Konoha Ninja

Miao slowly walked toward where the caravan had assembled. At this moment, everyone noticed Miao approaching. "Who is that...?" a Konoha Chunin asked curiously as he looked at Miao. He was not worried that it was an enemy attack; after all, they were still inside the town. Even if someone intended to attack them, they would wait until they had left town. No one would do something so foolish.

"You must be the renowned Mr. Wu. My name is Matsumoto Akira, and I am the person in charge of this caravan," the refined middle-aged man said politely as he immediately stepped forward upon seeing Wu.

Naturally, he knew what Wu looked like. The black kimono and the rare, bizarre mask on his face made him seem exceedingly mysterious, and they were also his most distinctive features. His reputation for a one-hundred-percent mission completion rate was thunderous throughout the Underground Bounty World.

That was precisely why this merchant had specifically hired Wu. Although his bounty was considerably higher than that of other Bounty Hunter Ninjas, it was worth it for greater security and because the merchant trusted his own judgment.

"Wu? I think I've heard of him," Kurenai Yuhi said softly as she watched Wu approach. "Yeah, he's a Bounty Hunter who has been active at the Underground Bounty Office these past few years. They say he has a one-hundred-percent mission completion rate and a very impressive reputation. Because of him, Konoha's commissions have been affected as well," another Chunin said with an unhappy expression.

Those in the same trade were always rivals; that was true everywhere. Because of Wu's exceptionally high mission completion rate and excellent reputation, coupled with the fact that Bounty Hunter Ninjas cost far less than Ninja from official villages, many merchants and even nobles chose to hire Wu instead of Ninja from official villages. As a result, the business of many Ninja Villages, including Konoha, had suffered considerably.

Thus, many Ninja Villages, including the Five Great Shinobi Villages, knew that there was someone named Wu among the Bounty Hunter Ninjas. Yet they had no concrete intelligence on him. His name, age, and preferred Ninjutsu were all complete blanks, because everyone who had fought Miao had been silenced by him. Not even the slightest bit of information about Miao had leaked out.

Because of this, Wu had secretly been listed as a key observation target by the major Ninja Villages. After all, this guy was practically stealing their livelihood.

"Wu? What a name utterly devoid of youthful spirit," Might Guy said as he stroked his chin and looked at Wu strangely, apparently baffled as to why this person did not fit his values. Fine, there was no saving this beast anymore.

Since Wu wore a mask, no one could see his expression. The strange white mask, bearing a faintly smiling expression, gave off an indescribable sense of mystery. Ignoring the gazes of the Konoha Ninja, he slowly walked up to Matsumoto Akira. A clear voice came from beneath the mask. "I am Wu. You are the client for this mission, correct?"

"Yes, I am the person in charge of this caravan. A few days ago, I posted a commission to hire you at the Underground Bounty Office," Matsumoto Akira said somewhat stiffly. After all, Ninja held very high status in this world.

"This is the mission confirmation form. Please verify it," Wu said calmly. As he spoke, he pulled the commission confirmation form given to Miao by the Underground Bounty Office from his clothes and handed it to Matsumoto Akira. This form was meant to allow those who posted missions to verify that the person they had hired was genuine. If someone impersonated another, it would be a tremendous loss for both the Underground Bounty Office and the client, and the Bounty Office's credibility would take a severe hit. Therefore, the client's confirmation was required before a commission could be carried out.

Once the mission was complete, the client would sign the confirmation form, signifying that the mission had been completed. Wu would then take the form to the Underground Bounty Office to collect the mission bounty.

Matsumoto Akira took the confirmation form and examined it carefully. He then nodded, indicating that he had confirmed Wu's identity. Turning to the Konoha Ninja and guards behind him, he said, "Now that everyone is here, let us set out. I'll be relying on you, esteemed Ninja."

Everyone answered loudly. Might Guy even raised a thumbs-up, his gleaming white teeth shining with dazzling brilliance as he shouted, "Mr. Matsumoto, don't worry! Leave everything to me, Konoha's Blue Beast! No matter what mission it is, I will complete it perfectly! This is youth!!!"

Seeing Might Guy like this, Matsumoto Akira and several guards responded with awkward laughs. However, the black lines on the backs of their heads and their twitching eyes revealed their inner unease. Can this guy really be relied upon?

The Konoha group also wore helpless expressions. Kurenai Yuhi even covered her forehead. It seemed they had long grown accustomed to Might Guy's antics, leaving them with nothing but resignation.

Miao, on the other hand, remained perfectly calm and showed no reaction. The strange white mask concealed his face, preventing anyone from seeing his expression.

Thus, the team was ready to depart. Mr. Matsumoto settled into his carriage, since he was merely one of the Ordinary People.

Two guards rode beside the carriage Matsumoto was riding in, while the remaining guards stationed themselves beside the other carriages carrying goods.

Might Guy, the hot-blooded Ninja, was responsible for taking the lead, traveling at the very front of the caravan. If enemies attacked from the front, he would be the first to block them.

Kurenai Yuhi and the other three Chunin split into two groups to guard both sides of the entire convoy, while Miao remained at the rear, responsible for Covering the Retreat and guarding against any possible attack from behind.

With everyone protecting the caravan in a diamond formation, they completed the border-crossing procedures and set off from Konoha's border town toward the Land of Lightning.