Thunk!
A jet-black Kunai slammed into a moldy parchment map.
Venom Fang's thick finger jabbed at the spot pinned beneath it—the Land of Fire border, Kikyo Valley.
"Owl, listen carefully." Venom Fang looked down at Baishi, mockery filling his lone eye. "You'll go in as the vanguard, entering the canyon three hours ahead of us. If you encounter Iwagakure spies, you are not to retreat. Hold them there until the main squad arrives. Understood?"
A few faint snickers sounded around the hall.
The slight ANBU operative codenamed Wildcat leaned against a support pillar, toying with the Senbon in his hand. Another operative, a woman codenamed Viper, kept her head down as she wiped her Ninja Blade, not even glancing at Baishi.
Three kilometers.
In a border forest with poor visibility and difficult terrain, three kilometers was the gulf between life and death for an ordinary Genin. By the time the main squad took its time getting there, the vanguard's corpse would be cold.
Baishi lowered his head. His eyes were perfectly calm beneath his Mask, but he obligingly let his body tremble.
"Captain..." He deliberately made his voice sound dry and strained. "Three kilometers is too far. The canyon's terrain is enclosed. If there are too many Iwagakure ninja, I'm afraid... I'm afraid I won't last until you arrive, and I'll jeopardize the village's mission."
Bang!
Venom Fang didn't waste a word. He kicked Baishi square in the chest.
His boot struck flesh with a dull thud.
The instant Venom Fang's leg came up, Baishi subtly drew the muscles of his chest inward half an inch, shedding most of the force. He let himself fly backward like a rag doll, slammed into the wall, and slid to the floor.
"Cough, cough..." Clutching his chest, he broke into violent coughs. A convincing trickle of blood seeped between his fingers.
"Worthless trash!" Venom Fang stepped forward and planted a foot on Baishi's shoulder, grinding down slightly. "You think you're qualified to question the Hokage's orders? For Konoha's peace, if I tell you to throw yourself into Iwagakure's Earth Release, you'll jump in with a smile! That's the Will of Fire!"
"I... I was wrong..." Baishi lay sprawled on the cold, damp Stone Slab, his voice weak.
The ANBU operatives watching shook their heads.
Viper sneered. "Looking at him, I have no idea how he survived the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki yesterday. Lucky bastard. Too bad his luck's run out."
They looked at Baishi as though he were already dead.
But none of them knew that beneath the Mask, the man under Venom Fang's boot wore a vicious smile.
His right palm lay flat against the floor.
The heightened cellular activity from Max-Level Lightning Release had sharpened his senses to a terrifying degree. Faint bioelectric currents spread through the stone floor, letting him read the Chakra signatures of all four people in the hall.
Venom Fang: earth affinity, Chakra reserves at the bottom of the Jonin range, heavy on his feet, favored his right leg.
Wildcat: wind affinity, cold Chakra, an unusually slow breathing rate. A fragile but skilled assassin.
Viper: water affinity, steady Chakra, poison on her blade.
And the sensory ninja who had stayed silent in the corner.
Four of them.
Baishi rapidly built tactical models of all four in his mind, then coldly sentenced them to death.
He understood the real purpose of this mission all too well.
Venom Fang and his people weren't going to eliminate Iwagakure spies. Their true secret order was to drive him, the "bait," into Kikyo Valley and draw out Iwagakure's elite forces.
Once Iwagakure concentrated its fire on him and tore him to pieces, Namikaze Minato's squad, hidden on the flank, would descend like saviors, finish the fight, and seize the intelligence.
As for Venom Fang's squad, all they had to do afterward was file a report saying "ANBU Genin Owl died heroically covering the main force." Then they could take credit for his death at the Hokage Building.
Minato would be rid of a romantic rival, Danzo would erase an unpredictable variable, and the Third Hokage would get his intelligence.
Everyone won.
What a perfect script, Baishi thought with a cold smile. Too bad you overlooked one thing.
The roles of hunter and prey had completely reversed last night.
"Get up!" Venom Fang lifted his foot and scraped his sole against the floor in disgust. "You have half an hour to prepare. Meet at the gate at eight thirty. If you're even one minute late, I'll kill you on the spot for desertion."
"Yes..." Baishi staggered to his feet and limped out of the assembly hall with his head bowed.
The moment he left the hall, his hunched back straightened and his stride steadied.
Half an hour.
That was enough.
Baishi didn't return to the dormitory. He took a winding route into a dim alley on the outskirts of Konoha.
At the end of the alley stood a shabby ninja-tool shop without even a sign. It was an offshoot of the Underground Black Market, selling contraband restricted through official channels. Cash only, no questions asked.
He pushed open the heavy wooden door, and the sharp smell of nitric acid and moldy leather hit him.
Behind the counter, a one-eyed old man was smoking a pipe.
Baishi walked up and slammed a heavy money pouch onto the counter without a word.
Clink.
The pouch spilled open. It held every coin the previous owner of this body had saved over three years of deadly, thankless ANBU work—even the pitiful compensation Konoha had paid when his parents died in battle.
A full three hundred thousand ryo.
The old man's clouded eye brightened slightly. He exhaled a puff of smoke. "What do you need? Kunai? Or Chakra-Conductive Metal?"
"I don't need that scrap." Baishi's hoarse voice was hard and unyielding. "Trade it all for High-Explosive Tags. And give me three Soldier Pills and two Flashbangs."
The old man's hand paused on his pipe. He gave Baishi a surprised look.
Three hundred thousand ryo worth of Explosive Tags? This wasn't a routine mission. The kid was going to take someone down with him!
And Soldier Pills were forbidden drugs that drained a person's vitality to force out more Chakra. One pill could leave someone bedridden for half a month, and this kid wanted three?
"Kid, aren't you afraid that many Explosive Tags will blow you to dust?" The old man grinned, showing yellowed teeth.
"Don't worry about me," Baishi replied coldly. "Get the goods."
He knew all too well how combat worked in the ninja world.
No matter how flashy a ninjutsu was or how formidable a taijutsu fighter was, none of it meant much against enough explosives. Explosive Tags dealt pure physical damage, making them the best weapon for a low-ranking ninja to kill someone far above his level.
Although he now had the Chakra nature transformation of Max-Level Lightning Release, his total Chakra reserves remained a weakness. He had to spend every bit where it counted, using the least Chakra to inflict the most damage.
Before long, the old man pushed over a thick stack of Special Explosive Tags and several small paper packets.
Baishi carefully checked the tags' Sealing Formulas. Once he confirmed they were dry and hadn't been tampered with, he deftly distributed them among hidden pockets on either thigh, behind his waist, and inside his coat.
Each position had been chosen so he could draw a tag one-handed by the shortest route, whatever position his body was in.
Finally, he tucked the three pungent Soldier Pills close to his body and left the shop.
The thick morning fog gradually dispersed. Sunlight struggled through the clouds and fell across Konoha's streets.
Baishi walked against the flow of people toward Konoha's main gate.
He touched his bulging Ninja Tool Pouch, feeling its rough texture beneath his fingertips. His fear of death had been completely suppressed by cold reason and the will to kill.
Minato, if you want me dead, don't blame me for tearing your script to pieces.
Eight twenty-five.
Baishi arrived at Konoha's main gate on time.
The other four members of Venom Fang Squad were already waiting. Seeing Baishi walk up alive, Venom Fang gave a contemptuous snort.
"At least you know what's good for you." Venom Fang signaled with his hand. "Move out. Owl, take point."
Baishi said nothing. In a flash, he became a blur that swept through the gate and vanished into the forest ahead.
Venom Fang and the others followed close behind.
The five raced through the dense canopy. Wind whistled past their ears, and leaves rustled around them.
Baishi ran at the front, seemingly unwary. In truth, he channeled a faint trace of Lightning Release Chakra into the meridians of his feet. It greatly boosted his speed while letting him track every movement of the four behind him.
About five kilometers from Konoha's gate, Baishi's pupils suddenly contracted.
Something's wrong!
He slowed his breathing slightly and extended his Lightning Release sensing range behind him.
Venom Fang, Viper, the sensory ninja...
One was missing!
The slight ANBU operative codenamed Wildcat had slipped out of formation at some point and quietly fallen back. Worse, the instant he left the squad, his Chakra signature changed in a deeply unnatural way.
His wind-affinity Chakra had transformed in an instant into cold, viscous Yin Release Chakra!
That feeling... Baishi knew it all too well.
It felt exactly like the Root assassin who had slipped into his dormitory last night and tried to strangle him with Black Curse Binding!
Baishi's face darkened beneath his Mask.
Wildcat wasn't ANBU. He was a Root plant!
That old snake Danzo wasn't content to arrange Baishi's death at the front line. He had planted a backup in Venom Fang Squad as well!
But it wasn't Wildcat's identity that chilled Baishi to the bone.
It was the direction Wildcat had taken after leaving the squad.
He wasn't circling around to attack Baishi, nor was he following Venom Fang. He was moving stealthily toward the high ground on the flank.
That direction... was where Namikaze Minato's squad was supposed to be hiding!
Baishi's heart lurched. An insight flashed through his mind like lightning, and a wild thought shattered everything he had believed.
Danzo hadn't sent Wildcat to kill Baishi, a mere expendable pawn!
Danzo's real target was... Namikaze Minato?!
Baishi's fingers closed sharply around an Explosive Tag. He was about to change course and intercept Wildcat by force.