After a long day on the road, the group of four finally reached a village. This one was relatively prosperous—after all, bandits didn't target poor villages. They weren't foolish; even if they stripped the poor bare, how much could they really gain?
However, the villagers looked terrible. Full of anxiety and fear, they clearly felt helpless against the bandits and were slowly sinking into despair.
A few sharp-eyed villagers spotted Shinku Yuhi leading Shiyu Uchiha and the others nearby. At first surprised, they quickly became overjoyed—the reputation of Konoha ninjas in the Land of Fire remained strong.
"It's the Konoha ninja lords! The ninja lords have arrived—we're saved!" the villagers cried happily as they rushed toward the group. Two of them even ran straight into the village to inform the village headman.
Seeing the villagers come to greet them, Shiyu Uchiha stepped forward under Shinku Yuhi's silent signal, facing the crowd's hopeful eyes.
He spoke, "We're a Konoha ninja team. We've come about your bandit problem. Who can fill us in?"
"Noble ninja lords, please enter the village first. Someone has already gone for the village headman—he'll explain everything shortly," replied a particularly strong-looking villager.
Shiyu Uchiha glanced back at Shinku Yuhi, who showed no objection, then said, "Fine. We'll enter the village first."
They entered behind the villagers just as an elderly man, flanked by several younger men, approached them. Shiyu guessed this must be the village headman.
"Greetings, noble ninja lords. I am the village headman. Thank you for making the long journey to help our village. Please allow us to offer some refreshments first—what do you think?" He finished nervously, watching their expressions. After all, these four were their only hope.
"No need. We came on official business and must complete our mission immediately. Give us all the intelligence you have on the bandits—we don't have time to waste," Shiyu Uchiha said bluntly, leaving no room for discussion.
Though taken aback by the cold tone, the village headman did not grow angry—in fact, he seemed pleased. Still, he invited the four to sit down before beginning his account.
There wasn't much to tell. About two months ago, a gang of unknown bandits suddenly appeared, including a few wandering samurai among their ranks.
They began demanding protection money from nearby villages, killing anyone who resisted during collections, and even abducted several young girls from the village.
As he recounted this part, the old man shed a few tears—one of the kidnapped girls was his granddaughter. Hearing that, Gekko Ryo's anger flared, but Izuno Hiroshi quickly stepped in and calmed her down.
The village headman sent a plea for help to the town, which was eventually escalated to the Daimyo. With bandits appearing in various regions recently, affecting the economy of the Land of Fire, the Daimyo directly issued a group mission to Konoha Village, determining the mission rank according to the severity of the bandit situation.
After listening to his explanation, Shiyu Uchiha raised several questions of personal concern, but the answers were somewhat unsatisfactory. However, this was already the limit of the village headman's capacity, so Shiyu didn't press him further.
At the same time, Shiyu Uchiha nodded to his team members to see if they had any issues, but both of them shook their heads. Finally, he reported to Shinku Yuhi for authorization before the four of them set out in search of the bandits.
After the four departed, a strong and young villager approached the village headman, speaking with a hint of anger: "Village Head, we paid so much money, yet Konoha only sent over a few kids! That's completely unreasonable!"
"Unreasonable? Where's the injustice here? Didn't you see their forehead protectors? At the very least, they're certified Genin ninjas. And that team leader isn't a simple person at all. What are you worried about? Furthermore, I don't want to hear such words from your mouth again—understood? You must show respect to the ninja."
After the village headman finished speaking, the villager broke into a cold sweat. He knew he had said the wrong thing. Ordinary civilians like himself couldn't afford to criticize ninja—it might even cost him his life if someone overheard, and there would be nowhere to appeal. So he hurriedly nodded in agreement.
In a corner unseen by the two men, a calico cat flashed away and disappeared.
Shortly after, Xiao Sa caught up with Shiyu Uchiha and informed him of the information she'd gathered within her own village. Shiyu found it mostly consistent with what the village headman had described. As for that one minor slight, he hadn't even taken notice.
Not long afterward, the three of them pinpointed the bandits' hideout and took up stealth positions nearby. As for Shinku Yuhi, no one could tell where he had gone—he had handed the mission entirely over to the trio without intending to act personally.
Thus, the trio led by Shiyu Uchiha felt somewhat confused. This was their first field assignment. Although they had studied various techniques at the Ninja Academy, practical experience was something entirely new. Originally, they had assumed Shinku Yuhi would assist them—but now they had no choice but to handle it on their own.
Therefore, Shiyu Uchiha then initiated a tactical discussion with his two teammates: "Hiroshi, Ryo, do either of you have any ideas? Let's talk it through."
Gekko Ryo spoke first, his expression filled with killing intent: "We kill all the bandits, then rescue the girls."
Izuno Hiroshi didn't oppose Gekko Ryo's suggestion, but he did ask: "Do you have a specific plan, Ryo? I think we currently lack understanding of them—we should gather intelligence first."
Gekko Ryo hadn't thought much about it initially, but upon hearing Izuno Hiroshi's question, he became slightly embarrassed and pretended to be thinking deeply.
"Well... How about we wait until nightfall before scouting for information?" After pondering for a while without any better ideas, Gekko Ryo proposed an ordinary suggestion.
"I agree as well. Since this is our first mission, we should proceed cautiously. Also, to prevent the bandits from harming those girls, we must execute a perfect killing strike." Shiyu Uchiha added. Izuno Hiroshi also nodded in agreement.
The three of them began preparing for their nighttime operation.
By midnight, Shiyu Uchiha let Saya take the lead. She's a pro at this kind of thing, after all. Thanks to her training, she could see just as well at night as she could during the day, which made her perfect for this kind of job.
Shiyu Uchiha followed closely behind her, while Izuno Hiroshi and Gekko Ryo stayed ready to provide backup support.
As Uchiha Shiyu and Saya advanced deeper into the bandits' territory, they roughly figured out how many bandits there were. However, they couldn't yet estimate their strength—they didn't possess Sensor Ninjutsu skills after all. Still, they did locate the captured women.
There were far more female prisoners than the Village Headman had described. Seemed like they'd taken women from a few other villages too. The captives' plight was terrible, fueling Shiyu's anger and intensifying his urge to kill.
Once he gathered all the information he needed, Uchiha Shiyu slipped away with Saya. Seeing how the bandits were still drunk and their guard was down, he even briefly considered launching an immediate attack.
But this wasn't something he could decide alone—he needed to consult with his two teammates first.
Upon rejoining his backup team, Shiyu Uchiha first reported his findings and then presented his proposal.
"There are 23 bandits total—3 guarding tonight, the remaining 20 include ordinary thugs who pose little threat. They are housed two per room. Among them, two are samurai.
But the two aren't sharing a room—one stays alone, and the other is staying with several women.
We can start by silently eliminating the three guards on watch duty, then sneak-attack the lone samurai, preferably killing him outright.
Afterward, we'll divide into two groups—you two will handle the ordinary thugs, while I and Saya go after the remaining samurai. What do you think?"
Hiroshi asked a few questions about Shiyu's plan before agreeing with it. Naturally, Gekko Ryo had no objections either. The quicker we get rid of them, the better.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
Want to read the subsequent content in advance?
Please follow my Patreon:patreon/Tansnovel
Tans Novel - The Fastest-Updating Naruto Fanfiction Account
Read 100+ chapters in advance, with at least 3 new chapters updated every day! More free chapters! 20+ Naruto fanfictions!
Just three steps:
1. Download and open the "Patreon" app
2. Search for "Tans Novel"
3. Click on the collection and enjoy to your heart's content
<><><><><><><><>