A day passed, and Torifu had already entered the Land of Lightning. Aokumo and Ryūfū carried him, soaring freely in the skies above the Land of Lightning. Things were different now; Torifu was not afraid even if he was discovered. After all, the mission was to kill the Third Raikage. Being discovered would only make the Raikage die a little faster.
Torifu had planned to secretly infiltrate and assassinate him when it was late and quiet at night. Going in broad daylight was too conspicuous and didn't fit the identity and conduct of his profession. But it was only around 9:00 AM now, so he couldn't just sit on Aokumo's back and wait all day. However, he remembered that Konohagakure had a property in the Land of Lightning. With that thought, he had Aokumo and Ryūfū fly toward Hell Valley.
There was no difference from three years ago. The outer area was still barren and desolate, and from time to time, he could still see the skulls of animals, and even some human ones. They might have been some unfortunate adventurers who wandered in. Torifu felt that over the years, there must have been people who reached Hell Valley and went in to explore. But when they found the Konoha ninja garrisoned in the valley, they probably realized why it was called Hell Valley.
As Aokumo and Ryūfū landed in front of Hell Valley, a kunai was instantly pressed against Torifu's throat. Torifu didn't panic and calmly said, "Look who I am." The ninja took a careful look and immediately withdrew the kunai. "Torifu-sama! Why are you here? I'm so sorry for my offense."
Torifu waved his hand. "It's alright. You are diligently protecting this place, so I wouldn't blame you." He continued, "My Sensei sent me on a small mission, but I have to wait until nightfall to make my move, so I came here to rest."
The ninja from the Senju clan immediately smiled. "That's great! We were just worried about the red mist in the valley. It's perfect that you can solve it for us."
"No problem, leave it to me."
"Torifu-sama, my name is Senju Takeshi. I haven't been back to the village for a few months. How is the clan head?"
Torifu walked with him, smiling as he spoke. "Sensei is doing great. He plays with Tsunade every day. Nawaki is also doing well."
Takeshi gave a heartfelt smile upon hearing this. "It's good that everyone is safe."
Torifu nodded. "Don't worry, Sensei is very healthy. Living for eighty or ninety years won't be a problem."
The two walked into Hell Valley. The cave that Hashirama had pierced through was still the same, only the rubble had been cleared away. As they walked in, besides the ninjas bustling inside and out, it was no different from the first time he came. But once they entered the interior, it was a different story. Various mining tunnels and ore carts filled the entire cave. Oyashiro's former sacred land was now covered with houses, albeit simple ones.
When the people saw Torifu arrive, they all swarmed around him. The ninja here were from the Senju clan and the Oyashiro clan, and their relationship with Torifu was very good. Torifu had seen them many times in Konohagakure, so they were no strangers. However, everyone was busy with work, and after chatting with Torifu for a few moments, they all went back to their jobs. Torifu was also relieved; chatting was his least favorite thing to do.
"Oh, right. You just said you wanted me to deal with the red mist. Is something wrong with the Cloud Orb?"
Takeshi nodded. "Please come with me to take a look, Torifu-sama. After all, it's your Ninjutsu; I don't understand it very well."
Torifu didn't decline and immediately got up and followed him to the Cloud Orb. As expected, the Cloud Orb he had left here was already overloaded. Although it could still absorb the red mist, it couldn't purify it completely anymore.
"How long has this been going on?"
Takeshi didn't hide anything and answered truthfully, "About two weeks. We were planning on asking you to take a look the next time we went back to the village, but we didn't expect you to come yourself."
Torifu nodded. Then, he extended his right hand and quickly created a high-speed rotating Cloud Orb. With three years passed, Torifu had become more and more skilled at creating the Cloud Orb. The Cloud Orb slowly rose into the air, absorbing the scattered red mist in the valley, and the air became fresh again. Then, with a gentle wave of his left hand, the previous Cloud Orb flew together into the sky, disappeared into the clouds, and exploded. The impurities inside also scattered in all directions.
"Thank you so much today, Torifu-sama. Otherwise, my brothers would have to work with masks on, which would be much slower than usual." The clan members of the Oyashiro clan had long since recovered, and those who weren't skilled in Ninjutsu came to work here. Although it was hard work, the pay was very high. Almost everyone who came here was because they didn't have much ninja talent, except for ninjas like Takeshi. There were a total of twenty ninjas with similar skills to him, who were mainly responsible for protecting Hell Valley and the safety of the miners. In case of a cave-in or someone wandering in, they could rescue or eliminate them immediately.
Although the living conditions here were a bit poor, it was all for the village and their families. When they thought about that, they didn't feel it was so difficult.
"Torifu-sama, what kind of mission are you here for this time? It's been a long time since we've seen you go on a long trip." Takeshi was sent by Hashirama and was considered a relatively strong ninja among the new generation of the Senju clan. So Torifu didn't need to hide anything; Takeshi would find out anyway once he returned to the village.
"To kill the Third Raikage."
"Huh?" Takeshi was a bit dazed. The Third Raikage? Shouldn't it have been the Second Raikage? And why kill the Raikage? Was the village taking action?
Before Takeshi could ask, Torifu told him the entire story of what had happened, from beginning to end. Takeshi could hardly believe his ears. So much had happened in the few months he had been away from the village! He usually only stayed in Hell Valley or patrolled nearby. This place was very far from Kumogakure, so he couldn't sense any movements from there. What was even more ridiculous was that the war was won with just three people? Torifu-sama alone killed nine thousand ninja and Kumogakure's Kimkaku and Ginkaku? Was he telling him a bedtime story for children? Even storybooks wouldn't be written like this, right?
"So... you mean... the Third Raikage refused to pay reparations and apologize, so Hokage-sama is sending you to kill him?"
Torifu nodded. "To be more precise, it's a beheading."
Only a few words kept repeating in Takeshi's mind: Unbelievable! Unbelievable! Unbelievable! Unbelievable!
Torifu-sama's strength was a bit too ridiculous, wasn't it? If he remembered correctly, he was only twelve years old! Could this be the result of being a disciple taught by Hashirama-sama? But it probably had little to do with Hashirama-sama. After all, he also knew Naori, and her strength was not as terrifying as Torifu's; in fact, she was even a little weaker than him.