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Chapter 250 - Chapter 251: Go ahead then—if you think you can do better!

"Do you really think Sunagakure is genuinely helping Konoha?"

"Maybe they had no choice?"

"It's already generous that Konoha didn't demand compensation from them. They should at least help by sending troops!"

After the update titled "Painting Completed," Akaba glanced briefly at the comment section outside before leaving.

Opinions varied regarding the three characters from Sunagakure Village appearing in the manga, but one thing was certain—Konoha's ninja and civilians alike held deep resentment toward Sunagakure.

That was normal.

Though Sunagakure hadn't launched any large-scale direct attacks on Konoha recently, their sneaky tactics during wars—sniping from the shadows—had left many nations dissatisfied.

Konoha was definitely one of them. In past conflicts, Kakashi Windseer had even wiped out an entire elite squad from Sunagakure—an enmity with ancient roots.

Akaba skimmed through a few comments. Very few mentioned One Piece, though one post might have been Sakumo's doing:

"The Seven Warlords? Are they considered top-tier in One Piece? Sounds intriguing."

The Naruto-themed manga was getting too popular; most people's attention had naturally shifted toward it.

How pitiful!

Still, he didn't care much about it. As long as the manga earned him points, it was all good.

Recently, his points increased slightly, so Akaba casually added two extra Spirit Points to round up the decimal fractions, bringing his total Spirit Points exactly to 170.

According to his original plan, he should have conducted some tests recently.

But previously, he had been preoccupied preventing surprise attacks, and now he was busy handling interrogations—he simply couldn't spare the time.

The Anbu originally planned to use genjutsu themselves to lower the resistance of the two prisoners and extract their memories. Unfortunately, their genjutsu skills hadn't reached that level.

In the end, they had no choice but to seek Akaba's help.

Both Kurosuki Huezai and Mizunashi possessed incredibly strong willpower. Even with his abilities, Akaba struggled quite a bit—using both hypnotism and dream-walking techniques.

It took over an hour before they finally succeeded.

"Uncle Yamanaka, what exactly did you find in their memories?" 

Akaba asked.

Yamanaka Kazuhiko carefully sorted through the extracted memories. After a long pause, he replied, "Due to the manga, the Land of Water seems to have developed internal divisions."

"Oh?"

Akaba felt intrigued.

All because of the manga?

Seems surprisingly easy, doesn't it?

"From the Daimyo's perspective," Kazuhiko continued, "the manga has benefited the economy of the Land of Water, making it stronger than before. So politically, the Daimyo faction supports accepting both the manga and foreign visitors."

He explained, "But the Mizukage sees the manga as a source of chaos, creating instability within the country. Therefore, they believe the manga must be banned—or even better, its origin completely destroyed."

"Sounds just like Mist's typical style," Akaba mused thoughtfully.

"Additionally," Kazuhiko continued, "Mizunashi appears inclined to support the Daimyo's side. This detail came directly from his extracted memories."

He highlighted the key points briefly before pulling out a Message Scroll. He needed to write everything down for Lord Danzo. The written report would contain far more information than verbal explanations alone.

Sometimes he himself might overlook certain small details, but Danzo had a sharp eye for such nuances and could analyze them deeply.

"Mizunashi siding with the Daimyo?"

Akaba hesitated for a few seconds.

This was indeed explosive news, but upon deeper analysis, it wasn't surprising. Much like how the Daimyo of the Land of Fire wanted control over certain ninja, the Daimyo of the Land of Water likely recruited the Mizunashi clan for similar purposes.

Still, in a way, the relationship between a nation and its ninja village was cooperative yet adversarial—much like a feudal lord and his vassals. Those who chose the wrong side might eventually face retribution.

"Yeah, but there were divisions within their clan. Some believed that siding with the Daimyo would lead to destruction, just like in manga, while others thought following the Mizukage would bring such a fate."

Yamanaka Kazuhiko spoke as he wrote.

These pieces of information had been extracted from a Mizunashi clan member, hence highly credible.

Of course, the manga's to blame again.

Akaba couldn't help but grimace. He didn't really intend to stir up so much chaos in the Land of Water, though this outcome seemed not bad at all—in any case, it wasn't his own backyard getting messy.

Soon afterward, Yamanaka Kazuhiko recorded all the crucial memories obtained during interrogation. The details were described thoroughly, without the slightest error.

After finishing, he handed the scroll to Akaba—not for him to read, but for him to pass on to Danzo for further viewing and analysis.

Danzo was busy.

Every day, paperwork piled up like a mountain. From morning till night, he probably had little time left for rest.

Akaba couldn't help but shudder every time he walked into that office—no way Danzo could survive that workload without going bald soon enough!

"Hmm?"

Danzo noticed the door opening and glanced sideways with his one remaining eye. Seeing it was Akaba, he resumed focusing on his work.

"Teacher, this is the memory information we just extracted."

Akaba placed the scroll on the table.

Danzo nodded but didn't look at it immediately, continuing instead to focus on the scroll he already held.

After finishing, he pondered for a long time before passing it back to Akaba.

It was an intelligence report scroll originating from Sunagakure. Originally sealed using a sealing technique, the seal had now been broken, allowing anyone to see its contents.

Akaba didn't want to accept it, but driven by curiosity, he finally decided to read it himself.

He gave it a quick scan.

His expression gradually turned odder and odder.

"They're imitating us?"

The Research Institute and Preparatory Division—both were new establishments created by Konoha. Sunagakure followed closely, quickly beginning to develop their own versions.

They wasted no time at all!

"Not even realizing the enemy reached our Preparatory Division? Incompetent fools. The Military Police and Anbu both require further strengthening."

Danzo remarked coldly.

As for this, Akaba offered no comment. After all, letting Suna's covert agents reach their doorstep unnoticed was clearly a mistake on both sides' part. Additionally, he focused more attention on Sunagakure's Research Institute.

There was no doubt about it—Shamon was still alive.

All these actions bore Shamon's mark—the bald man with a dragon tattoo, whose mind was frighteningly meticulous. Yet mere imitation alone wouldn't be enough cause for concern.

Shamon hadn't copied everything.

For example, regarding the ninja academy and the Preparatory Division, Shamon hadn't fully duplicated them. According to the intelligence, they'd only imitated superficially; deep down, it was still Sunagakure's original system.

"Shamon still being alive is truly a major threat."

"I can't think of a way to assassinate him. How about you infiltrate, kill them, and then escape using the Flying Thunder God technique?"

Danzo shot him a sidelong glance.

He sounded sarcastic—was it really his fault Shamon survived? Like he should've killed The Second Kazekage back then?

"Forget it. We'll let him go this time."

Akaba gave an awkward chuckle, flailing his hands dismissively.

Since even intelligence agents hadn't spotted Shamon appearing in Sunagakure, his protection there must've been extremely tight.

Leaving aside whether he could actually kill him, finding Shamon within Sunagakure would be difficult enough. Plus, the journey from Konoha to the Land of Wind was long—he had no desire to travel that far.

"If you don't want to work, stop talking. There's an operation we can set up in the Land of Water. Are you interested?"

After reading the scroll, Danzo looked toward Akaba.

Perhaps they could incite the Mizunashi Clan; even if they couldn't get them to betray the Land of Water, at least they could neutralize one powerful Kekkei Genkai from Kiri.

"No way. Don't count me in. Besides, everyone in the Land of Water wants to capture me. Going there would be like walking into a trap."

Akaba immediately declined.

He had no intention of doing such tedious and mentally exhausting undercover work.

Danzo fell silent for a moment before nodding slightly. "Then let Shishio handle it."

Though Shishio didn't excel in any single ability, his overall capabilities were exceptional. Combined with his own intelligence, since Akaba refused, he was the most suitable choice.

"Hmph... fine, whatever."

While this level of mission carried some risk, it wouldn't endanger his life. Akaba simply found it too troublesome. Still, after thinking for a moment, he pulled out a special kunai embedded with the Flying Thunder God jutsu formula.

"Give this to Shishio. If he encounters danger or difficulties, I will rush to support him as quickly as possible."

Akaba said.

Although the teleportation distance was limited by chakra reserves, thanks to his naturally high reserves and stored chakra from the Yin Seal, traveling from the border of the Land of Fire to the Land of Water shouldn't be a problem.

"Hmm."

Danzo accepted the kunai.

Then, after considering something further, he took an object out from the cabinet. "Today is Sakumo's birthday. I'm too busy to attend, so please deliver this gift to Sakumo on my behalf."

The item was wrapped, making it impossible to determine what it was from its appearance.

However, when Akaba received it and gave it a squeeze, it seemed to be a sealing scroll—probably containing another item inside.

What could it be?

He was quite curious!

He suppressed his urge to open the package right away and carefully put the bundle away.

"Alright then, I'll get going."

Akaba bowed slightly, formed hand seals, and used the Flying Thunder God to return directly to the manga shop.

Danzo was momentarily stunned, then couldn't help but recall the turbulent sensation he had experienced while using the Flying Thunder God yesterday.

The Flying Thunder God was indeed convenient, but ordinary travel was better—it also provided a chance to train taijutsu.

"Yeah, next time I need to remind Akaba not to rely too much on the Flying Thunder God."

Danzo murmured to himself.

But as for what he truly thought—who could possibly know?

When Akaba exited the private chamber, the manga in the store had nearly sold out again. Fortunately, today Izumi Yamano would be delivering a new shipment.

"Yunlang, later remind Izumi Yamano to print more copies of the earlier volumes—we should definitely keep a few in stock."

Akaba gave a final warning.

"As for the update, it was already completed yesterday. He drew it himself as well, finishing ten consecutive chapters of the manga at once."

"Got it," Yunlang nodded in agreement.

After dealing with these matters, he finally prepared to head over to Sakumo's place.

But now came the question: Was Sakumo at the Preparatory Division or at home?

Well, he might as well check both locations.

Anyway, with the Flying Thunder God technique, traveling back and forth would be incredibly fast.

After quite a bit of hustle — okay, let's call it effort — he confirmed Sakumo wasn't at the Preparatory Division. Today, Shishio was substituting there. Poor Shishio hadn't even realized he was about to receive yet another long-distance mission, yet he was diligently helping Akaba and Sakumo train the Genin students.

In terms of training methods, his style was quite different from Sakumo's.

Although he wasn't top-tier in any specific area, he had deep, well-rounded knowledge and could clearly explain the fundamentals — what made him an outstanding instructor.

After listening for quite a while, Akaba realized that if Shishio were strong enough, he could probably take over the entire Preparatory Division's training by himself — no other instructors needed.

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