Chapter 115: Another Art Photo Shoot
January 8th, Year 61 of Konoha.
An invisible barrier suddenly rose around Izayoi's new home, blocking all outsiders from entering and severing all forms of detection.
Click! Click...
"I... Izayoi-kun, is this alright?"
On the veranda of the traditional building, the sound of the shutter being pressed continued to ring out, mixed with the shy voice of a young girl.
"Just a moment, Hinata, bear with me a little longer. Let me try another angle... slurp."
Izayoi called out excitedly, and at the end, there seemed to be the sound of someone swallowing saliva.
There was no helping it; Hinata at this moment was simply too alluring.
Currently, Hinata was wearing a gossamer-thin, transparent long dress that Izayoi had specially tailored for her. The top was a short-sleeved white shirt, and the bottom was a pair of split-leg culottes in a light blue color. It not only showcased her figure perfectly but also exuded a hazy, veiled beauty.
Moreover, Hinata's current pose was dealing critical damage to Izayoi, its destructive power immense.
Hinata was supporting herself with her hands on the ground, in a handstand position. Her legs were drawn back like a drawn bow, and she was looking upwards. A single red arrow was held between her cherry-colored lips.
Indeed, Hinata had once again been coaxed by Izayoi into posing for artistic photographs.
She had originally been wearing her shrine maiden outfit, practicing archery on the veranda, when Izayoi had suddenly appeared out of nowhere with a camera and started taking pictures of her.
Taking pictures was fine, but as they continued, Hinata somehow agreed to Izayoi's request to change into this outfit, which, while not revealing, was even more embarrassing than her Pikachu and Squirtle T-shirts. She was then directed by Izayoi to strike this pose that made his brain work even faster.
"...Finished!"
After what felt like a long time, Hinata finally heard a relieved sigh. She quickly lowered her legs, ready to go inside and change back into her clothes.
"Hinata, wait..."
At this moment, Izayoi suddenly called out to Hinata, then produced a sword from who knows where, and smiled. "Let's take a few more pictures. We just did archery; now it's sword dancing."
"T...this is the last time," Hinata said, her face flushed crimson, still unable to refuse Izayoi's request.
"Okay."
Immediately, Hinata began to dance with the long sword in the garden. At Izayoi's urging, she tried her best to calm her emotions, adopting a cold and beautiful expression, her eyes filled with sharp intensity.
If she were wearing a long robe, Hinata at this moment would have resembled a sharp-witted, noble young lady from a prestigious swordsmanship family.
However, the gossamer-thin, transparent long dress gave Hinata a pure yet seductive allure, a contrasting beauty that Izayoi found almost unbearable.
Izayoi, frantically pressing the shutter button, suddenly regretted choosing the Tenseigan route instead of the Sharingan and Rinnegan routes with their exclusive dojutsu.
If he had chosen the Sharingan route, his Mind's Eye Reflection technique would definitely be related to time and would even allow him to travel to the future.
Even though the previous ten years had felt very short, Izayoi felt that this second decade was passing incredibly slowly.
After taking nearly an entire roll of film, just as Izayoi was about to conclude the artistic photoshoot,
Hinata, who had already suppressed her shyness, suddenly created a Shadow Clone, which snatched the camera. The original Hinata then pulled Izayoi in, engaging him in a sword fight.
Seeing Hinata offering such a delightful opportunity, Izayoi naturally accepted without hesitation.
Taking out another sharp long sword, Izayoi, during their playful duel, used his sword to create a series of tears in Hinata's clothes. The veiled beauty became even more pronounced, almost causing Hinata's Shadow Clone to self-destruct out of embarrassment.
But fortunately, this wasn't Hinata's first artistic photoshoot.
Compared to the awkwardness of the first time, this time was significantly better, well within acceptable limits.
Moreover, Izayoi was now her boyfriend.
When they went out shopping, Hinata no longer needed to hide their relationship. She could openly hold Izayoi's arm, even share the same food.
Fulfilling her boyfriend's little hobbies was the duty of a girlfriend.
Especially since Hanabi had started school again, Karin had to go to the Hokage Building every day to help and train, and Uchiha Sasuke was obsessed with training and showing off his strength (posing), there was no one to compete with her for Izayoi-kun. Hinata was also very much enjoying this sense of intimacy.
After working up a sweat, the two went swimming and soaked in the hot springs, then played basketball in the indoor court wearing their tracksuits.
After a few manly displays, Izayoi showed off a two-handed dribble through a full-court press, followed by a free-throw line dunk that ripped the hoop right off the backboard.
The next day, Izayoi took Hinata, both wearing snowman outfits, and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to teleport to the Land of Iron for skiing.
When they got tired of skiing, they had a snowball fight. Izayoi gave Hinata a handicap by letting her use her Byakugan, but he almost capsized in the gutter, getting a face full of snow.
'Embarrassed into anger,' Izayoi directly tackled Hinata, and the two rolled down the slope together, turning into a giant snowball before 'fighting' with each other, nearly causing an avalanche.
Unfortunately, this blissful life didn't last more than a few days. Izayoi and Hinata, the lazy duo, were sanctioned by Tsunade.
"Izayoi-kun, Hinata, Tsunade-sensei wants you to go to the Hokage's office. Shizune-nee has already gone to inform Shino."
At Karin's notification, Team Eight finally reunited after more than two months.
Looking at Izayoi and Hinata, who weren't wearing their green vests and had lost all semblance of ninja demeanor, Aburame Shino couldn't help but remark毒舌ly, "I thought you two had retired."
Since Tsunade had become the Fifth Hokage, the other teams had been frantically carrying out missions.
When they happened to all have free time, the Konoha 11 would come to Izayoi's house for dinner and share their mission experiences.
Team Seven's experiences were the most exciting. They had not only encountered a rogue ninja wielding the Sword of the Thunder God in the Land of Tea but also helped Princess Koyuki Kazahana, who was disguised as the famous actress Yukie Fujikaze, reclaim her country in the Land of Snow.
Although Team Six and Team Ten's mission experiences weren't as thrilling as Team Seven's, they had encountered bandits and rogue ninjas, even ninjas from small villages, adding several C-rank and B-rank mission records to their resumes.
On the other hand, Team Eight hadn't moved at all since adding two C-rank missions and one A-rank mission record in October.
Aburame Shino, who had been staying at home for more than two months, almost thought he had retired at a young age.
Or... had those two guys actually forgotten about him and secretly used their Chunin privileges to go on missions? Shino had succumbed to this thought more than once. Actually, becoming an Inuzuka wouldn't be so bad.
He really wanted to go on missions! As if sensing Shino's resentment, Izayoi and Hinata couldn't help but smile awkwardly. They really did feel a bit sorry for him.
Izayoi even patted his chest and assured him, "Don't worry, Shino. I'll definitely help you rack up enough achievements so you can smoothly participate in the Chunin Exams in the first half of the year."
Even if his laziness flared up, he could just do what he did during Hinata's pregnancy scare – play two roles at once, letting his Wood Clones replace him and Hinata to take Shino on missions.
With the realism of his Wood Clones, Shino definitely wouldn't realize they were clones, and thus wouldn't be sad.
"I hope so," Shino said, already losing hope in Izayoi's promises.
After being promoted to Chunin, he felt he could change careers and join the Anbu. Since he had so little presence, he might as well join the Anbu and maximize his advantages.
Shino's negativity went unnoticed.
After Team Eight finished chatting, Tsunade said seriously, "The reason I've gathered you this time is because there's an S-rank mission I need to assign to you."
"Nani?"
Hinata and Shino were instantly slightly startled. The latter couldn't help but adjust his sunglasses and said, "A mission of this level... doesn't it require Kurenai-sensei to lead?"
"There's no point in having Kurenai lead," Tsunade shook her head. "Apart from Karin, only your Team Eight has the ability to complete this mission."
Hearing this, Shino and Hinata's expressions instantly turned serious as they waited for Tsunade's next words.
Tsunade didn't waste any time and directly stated the mission details: "According to the intelligence gathered by the Anbu, the Cloud Village is preparing to retaliate against Akatsuki and has already dispatched troops to the Land of Rain."
"Team Eight's mission is to observe the movements of the Cloud Village and the Rain Village. Once war breaks out, you are to compile the situation into an intelligence report and transmit it back in real-time."
After speaking, Tsunade turned to Hinata and asked, "Hinata, do you have a summoning animal yet?"
"No," Hinata shook her head.
"Then, like Karin, sign a contract with the Shikkotsu Forest," Tsunade instructed. "When the time comes to transmit intelligence, you will use the Summoning Technique and hand the scroll to the Slug Sage. The Slug Sage will be able to deliver the scroll to my hands immediately."
"Yes!" Hinata's face brightened, and she nodded vigorously.
Immediately, Hinata was pulled away by a smiling Karin to the side to sign a contract with the Shikkotsu Forest.
Tsunade, on the other hand, turned to Izayoi with a serious expression and instructed, "You must hide yourselves well. If you are discovered, I authorize you to abandon the mission."
Although Izayoi possessed Wood Release and had created his own signless ultimate techniques and flying ninjutsu, giving him the potential to threaten even the Five Kage,
Just like everyone else, Tsunade believed that Izayoi had not yet fully matured.
After all, humans only began to enter their peak period after adulthood.
Before adulthood, it was all a period of growth.
Even after the end of the Fourth Great Ninja War, Naruto and Sasuke's strength continued to grow.
At the age of nineteen, even if Naruto Uzumaki didn't have Six Paths Sage Mode, Yin-Yang Release, or Truth-Seeking Balls, and even if he released half of Kurama's chakra to fight the Hamura statue, he still defeated Toneri Otsutsuki.
Sasuke Uchiha was even strong enough to shatter half a meteor with just one Chidori.
It wasn't until the Boruto era that he and Sasuke became 'kidney-deficient men'.
Tsunade's refusal to agree to the subjugation of Akatsuki also had the intention of protecting Izayoi.
As long as they could stall for a few years, until Izayoi grew stronger, Konoha would have an ultra-standard combat force.
Even if the opponent possessed the Sage's Eyes, they would have a fighting chance.
If not for Hinata's Byakugan's far-sightedness, which had already surpassed the limits of the Hyuga clan, and the crucial intelligence regarding the Cloud Village and Akatsuki, Tsunade really wouldn't want Team Eight to undertake such a dangerous mission.
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
Izayoi also nodded seriously.
"Go."
Tsunade waved her hand.
Receiving the pre-arranged village exit permits from Shizune, Team Eight quickly left the Hokage Building, then flashed back to their homes to pack their things, gathered at the village gate, and headed towards the Land of Rain.
...
Rain Village. Today wasn't Sunday, yet it was a rare, clear day.
The villagers, having received the angel's notification, had already taken refuge in the underground shelters.
Now, the vast Rain Village was left with only a dozen or so figures, all members of Akatsuki, each possessing Kage-level strength.
This lineup would make even the great ninja villages tremble in their hearts.
Apart from the 'intern' Tobi and Black and White Zetsu, as well as the rarely seen Konan and the Five Paths of Pain, the others, led by Deva Path Pain, were all S-rank rogue ninjas and dangerous individuals from various villages.
Uchiha Itachi, who had annihilated his entire clan at the age of thirteen, turning the First Clan of the ninja world into a historical footnote.
Kisame Hoshigaki, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, known as the 'Tailed Beast without a Tail'.
Kakuzu, once the strongest ninja of Takigakure, now the infamous 'Bounty Hunter' of the black market.
Sasori of the Red Sand, who had once destroyed a small country and whose bounty now surpassed the 'Wood Release Ninja', ranking second on the black market's wanted list.
Deva Path Pain, the leader of Akatsuki, whose single move had destroyed the Cloud Village, breaking the bottom line of the ninja world, his bounty the only one to exceed one billion.
And Hidan and Deidara, whose information had not yet been fully exposed.
At this moment, all the Akatsuki members were gathered on the rooftop where Deva Path Pain often watched the rain, gazing at the rare clear sky.
"It's coming..."
White Zetsu, from within Black and White Zetsu, suddenly chuckled. "Two of them, you know."
As if in response to his words, two enormous black spheres materialized out of thin air above the Rain Village, spaced far apart, one in the south and one in the north.
In response, Deva Path Pain floated into the air, his expression unchanged.
At the same time, a shout echoed from a corner of the Rain Village.
"Summoning Technique!"
Poof! With a puff of smoke, the Preta Path on the rooftop instantly vanished, reappearing below the southern Tailed Beast Ball.
"Almighty Push!"
As the majestic voice resounded, a terrifying repulsive force erupted, instantly transforming into a green screen that shot towards the heavens.
The Tailed Beast Ball covered by the green screen dissipated at a visible speed, as if being erased by a rubber.
(End of this chapter)
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