A Target Appears Out of Nowhere

Obito took the Scroll and studied it carefully.

Inosuke had refined features but a powerful build.

He had a violent temper and was skilled with a pair of swords.

His Taijutsu rivaled a Jonin's, though his Ninjutsu was average and Genjutsu was his weak point.

After memorizing a few distinguishing features, Obito passed the Scroll to Rin beside him.

Rin read it, then handed it to Kakashi.

Once Kakashi had finished, he destroyed the Scroll with the Fireball Technique.

He glanced at the puzzled Rin and Obito beside him.

Kakashi explained.

"Destroying the Scroll after memorizing the mission details is basic common sense for a ninja."

That was true, but...

Guy's face suddenly popped into Obito's mind.

If it were Guy, the mission would probably grind to a halt without the mission Scroll.

Guy: Who was I supposed to assassinate again?

Uchiha Kisame? Dried Persimmon Madara?

...What was I supposed to do again?

Hahaha, that's hilarious just to imagine!

The four of them leaped through the Forest with their hands behind their backs.

When they got hungry, they popped a ration pill. When they got thirsty... they stayed thirsty. It saved them a trip to the bathroom.

They ran for what felt like ages before finally nearing the Black Market.

The moment Minato announced that they had arrived,

all three youngsters breathed a sigh of relief.

Obito looked this way and that, staring at the supposed Black Market for ages without spotting anything unusual.

"Looks like an ordinary village to me..." Obito muttered.

If they hadn't known something was hidden inside,

no one would have connected this sparsely populated village with an illegal market.

"Take off your Forehead Protectors, everyone. Once we enter the Black Market, keep your identities hidden," Minato instructed.

The three removed their Forehead Protectors and carefully tucked them into their clothes.

"Transformation Technique!"

Minato transformed into a broad, burly man with a fierce-looking face.

Obito and the others used the Transformation Technique too,

disguising themselves with different appearances.

It was worth noting

that when using the Transformation Technique,

you had to base your disguise on a person or thing you knew well, or one that wasn't too different from yourself.

Otherwise, someone with a keen eye could spot the trick at a glance.

Of course,

if you had a protagonist's plot armor, forget I said anything.

Right, Naruto?

The four strode boldly into the Black Market.

Several guards dressed as villagers glanced at them from the entrance but did not stop them.

The four looked like hardened customers, not ordinary people who had wandered in by mistake.

Once inside the Black Market,

Minato said quietly,

"You three are free to look around and gather information. I'll go speak with the person in charge here."

Fighting was forbidden in the Black Market, and his students were no pushovers.

He did not need to worry about their safety.

The three nodded in agreement.

"Got it, Minato-sensei."

All three knew

that Minato-sensei had brought them mainly to give them some experience.

He wasn't truly counting on them to uncover any crucial information.

Completing the mission would still depend on Minato-sensei.

After Minato left,

the three wandered aimlessly along the street.

Obito asked, "Kakashi, what should we do next?"

Kakashi thought for a moment before answering.

"Let's try striking up conversations with a few people and see if we can get anything useful."

"But don't be too obvious with your questions. The Black Market has ties everywhere, and we don't want to tip anyone off."

Obito and Rin nodded along.

Rin praised him sincerely.

"You know so much, Kakashi."

Obito rolled his eyes so hard they nearly disappeared into his head.

"(ˉ▽￣~) Pfft~~!"

Just then, they spotted a burly man loitering up ahead and went over to him.

"You look like a formidable fighter, sir. Which Ninja Village do you serve?" Obito asked with a flattering smile.

The middle-aged man did not answer directly. He smiled at the three of them and asked,

"And where might you three gentlemen be from?"

The three exchanged glances.

Obito replied with complete sincerity.

"We're ninja from Iwagakure. How about you, buddy?"

The middle-aged man nodded as if it all made sense, then smiled again.

"So you're ninja from Iwagakure. I'm from Konoha."

The three of them: "..."

Damn it!

Who the hell are you trying to fool?

"Would you three like some Explosive Tags?"

The middle-aged man pulled open his clothes, revealing Explosive Tags plastered all over the inside.

"These are premium goods made in Konoha. I like the look of you three, so I'll give you a discount!"

The three turned and walked away.

The middle-aged man called after them.

"Don't go, brothers! At least haggle with me!"

The three made a circuit of the modest-sized Black Market.

They had found next to nothing.

"Ugh, gathering information is hard!" Obito complained.

If only my Sharingan had three Tomoe.

One look around and I'd know everything.

Rin nodded in wholehearted agreement, then looked at Kakashi expectantly.

"Kakashi, do you have any good ideas?"

Kakashi shook his head. He was at a loss too.

"Hm?"

Someone in the distance suddenly caught his eye.

After watching the person for a while, he said quietly to the other two,

"Look at that guy to the west. Doesn't he look like our target?"

Obito and Rin stole a couple of glances but saw nothing.

"His face and build don't match. How can you tell, Kakashi?" Obito asked.

Kakashi answered with certainty.

"It's those two swords. They're almost identical to the ones in the Scroll's illustration. I'm eighty percent sure."

What?

Obito studied the two swords again.

He still couldn't understand how Kakashi had recognized them.

They're just ordinary swords!

At that moment, a glowing screen appeared before his eyes.

[Option One: Quickly pass this information to Minato. Completion reward: 0.03 Kaka Chakra.]

[Option Two: Use your head and find a way to subdue Inosuke. Completion reward: Exploding Shadow Clone Technique.]

Obito started.

The system gave me a choice. So that really is Inosuke!

Rin nervously clenched her hands.

"What should we do? Go find Minato-sensei?"

Kakashi shook his head.

"We probably don't have time. By the time we find Minato-sensei, he might be gone."

Obito nodded in support of Kakashi's assessment.

"We need to act!"

In his mind, he frantically selected option two.

22222!

Kakashi frowned slightly.

Plan after plan flashed through his mind, but he rejected them all.

"Fighting is forbidden in the Black Market. Unless we can take him down in one strike somewhere secluded, we'll be thrown out."

Take down a Special Jōnin who excels at Taijutsu in an instant?

That sounds tough...

Obito bit his finger and sank into thought.

After mulling it over for a moment, Obito spoke up.

"I have an idea. We could do this... and then that..."

Rin's mouth fell slightly open as she listened.

"Isn't that a little risky, Obito-kun?"

Kakashi glanced toward the figure in the distance, who was already preparing to leave, and made a quick decision.

"There's no time. We'll go with Obito's plan!"

"Rin, go find Minato-sensei. Obito and I will carry out the plan!"

Rin hesitated, then nodded.

"All right. You two be careful!"

Obito grinned.

"Right! Don't worry, Lin-chan!"

With that,

he and Kakashi took different routes, slowly closing in on the figure.