"Hyuga Kagami... you've gone too far!"
Just then.
Uchiha Lengfeng slowly came to. The moment he woke up, he heard Hyuga Kagami's insulting words!
"What do you mean, 'the time it takes to beat someone'?"
His face twisted with indignation. "I, Uchiha Lengfeng, am a genius of the Uchiha Clan, not a unit of measurement! You bastard!"
A unit of measurement?
That was so damn humiliating!
"It makes no difference. Next time you challenge me, you might not even qualify as a unit of measurement."
Hyuga Kagami waved a hand.
Just kidding.
Not just anyone could be a unit of measurement.
After all, the person widely acknowledged as a unit of measurement in Naruto was Hatake Kakashi, an absolute elite jonin!
Being treated as a unit of measurement was an honor, wasn't it?
Hatake Kakashi: "..."
For some reason.
He felt like Hyuga Kagami's gaze was a little insulting!
"Pfft! Hyuga Kagami... you're vicious!"
Uchiha Lengfeng spat blood, overcome by rage. He fainted again. This was just too damn unfair!
Uchiha Itachi: "..."
It looked like there was no need for him to step in.
"All right."
Hatake Kakashi waved a hand. His dark eyes were bright and alert—not yet faded into lifeless fish eyes—and he was actually kind of handsome.
"Our mission is extremely difficult. I'll explain the details on the way."
The three of them set off at once.
Uchiha Lengfeng's life or death was unknown.
On the way, Hatake Kakashi said, "You're both clan shinobi, so you already know a bit about Anbu. I don't need to explain much, but you'll need to choose codenames."
"This is to keep your personal information from being exposed!"
"For example, my codename is Inu-shi!"
Inu-shi?
Hyuga Kagami's eyes shifted. Inu-shi had something to do with wolves, much like White Fang of Konoha.
In other words... Hatake Kakashi now understood why his father, White Fang of Konoha, had abandoned the mission to save his comrades. He was honoring his father in this way.
"Then I'll go by Night Crow."
Uchiha Itachi thought for a moment before speaking.
He kept crows, and his summoning beast was a crow as well.
Crows could be considered his signature.
Hyuga Kagami rubbed his chin. "Then I'll go by Azure Dragon."
Since he had the Mythical Zoan Fish-Fish Fruit, Azure Dragon Model,
Azure Dragon was the perfect codename for him.
"Night Crow and Azure Dragon, huh?"
Hatake Kakashi pondered. "Those are both good names. I hope you'll both survive and become powerful shinobi!"
"As your squad leader, I'll do everything I can to protect you. So, as members of the same squad, trust one another completely!"
The three of them marched on at full speed!
Kirigakure wasn't close to Konoha.
The journey would take at least half a month, so they couldn't afford to waste time!
Kumogakure.
Unlike Konoha's fertile lands, Kumogakure was surrounded by mountains and had frequent thunderstorms!
Rumble!
Thunder roared through the sky!
There wasn't much rain, but the thunder sounded as though it were exploding right beside them, making one's blood run cold!
"What's going on?"
The lightning illuminated the Fourth Raikage's gloomy face. "It's been a month already. Why haven't the shinobi who went to Konoha returned?"
"They didn't just fail to bring back the Byakugan—the shinobi sent to negotiate an alliance haven't returned either. Could... Konoha have killed them all?"
His voice was like thunder, deep and powerful!
With his dark skin and sharp, intimidating eyes, he radiated such an imposing presence that it felt like facing the Thunder God himself!
"Lord Raikage, we've already received a message sent ahead by Raimei!"
Mabui's expression was calm, her beautiful eyes gleaming with intelligence.
"According to the message, they should have arrived in the village three days ago. But we still haven't heard anything. Perhaps... they really have met with disaster."
The shinobi of Kumogakure might be reckless,
but they never failed to carry out their missions!
The Fourth Raikage's charisma had united Kumogakure, giving it a solidarity other villages didn't have!
This sort of thing shouldn't happen!
"Damn it! You bastards in Konoha!"
The Raikage slammed a palm onto the table in front of him, lightning crackling violently around his body!
He looked like the Thunder God himself!
"You dare kill my men? I'll never forgive you!"
The Raikage's eyes turned cold. "Send Konoha a declaration of war. I want to know what's happened to Aoba Raimei and the others! If Aoba Raimei and the others are dead, then Konoha can perish with them!"
He sneered. "Kumogakure now has me, in the prime of my life."
"And Killer B, who can control the Eight-Tails, and Yugito, who can control the Two-Tails!"
"It's time to let Konoha learn what it's like to face an attack from a village at the height of its power!"
Back then,
he had been twenty-two, not yet at his peak, while Konoha had been at the height of its power!
Namikaze Minato's generation had been Konoha's golden age. Even when several villages attacked Konoha, they couldn't gain an advantage.
But things were different now.
Now... Konoha had fallen into decline!
And Kumogakure... had reached its peak!
Rumble!
Lightning struck!
It illuminated all of Kumogakure, then the village plunged back into darkness the next moment!
Half a month passed in the blink of an eye.
Hyuga Kagami and the others arrived at a riverside dock. Once they crossed the river, they would reach Kirigakure—that was their true destination.
"Kirigakure is currently closed to outsiders. Anyone coming from outside will be questioned!"
Hatake Kakashi's voice was grave. "So we'll have to board a ship carrying supplies and take it to Kirigakure. It's the only way to avoid their inspections!"
Kirigakure was an island nation.
It could close its borders.
But it couldn't go without supplies!
Suddenly, Hyuga Kagami's brows lifted. He glanced casually toward a distant forest. Within it... three hostile, piercing gazes were fixed on them!
"Water Style: Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
Just then,
a sharp voice rang out!
Thick mist filled the air. The dock was close to the sea, so the fog... spread incredibly fast. In just two or three seconds, it covered the entire sky, making it impossible to see even a hand in front of one's face!
"Damn it! They're shinobi from Kirigakure. They've already spotted us!"
Hatake Kakashi's expression changed!
"The shinobi of Kirigakure must have figured out long ago that a cargo ship is the only way to get into their village, so they've been keeping a close eye on every cargo ship!"
"Damn it. I didn't think Kirigakure would be so vigilant!"
Kirigakure specialized in assassination and intelligence.
It was the complete opposite of Kumogakure, which favored brute force.
"Hehehe!"
A cold voice came from within the mist. "You actually thought you could infiltrate Kirigakure? How ridiculous! Our village is the strongest when it comes to assassination and infiltration!"
"So... eight vital points."
"The throat, spine, lungs, liver, carotid artery, subclavian artery, kidneys, heart..."
"Which vital point should I choose?"
The voice in the mist was chilling.
It was as if several venomous gazes... were watching every part of their bodies!
The next moment, they would be dead!
Before you continue