The Third Hokage

"What is this? Pinggang?" Biji stared, eyes wide. "Didn't you say we were going to capture a Jonin? How did you end up with a Chunin?"

"A Chunin!?" Yin Xiang nearly stumbled and fell. "We've been played. They'll have reinforcements here soon; we need to change locations immediately." As he spoke, Yin Xiang began packing his gear, and the others followed suit.

"Heh, you aren't going anywhere," Pinggang laughed, sitting on the ground. "The cave entrance is already surrounded. You're all going to die here."

"Damn it." Yin Xiang grew irritated just listening to him. He dropped his bag, pulled out a kunai, and shredded Pinggang's clothes until only his underwear remained. Then, with the kunai, he carved non-lethal cuts all over the man's body.

He then took some sugar from Miji and sprinkled it over the wounds.

"Ah!!" Another blood-curdling scream echoed. People say salt on a wound is painful, but sugar is just as agonizing. Yin Xiang hoisted the bloody man onto his shoulder and tossed him deep into the back of the cave.

Before long, horrific, inhuman shrieks filled the air. Countless ants crawled from every corner of the cave onto his body, burrowing into his wounds to feast on the sugar-coated flesh. It was a pain no human could endure.

"Yin Xiang, this..." Tenten looked toward the back of the cave as everyone shouldered their packs. "Don't worry about him. He won't be able to scream for much longer," Yin Xiang replied, shaking his head.

"I've been thinking, why don't we just fight them? I'll take on as many as they send," Guy said, cracking his neck.

"I think so too," Rock Lee chimed in from the side.

"How many will come?" Yin Xiang asked the captured Chunin. The man was already drenched in cold sweat from terror. Yin Xiang had told him earlier that he would let him experience it, and now that he had actually seen it, his fear of Yin Xiang was beyond words.

"At least three Jonin... and Anbu. Maybe even Honey Shadow will come," he replied hastily, not daring to hide anything from Yin Xiang.

"It's definitely dangerous right now, but it's also our best opportunity," Yin Xiang murmured, pursing his lips.

"I knew it. Even if the Jonin from small countries are weaker, they shouldn't be that weak," Guy said, glancing toward the back of the cave.

"Let's just fight them," Neji added.

"What do you think, Third Hokage?" Yin Xiang looked at Shikaku. Shikaku froze, and everyone else in the cave was stunned.

"What are you talking about, Yin Xiang?" Guy looked at Yin Xiang, then at Shikaku, who remained standing there, smiling without saying a word.

"Shikaku wouldn't know how to use that kind of barrier," Yin Xiang walked up to him. "Shikaku doesn't have that kind of smile on his face. While he hates trouble, he wouldn't just watch a fight outside without helping, and he wouldn't have been observing me this entire time."

Yin Xiang looked directly into his eyes, not flinching. The man's eyes narrowed, and he slowly raised his hand to form a seal.

With a poof, a cloud of white smoke dissipated, and the Third Hokage appeared before them. Everyone else's eyes widened.

"Yin Xiang, you are truly clever. But even if you knew I wasn't Shikaku, how did you know it was me?" the Third Hokage asked, looking at him with curiosity.

"Given Shikaku's abilities, he could handle Hokage affairs in your absence without giving himself away. He wouldn't take this mission on his own initiative, either. You were the one who insisted on taking it. Aside from the Third, I couldn't imagine anyone else making that call."

"Were you testing my abilities, Third?" Yin Xiang asked boldly.

"Yes." The Third pulled a pipe from his pocket and lit it. "Finally, I can have a smoke."

"I don't know what you mean by this, Third. Testing me for what?"

"To see if you can shoulder the responsibility of being the future Hokage," the Third replied directly.

"I can't," Yin Xiang shook his head immediately. "I don't want to be Hokage. Being an assistant to the Hokage is already troublesome enough."

"It's precisely because Shikaku told me your thoughts that I wanted to test you."

"Old man, I grew up under your watch. You know what I'm like. I have no interest in being Hokage."

"No... let's deal with the situation at hand first. They'll be here any second," Rock Lee said, looking toward the cave entrance.

"The Third is here, what are you worried about? They'll be scared to death," Yin Xiang laughed. "I wasn't sure before, but after thinking it through, I decided to ask. Once I asked, all the problems were solved."

"Third, what do we do now?" Guy asked.

"Listen to Yin Xiang. Hasn't it been that way the whole trip?" the Third said to Guy. Guy looked at the Third, then back at Yin Xiang.

"Then we fight. If we can't win, the Third is still here," Yin Xiang said, putting down his pack. He felt relieved; he had been prepared to run away if things went south, ready to use the Flying Thunder God to teleport straight home.

"The Third will help this time, right?" Yin Xiang asked.

"Of course," the Third nodded.

"Then let's go. We're heading out." Yin Xiang nodded, pulled out a Flying Thunder God kunai, and walked out first. The others followed.

They emerged at the perfect moment. Dozens of ninjas rushed out of the forest and stopped right in front of them. The Third remained inside the cave; as long as Yin Xiang and the others could hold their own, it was better for the Third not to reveal himself.

"You Konoha lot only sent a few people, yet you dare to interfere in the affairs of our Land of Filling?" the lead Jonin said. He bore a striking resemblance to Yamashin.

"Father!" Yamashin ran out of the cave and shouted at the leader. The man was indeed Yamashin's father, Yamaha.

"Yamashin!? What are you doing over there? Come here!" Seeing his son on the opposing side, Yamaha shouted for him to return.

"Father! What are you doing? Why are you betraying the country?" Yamashin yelled back, his expression pained.

"Yamashin! What do you know? Come here! Don't get yourself hurt."

"Father! You should just surrender! You can't beat them!" Yamashin had seen the Third earlier. With the Third Hokage present, how could these ninjas possibly stand a chance?

"What nonsense are you spouting? Yamashin, get over here!" Behind Yamaha stood a group of ninjas. Yin Xiang counted them: fifteen appeared young—all Genin—along with two Chunin, three Jonin, and two masked figures.