At the edge of Konoha's sensory barrier, three ninja-one woman and two men, all wearing Kumogakure forehead protectors-sat beside trees, seemingly waiting for something.
Between the three of them lay a bag covered in black sealing marks.
"Lord Afui..." The youngest-looking ninja gazed at the bag, still feeling uneasy. "Isn't this a little wrong? Konoha is our ally, after all."
The ninja called Afui glanced at the young ninja, not bothering to speak.
The female ninja explained, "Enough, Honai. You know perfectly well that our village lacks kekkei genkai. It's rare for our intelligence network in Konoha to send back information this valuable. We have to put our village first."
"But..." Honai was still conflicted. "Lady Kaze, is this what the village wants? Won't doing this start a war between the two villages?"
"..." Kaze was left speechless too. "Do you think we'd dare act inside Konoha without the village's orders? Relax. It hasn't been long since Konoha's last war, and they haven't recovered yet. They won't start a war with us over this."
"As for relations between our villages... this is the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan, after all. The village probably thinks the benefits this kekkei genkai could bring outweigh those of cooperating with Konoha."
"I see..." Honai accepted the explanation, but remembering the warm welcome from Konoha's people still left him feeling somewhat guilty.
Konoha ninja had helped him quite a few times on his previous missions. With the usual publicity constantly emphasizing friendship between the two villages, what was happening now challenged his worldview somewhat.
Kaze moved beside Honai and patted his shoulder. "All right, consider this operation with us a chance to see more of the world. Once this is over and we return to the village, you should become a Jonin. You might even get into