Chapter 9: Kakashi Encounters Kamui Ahead of Schedule
"No wonder we were chosen for this mission; I didn't expect the two sides to be from Kirigakure and Konoha respectively."
The next day, after setting off, Hoshigaki Kisame sensed chakra fluctuations ahead in the forest. It seemed like a battle was underway. He used Water Release to infiltrate and investigate, then returned to report to the others.
"Itachi, your younger brother seems to be among them," Kisame added.
"Sasuke?" Uchiha Itachi looked at Shiromo.
Itachi guessed that Shiromo might have known beforehand they'd encounter Sasuke, which was why he had said those things earlier. The reason Shiromo had kept Itachi and Kisame out of the Akatsuki meeting recently was to have them gather intelligence on Konoha.
Itachi went back to check and saw Sasuke, who had already graduated and become a genin. What he hadn't expected was that Sasuke, who had only recently become a genin, would be assigned a mission of this caliber.
Itachi had, of course, considered pushing Sasuke to grow stronger, not treating him like a hothouse flower. But he also knew that too much of a good thing could be harmful, especially when it came to life-and-death situations.
According to Kisame, two chunin had already appeared at the start of the mission, clearly indicating it was a B-rank mission. There was a high chance that more enemies, possibly even jonin-level, would follow, raising the difficulty to an A-rank mission.
Genin on an A-rank mission?
The opposing jōnin wouldn't hold back. That would truly be a life-or-death battle.
The only good news was that Kisame recognized their team leader, Hatake Kakashi. With him around, at least their safety was largely guaranteed.
Kisame thought to himself, 'With Hatake Kakashi there, Uchiha Sasuke shouldn't be in danger. Should we follow them, or bypass them and go directly to the Land of Waves?'
"Do you really trust the ninja world's celebrity, Hatake Kakashi, that much?" Shiromo countered.
"...When I was still in Konoha, I did a mission with Kakashi in the Anbu. His strength is considerable," Itachi replied, puzzled by Shiromo's statement.
"How about this," Shiromo suggested. "We split into two groups. Itachi, you go to the Land of Waves first, meet the mission target, and gather intelligence. Kisame and I will stay here and follow them."
Shiromo didn't explain further.
"...Okay, but with Hatake Kakashi's strength and experience, you'll have a hard time tracking him without being detected," Itachi warned.
"Who said we were going to hide and follow him? Kisame, let's go."
Shiromo waved to Kisame and started walking.
"Huh?" Kisame was stunned for a moment, then looked at Itachi, only to find that Itachi had already turned into a crow and left. Kisame quickly followed Shiromo.
---
Kakashi's Team (Team 7).
After an episodic battle, Uzumaki Naruto, unable to move from fear, had just pierced his palm with a kunai, vowing to change. Kakashi reminded him that if he didn't stop the bleeding, he would die. Naruto immediately cried out for help.
It was a lighthearted moment, and everyone relaxed. But the next second, Kakashi's smiling eyes instantly turned serious as he looked toward the figure appearing in the direction of the woods.
Two figures, one in front, one behind.
Kakashi didn't recognize the young man in front, but the figure behind…
A rogue ninja from Kirigakure, a scar on his forehead, and a large sword on his back...
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist?
Kakashi immediately recalled the two Chunin brothers, the Demon Brothers, whom they had just defeated were also rogue ninjas from Kirigakure.
"Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, you guys…"
"They're enemies, right? Kakashi-sensei, I'll go!"
Before Kakashi could finish speaking, Naruto, who had just made his vow, decided to immediately fulfill it and charged toward Shiromo without hesitation.
"Idiot Naruto!"
Seeing this, Sasuke had no choice but to throw shuriken to block Kisame's path, hoping to prevent Naruto from facing two opponents at once, especially the one in the back who seemed much stronger.
Kakashi acted immediately.
Facing the Jonin-level Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Kakashi couldn't afford to leisurely read Icha Icha Series while teaching them, as he had with the Demon Brothers.
Kakashi's target was Shiromo.
With just one glance, Kakashi realized that Shiromo, regardless of strength, was definitely superior to the swordsman behind him.
Controlling the one in front was the best option to ensure Naruto's safety. That was the optimal choice.
However…
Naruto slid in and landed on the ground, looking bewildered.
Kakashi appeared where Shiromo had been, holding a kunai, but there was no sign of Shiromo.
Where did he go?
"Kisame, look! I told you guys had too much trust in ninja world influencers. He can't even tell friend from foe before attacking."
Shiromo's voice came from the other side.
Naruto and Kakashi looked over and saw that Shiromo had somehow appeared beside Tazuna, their target for this mission.
Sakura was the only one guarding Tazuna, and she was stunned by Shiromo's sudden appearance.
Sakura was about to raise her fist to attack, but Shiromo grabbed her wrist, rendering her immobile.
"You mean, you have no hostility toward us?" Kakashi's expression turned completely serious.
Even after he came to his senses, he couldn't figure out how Shiromo had appeared behind them.
Substitutes and clones leave traces.
But Shiromo's disappearance and appearance left no trace, no physical trace, and not even a trace in his memory.
Kakashi realized that he didn't even remember when Shiromo had disappeared.
So, after hearing what Shiromo said, Kakashi immediately decided to go along with it, to calm things down first.
"That's right. One of our mission objectives is to ensure that this bridge builder can reach the Land of Waves."
Shiromo released Sakura's wrist and pointed to Tazuna beside him.
"Tazuna-san, you not only concealed the difficulty of the mission, but you also issued the same mission to multiple parties?!"
Kakashi turned his gaze to Tazuna, his tone full of dissatisfaction.
After they dealt with the Demon Brothers, they had asked Tazuna why he had concealed the mission's difficulty. The mission they had accepted was a C-rank, originally assigned to these genin because a Jonin was leading the team. But unexpectedly, a ninja appeared during the mission, turning it into a B-rank.
Tazuna's reason was that they were too poor to afford the bounty for a B-rank mission.
But now, another group of people had appeared, ready to take on the mission.
That's what being poor means? Not being able to afford it?
Tazuna was dumbfounded. Even though he had lied and used moral blackmail, he genuinely didn't know anything about this.
He was about to explain when his eyes lit up. He quickly changed his story: "I really didn't know anything about this. Maybe the other people in the village were worried that a C-rank genin wouldn't be able to protect me, so they sold some other things and hired them..."
"Waaah, we're so miserable."
Tazuna started crying, tears streaming down his face.
Clearly, the old man had figured out that those genin were easily manipulated and was preparing to use the same trick again.
(End of this chapter)