froze for a moment, unable to help thinking, Tsunade, are you really going this far?
This wasn't the Tsunade he remembered from the Naruto anime he'd watched.
But thinking it over, she was only in her twenties, and they were on a mission. Yusuke accepted it.
When they reached the gates of Amegakure, she smiled and produced two travel permits, putting on an affectionate act in front of the guards.
"Merchants here to buy local specialties? You've certainly had a long journey," one of Amegakure's guards said with a smile.
Amegakure lay in the buffer zone between the Land of Fire, the Land of Wind, and the Land of Earth.
Every day, it was like a latrine that all three countries took turns squatting over.
Amegakure was very friendly toward merchants who could stimulate its economy—almost ingratiatingly so.
The two walked through the quiet curtain of rain. The steady footsteps of patrols searching nearby repeatedly broke the calm.
From time to time, patrols dragged suspects out of bars and inns.
Some people were even detained as they tried to leave Amegakure and taken to the interrogation room.
The two exchanged glances, their hearts sinking. It seemed Amegakure wasn't as lax as it appeared. It was relaxed on the surface but tightly controlled underneath.
This is bad. Looks like I'll have to cling to Tsunade's powerful leg for dear life. Yusuke thought.
Before you continue