Death of the Third Raikage! (Happy New Year's Day, everyone!)

September 15, Konoha Year 43.

After more than a week of rest, Asuma and the other two finally received another mission: travel to Kannabi Bridge on the border between the Land of Grass and the Land of Earth to exchange intelligence with the Iwa Ninja.

Asuma had been stunned for quite a while when he received the mission.

That location was far too sensitive for him.

Fortunately, they were not going there to destroy the bridge.

After packing up and bringing the intelligence scrolls, Asuma and the other two left the village at ten in the morning and headed west.

"Asuma, someone is following us."

After they had traveled some distance from the village, Yūhi Kurenai warned him.

"Ignore them!"

Asuma said.

He had noticed them long ago.

They were probably Anbu ninja.

The intelligence in his hands might not even be real.

One team in the open and another in the shadows—nothing unusual about that.

They only stopped for half an hour at noon before Asuma and the other two continued on their way.

They rested that night within the Land of Grass.

At three in the afternoon on September 16, Asuma and the other two arrived at Kannabi Bridge.

Immediately afterward, three Iwa Ninja appeared on the other side of the bridge.

"Kurenai, Shizune, you'll cover me!"

Asuma said.

Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune nodded together, ready at any moment.

Asuma walked onto the bridge alone.

One of the Iwa Ninja stepped forward from the other side as well.

The two met in the middle of the bridge, handing the intelligence scrolls to each other at the same time.

After opening the scroll and glancing through it, Asuma nodded. "No problems!"

"No problems on my end either!"

The Iwa Ninja said.

The two immediately retreated at the same time.

After regrouping with Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune, Asuma gave the order. "Withdraw!"

The intelligence exchange had gone smoothly without any mishaps, and Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune both relaxed slightly.

"Asuma, what do you think the intelligence we exchanged with the Iwa Ninja was about?"

Yūhi Kurenai asked curiously.

Shizune guessed, "Could it have been intelligence about the Sand Ninja?"

"Probably not."

Yūhi Kurenai shook her head. "The Sand Ninja are at a disadvantage right now. Helping the Iwa Ninja wouldn't benefit us."

"We'll find out after a while."

Asuma said with a smile.

However, he had his own suspicions.

The intelligence they had delivered this time was most likely related to the Cloud Ninja.

On September 17, Asuma and the other two returned to Konoha and completed their mission.

However, less than a day after resting, the three were sent on another mission.

This time, they headed north to the northern border, where they were to guard against the Cloud Ninja and conduct patrols.

They stayed there for an entire month.

Then, after resting for less than a week, Asuma and the other two were dispatched to the southeastern border.

This time, they were guarding against the Mist Ninja.

That assignment lasted a month as well.

And so, Asuma traveled all over the place.

At times, he patrolled the borders; at others, he entered the fringes of the Iwa Ninja, Sand Ninja, and Mist Battlefield to gather intelligence.

Before he knew it, time had reached February of Konoha Year 44.

The world was clad in silver.

Asuma and the other two had just returned from a mission when they heard shocking news.

The Third Raikage had led Kumogakure's elite into the Land of Earth, only to be surrounded by the Iwa Ninja.

In order to let his subordinates retreat, the Third Raikage had faced over ten thousand Iwa Ninja alone. In the end, he died in battle.

"Fighting more than ten thousand ninja alone? That's incredible!"

Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune were both stunned by the news.

It was simply too explosive.

And this was the first Kage to die in battle since the war began!

"More than ten thousand ninja may be an exaggeration, but there must have been several thousand."

Asuma sighed. "The Third Raikage was the shinobi world's most proficient user of Lightning Style. He was also known as the Strongest Spear and the Strongest Shield."

"On top of that, Lightning Style naturally counters Earth Style to some extent."

"Without enough numbers, they truly couldn't have stopped the Third Raikage."

At that moment, Yūhi Kurenai recalled the intelligence they had delivered to the Iwa Ninja last year and hesitated to speak.

Asuma shook his head.

He was already certain that the Third Raikage's encirclement and death was most likely connected to that intelligence.

Tricking Kumogakure would bring great benefits to Konoha.

The Cloud Ninja had been eager to make a move before. Now that their strength had been weakened, even if war broke out later, Konoha would be under far less pressure.

So I had a hand in the Third Raikage's death too!

Pushing those thoughts aside, Asuma invited Kurenai and Shizune to soak in the hot springs.

Yūhi Kurenai agreed without even thinking, while Shizune said, "How about inviting Lady Tsunade too?"

"Lady Tsunade has liked staying home to do research lately."

Asuma nodded upon hearing that. "Then, Shizune, go invite Sister Tsunade. I'll go call Sister Kushina. We'll meet in the Hot Spring District."

"Okay!"

The three immediately split up.

However, when Asuma arrived at Uzumaki Kushina's house, he found Namikaze Minato there as well.

Naturally, he invited Namikaze Minato too.

Namikaze Minato then called Kakashi and the others over.

By the time they arrived at the Hot Spring District, their numbers had swelled considerably.

On the women's side were Yūhi Kurenai, Tsunade, Shizune, Uzumaki Kushina, and Rin.

On the men's side were Asuma, Namikaze Minato, Kakashi, and Uchiha Obito.

They booked two bathhouses separated by only a wooden wall, and they could even hear Yūhi Kurenai and the others laughing next door.

As they soaked comfortably in the pool, Asuma asked Namikaze Minato, "Big Brother Minato, is Jiraiya still in the village?"

"He should be. He only returned to the village three days ago."

Namikaze Minato asked, "Why? Do you need something from Jiraiya-sensei?"

"No."

Asuma shook his head and smiled. "I was just thinking that if he happened to be here too, there'd be quite a show."

Namikaze Minato immediately showed an awkward smile.

He knew his teacher's particular little habits better than anyone.

Meanwhile, Uchiha Obito could not help asking curiously, "Asuma, why do you say that?"

Asuma glanced at Uchiha Obito and smiled. "Classified!"

"Tch!"

Uchiha Obito curled his lip.

Asuma turned to Kakashi. "Kakashi, how's your Lightning Style coming along?"

"I've improved it quite a bit, but doing what you described—covering my entire body without reducing its lethality—is still difficult."

Kakashi said.

Namikaze Minato smiled and praised him. "Kakashi's Lightning Style Sword Technique has already inherited Senior Sakumo's true teachings."

Kakashi shook his head. "I'm still far behind my father."

Hatake Sakumo's swordsmanship emphasized speed and ferocity. Otherwise, he would never have earned the title White Fang.

His speed also relied on Lightning Style activating his own cells.

At the same time, the reason his swordsmanship could pierce through anything was the added power of Lightning Chakra.

"Kakashi, you're only ten years old. In another ten years, you won't be inferior to Senior Sakumo."

Namikaze Minato said.

He had always highly praised Kakashi's talent. It was no less impressive than his own.

Uchiha Obito could not help feeling jealous and muttered, "Once I awaken my Sharingan, I'll surpass Kakashi in an instant!"

Namikaze Minato spoke up upon hearing that. "Obito, although the Uchiha Clan built its reputation on the Sharingan, true powerhouses remain powerhouses even without it."

"Senior Fugaku of your Uchiha Clan is incredibly strong even without using the Sharingan."

Uchiha Obito was rather unconvinced and turned his head away.

Asuma saw it and was just about to speak when a loud boom suddenly came from next door.

Two furious roars immediately followed.

"Jiraiya, you bastard!"

"Die!"

Asuma's eyes lit up. Jiraiya really was nearby gathering material, though he had not expected Tsunade to be here as well.

As one of the Sannin, Tsunade knew Jiraiya all too well. Knowing he was in Konoha, she figured he would certainly not stay away from places like the Hot Spring House. Having suffered once before, she naturally remained vigilant. With a slight sweep of her senses, she discovered Jiraiya gathering material two rooms over. Her anger instantly flared, and her fists cracked loudly.

Asuma had also been keeping watch on the surroundings. After all, his Kurenai was next door, so he naturally could not allow anyone to peep on her.

Now that he saw Tsunade had caught Jiraiya, he hurriedly got dressed to go watch the show.

Namikaze Minato did not know whether to laugh or cry.

Kakashi and Uchiha Obito, meanwhile, exchanged bewildered looks.