Somewhere in a forest in the Land of Fire.
Several days had passed since they accepted the mission assigned by the Third, but the Fire Squad led by Oto Uchiha still had nothing to show for it. Searching for traces of the Akatsuki across the vast shinobi world was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
All they could do was visit the local black markets and ask whether anyone had seen any suspicious ninja.
The local black market manager answered honestly: the most suspicious ninja he had seen recently were their squad.
Black market bosses everywhere knew about this squad of ninja traveling under concealed identities. Some had even reported them to the ninja on official duty in town.
Faced with this situation, Oto, who was always aloof around outsiders, could only fold her arms across her chest to hide her embarrassment.
After returning to the mountain forest, Oto looked at the other three members of her squad, pondering where they should go sightseeing next... to search for the Akatsuki.
Going out to search for the Akatsuki was merely a mission from the Third. If she really wanted to find them, she would have to ask that man back home.
But Zou Hyuga's last message had come half a month ago. He had said that a minor complication had arisen within the Akatsuki, and they probably would not be able to launch attacks on the major shinobi villages for the time being. He had told her to take the opportunity to get some fresh air.
After night fell, a campfire was lit at the temporary camp.
Normally, this was a mistake even a genin would not make while scouting, but this squad's lineup was so extravagant that they could handle even a force of several hundred ninja.
An