A certain inn.
A young girl, about sixteen or seventeen years old, with light blonde hair, opened the door and entered the room. She ran a hand through her single ponytail at the back of her head, then touched her flat chest, and then raised her right hand to quickly form a hand sign.
Poof!
After a flash of white smoke, the single ponytail unfurled into light blonde hair cascading down her back, and her previously flat chest suddenly swelled, transforming her from a vibrant young girl into a mature beauty.
"Phew, finally got away."
Tsunade tidied her hair, exhaling.
Shizune followed her in from behind, staring at Tsunade's chest for a while, a strange look in her eyes.
She knew Tsunade had transformed into her younger self to escape debt collectors, but what she couldn't understand was how Tsunade, who was flat-chested in her teens, could have developed into her current appearance.
Tsunade walked to the table and sat down, glancing at Shizune, and said, "What are you looking at? Hurry up and close the door."
"Yes."
Shizune snapped back to attention, quickly responded, turned, and pulled the door shut.
Tsunade picked up the teapot on the table, poured herself a cup of cold tea, and took a sip. Suddenly, she remembered something and said, "Who was that ninja from earlier today?"
"Hmm, he's a classmate of mine, Shin Hatake."
Shizune hummed, sat down kneeling in front of Tsunade, and replied at the same time.
Hearing Shizune's answer, Tsunade was slightly surprised and said, "He's Shin Hatake? Hmm... he does look a bit like Sakumo-senpai."
During the Second Great Ninja War, the famous Sakumo Hatake was the supreme commander of the Rain Country front line. At that time, the Sannin were not yet famous, and all three of them were a generation younger than Sakumo.
Speaking of this,
A hint of a sigh flashed in Tsunade's eyes.
Sakumo had looked after her several times back then. She never expected him to commit suicide over a mission. After hearing this news, she even made a special trip back to Hidden Leaf to pay her respects at his grave.
She had heard a few things about Shin Hatake, Sakumo's son, but her stronger impression was of Sakumo's other son, Kakashi. Graduating at five and becoming a Chunin at six — this had quite surprised her at the time, making her remark that the White Fang of Hidden Leaf had a successor.
"Shin is still very strong."
Shizune, holding a pillow, sat in front of Tsunade, a hint of admiration flashing in her eyes. "During the previous Chunin Exam, he single-handedly eliminated all his opponents, and he was even recognized by Orochimaru-sama and taken on as a disciple."
"Oh?"
A glint of light flashed in Tsunade's eyes at this, and she mused, "I recall his talent was rather ordinary compared to Kakashi's."
"That's just because Shin doesn't like to show off."
Shizune unconsciously revealed a slight smile, saying, "The information I've gathered is that Kakashi has always been trying to catch up to Shin, but he's never won."
Tsunade glanced at Shizune and suddenly said, "You like him?"
"Eh? Eh?!"
Shizune's expression instantly became unnatural, and she said flustered, "Wh-why ask that so suddenly..."
"There's nothing to hide."
Tsunade placed her hands on the table, fingers interlocked, and said somewhat domineeringly, "If you like him, just boldly pursue him. So what if he's Orochimaru's disciple? You're my disciple too."
"No, it's not like that..."
"What do you mean 'not like that'? Your expression has already betrayed you. Are you still planning to lie in front of me? But I am a bit curious, what kind of capital does that brat have that makes even you, Shizune, afraid to boldly pursue him? And he was even taken as a disciple by that Orochimaru."
Tsunade's mind flashed with the image of Shin from earlier that day. Her fingers interlocked, resting on her chin, she showed a pensive expression.
...
Shin had no idea that a fleeting glance during the day had already attracted Tsunade's attention. If he knew, he would have smiled, because it would be easier to approach her in the future.
After a night of chakra training, the group set off again the next day.
After passing several more small towns, the group finally arrived at the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Grass. The clear demarcation between the two countries was a horizontal river.
"Beyond that river is the Land of Grass."
Urabe Daisuke looked at the surging river that was now clearly visible, his expression slightly relaxing. Having reached this point, they were already mostly safe.
Shin paused, observing the river for a few seconds, then turned his head to look at a stone bridge not far to the northeast, and said, "We haven't reached the end point of the agreed-upon commission yet. Let's keep going."
"Mm."
Urabe Daisuke nodded, following Shin forward.
The group arrived at the stone bridge. Shin walked at the very front, and Might Duy walked at the very end of the team. The nine people quickly crossed the stone bridge without encountering any unexpected events.
However, after crossing the stone bridge, Shin revealed a cold gaze, looking at the bushes not far away, and slowly said, "You don't even bother to conceal yourselves anymore?"
Shin's words caused Urabe Daisuke and the others' expressions to change abruptly.
Might Duy was also slightly startled, then reacted, leaping to Shin's side.
"Because there's no need."
A faint voice came from the direction of the bushes.
Immediately after,
Ten figures walked out from the bushes, all wearing the headbands of the Hidden Stone Village, each holding kunai and shuriken and other weapons.
"Hidden Stone Village ninjas, how could this be..."
Seeing this, Urabe Daisuke's face instantly changed dramatically. He sharply turned his head, gritting his teeth and looking at a few people in the team, his eyes revealing anger.
How could a Hidden Stone Village ninja squad be so coincidentally ambushed on the border of the Land of Grass, and from their attitude, it seemed as if they had been waiting for a long time.
There was a traitor in the team!
"Damn it, who is it?!"
Urabe Daisuke pulled out a dagger, looking furiously at the people in the team. Almost everyone in the team also showed anger, looking at each other.
Shin paid no attention to the commotion behind him. Instead, he calmly said, "There's no point in looking for a traitor at this time. He won't reveal himself... You seem to have concealed some important information. This situation can't be explained by a C-rank mission anymore, can it?"
"..."
Urabe Daisuke's face was extremely grim.
He glanced at the ten Hidden Stone ninjas surrounding them, his heart sinking lower and lower. A traitor had leaked information, and the other party had hired a Stone Village ninja squad to intercept and kill them, while they had only hired a Hidden Leaf ninja team of just two people.
It was simply impossible to handle!
The only hope was that the opponent's mission wasn't to kill them, but to capture them alive and imprison them, which would still offer a chance of survival.
Urabe Daisuke gritted his teeth and looked at the Hidden Stone ninjas, saying, "What is your mission? Are you here to kill us? We can pay double the mission fee!"
"Our mission is... to capture him alive."
The Jonin leader of the Hidden Stone ninjas, a hint of disdain flashing in his eyes, pointed a finger at the young man behind Urabe Daisuke, and said, "As for the others, we'll have to send you to hell."
Changing mission objectives for mission fees was something only ninjas from third-rate small ninja villages would do. As ninjas from one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, the Hidden Stone Village, doing something that would damage their reputation was impossible.
Whoosh! Whoosh!!
The moment the words fell,
Three Hidden Stone ninjas charged towards Shin, while another three charged towards Might Duy, all with cold expressions, without an unnecessary word.
"..."
Urabe Daisuke's face turned ashen.
Although the young lord wasn't the target for killing, if they all died here and the young lord was captured alive and imprisoned, it would be almost impossible to reverse the situation, and the position of Daimyo of Shimotsuki Town would definitely be seized by that person.
He never expected that among the Daimyo's most trusted people during his lifetime, there would actually be a traitor. This was something he never could have imagined. This misstep meant that everything was now completely lost.
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
IF YOU LIKE THE STORY PLEASE COMMENT AND RATE THE STORY AND ADD IT TO YOUR LIBRARY
YOUR SUPPORT IS VERY MUCH APPRECIATED
EACH DAY I AM PLANNING TO RELEASE 5 CHAPTERS UNTIL THE STORY REACHES 100 CHAPTERS.
SO PLEASE SUPPORT
You want more chapters!!!!
⭐ Every 200 power stones = 1 Bonus Chapter ⭐
👊 Keep throwing the stones 👊