The Unexpected Turn

"Captain, are we still not making a move? If we wait any longer, that guy's going to leave the Land of Wind."

The standard formation was the same: a four-man team. Four Sunagakure shinobi, all wearing Forehead Protectors and Shinobi Flak Jackets, followed close behind the oblivious ninja at a distance.

However, unlike Yuhi Shinku's standard rookie squad, where veterans led new recruits, this team of Sunagakure shinobi was clearly an elite unit from the village.

One Elite Jonin and three Chunin with plenty of mission experience.

Even during the Shinobi World War, a team like this would have been an undeniable force on any battlefield—unless they were up against some freakishly powerful opponent.

Now, an elite team was tailing an ordinary Chunin. No matter how you looked at it, the situation seemed strange.

The only explanation was that they were playing the long game, hoping to catch a bigger fish.

That was the only reason a team of elite shinobi would show such patience.

"If I remember right, Dahu City is just up ahead. Beyond it lies the Land of Rivers. If no one comes to meet him in Dahu City, then it's even less likely anyone will show up in the Land of Rivers.

"Let's wait a little longer. Once we reach Dahu City, if no one's come to meet him, we'll capture him and interrogate him." The Elite Jonin in charge settled the matter, quelling the impatience of his three Chunin subordinates.

"Let's hope we get something out of this guy. Otherwise, we'll have wasted all this time just to catch some nobody. It'll be hard to explain when we get back."

This elite shinobi squad had been sent out by Sunagakure to take up a post near the border with the Land of Fire, where they would wait for the war that could break out at any moment.

Who could have guessed that, halfway there, they would run into a spy who had escaped from Sunagakure and was trying to deliver information back to Konoha?

As it happened, the man had brought this on himself. He'd already received word that his undercover assignment was over and that he could return home. But, by sheer coincidence, he had uncovered shocking information.

The Third Kazekage had mysteriously disappeared from Sunagakure.

That explained why Sunagakure had been so active lately, and why its behavior had been so unusual.

On top of that, rumors had spread from within Sunagakure that the village had been placed under a total lockdown. No one knew whether they were true, but the spy couldn't sit still any longer.

The excitement of nearing the end of his long-term infiltration mission, the shock and elation of discovering a major secret, and the rumors—true or not—all came together and drove him to abandon his original plan to leave the village. Instead, he chose a far riskier way out.

But who could have imagined that a spy who'd managed to slip out despite Sunagakure's tight patrols would run into an elite Sunagakure squad on the road?

The Kazekage had just gone missing, and tensions among Sunagakure's shinobi were at a breaking point. Any squad sent out on a mission would naturally be suspicious of a lone ninja who seemed anxious and had a clear destination in mind.

After tailing him, the elite Sunagakure shinobi were certain he was a spy from another village.

And so, the elite Sunagakure shinobi had just stumbled upon a windfall.

The squad was highly skilled and bold, and they wanted to follow the trail to catch a bigger fish. They hoped they could also capture whoever was coming to meet the man and interrogate them.

By now, there was little doubt about the spy's identity: he was the very target Yuhi Shinku's squad had come to meet.

But who could have guessed that this spy would bring such a huge problem along with him?

Kawaki Aoba: I hadn't expected it either, but my Observation Haki had clearly picked up the movements of both groups.

In the dead of night, Kawaki Aoba's Observation Haki had already detected the two groups of shinobi, one following the other, before they reached Dahu City.

This wasn't some coincidence brought about by luck. Ever since he'd gained mastery of Observation Haki, Kawaki Aoba had developed a habit.

Every so often, as long as he was awake, he would use Observation Haki to scan the area within a few dozen kilometers and check for danger.

That was why detecting the spy, who had arrived earlier than expected, and the Sunagakure shinobi following close behind him had been inevitable.

Running into such an unexpected situation on his first mission in the Land of Wind immediately put Kawaki Aoba on alert. After waking Sarutobi Asuma and explaining the situation, the two of them didn't waste time worrying about whether they might be exposed. They went straight to Yuhi Shinku.

"Teacher Shinku, I was using Sensory Ninjutsu just now when I sensed some shinobi moving quickly toward Dahu City. They may be the target we're supposed to meet on this mission. There's also a squad of elite Sunagakure shinobi following behind him."

As soon as he saw Yuhi Shinku, Kawaki Aoba poured out everything he'd sensed, telling Yuhi Shinku every detail.

Yuhi Shinku proved himself a veteran Jonin. Once he received the information, he didn't bother wondering whether the other party was their target. Instead, he prepared for the worst-case scenario—that their team had already been exposed—and quickly settled on the best response.

Shadow Clone Technique!

Yuhi Shinku swiftly formed Hand Seals and created a Shadow Clone to take his place.

"Kurenai, Asuma, Aoba, my clone will take my place in a moment. If the other party really is our target, my clone will draw his attention while my real body takes the chance to launch a surprise attack. If I manage to kill or seriously injure the Jonin leading their team, you can take the chance to attack the other three Sunagakure shinobi. We'll try to take them all down together.

"But if I fail..."

Yuhi Shinku paused briefly, then continued. "If the surprise attack fails and I can't beat their Jonin, there'll be no point in adding the three of you to the fight. So if it comes to that, run. Get out of the Land of Wind as fast as you can. As your teacher, I'll buy you time."

Then Yuhi Shinku turned to Kawaki Aoba and asked again, "Aoba, are you sure they're an elite squad?"

"Absolutely!" Kawaki Aoba replied without hesitation. He had complete faith in his maxed-out Observation Haki.

"Good. Then our team will split up. Aoba, you'll take the lead among the three of you. You're allowed to act on your own judgment and adapt to the situation.

"Oh, right, Aoba. How far away are they?"

"About seven kilometers."

Yuhi Shinku: ???

Seven kilometers? Wasn't that an absurdly long range?

Even the Byakugan of the Hyuga Clan couldn't possibly reach that far.

For a moment, Yuhi Shinku almost thought his most outstanding student was playing a trick on him.