The moon hangs high in the sky over the vast forests of the Kobe River area.
A figure dressed in a brown robe and wearing a mask fled in a disheveled manner along the river.
The splashing sound of their feet hitting the water's surface, while consuming Chakra, allowed them to escape without leaving a trace.
"Huff... huff... my vision is blurry... I can't go on like this..."
The owl reached a shallow area, hid the item, and then ran for a distance before turning and disappearing into the dense jungle.
Due to blood loss from his wounds and the deadly poison, he managed to send the message out via a bird while he still had a sliver of Seimei.
" Lord Hokage, you must send someone immediately..."
Buzz...
A blue light emanated from the owl's body, and within seconds, his body, along with his clothes and mask, rapidly turned to dust and vanished from the world.
The Hokage's office.
" Third."
"Yes, Kakashi, there's an urgent mission that requires your Team Six to check on."
Hiruzen Sarutobi handed over a note with only seven characters on it: ' Kobe River, Tsukimizato, Owl'
"This is... from the Intelligence Division..."
"Hmm, the Jashin Cult is spreading throughout the Land of Fire, and it seems that people from Akatsuki are secretly controlling it. They probably have a more hidden purpose."
Therefore, I arranged for my Intelligence Division to investigate secretly, but now it seems... they have encountered some misfortune."
Kakashi said gravely, "According to the rules of the Anbu, the dead are never left with their bodies."
"Take your men and go there immediately. Make sure you get the intelligence," Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered.
"Hi!"
Half an hour after Kakashi left, Danzo, leaning on his cane, knocked on the office door.
" Hiruzen, I heard that the Anbu intercepted important intelligence about Akatsuki."
"Yes, that's true. Kakashi's Team Six has already been dispatched to retrieve it."
"As far as I know, the Akatsuki's leader in the Land of Fire is not someone to be trifled with; you'd better send more people."
The Uchiha has recently strengthened its armed forces, and the Root members are to remain in the village as a precaution. Danzo's attention is now focused on the village.
Hiruzen Sarutobi recalled what had happened in the capital of the Land of Fire last time, where even with Hayama Shirakumo leading Jonin Commander and the cooperation of the Anbu, the enemy still managed to escape.
"Understood, I will arrange it accordingly."
Ancient Tanzaku Castle.
Aoki Tsuki was in seclusion researching Ninjutsu when he was awakened by urgent knocking on the door and found Butsushura waiting anxiously outside.
"My lord, something unexpected has happened, and we may need your personal intervention."
The fact that Butsushura is secretly in charge of Akatsuki's intelligence operations in the Land of Fire indicates that Akatsuki has run into trouble.
"Which idiot broke the rules this time?"
These rogue ninjas are hard to tame. Akatsuki kindly took them in, but they cause trouble all the time and can't stand not causing some trouble.
"One of our bases was targeted by Konoha's Anbu, who stole the codebook and escaped into the Kobe River. However, he was also injured by our people and poisoned."
Logically speaking, he shouldn't live much longer, but I'm worried...
"What?! The codebook was stolen! These guys are more trouble than they're worth." Aoki Tsuki almost vomited blood upon hearing this.
If this falls into Konoha's hands, it'll be useless.
You can never guess what surprises these rogue ninjas will bring.
Butsushura quickly explained, "It must be some guy who was fooling around outside and accidentally leaked the information, which led someone to infiltrate the stronghold."
I have already arranged for people to search along the route.
"That's not enough. Immediately gather all the Akatsuki's peripheral members in the surrounding areas. Even if we have to search every inch of the Kobe River, we must find them."
"Hi!"
When Aoki Tsuki arrived at the Kobe River and met up with Akatsuki's men, it was already late at night.
He unfolded the map and glanced at it, then said, " Tetsuiwa and Kachō, you two form a group; Sekiga and Kurotori, you two form a group; and Butsushura a group."
Our three teams will each search along one of the river channels. We might encounter Konoha's Anbu. If we do, we'll signal them. Understand?
"Clear!"
"Get moving, find it quickly so you can go home and get some sleep. Stop slacking off!"
Aoki Tsuki knew that these peripheral members were used to being undisciplined and lax, and that they were only affiliating with Akatsuki for protection; few of them were serious about their work.
"Hi!"
The group quickly split into three teams, each searching along a river, instantly bringing the quiet forest to life.
At the same time, Kakashi's Anbu Team Six also arrived in this forest.
Because they had a clear goal, they quickly found the river and began running along it.
Tsukimizato is located upstream of the Kobe River, and at this moment, Akatsuki's search team is slowly searching along the river, led by Tetsuiwa and Kachō.
At this moment, they were only a few hundred meters away from Tsukimizato.
Kachō complained, "Honestly, dragging someone to the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night to look for a codebook? What's the point? Who knows where it might be hidden?"
"Who says otherwise? These intelligence agents are useless; all they do is cause us trouble," Tetsuiwa chimed in.
"Brother Tetsuiwa, if you ask me, we should just do a perfunctory job and head back as soon as possible."
"Well... Azure Dragon already said no slacking off."
"Whispering sound!"
Kachō chuckled, "He was just saying it casually to scare us. Don't forget we're rogue ninjas. If you take it seriously, you'll lose."
"Okay, then... let's take a break first."
Tetsuiwa planted the huge machete he was carrying on his back into the ground and sat down on a rock.
Kachō looked at Tetsuiwa's exposed, strong pectoral muscles, licked her lips, and walked over to Tetsuiwa with cat-like steps, shaking her swollen chest.
"Brother Tetsuiwa, you're right. We can't slack off on fish, but we can catch something else."
Tetsuiwa blushed instantly upon hearing this, turned to look at the others, and said shyly, "So many people are watching..."
"Don't you think this is more exciting? Are you saying you're still a virgin? Hahaha..."
Kachō laughed unrestrainedly, startling even the birds in the surrounding woods, who fluttered away in panic.
The others around also covered their mouths and chuckled, frequently glancing at Tetsuiwa.
Tetsuiwa felt his pride had been hurt and retorted angrily, "You... I'm not like that! You're not allowed to laugh!"
Thud...
With a single blow, the large cleaver shattered a nearby rock, and the group quickly gathered their strength.
The commotion quickly alerted Team Kakashi, who were rushing towards them from the opposite direction.
"Wait, there are people ahead!"
The group immediately used the surrounding vegetation to conceal themselves, and saw torches standing on both sides of the river not far ahead.
Tenzo approached Kakashi and whispered, "Senior, there seem to be quite a few people over there. They probably have the same goal as us."
"Hmm, it seems they've found this place too. This is troublesome," Kakashi replied in a deep voice.
"How about I sneak over there quietly and find out what's going on?"
Tenzo's Wood Release is incredibly effective in the forest, allowing him to observe things up close without being detected.
"No, the enemy's capabilities are currently unknown."
Kakashi extended his bare arm, paused in mid-air for a moment, and said, "You're doing this..."
"Clear."
Tenzo plunged into the woods and quickly made his way to the other side, with Kakashi and his men following closely behind.
Tetsuiwa and the others were unaware that the enemy had discovered them. They were all chatting and joking around, having long forgotten about their mission.
Asking them to carry out assassinations is one thing, but asking them to smear and search for a codebook whose location is unknown is a joke.
"Ugh... I'm so sleepy."
One of Xiao's peripheral members yawned, turned around, and saw that a group of people around him were snoring.
"What... what's going on?" After saying that, his head tilted to the side and he fell to the ground.
"Enemies!"
Tetsuiwa hurriedly stood up, but suddenly felt dizzy and almost fell over.
At the critical moment, Kachō helped him up and handed him a pill.
"Someone is spreading anesthetic drugs along the wind; someone ingested them."
"Thank you very much." Tetsuiwa quickly swallowed the pill. He had disliked this woman a moment ago, but now his impression of her had improved dramatically.
"Come out, I've spotted you, you coward!"
Swish, swish, swish...
Eight people wearing animal masks appeared and surrounded Tetsuiwa and Kachō in the center.
" Konoha's Anbu? They arrived so quickly!" Tetsuiwa exclaimed. In the Land of Fire, no one is unafraid of Konoha's Anbu.
Kachō said pitifully, "Brother Tetsuiwa, we're counting on you."
She grabbed several poisoned Senbon in each hand and threw them at the surrounding Anbu.
" Rock Fist!"
Tetsuiwa slammed his thick fist into the ground, shaking the rocks to create an attack and opening up the situation.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh...
As the members of the Anbu Guard dodged, they simultaneously threw Shuriken at Tetsuiwa and Kachō.
" Wood Release: Thorn Killing Technique "
Vines quickly sprouted from the ground and wrapped around Tetsuiwa and Kachō, while wooden stakes rose up around them, surrounding the two.
Rumble...
Tetsuiwa erupted again, swinging his large cleaver to cut the vines and smash the surrounding wooden stakes.
Thud...
Taking advantage of the situation, Kachō Die threw out a smoke bomb to cover their tracks and prepared to escape. They never intended to engage in a direct confrontation with Konoha's Anbu.
Sizzle... sizzle...
Blue lightning pierced through the mist and hurtled towards Kachō Die. At the critical moment, Kachō Die shrank back and hid in Tetsuiwa's broad embrace.
Pfft...
"Uh... you have the Sharingan... Kakashi!" Tetsuiwa coughed up blood; his heart had been pierced, and he had no chance of survival.
He fell backward to the ground.
Kachō seized the opportunity and plunged headfirst into the river beside her.
"Trying to run! Lightning Release: Earth Flow!"
Kakashi leaped onto the river, his hands glowing with Lightning Release and pressing down into the water.
Glug... Glug...
Within seconds, Kachō's body floated up, but she had already lit a signal flare in her hand.
Whoosh!
The red signal flare shot into the sky, so brightly visible in the dark forest.
"Damn it, they still have reinforcements! Quick, find some information!" Kakashi said urgently.
The group quickly rushed towards Tsukimizato, a crescent-shaped beach not far away, where the river meandered through and another tributary cascaded down from the cliff to form a waterfall.
Finding things here isn't easy.