Infiltration Mission

Yin Xiang took the bandage from Tenten and unwound it. "You didn't even treat the wound before wrapping it. It'll get infected that way. Is this how you always deal with your injuries?" He looked up into Tenten's eyes.

"I didn't bring any medicine this time. I forgot." Tenten met his gaze, and for a moment, neither of them looked away. In the firelight, her cheeks turned faintly red. In the end, Yin Xiang was the first to avert his eyes.

"You should've said something if you didn't bring any. I've got some." Yin Xiang went over to his pack and took out a small bottle. "It'll sting a bit. Bear with it." He watched Tenten as he spoke, and only lowered his head to apply the medicine after she nodded. He spread some of the medicine from the bottle over her arm. Tenten felt the sting and sucked in a sharp breath.

"Phew..."

After applying the medicine, Yin Xiang set the bottle on the ground and gently blew on Tenten's arm. Tenten watched him, lost in thought. Yin Xiang didn't notice her gaze. He wrapped the bandage around her hand and tied it off. "There, all done." When he finished, he looked at Tenten and found her staring at him in a daze.

"What is it, Tenten?" Yin Xiang waved a hand in front of her. At last, she snapped out of it.

"Huh? It's nothing. I'm fine." Tenten shook her head.

"Then get some rest. There's a big battle in two days." Yin Xiang nodded, returned to his spot, and lay down. Resting his head against the wall, he stared blankly at the cave ceiling.

"Yin Xiang seems to zone out a lot," Tenten murmured to herself as she watched him. She hadn't even noticed that she'd started paying attention to his every move.

"Thinking about the battle in two days has me itching to get started!" Rock Lee said as he did push-ups on the ground.

"You have to keep your body in peak condition, Lee!" Guy did push-ups beside Rock Lee. The two of them sweated as they worked.

"Yin Xiang, I have a mission for you." The Third Hokage came over and spoke to him. Yin Xiang sat up and looked at him.

"Is this a private assignment? In that case, you don't need to pay me." Yin Xiang looked at the Third Hokage, who laughed when he heard that. "Why do you like money so much?"

"Money's great. No reason to turn it down," Yin Xiang said. "What's the mission?"

"Go alone to Honey Flower Village and eliminate as many enemy shinobi as you can. You won't need to take part in the operation two days from now."

"..." Yin Xiang fell silent for a moment. This mission was dangerous. "I'll do it, but when I get back, you have to teach me Sealing Jutsu." After thinking it over, Yin Xiang agreed. Even if he couldn't win, he could always escape with Flying Thunder God, couldn't he?

"Done," the Third Hokage replied at once. He'd heard Yin Xiang ask to learn Sealing Jutsu several times already.

"I hope I can take out plenty of shinobi." As soon as Yin Xiang finished speaking, he vanished from the cave, having used Flying Thunder God to reach a corner of Honey Flower Village.

"Third Hokage! That mission is so dangerous. Yin Xiang..." Tenten, who'd been keeping an eye on them, hurried over to speak to the Third Hokage.

"Don't worry. Yin Xiang knows Flying Thunder God. Even if he can't win, he can still escape." The Third Hokage smiled, cutting Tenten off. His words put her at ease.

"But I didn't tell him to leave so soon. He hasn't recovered much chakra yet," the Third Hokage added with a wry smile.

Yin Xiang appeared in a corner of Honey Flower Village. He glanced at the Kunai there, then used Transformation Jutsu to take on another person's appearance and started walking down the street. It was only afternoon, and the streets were still busy.

"You have to spend money to do missions. Sigh, money really is a wonderful thing." Yin Xiang sighed, bought some food, then went into an inn. He needed to recover some chakra, and he couldn't stay here long, either. It would be bad if a sensor shinobi discovered him while checking the area.

After eating a little, Yin Xiang swallowed a few Military Ration Pills. He rested briefly on the bed, then left the area. It had been so long since he'd slept in a bed; that short rest felt wonderful.

Yin Xiang made his way to the entrance of Honey Flower Village. There were guards stationed there, all of them Genin now. There were quite a few of them: six in total, three inside the small gatehouse and three standing outside. Yin Xiang decided to deal with the ones in the gatehouse first, then take care of the others.

Yin Xiang circled around to the back of the gatehouse and glanced at one of the shinobi at the entrance. He transformed into that person and walked straight in as if he belonged there.

"Onodera, what are you doing in here? How are things outside?" The three inside looked up, recognized him, and made no move to stop him. One of them asked the question.

"Everything's fine outside." Yin Xiang walked up to the one who'd spoken, putting himself behind the other two as well. "Things aren't going so well in here, though."

"What do you mean?" The subordinate who'd called him Onodera froze for a moment, then Yin Xiang slit his throat. The other two hadn't even had time to react before Yin Xiang drove his other two Kunai through their heads. "I'm sure you have families, too. Don't blame me. Blame yourselves for becoming shinobi." Yin Xiang put away his three Kunai and looked at the three corpses inside the gatehouse.

In every village, Genin were young, having been trained as shinobi from childhood. But the shinobi world was cruel. Since Yin Xiang was on a mission, he couldn't let them live.

After that, Yin Xiang used the same method again. He transformed into one of the people in the gatehouse and went outside.

"What's going on? It's not time to change shifts yet," one of the Genin at the entrance said when he saw Yin Xiang approaching.

"I just came to take a look," Yin Xiang said. He walked over to the entrance and stopped beside the person at the far left. "The breeze out here is pretty nice," he remarked, looking off to the side as a Kunai silently slipped out of his sleeve.

"Yeah, the air in the Land of Honey is much better than in the Land of Filling," one of the Genin replied.

"Sorry," Yin Xiang said. The three of them looked at him in confusion. They happened to be standing in a straight line. Yin Xiang looked up at them and fired a Lightning Style Kunai. All three fell. The Kunai had lodged in the last man's head, half of it buried inside, and the three Genin collapsed at the same time.