After the tsunami, the once vast sea was a mess.
The surface of the sea was littered with dense fragments of ships, as well as the bodies of Suna ninjas and members of the Sea Serpent Gang.
High in the sky, Shinji looked at the scene below, his perception fully open to its maximum range.
"Did you find him? Mimi?" After a long while, Shinji shook his head and asked Mimi, who was beneath his feet.
"Not yet. I think he should be dead." Mimi closed his eyes, perceiving, and said to Shinji.
"If he is, that would be fine, but I have a feeling this guy isn't dead." Shinji shook his head and said.
Adhesive Steel Release, this Kekkei Genkai, was practically his home field in the sea.
As long as that guy abandoned his subordinates and used his Kekkei Genkai to create a submarine to encase himself, he could survive the tsunami.
"I have to say, your intuition is spot on."
The next moment, Mimi's eyes flashed with a hint of exasperation, and he rushed towards a certain location.
On the surface of the sea, a cocoon-like object was drifting with the seawater.
Shinji jumped down from Mimi's head. His perception confirmed that this cocoon-like object indeed contained a person. It's just that he seemed to have passed out.
Without hesitation, Shinji stepped forward and punched open the object.
Inside, Kijo, whose face bore hideous burn scars, lay within. Due to the tsunami, he likely couldn't maintain balance inside and fainted.
Shinji reached out and pressed on Kijo's head, and a black thread formed a seal.
"Alright, this way his Kekkei Genkai won't be able to activate." Shinji said.
Then, he suddenly grabbed the opening he had just broken and tossed the entire steel-like cocoon towards Mimi's head, while he himself leaped onto Mimi's forehead.
"Let's go, we need to rendezvous with Choza."
—
As the first rays of sun rose, Choza sat slumped on the beach, panting heavily.
Looking at the debris and some bodies continuously washed ashore by the waves, he couldn't help but shake his head.
"This destructive power is even more exaggerated than Tsunade-sama."
"Choza-senpai!" From above, Shinji's voice sounded.
Choza squinted his eyes to look. A huge cocoon-like object smashed onto the beach near him.
"What is this?" Choza got up and asked in confusion.
"That Adhesive Steel Release Kekkei Genkai user." Shinji replied, landing steadily.
"Choza-senpai, do we have any injured people here?"
"No problem, it's enough that we caught this person. I've already arranged for Medical Ninja to treat the injured."
Choza naturally knew what Shinji was asking when he heard this, and waved his hand to indicate there was no need to worry.
"If my Chakra hadn't recovered yet, I would have already gone to find you."
Shinji nodded, looking at the still unconscious Kijo, and said, "This person, do we need to arrange for someone to take him back?"
"Hmm, it's definitely necessary, but we need to have the Sealing Corps come over first." Choza crossed his arms, nodding while observing this Kekkei Genkai user.
After several days and nights, the hundreds of ninjas who had been traveling within the Land of Rivers finally rested for a few hours on the coastal shores. The ninjas sent by the village for the handover also finally arrived.
However, Shinji hadn't expected that the team leader would actually be Asuma.
Before leaving the village, Asuma was still stationed in Moon Ring Gorge.
"Choza, you will lead them back to the village now." Asuma said, looking at the nearly half-injured people on the beach.
"No problem." Choza nodded.
Then, he looked at Shinji beside him, and couldn't help but say, "Shinji, take care of yourself from now on."
"No problem, Choza-senpai." Shinji nodded and said.
Watching Choza lead the team back to Konoha, Shinji looked at Asuma beside him and said, "Old Asu."
"Get lost! Don't always call me that!" Asuma, who had just lit a cigarette, rolled his eyes at the address and kicked towards Shinji.
Shinji lightly jumped, smiling as he dodged.
"Alright, although the old man also really wants you to go back and rest, it seems your and Choza's actions have caused pain to Sunagakure."
"Before I left the village, the Suna ninja army was already close to the border of the Land of Rivers. Kakashi has already gone to resist."
Asuma paused here.
"What the old man means is, since the Suna ninjas are so eager to cause trouble, then let's squeeze them good and hard."
Shinji raised an eyebrow, thinking of Kijo who had been taken back.
"I think they are probably worried about the transported supplies. Kijo's Kekkei Genkai allows him to dive."
"Perhaps the place where the supplies are stored should be in some uninhabited area. Even if there are Suna ninjas guarding it, it's probably impossible to get in or out without Kijo leading the way."
Asuma paused, and the more he thought about it, the more he felt it made sense. He quickly walked over to a nearby communications officer and connected to the village.
After a while, Asuma walked back over.
"Heh. The old man said that once Choza returns to the village, he will interrogate this Kijo as soon as possible." Asuma said with a mischievous expression, looking in a very good mood.
Shinji, however, raised his eyebrows. Kijo's capture meant that the Sunagakure's situation would become even more difficult.
As for Choza, who was escorting Kijo back, the two tacitly avoided mentioning him.
If Sunagakure really dared to hijack him, not to mention whether they could pass through so many lines of defense, Choza would also let these Suna ninjas know the renown of the Akimichi clan.
"Alright, now we're going to the battlefield. Do you have confidence?" Asuma looked at Shinji in front of him, lighting another cigarette as he asked.
"Confidence?"
Shinji twitched his lips. Hearing Asuma's words, it sounded like Asuma was saying going to the battlefield was very easy for him.
"I don't have that kind of mindset. Even famous ninjas can die on the battlefield. Everything will follow Kakashi's arrangements."
Hearing Shinji's words, Asuma then chuckled and said, "Before coming here, I was actually really worried that you might have some bad ideas."
"After all, it's been almost ten years since the Third Great Ninja War, and you are very young. I was just afraid you would get carried away on the battlefield. It seems I overthought it. It's best that you think this way."
Asuma reached out and patted Shinji's shoulder. Although his relationship with Hiruzen was average, he didn't want to see his old man lose such a disciple.
And he was also consciously nurturing him as a candidate for the next Hokage. Otherwise, Hiruzen would not entrust the position of Academy Vice Principal to anyone else, even if that person was his own disciple.
Shinji had no dissatisfaction, after all, Asuma was concerned about him.
"Don't worry, but old Asu, aren't you smoking a bit too frequently?"
Shinji watched Asuma light another cigarette. In just this short while, he had already smoked three.
"Little brat, leave me alone." Asuma retorted grumpily when Shinji called him that again.
"Tsk, it seems I'll have to chat with Kurenai sometime." Shinji glanced at Asuma and said.