Timely Sign-in Reward: Body Flicker Technique

Although Kakashi did not want to admit it, he had indeed lost.

Chuanyu was right; if this were a real battlefield, he might already be dead.

However, life offered no chance for a do-over.

"Even so, you cannot follow Itachi into the Anbu. The battlefield has no humanity."

Kakashi immediately cut off Chuanyu's train of thought. Although the victory had been won unfairly, when the time truly came, no one would be able to look after his life.

"The battlefield will not show mercy just because I am a child, and the fact that you underestimated me is exactly why I survived."

Chuanyu spoke indifferently, his words instantly rendering Kakashi silent.

That was true; joining the Anbu was already stepping one foot into the grave. If Chuanyu died, it would have nothing to do with him.

With a gloomy expression, Kakashi coughed. "Itachi, handle it as you see fit."

Having said that, he turned and left.

Seeing that Kakashi had compromised, the two exchanged a smile.

"You really exceeded my expectations."

Itachi walked forward and said with a smile.

"The more interesting parts are yet to come. Let's go, Brother Itachi."

Thus, Chuanyu successfully joined Kakashi's squad, though only as an unofficial member. He was not a formal Anbu operative and lacked the clearance for certain classified missions.

He could only carry out tasks of minor significance.

But it was still a form of training. Fortunately, Chuanyu possessed immense talent and never failed a mission. Although he completed them with Itachi's assistance, it led Kakashi to view him in a different light.

"The Mist Village has appeared at Konoha's border defenses again. I don't think it's a coincidence."

Inside an Anbu room, Kakashi, Itachi, and other members were observing a map.

On the map, the areas near the border of the Land of Fire were marked with red symbols.

"Is there any accurate intelligence on the enemy?"

One of the members suddenly asked.

"Yes. The person is named Ao, a veteran Jonin of the Mist Village. His name appears on Konoha's Gold-Level Wanted List, and he has a Byakugan transplanted into his right eye."

"It is understood that this Byakugan was a trophy Ao obtained during the Third Great Ninja War. The last time he appeared within Konoha's perimeter, it was Shisui who drove them away."

Kakashi closed his eyes, reciting all the intelligence he had on Ao, then looked thoughtfully at Uchiha Chuanyu beside him.

This little guy is really like Shisui...

"Then, can we conclude that their objective is the Byakugan?"

Itachi suddenly proposed an idea.

Ao only had one Byakugan, but it had greatly increased his strength. He naturally understood the benefits of such eyes, so their target must be the Hyuga Clan.

"Shisui already deterred them last time. To dare to appear here at a time like this... could it be that they already know that Shisui..."

A member on the side looked at the others in shock.

Itachi's brow suddenly furrowed.

"Someone intentionally informed the Mist Village of Shisui's death."

Chuanyu walked over and spoke calmly.

"Then tell me, who exactly would do such a thing?"

Kakashi pressed him.

"In Konoha, the hidden darkness only exists underground. Aside from the Uchiha, I fear only he would do it."

Chuanyu pointed toward the ground. Kakashi's eyes widened in shock. "Root?!"

"The current Konoha is fragile. On the surface, it is very stable, but internally it has long been in chaos. We must guard against the Uchiha, and the Hyuga are unwilling to stir up trouble, so the main combat forces left are the Anbu and Root."

"But the ones who handle these matters are the Anbu. The Mist Village is powerful; if we stop them properly, there will be no accidents. But if we kill them, the Mist Village will surely use it as an excuse to demand reparations from Konoha. If that happens, the one in trouble will be the Third Hokage."

Chuanyu knew Danzō's ambitions with his eyes closed. Because Shisui committed suicide, the Uchiha coup was halted, giving Danzō a moment to breathe. Wanting to seize power, Danzō had turned his sights toward Hiruzen Sarutobi again.

Interesting.

Kakashi had to re-evaluate Chuanyu. To possess such foresight and reasoning at six years old—he was truly a genius.

Chuanyu secretly gloated inside. Would he tell Kakashi that he was a transmigrator?

"I am arranging the mission now, but let me clarify the significance of this battle: it is not to wipe them out. Driving them away is sufficient."

After Kakashi finished speaking, he drew a checkmark on the marked location.

"Chuanyu, you must stay close to Itachi. The enemy might go for the kill this time, but we cannot, or it will be a declaration of war against the Mist Village."

Kakashi rubbed his hair, feeling a headache coming on.

The current Konoha was truly fragile to the extreme.

At the border defenses of Konoha, Ao, wearing an eye patch, hid in a tree.

Hidden behind the foliage behind him were numerous Mist Village Anbu ninjas.

"Once those two step into the perimeter, draw Konoha's attention first. Then, the rest of you split into two squads: the first squad will provide cover for the two decoys, and the second squad will follow me and act according to the situation!"

Ao gazed at the distant Konoha sentry post and issued his orders with firm resolve.

"Understood!"

Two figures leaped rapidly from the large tree and dashed toward the perimeter.

Ao sneered and pulled a shuriken from his waist.

After a brief three-second breath, the Konoha guard at the sentry post was struck by the shuriken and tumbled down.

"Enemy spotted! Everyone, stay alert!"

The squad leader was the first to notice the trouble and hurriedly called for his surrounding teammates to heighten their vigilance and provide support.

On Ao's side, the first squad had already lurked around the two decoys, while he remained motionless, holding his position.

Because Ao knew nothing about Danzō, he reasoned that if the information provided by Danzō was true, then Shisui was dead and Root would not be participating in the mission, leaving only the tough nut of the Anbu to crack.

He cast a parabolic arc, carefully observing the situation on Konoha's side; if Shisui did not appear immediately, he could strike directly.

Their goal was to abduct a member of the Hyuga Clan.

"Captain, we've spotted two Mist Village Anbu ninjas!"

"Mist Anbu?! What could they possibly be doing here at a time like this? There's no way there are only two of them! Quick! Call for reinforcements!"

The guard captain hurriedly arranged for a subordinate to go fetch help.

They were merely ordinary Chunin, and the enemy's strength was at the Anbu level—not to be underestimated.

"Surround those two guys first!"

The guard captain led his men as they leaped down to surround the two Mist Anbu ninjas.

Just then, the first squad hidden in the grass jumped out. In a single instant, all the Konoha guards were slaughtered.

The guard captain looked at his reflection on the enemy's long blade with unwillingness.

The Mist ninjas swung their blades down without a trace of expression.

Squelch.

The entire Konoha guard squad was wiped out.

The Mist Anbu ninjas disposed of the scene simply, moved the bodies away, and then concealed themselves once more.

They were waiting for Konoha's reinforcements to arrive.

Ao simply wanted to confirm whether or not Shisui was truly dead.

The guard who had been covered as he fled ran frantically into the Konoha Security Force building after entering the village.

"It's bad! The... the Mist have crossed the perimeter!"

At present, the Konoha Security Force was still comprised of members of the Uchiha Clan.

The captain was Uchiha Fugaku, the clan head.

When he heard the guard's report, he did not express any reaction.

In these sensitive times, the Uchiha needed to keep a low profile more than ever.

"I will arrange for someone to inform the Third Hokage."

Uchiha Fugaku said indifferently.

"Are... are you not planning to intervene?!"

The guard was filled with confusion, but before he could finish his sentence, he was shoved out by other Uchiha clansmen.

Getting involved in external incidents was undoubtedly asking for trouble, but Fugaku knew that Hiruzen Sarutobi would understand.

Soon, after Hiruzen Sarutobi received the intelligence, he dispatched the Anbu and several Jonin.

However, Kakashi and his team had already been lying in wait since the moment Ao first appeared.

They were simply waiting for Hiruzen Sarutobi's order before they could move.

"This Ao is truly cunning."

Kakashi observed all the actions Ao had orchestrated and muttered to himself.

"He's losing his patience. Within three minutes, once the reinforcements from the village arrive, he will definitely make his move."

Chuan Yu stared intently at Ao in the tree opposite. Arranging for decoys, splitting squads for cover, and clearing the scene—these were all signs of apprehension.

He was waiting for Konoha's reinforcements to show up.

Shisui had left too deep an impression on him back then...

A few minutes later, the squad composed of Konoha Jonin reached the border, and Ao immediately signaled the first squad!

The ninjas hiding in the grass leaped out and clashed with the Konoha Jonin.

"It's starting!"

Hatake Kakashi hurriedly dispatched the other squad members to join the fray; in terms of pure strength, those sent by the Mist Village this time were all Anbu shinobi.

The Konoha jonin naturally found the situation thorny.

Once the Konoha Anbu made their move, Ao would have no more reservations after observing that Shisui was nowhere to be seen.

"Byakugan!"

Ao removed his eye patch, and blue veins instantly bulged around his right eye.

After scanning his surroundings, he locked his gaze onto Hatake Kakashi.

"The Copy Ninja, Hatake Kakashi. Interesting... It seems Shisui is indeed dead."

Overjoyed, Ao finally appeared with the second squad behind him.

"Brother Itachi, let me guard their retreat."

Chuan Yu suddenly spoke up.

Itachi was stunned for a moment, then recalled the primary objective of this mission.

Expulsion was enough.

In that case, placing Chuan Yu on their path of retreat seemed like the most logical choice.

"Your combat strength isn't high, so that position does suit you, but make sure to protect yourself. Just let them flee."

After saying this, Itachi ruffled Chuan Yu's hair, leaped forward, and joined the battle ahead.

[Ding! System triggered automatic sign-in! Location: Konoha border!]

[Detected that the scene in the host's mind is fitting! Sign-in reward: Body Flicker Technique!]

Ao, who was still secretly gloating just after landing, suddenly saw an illusory blur of light flash before his eyes.

By the time he turned his head, he found nothing at all...

Yet, a blade wound had suddenly appeared on his shoulder!