Ōnoki Comes to the Land of Rain

Cold rain struck Fugaku's body, leaving him more alert than ever. Konoha Camp was not far from Iwagakure Camp.

After running hard for an hour, he slowed down. He had entered Iwagakure's scouting range.

Fugaku found an inconspicuous rock, stopped behind it, and slowly sat down cross-legged.

The rock sheltered his head, keeping the rain from falling directly on him.

Night gradually fell. Iwagakure Camp was brightly lit. Wisps of black mist drifted across Fugaku's body as he rose and headed inside.

Patrol Ninja crisscrossed Iwagakure Camp. Security was exceptionally tight.

Fugaku slipped into the camp. Rather than rush to eavesdrop on Zebon and Furukawa, he made a circuit of the entire camp, then headed straight for the intelligence section.

It held all the intelligence Iwagakure had gathered since entering the Land of Rain, which was more valuable than overhearing the camp leaders' conversations.

The intelligence section was heavily guarded. As Fugaku approached a tent, he caught the distinct smell of many birds gathered together.

A large number of Message Hawks were probably kept there, allowing the camp to stay in contact with Iwagakure.

Beyond the tent housing the hawks stood a huge, long tent, brightly lit inside. One or two Ninja occasionally came and went.

Through a gap nearby, Fugaku could see a great many scrolls of collected intelligence inside.

The moment a Stone shinobi entered, Fugaku slipped in behind him.

Eight Ninja were busy inside the tent. As the night deepened, fewer people came to submit or look up intelligence.

Four of the eight intelligence staff left the tent one after another to rest.

Rows of shelves lined both sides of the tent, laden with papers and scrolls.

Fugaku quietly approached a shelf. At the front was intelligence on several Konoha Camp leaders, including Orochimaru and Jiraiya.

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