Scarface tossed the kunai back into the crate and nodded in satisfaction.
"The count checks out."
"That boss of yours really does have connections everywhere."
"He can even ship out Konoha's standard military equipment by the cartload."
The Cloaked Man sneered.
"Your boss's identity is none of your business."
"Root will forge transfer documents, then ship the goods out under the pretext of training losses and border procurement."
"Just pay on time, and you'll get your goods."
Scarface waved a hand.
Several of his men carried over two heavy iron chests.
They opened the chests, revealing nothing but gold bars and banknotes.
After checking the payment, the Cloaked Man had his men carry the Money Chests away.
This Smuggling Case was no baseless rumor.
The smuggling was real.
But the mastermind behind it was none other than the Hokage Advisor, Shimura Danzō.
Using the authority Root controlled, Danzo forged military equipment transfer records and secretly shipped Konoha's standard supplies to the border.
He then sold them at inflated prices to these rogue ninja and black market merchants.
All the proceeds flowed into Root's secret accounts, funding its enormous expenses and experiments that could never see the light of day.
The Official Dispatch Chikage had received ordering him to investigate the Smuggling Case was actually an elaborate trap.
Danzo knew that even if Chikage found evidence of smuggling, the trail would only lead to these rogue ninja.
Once the deal was done, Root would dispose of the middlemen and the records.
By then, even if Chikage returned to Konoha with the Case File, he would have no way to prove the smuggled military equipment came from Root.
Besides, Danzo had never intended to let Chikage return alive.
Watching Scarface's men lead the wagons away, the Cloaked Man suddenly spoke.
"The deal is done."
"Now let's discuss another job."
Scarface stopped and turned around.
"What job?"
"Does your boss have more goods?"
The Cloaked Man pulled a photograph from inside his clothes and tossed it to Scarface.
"Capture someone."
"Alive."
Scarface caught the photograph and glanced at it.
It showed a young man wearing a Konoha Military Police Force uniform.
He had delicate features and a pair of ordinary black eyes.
"Someone from the Uchiha Clan?"
Scarface recognized the clan's fan crest on the uniform.
He flicked the photograph between his fingers.
"The Uchiha aren't easy to deal with."
"If he's awakened his Sharingan, sending our little group after him would be suicide."
The Cloaked Man scoffed.
"The brat's name is Uchiha Chikage."
"Deputy captain of the Konoha Military Police Force's Second Squad."
"The title sounds impressive, but his file says he's just a genin who hasn't awakened his Sharingan."
"His chakra reserves barely meet the standard for a genin, and he only knows the Three Body Technique and Great Fireball."
"He's worked in the Konoha Military Police Force for five years and hasn't even completed a C-Rank mission."
Scarface froze for a moment.
"A genin?"
He lowered his head to look at the photograph again, the wariness gradually fading from his face.
"Is Konoha that short on people?"
"They sent a genin deputy captain to investigate border smuggling?"
The Cloaked Man did not answer. He merely took a black pill from his sleeve and set it on the edge of the wagon.
"Bring the target back alive, and the bounty doubles."
"If he resists, break his arms and legs."
"But don't kill him."
"Someone will take over once the job is done."
Scarface picked up the pill, his gaze turning vicious again.
"Don't worry."
"A desk-bound genin who only knows the Three Body Technique? I could grab him with one hand."
At the Land of Fire's border, in a secluded valley thirty li outside Hot Water Town.
Dense woods blocked the sunlight. The valley was hot and humid, with swarms of mosquitoes hovering in the air.
Over a dozen rogue ninja in battered armor lay hidden in the grass, their heads covered in mosquito bites.
They had been lying in wait here for three full days.
"Boss, it's been three days."
A scrawny subordinate finally lost patience and scratched hard at the swollen red bumps on his neck.
"We haven't seen so much as a shadow of that Konoha genin."
"Did he get lost on the way?"
Their leader, Scarface, backhanded the subordinate across the back of his head, making him stumble.
"You don't know shit!"
"Would Konoha High Command send an idiot to investigate the Border Smuggling Case?"
"Use that walnut-sized brain of yours and think!"
"This brat is an Uchiha, and he's a deputy captain of the Konoha Military Police Force."
"You really think he only knows the Three Body Technique and Great Fireball?"
The subordinate clutched his head, looking aggrieved and confused.
"But that hooded guy from Root said he was just a useless desk-bound genin."
"He even said he hadn't awakened his Sharingan."
Scarface sneered, his eyes carrying the wariness of a seasoned veteran.
"You believe everything Root says?"
"The more detailed their file is, the more likely they're deliberately misleading us."
"If this brat really were useless, would Konoha High Command have him lead an investigation into a case this big?"
"This is definitely a smokescreen Konoha put out!"
"He must have something up his sleeve."
"He might even be a tactical expert who specializes in baiting people."
His men exchanged glances, finding their boss's reasoning perfectly sound.
Scarface drew a kunai and sketched a simple map of the terrain on the ground.
"He hasn't made a move because he's secretly digging into our background."
"He might already have slipped into Hot Water Town and be setting a trap."
"Just waiting for us to walk right into it."
"If the enemy doesn't move, neither do we."
"Stay sharp! Nobody takes even one step out of this valley!"
Convinced by their boss's analysis, the rogue ninja tightened their grips on their weapons and continued lying in the grass, feeding the mosquitoes.
Meanwhile, at the most luxurious Hot Springs Inn in Hot Water Town.
At precisely nine in the morning.
Chikage lay on the spacious, comfortable tatami in the Heaven-Class Room as the system notification sounded in his mind right on schedule.
[Ding! Successfully clocked in for work today!] [Host detected to be on a business trip. Double rewards triggered.] [Congratulations! You have received 200 daily points!]
Chikage slowly sat up and stretched luxuriously.
He changed into the clean yukata provided by the inn and walked over to the low table in the outer room.
The table was laden with a sumptuous breakfast, complete with grilled fish, miso soup, and tamagoyaki.
After eating and drinking his fill, Chikage picked up the lunchbox Mikoto had prepared and strolled out of the inn.
Today's work assignment was perfectly clear.
Spend money, keep receipts, and balance the books.
The two hundred thousand ryō in joint mission funds Danzo had approved had to be spent reasonably and justifiably.
Chikage wandered around half the town before entering a secluded alley.
Deep in the alley stood a rundown tavern where Hot Water Town's information brokers gathered.
Chikage pushed open the wooden door, walked up to the bar, and tapped the counter.
"Do you sell information here?"
A blond thug stood behind the bar. Seeing Chikage's Konoha Military Police Force uniform, he hurried over, rubbing his hands together.
"What would you like to know, sir?"
"Clues about border smuggling, the movements of black market merchants-I have it all."
Chikage pulled a stack of banknotes from his pocket, counted out one hundred thousand ryō, and slapped it on the counter.
"I want rumors of transactions involving the Border Smuggling Case over the past six months, a list of black market merchants, and records of unusual activity along the trade routes."
"Plus five days of contact with informants and surveillance of their movements."
"Can you do it?"
Before you continue