Evening.
Seeing that it was almost time, Shinji packed up and put on his Anbu uniform, grabbing the fox mask beside him.
He flipped out of his window and headed straight for the village gate.
Watching the gradually rising moon become shrouded by dark clouds, he began to ponder his mission for the night.
Dark moon, high winds, a night for murder.
He guessed it was probably to let him see some blood, after all, in the two years he was a Chunin before becoming a teacher, he had only ever carried out one B-rank mission at most. Most of the others were C-rank escort missions.
Ninja themselves exist as killers, and Anbu even more so.
The first rule is to protect the Hokage's safety and prevent foreign enemies from invading Konoha.
The second is reconnaissance, assassination missions, and dealing with matters that cannot be made public. For example, eliminating people who threaten the village's safety, or dirty work like destroying bodies and traces.
In short, ninjas must see blood, and Anbu are particularly prominent in that regard.
Seeing that he was nearing the village gate, Shinji stopped abruptly and stood silently on a rooftop, waiting. He looked around, but Kakashi was nowhere in sight. He hoped that he wasn't mourning his 'dead' friends. If that were the case, he would have a long wait.
After a while, Shinji suddenly heard a slight movement. He turned his head to look in the distance, only to see a head of white hair that was particularly striking.
Seeing that Shinji had spotted him, Kakashi waved at him and then sped towards the gate. Shinji quickly followed.
As they approached the gate, the previously closed gate swung open.
Kakashi, who was in front of Shinji, threw a kunai at the registration wooden board hanging above.
The two guards at the gate seemed accustomed to it, and took the travel report from the wooden board. They didn't even look at Kakashi and Shinji, who were dressed in Anbu uniforms, and let them pass directly.
Is Kakashi that flashy?
And, does Anbu have such benefits?
Shinji just glanced lightly and followed Kakashi out of the village.
After leaving the village, seeing that Kakashi showed signs of slowing down, Shinji quickly caught up.
Seeing Kakashi still on the move, Shinji spoke first, asking, "Captain, what mission are we on?"
Because Kakashi was wearing a mask, his expression was not visible. He just said faintly, "The target is a bandit stronghold on the border of the Land of Fire, adjacent to the Land of Rice Fields."
"It has been very active recently, and the villages around the stronghold have been plundered, with many children being abducted."
"So far, there is enough evidence to suggest that this stronghold is involved in smuggling and trafficking."
"Therefore, Hokage-sama ordered the entire stronghold to be purged, and then to thoroughly investigate who they are connected with."
Shinji blinked under his mask.
Purging is purging, why make it sound so official?
Shinji asked, "Then what is my mission?"
Kakashi answered, "The Anbu members of Squad Six have already gone ahead to ambush, so your assessment mission is to single-handedly eliminate all the bandits in the stronghold, leaving only the leader."
When he said this, Kakashi's tone had no fluctuation, as if the lives of these people were insignificant in his eyes.
"Okay."
Shinji didn't ask further and agreed.
As for who these bandits were connected with behind the scenes, that was the captain Kakashi's business. This was not something he should consider.
To make it back for class on Monday, he could only travel at full speed.
Thinking of this, Shinji's pace quickened. He was no longer the same as a month ago. Now, even if he traveled at full speed, he would have enough stamina and Chakra left upon arrival.
Kakashi, who was beside him, noticed his pace quicken, and his brows furrowed slightly under his mask. He had wanted to remind him to pay attention to his stamina, but after thinking about it, he didn't speak.
Just like that, the two traveled quickly towards their destination without any communication.
— — —
Deep in the mountains, a bandit stronghold was in full revelry.
The leader of the stronghold was a burly man with a scar over his right eye. At this moment, he was sitting imposingly in the main seat, watching his subordinates revel freely, and he too burst into laughter.
Grinning to reveal a mouth full of yellow teeth, he raised the cup in his hand and shouted loudly, "Everyone, we've got another big job coming up, so this feast is a celebration."
"Drink up!"
"Yes! Boss!"
"The boss is still the most generous!"
The bandits, already tipsy, were even more delighted to hear this. After all, tonight's feast was one of the best they'd had in months, and if they pulled off another big job in a few days, wouldn't that mean they could feast again?
In a corner, an old man with a pipe frowned. He didn't know who his boss had gotten involved with recently. After that, he started plundering several nearby villages, even abducting children that he usually wouldn't bother with.
Then, the next day, he never saw those children again. He had asked his boss, but he had vaguely brushed it off, saying they were sent back.
But he knew what kind of person his boss was. He wouldn't even look twice at something that wasn't beneficial to him. He had asked the people in the stronghold about the children. Almost all of them said they didn't know about it. So, it was almost sure that his boss was lying.
Thinking of this, the old man with the pipe stood up and loudly suggested to the burly man in the main seat, "Boss, I think we should observe first. After all, things have been too high-profile recently, I'm afraid it might attract attention."
The previously reveling stronghold fell silent.
The old man was the strategist of the previous leader, and although this current leader had taken over after killing the previous one, he had spared the old man's life, as he was the only intelligent person in the stronghold.
"Noisy!"
The leader threw the cup in his hand, and stood up. The scar on his right eye appeared slightly ferocious as he stared intently at the old man, saying, "I spared your life because you have some skill. But now you want to stop me from getting rich? Believe it or not, I'll chop you up."
The boss roared at the old man disrespectfully. The surrounding pack of wolves, upon hearing they couldn't get rich, glared at him as if they wanted to bite a piece out of him.
The old man forced himself to say, "Hmph, whether you listen or not is up to you, I won't bother with it anymore."
Then, he ran out in a panic.
The remaining people looked at each other, only to see the burly man in the main seat embrace the woman sitting next to him and shout loudly, "What are you standing around for? Keep the music playing, keep dancing!"
Hearing this, the entire hall became lively again.
The scarred burly man kneaded a spherical object with one hand and held a wine cup with the other. He looked towards the direction the old man had gone, a sinister smile on his lips.
If he doesn't listen, then kill him!