Chapter 116: Sakumo Hatake The Elder
Yoru had the three squads continue monitoring the Senju Clan, left the village alone, and carried out the investigation mission.
The target Xinming, a 32-year-old chunin, one of Sakumo Hatake’s followers, older among the followers, always appeared at every gathering.
A ninja who could live to 32 years old might not have strong strength, but their experience was certainly rich.
Sakumo Hatake was famously attentive to companions, sincere with people, and after every mission, he would become friends with everyone in the squad.
He and his friends often gathered, and among civilian ninja and even ninja clan ninja, he had an excellent reputation.
They often went to Sakumo Hatake’s home, and also frequently went to the barbecue restaurant and izakaya together.
In Sakumo Hatake’s view, every friend was worth cherishing, perhaps the next gathering would have to be at the Memorial Monument to see friends.
Arriving at the village entrance, Yoru saw the target squad.
The captain was Special Jonin Sarutobi Senju, 14 years old, the other three were all chunin.
Such a configuration was considered an elite squad in Konoha.
The squad quickly left Konoha, and Yoru followed.
The Land of Rivers war was about to begin, and today quite a few ninja set off from the Konoha Main Gate, heading west.
Yoru followed behind them and soon noticed something odd.
Yoru had worked hard to become a Special Jonin at 17, Sarutobi Senju was promoted to Special Jonin at 14, should be a little genius, but his breathing was more rapid than the other three while traveling.
Yoru put down the telescope, opened the mission scroll in the tree crown where he was hiding, and carefully looked at the target squad’s information.
Sarutobi Senju, completed an extremely difficult capture prisoner mission in the Land of Grass, recommended by Mito Mon’en to become Special Jonin.
In that mission, all remaining squad ninja sacrificed, only he and the prisoner returned to the camp.
It seemed his taijutsu level was average, unknown if he was a ninjutsu-type ninja.
On the roads of the Land of Rivers, there were many civilians migrating with families.
Hearing that war was coming, the Land of Rivers’ people were moving to remote southern areas.
This was the spring plowing period, much land was abandoned, and there would likely be a famine in autumn.
Civilians also had experience; ninja often disguised as civilians to assassinate each other, and when war reached its cruelest stage, civilians would die too.
Sarutobi Senju’s squad crossed the Land of Rivers and entered the desert of the Land of Wind.
Finding an oasis on the Land of Wind border, Sarutobi Senju lay behind a sand dune:
“You three, approach the oasis from three directions, investigate the intelligence inside the oasis!”
The three chunin looked at each other; Xinming, as the oldest ninja, tried to offer an opinion:
“Captain, the oasis has freshwater, it’s a natural supply base, with the strictest defenses.
Shouldn’t we proceed step by step, slowly investigate the intelligence?
First investigate the Sand Ninja transport squads entering and leaving the oasis, from the types of supplies they transport.
For example, based on the number of puppet joint steering mechanisms, we can roughly estimate how many puppet masters are deployed to the battlefield.”
Sarutobi Senju’s expression changed, and he said: “Are you trying to defy orders?”
Defying orders and refusing missions was a serious crime in Konoha, severe cases could result in direct execution.
From afar, Yoru saw through the telescope that Xinming and the other two chunin dispersing to infiltrate, and was extremely shocked.
Wasn’t this suicide?
Who formulated this tactic?
Three team members splitting in three directions to directly infiltrate the oasis?
From the telescope, there were over a hundred Sand Ninja in the oasis.
Soon, the three chunin encountered danger.
Squad leader Sarutobi Senju stayed steadily lying far away, as if unwilling to miss any details.
In Konoha’s system, when the captain didn’t act humanely, team members died easily.
Yoru pondered from afar, whether to help Xinming.
Whether to help Xinming or not hinged on whether Sakumo Hatake had investment value.
After this period of investigation, Yoru confirmed Sakumo Hatake had a spotless reputation and treated those around him very well.
Precisely because he valued companions, a group centered on him formed around him, but he was completely unaware of the danger in this behavior.
High-ranking officials weren’t afraid of scattered civilian ninja, but feared civilian ninja organizing and uniting.
An atomized village was the easiest to control.
Disobedient ninja clans and civilian ninja groups were prime targets for high-ranking officials’ crackdowns.
What Sakumo Hatake lacked was someone who could shield him from the darkness.
Yoru thought repeatedly, grabbing handful after handful of sand.
Without being humble, Yoru walking in the darkness was also part of Konoha’s dark side.
He was plenty dark, perfectly suited to shield Sakumo Hatake from the darkness.
Sakumo Hatake in the light, Yoru in the dark, plus the Senju Clan’s prestige, such a combination was enough to give high-ranking officials headaches.
Yoru even thought that one day in the future, he would design a “it’s cold, put on some clothes” play for Sakumo Hatake.
Sakumo Hatake clutching the Hokage Robe in his left hand, the Hokage Hat in his right, guiltily saying you really made things hard for me.
Hatake Zhaoda was worth investing in.
Pairing Sakumo Hatake one in light one in dark, one high one fast, would be one of Yoru’s future arrangements.
After making the decision, Yoru quickly got up and chased after them.
As an Anbu, Yoru rashly approaching Sakumo Hatake, Sakumo Hatake wouldn’t and wouldn’t dare trust him.
Try to save Xinming, pass the signal through Xinming, gradually build trust with Sakumo Hatake.
Three teams rushed out from the oasis, the three Leaf Ninja surrounded by Sand Ninja.
The three Leaf Ninja in three directions, unaware of each other’s situations, but tacitly sped up, wanting to probe more intelligence on the oasis Sand Ninja troops.
Xinming glanced at the direction where Captain Sarutobi was hiding, hoping his death would have meaning.
Yoru sighed from afar; such good subordinates given to Sarutobi Senju was simply a waste, cruel.
Three Sand Ninja blocked in front of Xinming.
“Wind Release: Fierce Wind Palm!”
Mad winds appeared in the three’s hands; the mad winds didn’t directly attack the Leaf Ninja, but rushed toward the sand on the ground.
Instantly, yellow sand rolled on the ground.
Xinming’s line of sight was obscured, seeing nothing.
He dodged to the left regardless, wanting to jump out of the dust.
Just as he rushed out of the dust, he saw a crocodile puppet waiting at his side.
The crocodile opened its mouth, full of steel needles about to launch.
The tips of the steel needles gleamed with black-purple poison.
Mechanism sounds rang out!
At the critical moment, an Earth Spear pierced the ground, impaling the crocodile puppet’s upper and lower jaws together!
Xinming turned back and saw an Anbu wearing a fox mask.
Was it Konoha Anbu?
An iron ball connected to steel wire flew over, wrapped around Xinming’s waist, instantly pulling him backward.
Xinming flew close to the ground, flew dozens of meters, hadn’t reached the Anbu ninja yet, suddenly fell into the sand.
He quickly got up and looked back, seeing four puppets appear around the Fox Anbu.
These puppets varied in form, some humanoid puppets, some beast puppets.
Humanoid puppets’ action logic was similar to humans, somewhat predictable; beast puppets were hardest to deal with, their hidden weapons concealed oddly.
Xinming saw the Fox Anbu weaving through the four puppets.
After jumping out of the puppets’ encirclement, the Fox Anbu formed hand seals.
“Water Style: Water Severing Wave!”
A high-speed water line suddenly sprayed out, sweeping horizontally in the air, slicing all four puppets at once.
The air was full of halved puppet parts, kunai and steel needles from the puppet mechanisms spilling out.
Xinming was dumbfounded; such terrifying puppets were shredded?
Yoru threw two kunai to the side, forcing out the puppet master hidden in the sand.
The two puppet masters had just jumped up when they saw the shooting water line.
The two puppet masters were bisected at the waist, yellow powdery intestines falling onto the sand like tempura coated in breadcrumbs.
The newly learned Water Style: Water Severing Wave had extremely strong lethality, elevating Yoru’s combat power to another level.
After killing the pursuing Sand Ninja, ensuring no one saw him come, Yoru shouted: “Follow me!”
Xinming hurriedly followed.
