Departure for Konoha

Yajirobe dusted himself off and stood up.

"I have to admit, chakra really is useful."

He drew his katana, coating it in a layer of blue chakra.

Swish~

Swish~

Swish~

The katana flashed, cutting a cube-shaped block of stone from the ground.

Under the katana's carving, it quickly took on a vivid form.

It was a cat, standing upright with a scholarly look in its eyes and a wooden staff in its paw.

Uchiha Feng and Tien both wore strange expressions.

"Korin?"

What kind of strange fetish did Yajirobe have?

As if sensing their stares, Yajirobe cut the statue into tiny chunks of stone, destroying the evidence.

"I just miss the taste of Senzu Beans. Right, it's not that I miss that detestable cat!"

Uchiha Feng and Tien nodded, pretending to understand.

At that moment, Dumpling flew over as well. "Senzu Beans? You ate them for years straight, and you still miss them?"

Dumpling's voice was innocent, but a flush began to spread across Yajirobe's face.

"Meow~ My lords, the intelligence you asked me to monitor has arrived."

Nekota's appearance relieved Yajirobe's embarrassment.

"The Land of Water sure moves slowly! I hope they've made sufficient preparations. Tell me in detail—who did Hidden Mist Village send?"

The rumors he had spread were finally about to take effect. He wanted to see how Konoha, already full of lies, would explain this.

Would Uchiha Obito have to step out and say he had done it?

Nekota reported respectfully, "My lord, aside from the ceremonial minister sent by the Land of Water, their strongest combatant should be elder-level jonin—Ao.

"Konoha has already issued a gold-level wanted notice for him, because one of Ao's eyes possesses the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan.

"The remaining few shinobi are only chunin at best.

"But they all have one thing in common: they are shinobi who survived the Blood Mist Policy."

As Nekota spoke, he presented an intelligence scroll.

Uchiha Feng opened it and compared it with Nekota's report. At the end of the scroll was the Ninja Cat Clan's analysis.

"Hidden Mist Village is putting on a show, hoping to squeeze out a profit!"

That was the ninja cats' final conclusion.

"This is practically a suicide squad. They're only putting on a show? Then let's add some fuel to the fire!"

Uchiha Feng was somewhat disappointed, but then reconsidered.

Hidden Mist Village must have thought things through carefully before sending Ao. The information he had spread was ultimately just a rumor, and among those who truly knew the details was Ao.

Back then, it had been Ao who discovered the Fourth Mizukage's abnormality, and he had also broken Uchiha Obito's Mangekyo Sharingan.

Ao had also clashed with Shisui Uchiha many times. With the Byakugan, he should clearly remember the two chakra signatures, so the rumor itself had flaws.

"Hidden Mist Village is terrified of being poor! Their economy is in terrible shape now, and most villagers make a living by fishing. That's why we concluded they're merely trying to extort a sum of money."

Nekota gave his analysis seriously, then raised his head to look at Uchiha Feng.

"My lord, there is one more piece of news.

"Some Uchiha Clan businesses that were originally seized by the Shimura Clan are being traded away.

"The buyers are major clans in Konoha, including the Ino–Shika–Cho Clan, the Aburame Clan, the Moonlight Clan, the Inuzuka Clan, and others. The Shimura Clan has also begun gathering a large amount of money. They may have already seen through Hidden Mist Village's intentions."

The news made Uchiha Feng laugh in anger.

"Haha, Konoha really has done a fine job! They don't just want our lives—they want our money too. Truly splendid!"

The news activated the Sharingan in Uchiha Feng's eyes. His pupils turned scarlet, two tomoe spinning within the crimson.

"What about the Land of Lightning? No movement?"

Uchiha Feng was somewhat surprised. What were those brutes from the Land of Lightning doing?

"My lord, according to confidential intelligence, someone provoked the jinchuriki, causing the Eight-Tails to go berserk. The Raikage is accompanying the jinchuriki in training, but they are still massing troops at the border between the two countries!"

Nekota answered respectfully. The Nekomata Clan had gone to great lengths to uncover that information.

"Konoha really will stop at nothing!

"No wonder the pursuit force only consisted of those people. The real elite must be carrying out missions in the Land of Lightning!"

Uchiha Feng recalled the pursuit force he had encountered earlier. Though they were elite jonin, they were clearly just a reconnaissance squad.

"My lord, the Ninja Cat Clan has discovered Uchiha Itachi's whereabouts. After clashing with Orochimaru somewhere in the Land of Rain, he appeared within the Land of Fire. He will very likely appear in Konoha this time."

Nekota did his best to show his worth. This was also information Uchiha Feng had wanted to know.

"Good. Very good!"

Uchiha Feng offered two restrained words of praise in succession. His decision back then had indeed been correct.

The Ninja Cat Clan's intelligence network spanned the entire shinobi world.

Now, he could not help but admire the Great Elder's foresight.

"Thank you for your praise, my lord." Nekota's signature smile appeared on his face, and the exhaustion vanished.

During this period, in order to complete the tasks Uchiha Feng had assigned him, he had personally taken charge and coordinated all the resources the Ninja Cat Clan could use. Only then had they been able to gather such complete intelligence.

"Where are the things I asked for?" Uchiha Feng allowed his subordinate a little pride as well.

"My lord, these are identification documents for the four of you. You are all nobles of the Land of Iron."

Nekota hurriedly handed over a package respectfully.

"Prepare to depart!" Uchiha Feng glanced at his team, already impatient to go to Konoha and watch one grand spectacle after another.

Uchiha Feng, Dumpling, and Tien had already risen into the air, ready to fly away at any moment.

"Wait for me!"

Yajirobe's body began jerking upward in bursts, but he still could not use the Flying Technique!

"Tien, help him!"

Uchiha Feng truly could not bear to watch anymore. Yajirobe still had no way to master the Flying Technique.

Tien walked over to a tree, broke it with one palm strike, then shook off all its branches and leaves, leaving only a bare trunk.

Tien said, "Hold on tight!"

Yajirobe obediently hugged the trunk.

Tien threw it with all his strength.

"I'll definitely learn the Flying Technique next time!"

Whoosh~

Leaving behind a miserable howl, Yajirobe flew away together with the tree trunk.

The three of them also shot into the sky and vanished.

Konoha.

The streets had been cleared.

Under the protection of Konoha ANBU shinobi, the Hidden Mist Village delegation checked into an inn.

The Konoha residents sealed off outside the perimeter went about their business as usual. They had experienced such blockades many times before.

The last time had been a few years ago, when they received a delegation from the Land of Lightning.

The Land of Water's noble in charge of ceremony walked at the front.

Behind him was Hidden Mist Village's elder-level jonin—Ao.

Ao wore Hidden Mist Village shinobi battle attire. His long hair was grayish blue. His left eye was normal, while the Byakugan in his right eye was covered by a black eyepatch. Sealing talismans protecting the Byakugan hung between his ears.

Waves of malicious intent came at Ao from all around.

Ao was utterly fearless as he activated the Byakugan.

His right eye looked through the black eyepatch and found the source of the hostility.

"The Hyuga Clan? What a bunch of trash!"

He spotted Hyuga Clan shinobi on the second floor of a shop.

The surrounding Hidden Mist Village shinobi noticed Ao's abnormality and quickly gathered around him, drawing all kinds of ninja tools.

They assumed stances ready for battle at any moment.

The Land of Water's ceremonial minister also began to grow nervous.

"Relax. They're just a bunch of trash. There's no need to be so nervous!"

Ao looked at the shinobi beside him, feeling both gratified and worried for them. This mission was inherently dangerous, and they had already prepared themselves to die at any time.

"What kind of clan could hand over its own clan head? They can't be worth much!"

Ao offered reassurance, his tone full of contempt.