Aoki Tsuki used the Water Clone Technique to draw the Anbu surveillance away, while his real body made contact with Root.
He followed them to a hidden underground room. As soon as he entered, he saw Danzo sitting in a chair, with Aburame Ryoma standing beside him.
"Lord Danzo, this is the confidential letter Lord Hanzō asked me to deliver to you."
Aoki Tsuki handed over the scroll he had brought and waited for a reply.
After reading it, Danzo said, "Go back and tell Hanzō not to worry. The one thing Konoha has no shortage of is ninja. The Fourth's presence won't affect our agreement."
Root's losses had indeed been heavy, but not long after returning to Konoha, Danzo had replenished its ranks.
In his eyes, ninja were tools.
"Understood. Is there anything you're interested in that I can answer for you?"
Before Danzo could ask, Aoki Tsuki offered on his own initiative. He had to be well-behaved in front of a big shot like this, especially on the man's own turf.
"I heard about you long ago. You're a sensible fellow, just as I expected. My suggestion to make you our liaison wasn't wasted."
Danzo was very pleased that Aoki Tsuki knew how to play along.
"Thank you for the praise, my lord. For a nobody like me, it would be hard to get ahead otherwise." Aoki Tsuki chose to tell the truth.
There was nothing shameful about it.
Danzo was a pragmatist himself and disliked empty pretenses.
"I like straightforward young people like you. Whatever that miser Hanzō can't give you, I can..."
Aoki Tsuki hurriedly accepted the grand promise. "I'd be happy to serve you, Lord Danzo."
"Hmm. What happened to Akatsuki afterward... I heard they vanished without a trace?"
Sure enough, the old geezer was still keeping tabs on Akatsuki.
"That's right. They seem to have disappeared from the village. They've probably gone underground, but their leader Yahiko really is dead."
Danzo showed no interest in Yahiko. He rubbed his chin and thought for a moment. "Keep a close watch for information on Akatsuki. They'll definitely start making moves again. Report to me promptly, and you'll be rewarded."
After taking such a heavy loss, Akatsuki would surely seek revenge on Hanzō. All he had to do was wait patiently.
With the pawn Aoki Tsuki at Hanzō's side, there would be unexpected gains sooner or later.
"Yes, sir."
"One more thing. The Fourth may speak to you today. You know how to answer him, I trust?" Danzo asked, still concerned.
"Lord Hanzō gave me instructions before I came."
"Good."
At that, Hanzō waved his hand, signaling for Aoki Tsuki to leave.
Aburame Ryoma then handed Aoki Tsuki the reply and led him outside. "Konoha isn't like Amegakure. Things are more complicated here, so don't stay too long."
"All right. I plan to meet the Fourth Hokage after attending the ceremony, then leave," Aoki Tsuki replied.
"Good. Hurry along. The ceremony is about to begin."
At the exit, Aburame Ryoma stopped.
"Then I'll take my leave." Aoki Tsuki nodded slightly and vanished from sight in a few quick movements.
Aburame Ryoma glanced up at the crown of a large tree, then turned and left without concern.
A man and a dog then jumped down from the tree.
"Pakkun, head back first."
"That guy doesn't look easy to deal with, Kakashi. Be careful."
Poof...
Pakkun disappeared in a puff of white smoke.
"Meeting with another faction in private is a serious violation of the agreement. I have to teach him a lesson."
Kakashi reached up and straightened his Forehead Protector, revealing his Sharingan.
Aoki Tsuki was heading toward the Hokage building through a sparsely traveled alley when a dazzling blue light suddenly burst out at his side.
A piercing chorus of birdsong rang in his ears.
"This is... Chidori!!"
"Body Flicker Technique!"
Crack...
An arm crackling with lightning punched through the wall beside him like a sharp iron spear.
Kakashi was secretly astonished. He dodged my Chidori that easily?
"Anbu?"
A slightly magnetic voice sounded behind Kakashi. "Why did you attack me?"
Kakashi replied coldly, "Hmph. As an envoy from Amegakure, you should have been warned when you entered the village. Any private meeting could cause unnecessary misunderstandings.
"The Fourth Hokage wants exchanges between both sides to be open and transparent. You broke the rules!"
The masked, white-haired boy before him was probably the person who had been watching him these past two days.
Kakashi Hatake.
"You're right. It's just that some things are difficult to say in the light of day. As someone who works for the Anbu, I'm sure you can understand."
"Yes, I understand. I hope you can understand me too."
With that, Kakashi attacked with a Kunai. Understanding was one thing, but he still had to act, or the other party might think Konoha was weak.
Clang!
A flash of white streaked past his eyes, swift as lightning.
Crack... crack...
The sharp sensation of the blade slicing through his mask and skimming over the bridge of his nose made the pores in that spot tighten and his hairs stand on end.
All that remained of the Kunai in his hand was the handle, which he gripped tightly. The broken surface was smooth as a mirror.
"This guy...!!"
Kakashi's pupils trembled violently. He was too fast. Although the Sharingan had clearly captured his opponent's movements, his body couldn't keep up at all.
"If you want my understanding, you'll have to show me what you can really do," Aoki Tsuki said calmly.
An extra inch of reach meant an extra inch of advantage.
When Kakashi couldn't match him in strength, speed, or skill, he actually wanted to fight him at close range with a Kunai?
Kakashi clearly realized this too. He immediately jumped back some distance, crouched low, and formed Hand Seals, using his signature Ninjutsu again.
"Chidori!"
"Lightning Burial!"
The two figures collided violently.
Boom...!
"So he can use Lightning Release too?"
Kakashi pressed his right hand firmly against the blade Aoki Tsuki had brought down. When the latter swept a roundhouse kick at him, all he could do was hunch his shoulder and take it.
Bang...
His not yet fully grown body naturally couldn't match the tremendous force of Aoki Tsuki's blow.
He was sent flying in an instant.
But Kakashi reacted quickly. The moment he landed, he curled himself tightly into a ball to minimize the damage. After rolling twice, he found a point to push off from and sprang up.
His eyes were full of gravity. His opponent was far more troublesome than he had anticipated.
Blue light blossomed in his hand once more, and a wolf-shaped bolt of lightning lunged at Aoki Tsuki.
"Lightning Beast: Tracking Fang!"
"Lightning Release: Imperial Lightning Snake!"
Rings of lightning rose from Aoki Tsuki's legs, climbed to his shoulders, then rapidly flowed down his arms and into his hands.
Crackle... crackle... hiss...
A snake-shaped bolt of lightning as thick as an arm shot from his hands and coiled around the lightning wolf head-on. With a gentle twist, both dissipated in the air.
"He canceled out my Tracking Fang with Lightning Release?!"
Before Kakashi could think further, Aoki Tsuki suddenly opened his mouth and spat out seven or eight dense droplets of water. They shot out at tremendous speed, like bullets from a gun.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Kakashi hurriedly leaped back again, quickly forming Hand Seals before slamming his hands onto the ground as he landed.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
The bluish-gray earthen wall with dog heads had barely risen before the droplets punched through it. Kakashi hurriedly threw himself into a roll to dodge them.
His Sharingan clearly captured the droplets' trajectories. He could even see their structure in perfect detail.
Did he increase their density and cohesion by infusing them with Chakra?!
Just then, an upside-down figure in a green bodysuit flashed past the mouth of the alley. He seemed to notice what was happening inside and promptly backed up.
"Kakashi! Let's have a youthful... huh... who's this?"
Kakashi snapped, "Guy! I'm on a mission! How can you call me by name?"
"A mission?"
Might Guy stood upright and brushed the dust off his hands. Looking at Kakashi's disheveled state, he grinned. "Are you getting weak? Then let me give you a hand."
Clearly, Might Guy had noticed that Kakashi was at a disadvantage and wanted to help.
Without waiting for Kakashi to reply, he leaped at Aoki Tsuki with a flying kick.
"Leaf Great Whirlwind!"
Aoki Tsuki stepped back, spun three hundred and sixty degrees on the spot, and unleashed a roundhouse kick with a burst of speed.
A dragon's tail sweep.
Thud!
Two powerful legs collided with a dull impact.
After blocking Might Guy's flying kick, Aoki Tsuki immediately thrust a kick at his abdomen.
With nothing to push off of in midair, Might Guy hurriedly bent forward and crossed his arms to protect himself.
Bang!
Might Guy flew backward and skidded along the ground for some distance before Kakashi reached out and stopped him with a hand against his back.
"Guy, be careful. This guy is strong," Kakashi warned quietly.
"Yeah, he's very strong and fast too. He actually counterattacked while blocking my attack. That explosive power... sure enough, this is youth!"
When did Amegakure get someone like this... I'd never even heard of him before? Kakashi frowned inwardly.
Might Guy, however, grew excited. "Powerful opponents like this are hard to come by. Now, let's set our youth ablaze."
He made to open the Eight Gates Released Formation and take him on head-to-head.
"Wait, Guy, stop..." Kakashi hurriedly tried to stop him.
Might Guy was puzzled. "Why? Isn't this a mission?"
"We don't have to defeat him. Today is the Hokage's inauguration. You'll cause too much of a commotion."
Kakashi had only meant to teach Aoki Tsuki a lesson and make him behave afterward. He hadn't intended to make a big scene, or it would be hard to bring things to a close.
"By the way... gentlemen, if there's nothing else, I'll be going. The ceremony is about to start, after all," Aoki Tsuki reminded them.
The two brats: one was a Taijutsu genius, and the other was an all-rounder with an exceptionally high IQ.
If they really kept fighting, he might not come out ahead.
"Hmph. I'll let you off today. I'll report everything to the Hokage."
Kakashi delivered his threat and pulled Might Guy away. Aoki Tsuki had already met Danzo, so there was no point in continuing to watch him.
"Whatever."
Aoki Tsuki replied. If anyone was going to get into trouble, it would be Danzo. He believed there was nothing in Konoha that Danzo couldn't settle.
When he left the alley and sunlight shone on the gleaming blade, a clear crack stood out conspicuously.
It was exactly where Kakashi's second Chidori had struck.
"What an amazing technique... looks like I'll have to replace my sword again."
Lightning Release ninja generally knew that gathering and compressing Lightning Release Chakra could improve its piercing power and explosive force.
Exactly how to compress it depended entirely on the individual. One mistake could leave them maimed in an explosion.
Kakashi's Chidori was one of the best examples.