Rinto carefully put the banknotes into his pocket, then roughly tore open the envelope, unfolded the letter, and began to read it carelessly.
The letter was not long, but its content was substantial, making Rinto's eyes twitch as he read.
At the beginning, it praised Rinto's actions, commending him for successfully infiltrating Konoha and encouraging him to continue his good work.
Then, it outlined three specific instructions in a casual tone.
The first was to gather intelligence on Konoha's top leaders. The sheer danger of this task was immense. Even though Rinto's identity had not been exposed, obtaining such information was nearly impossible without attracting suspicion. The tone of Hanzō of the Salamander's letter made it seem as though he didn't care whether Rinto lived or died.
The second instruction was even more absurd—he was to incite hatred between Konoha's two major bloodline families, the Hyuga and the Uchiha. When Rinto read this, he almost laughed out loud. Did Hanzō seriously believe that a mere child of seven or eight could manipulate the politics of two of the most powerful clans in Konoha? The idea was ridiculous.
The third task was to obey Yuwa's orders in all actions and help him establish a foothold in Konoha. What Hanzō didn't know was that the four idiots he had sent hadn't even made it past Konoha's gates. Glancing at the four individuals before him, Rinto sighed speechlessly.
Hanzō might be a legendary ninja, but if Rinto didn't know better, he'd think the man was an absolute fool.
At the end of the letter, however, Hanzō did provide Rinto with some reassurance: "Sakuta Mizukuma is doing well and is currently serving as the ninjutsu instructor for the son of the Lord of the Land of Rain."
Reading the letter, Rinto felt both amused and frustrated. Hanzō had assigned him three highly dangerous tasks—yet had only sent him 5,000 ryo? Did he take Rinto for a beggar?
With a strange expression, Rinto set the letter down.
Seeing that Rinto had finished reading, Yuwa stood up, walked over, and looked down at him.
"Now that you've read Hanzō-sama's letter, let's begin our mission."
He took out a palm-sized scroll, unrolled it on the ground, and glanced sideways at Rinto.
"Kaito Fujiwara, I order you to draw a map of Konoha's defenses."
Rinto shook his head. "I don't know. I'm not a ninja, so how would I have access to that information?"
Hearing this, Sarutobi Hiruzen, hidden in the shadows, secretly relaxed his clenched fists. He was sure that Rinto knew Konoha's defensive layout, but the boy had no intention of sharing it. That reassured him.
"Then what about information on Konoha's top leaders?" Yuwa pressed.
"Hah, do you think I'm some kind of super-spy? Why don't you just ask me to unify the ninja world while you're at it?"
"Watch your tone, Kaito Fujiwara!" a sharp voice rebuked.
"What a disgrace! You've been in Konoha for so long, and all you've done is eat? You shame Hanzō-sama! How did Rain Shinobi Village produce such a failure?"
Rinto raised an eyebrow and looked at Yuwa with interest.
"Alright then, since you're so smart, we'll follow my plan." Yuwa frowned and picked up the scroll from the ground. "From now on, I am your uncle, a traveling merchant, and these three are my assistants. You will take us into Konoha and arrange accommodations for us. Do you understand?"
Despite Yuwa's stern tone, Rinto nodded indifferently. "Yeah, yeah, I got it."
Yuwa, annoyed by Rinto's nonchalance, continued. "Also, I heard that you're staying with a merchant's family."
Rinto nodded again.
"Idiot!" Yuwa spat. "How could Rain Shinobi Village produce someone as useless as you? Who was your mentor? You're a disgrace! Poisoning, framing, eliminating the current residents, and taking over their property would have been a much faster way to establish yourself! What kind of fool trained you?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen, still observing from the shadows, narrowed his eyes and barely restrained his killing intent. He had changed his mind. These spies from the Rain Village weren't just incompetent—they were ruthless. They had no business being in Konoha.
The man called Rain Frog continued his rant, sneering at Rinto.
Meanwhile, Rinto sighed expressionlessly, sat down, and reached for his ankles.
"Gotta take off the weights. Don't want them getting damaged," he muttered, untying the weights strapped around his legs and placing them against the cave wall.
"My sleeves are torn, but I can patch them up later. By the way, will you reimburse me?" He casually removed his black short-sleeved shirt, folded it neatly, and set it aside.
"Bastard! What are you doing?!" Yuwa roared, his eyes widening as Rinto stripped off his shirt.
Rinto paused as he was about to remove his pants. He slowly pulled them back up and smirked.
"What?"
"Are you leading the way for us—naked? Where do you think you're going? Kabukicho?" one of the ninjas sneered, making the others burst into laughter.
Rinto, however, shook his head seriously. "Not Kabukicho—the Lethe River. We're going for a swim."
The laughter stopped.
The four spies immediately tensed. They knew exactly what the Lethe River was. This brat—was he planning to kill them?
Realizing this, Yuwa's eyes turned murderous. He recalled the instructions given by Hanzō before their mission: If Rinto disobeyed or showed any signs of disloyalty, they were to eliminate him.
"Kaito Fujiwara, you'd better take that back. Otherwise, I'll make you wish you were dead."
Rinto responded by extending his right hand and curling his fingers in a taunting gesture. "Come on~"
Deep in the cave, Rinto was preparing to act.
Sarutobi Hiruzen frowned, suspicion rising in his mind. Something didn't add up.
This wasn't like Rinto at all. Why was he acting so recklessly? He knew he was facing a Jōnin and three Genin. He was always calculated, always patient. Why was he provoking them? Why was he alerting them to his intentions?
For a moment, Sarutobi Hiruzen was filled with doubt.
But regardless of Rinto's plan, ensuring his safety was the priority.
With that in mind, Sarutobi Hiruzen took out his shuriken, ready to strike.
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