The Undercover Plan

Konoha's once-desolate northeastern corner,

since the Iburi Clan moved in,

had become brightly lit and deafeningly lively.

The Iburi Clan's mining of the Forest of Death's ore veins

had also drawn countless wandering merchants.

And with the wandering merchants gathering here, the place had taken on an exotic flavor,

making this once-remote street

a hundred times livelier at night than the village's commercial district.

"Ah, hahaha!"

"Boss! Bring me a few more young girls!"

On the second floor of a tavern, a drunkard sat with an arm around each of two exotic dancers,

laughing uproariously through bleary eyes.

He was filthy rich,

and he spent money with a generous hand,

so the women drinking with him kept giggling sweetly.

Out on the street, the acrobatic troupe accompanying the wandering merchants breathed fire and swallowed swords,

drawing wave after wave of cheers from the crowd.

"It's so lively!"

Gamakatsu lay across Yatsuhashi's shoulder,

his eyes wide

as he gazed at the glittering world, brimming with excitement.

"The outside world really is much more interesting than Mount Myoboku!"

Yatsuhashi made his way through the throng,

his gaze fixed on Tenzō, who sat in a dim corner.

Amid all this prosperity, Tenzō seemed completely out of place.

"Clan leader."

Yatsuhashi walked over and sat beside him.

Tenzō gave a mechanical response, not even bothering to straighten up.

It was hard to blame him.

After all, ever since he was a child, he had believed it was his duty to save his entire clan from the curse,

and he had trained hard every day for that purpose,

even risking his life to take part in Orochimaru's terrifying experiments

in exchange for the First's Wood Release power.

But now, Yatsuhashi had easily resolved the Iburi Clan's predicament,

and Tenzō had suddenly lost his anchor in life.

His goal had been achieved so quickly

that he had instead fallen into a profound emptiness.

Looking at his dejected appearance,

Yatsuhashi suddenly asked, "Tenzō, do you want to save the world?"

At that, the eyes that had been ashen moments before immediately lit up,

and that chūnibyō-like fervor

instantly replaced his former demeanor.

Save the world?

That sounded way more exciting than saving his clan!

"I do! I've dreamed of it!"

Tenzō excitedly grabbed Yatsuhashi by the shoulders,

and even his eyes blazed with fervent light.

Then Yatsuhashi asked him gravely, "What if you might die?"

"Uh..."

Tenzō froze for a moment,

but then gritted his teeth,

putting on an expression of utter fearlessness.

"For the sake of saving the world, I'd gladly die a hundred times over, clan leader!"

"Please give me this chance, clan leader!"

Yatsuhashi fell silent for a moment,

giving Tenzō plenty of time to reconsider.

But Tenzō still brimmed with his characteristic fervor.

So Yatsuhashi nodded and looked at Gamakatsu on his shoulder.

"I'm in!"

Gamakatsu leapt down from Yatsuhashi's shoulder, understanding at once.

On the way here,

Yatsuhashi had already asked Gamakatsu what he thought.

He had asked if Gamakatsu was willing to sign a Summoning Contract with Tenzō alone.

Unlike the "collective contract" Yatsuhashi had signed with Mount Myoboku,

this would be Gamakatsu's own "exclusive contract."

This three-legged toad had been discriminated against ever since he was little in Mount Myoboku,

and he was curious about the outside world,

so Gamakatsu had agreed without hesitation.

Yatsuhashi wasted no time

and taught Tenzō the Summoning Technique right away.

As for the Cursed Seal of Tongue Eradication on Yatsuhashi,

he had already erased it earlier with his Mangekyo.

Tenzō was talented to begin with,

and he was also eager to prove himself to Yatsuhashi,

so it took him only about half an hour

to master this C-rank ninjutsu.

"Slap!"

The man and the toad each pressed their handprints onto the scroll,

and the contract was sealed.

"Done!"

Tenzō excitedly cradled Gamakatsu in his hands.

Looking up at Yatsuhashi, he asked eagerly,

"Clan leader, how do I save the world?"

"Listen carefully."

Yatsuhashi lowered his voice, his expression more serious than ever.

"I need you to infiltrate the Land of Rain."

"The Land of Rain?" Tenzō asked, taken aback.

"There's an organization there called Akatsuki."

Yatsuhashi's gaze grew distant. "They're a bunch of lunatics who want to destroy the world. Your mission is to infiltrate them and become one of their members."

"Destroy the world?!"

Tenzō drew a sharp breath,

then began trembling all over,

not with fear, but with a kind of excitement.

"I'm supposed to join an organization bent on destroying the world, then bring it down from within?"

"That's right."

Yatsuhashi's voice brimmed with hope. "Tenzō, this is a mission only you can accomplish."

"Leave it to me, clan leader!"

Tenzō looked solemn, as if he were already the savior of the world.

"For world peace! I, Tenzō, will gladly die a thousand times over!"

At last, he had found a mission even greater than saving his clan:

saving the world.

Just thinking about it sent his blood surging with excitement.

Watching Tenzō's eager, almost feverish expression,

Yatsuhashi sighed softly.

If he hadn't run into Madara Uchiha earlier than expected,

he wouldn't have sent Tenzō on such a dangerous mission.

This was also the plan Yatsuhashi had come up with after thinking things over that night.

He had to make his move in advance,

plant a spy inside Akatsuki,

and make contact with Nagato and the others early,

looking for a chance to get his hands on the Rinnegan before its time.

Even if he couldn't, Yatsuhashi would find a chance to destroy those eyes

and utterly shatter Madara Uchiha's Eye of the Moon Plan.

Just as Yatsuhashi was explaining the other details of the undercover plan to Tenzō,

a sharp noise suddenly rang out on the street, which had been bustling moments before.

The commotion outside the window caught Yatsuhashi's attention, too.

It turned out to be men from the village's Military Police Force.

Uchiha Tekka's eyes were filled with sinister malice

as he kept driving the acrobatic troupe away.

The Military Police Force in Konoha had the authority to patrol and enforce the law,

so people usually dared not complain, even when they were angry.

"Quiet down, all of you!"

Uchiha Tekka kicked over the nearby performance platform.

Then he snatched the fire-breathing performer's jug

and threw it to the ground, smashing it under his heel.

"Hey, you outsiders without proper identification—did you pay the fee to perform in Konoha?"

Tenmei, the representative of the wandering merchants, plastered a smile on his face.

"Why, if it isn't Lord Tekka?"

As he spoke, he quietly pulled out five hundred ryō and deftly tried to slip it into Uchiha Tekka's hand.

"They're new here and don't know the rules. I hope you'll be generous..."

"Get lost!"

Uchiha Tekka flicked his wrist,

sending the five hundred ryō flying as though it were trash.

Tenmei was taken aback, but quickly recovered.

He gave a discreet signal.

Several alluring dancers immediately swayed their hips,

giggling as they sidled up to Tekka.

"Please don't be angry, sir~"

But Uchiha Tekka shoved the dancers to the ground, his face twisted in disgust.

"And you! Who told you that you could serve drinks here?"

"Huh?"

Tenmei was completely dumbfounded.

He had traveled far and wide for decades,

and local security forces were always either greedy or lecherous, so there was always some way to get through to them.

But this Uchiha Tekka wasn't greedy, and he wasn't lecherous, either,

which clearly left Tenmei at a loss.

What Tenmei didn't know was

that Uchiha Tekka simply enjoyed the thrill of trampling others underfoot.

"Th-then what are we supposed to do..."

Tenmei broke out in a cold sweat.

Just as the standoff was reaching an impasse,

Yatsuhashi arrived behind Tenmei.

"What's going on?"

"Sir! What are you doing here?"

Tenmei looked as if he'd just spotted a lifeline.

He hurriedly said, "I'm afraid there's been a misunderstanding between us and this gentleman..."

Yatsuhashi nodded.

He looked over at Uchiha Tekka, who was standing there arrogantly.

"Hey, you."

Yatsuhashi beckoned Uchiha Tekka over.

Uchiha Tekka's expression changed.

The fear of being beaten to a pulp by Yatsuhashi came rushing back.

Uchiha Tekka swallowed.

He glanced back at the Military Police Force deputy captain, Uchiha Yashiro.

Then he mustered up his courage and shouted, "You talking to me? Hmph, who do you think you are?"

Uchiha Yashiro gave Yatsuhashi a cold look.

"So you're Uchiha Yatsuhashi? You're a disgrace to the clan, fraternizing with a bunch of vagrants. What kind of conduct is that?"

Seeing this, Uchiha Tekka seemed to have found a powerful ally.

He immediately piled on, "Captain Yashiro! You probably don't know this, but he didn't even show up to the clan meeting at the Ancestral Grounds yesterday! He clearly has no respect for his elders!"

"Hmph!"

Uchiha Yashiro glared at Yatsuhashi.

He released the formidable pressure of his Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

He was trying to force Yatsuhashi to submit.

"You dared to skip the clan meeting?

Where were you off getting into trouble last night?

And you're a member of the Military Police Force,

yet you're taking an outsider's side? Seems you've forgotten the clan rules!"

Faced with these aggressive accusations

and the pressure of Yashiro's Three-Tomoe Sharingan,

Yatsuhashi didn't so much as flinch.

He didn't take any of it seriously.

After all, he was no longer the weak special Genin he'd once been.

He merely curled his lip. "What's it to you?"

Then he rolled up his sleeves

and strode toward Uchiha Tekka.

No flashy jutsu, just one pure, domineering punch!

"Thud!"

His fist landed squarely on Uchiha Tekka's left cheek.

The punch was so fast that Tekka didn't even have time to react.

He flew backward like a kite with its strings cut.

After all, Uchiha Tekka had been the one to tell Yatsuhashi to go to the Ancestral Grounds in the first place.

Not only had that led to a clash of Mangekyo Sharingan between him and Uchiha Fugaku,

it had also cost him a lot of blood from his eyes for nothing.

Yatsuhashi had held a grudge over it ever since.

How could he pass up the chance to settle the score now?

The whole place fell deathly silent.

No one had expected Yatsuhashi to dare strike someone right in front of the Military Police Force deputy captain.

Uchiha Tekka lay sprawled on the ground,

the whole side of his face swelling up like a pig's.

The punch had knocked all the arrogance right out of him.

Yatsuhashi asked coldly, "Go on, tell me. Who am I?"

Uchiha Tekka hurriedly blurted out, "Lord Yatsuhashi! You're Lord Yatsuhashi!"

Sure enough, the cure for this kind of problem was just this.

It worked fast,

and it worked like a charm.

"Tekka!"

Uchiha Yashiro was both shocked and furious. "Uchiha Yatsuhashi, you dare hit someone from the Military Police Force?!"

"So what if I did?"

"Fine! Fine! Fine!"

Uchiha Yashiro trembled with rage.

He repeated the word three times. "Yatsuhashi, you're openly defying the Military Police Force!"

Uchiha Yashiro formed Hand Seals.

Murderous intent flashed in his eyes. "Looks like I'll have to teach you a lesson. You've gotten too big for your boots!"

Just as Uchiha Yashiro's jutsu was about to go off,

"Stop."

A drunken voice came from the second floor of the tavern.

Everyone looked up and saw Jiraiya holding a cup of wine.

He leaned unsteadily against the railing, watching the scene below with an amused expression.

"Yashiro, losing your temper with a junior like that doesn't look very good."

"Jiraiya..."

Uchiha Yashiro's murderous intent instantly faded.

After all, he was only a deputy captain. He wouldn't dare act out in front of one of the legendary Sannin.

"Since this is settled, let's call it a night."

Jiraiya burped.

He waved a hand lazily. "It's late. Don't spoil everyone's fun."

"Yes..."

Uchiha Yashiro shot Yatsuhashi a furious glare.

He helped Uchiha Tekka, whose face was swollen, to his feet,

then slunk away with the Military Police Force.

Jiraiya gazed down at Yatsuhashi.

Through bleary eyes, he said, "Not bad, kid. I've got a good feeling about you."

With that, Jiraiya turned around and collapsed into the snowy-white arms of a group of dancing girls.