Chapter 134: Counterattack and Trap!
Two days passed in a flash.
Nara Keisuke was forced to interrupt his own research plan and return to the Konoha camp. The research scroll on the Iburi clan's Kekkei Genkai from Orochimaru contained an incredibly diverse and complex amount of content. Although Keisuke was very keen to figure out how the Iburi clan's "Smoke Release" fused with the Yin nature, it was a great pity that Orochimaru had not mentioned the detailed chakra ratio in the scroll. Perhaps he had deliberately not recorded it, or perhaps he had not clearly researched the "Smoke Release" nature himself.
All in all, while Keisuke had successfully researched [Explosion Release], his work on "Smoke Release" was still only at the introductory stage. Even so, he had clarified one point. "The Iburi clan's 'Smoke Release,' in the end, can still be classified within the scope of a 'constitution-type Kekkei Genkai'."
"Considering the numerous chakra natures that 'Smoke Release' encompasses..."
"Perhaps the development of a constitution-type Kekkei Genkai requires the participation of Yin Release—and Yang Release. Or perhaps something of a higher level... Yin-Yang Release."
Currently, Keisuke's mastery of Yin Release was passable, but he lacked sufficient knowledge accumulation in Yang Release. As for "Yin-Yang Release," that was an even more ethereal thing. The research on Smoke Release could only be temporarily brought to an end.
Back in the camp.
As expected, Keisuke was greeted with a "warm welcome" from his team members.
"Captain, you haven't been back for two whole days!"
"I was suspecting you had deserted the battlefield and gone back to the village for a vacation!"
"Too much!"
"But there hasn't been anything particularly noteworthy recently, has there?" Keisuke dispelled the [Shadow Clone] that had been on standby in the camp, and the memories of the past two days immediately flooded into his mind. "Otherwise, you would have had the [Shadow Clone] notify me long ago... Hm? Hyūga, you still haven't beaten Shisui even once?"
"Annoying!" Hyūga Retsu shot Keisuke a sharp glance.
As the time they spent together day and night gradually increased, the three team members had all become clear on their captain's true nature—even among the Nara clan, he was a rare super-slacker. The other person is lazier than you, and he's also stronger than you! Faced with a captain with such a lazy personality and powerful strength, what could Retsu and the others say? They could only take some verbal potshots in their daily interactions, and even then, they had to be constantly on guard against the captain's petty-mindedness...
But then again, having such a powerful captain leading them was quite reassuring.
"Shisui." Keisuke shrugged, ignoring Retsu's white-eyed glare, and looked at the best tool-man in the team. "Has Orochimaru assigned you a mission? If not, I'm going to rest—"
"I'll go get the mission right now!" Uchiha Shisui instantly vanished from the spot, leaving only one sentence hanging in the air. "Please wait a moment, Captain!"
"Sigh, Shisui. He's just too diligent." A [Shadow Creature] emerged from Keisuke's shadow, carrying him as he floated semi-airborne. "If only he would learn a little from me, how great would that be..."
If Uchiha Shisui were to learn from you, Captain, he would probably be completely ruined...
The two female team members exchanged a look and silently jumped onto the back of the [Shadow Creature].
About three minutes later, a fully prepared Uchiha Shisui reappeared at this spot. He looked at his other three teammates, who were already seated on the back of the [Shadow Creature], and scratched his head in some distress. "Um, everyone, please come down first." He waved at the [Shadow Creature]. "There's been a change of plans."
"Mission canceled?" Keisuke immediately landed from the [Shadow Creature]. Retsu and Shizune also looked at Shisui with curiosity.
"It's not that the mission is canceled." Shisui took out two mission scrolls from his ninja tool pouch. "It's that Lord Orochimaru has arranged two missions for us this time. At the same time, he also specifically pointed out that these two missions need to be carried out separately."
"What on earth is Orochimaru up to?" Keisuke raised his hand and took the two scrolls from Shisui. Strangely enough, the panel did not pop up with a mission prompt this time.
While Keisuke was looking through the scrolls, Shisui explained to the other two teammates. "The first mission Lord Orochimaru gave us is for us to search for Iwagakure's gathering points throughout the Land of Grass and to periodically transmit the collected intelligence back to the main camp here. This is a long-term mission, with a difficulty of only C-rank."
Shisui pointed to the two scrolls. "And the other mission requires us to go to the front lines to provide support, while also treating the wounded ninja who have retreated from the front. This mission's difficulty has reached A-rank."
Shizune said with some confusion, "But these two missions are mutually exclusive..."
"It's obvious." Keisuke closed the two scrolls in his hand and sneered. "Orochimaru wants us to split up!"
If he had to say, Keisuke believed that the latter A-rank mission was the normal mission their squad should be accepting at present. But for some reason, Orochimaru had inexplicably added the first C-rank mission, as if he intentionally wanted to send someone away from the main camp for a long period of time...
'Hmm... could it be that Orochimaru is targeting me?' A thought flashed through Keisuke's mind. 'Just because I took a little bit of insignificant data from him before? Does he have to be so petty?'
"Yes, I also believe that Lord Orochimaru's idea is for us to split up." Shisui's brow furrowed slightly as he looked at Keisuke. "Captain, how should we handle these two missions? Should we split up? If so, I suggest that you and Hyūga go to carry out the C-rank mission, while Shizune and I go to carry out the other A-rank mission. Your abilities, Captain, combined with Hyūga's Byakugan, are very suitable for that C-rank mission."
"That sounds like a pretty good suggestion." Keisuke nodded lightly, but then his expression suddenly changed. "But I refuse."
"Why?" Shisui was momentarily blank, and then an anxious expression appeared on his face. "Captain, are you planning to refuse Lord Orochimaru's mission request?"
"No, what I'm refusing is your personnel assignment." Keisuke threw the A-rank mission scroll to Shisui, while he himself held onto the C-rank scroll. "I've only briefly mentioned it to Hyūga before. Shisui and Shizune should also be able to see a little of it. I do indeed have a tiny, insignificant conflict with Orochimaru. I think this C-rank mission was probably prepared especially for me."
Shisui caught the scroll, a look of incomprehension on his face. "Captain, what do you mean, 'prepared especially for you'?"
"It probably means that I think Orochimaru doesn't want to see me for the time being, so he's sending me away, at least out of his sight," Keisuke said, holding up the C-rank mission scroll in his hand. "This long-term, away-from-base mission is very difficult for you all, but for me, it's very simple. So it fits this 'sending me away' conjecture, doesn't it?"
Shizune frowned. "But Captain, isn't what Lord Orochimaru is doing against the rules?"
"What's there to talk about rules or no rules," Keisuke shook his head. "He is the supreme commander of the Iwagakure front. That is the rule."
"Captain!" Shisui said resolutely. "I'll go refuse Lord Orochimaru's mission commission! We are a squad; we should carry out missions together!"
"What's there to be so conflicted about." Keisuke waved his hand and once again boarded the back of the [Shadow Creature]. "Shisui, I know your skill level. I'll leave Hyūga and Shizune to you. You are now the team's temporary, hmm, vice-captain!"
As his voice fell, Keisuke steered the [Shadow Creature], directly flying high into the sky, and instantly became a small black dot on the horizon.
Uchiha Shisui, Hyūga Retsu, and Shizune, left behind, looked at each other. After a moment's hesitation, the three of them still took the A-rank mission scroll and immediately set off.
High in the sky.
Keisuke held the C-rank scroll. The panel had just popped up with its mission trigger information.
[C-rank Ninja Commissioned Mission Detected!]
[C-rank Mission: Reconnaissance]
[Mission Content: Conduct a long-term search for Iwagakure's personnel gathering points within the Land of Grass, and periodically transmit the intelligence back to the Konoha main camp.]
[Mission Reward: One C-rank Shinobi Secret Scroll]
"A C-rank difficulty indicates that this is a mission without combat content. And only for me, who possesses the ability to fly, can this intelligence gathering mission basically avoid combat."
Keisuke retracted his gaze from the panel. "However, is this Orochimaru's counter-attack? It doesn't feel as simple as I thought. It doesn't quite fit his personality and intelligence level. Or is it that the A-rank mission, which seems to be prepared for Shisui and the others, is actually prepared for me?"
Keisuke's gaze looked downwards, distantly seeing the three figures of Shisui's group, who were traveling at high speed on the ground. "I'll go scout the road ahead for those three guys first..."
Keisuke controlled the [Shadow Creature] and accelerated forward. Although the insight of the [Lacquer Eye] was not comparable to the Byakugan, its sensory effect and range were still powerful. Along the way, he did not find any traps.
But by the time he flew to the front line of battle between Konoha and Iwagakure, and from a distance, saw the Four-Tails Jinchuriki wantonly spewing lava on the battlefield, easily causing a terrifying, disaster-like destruction, Keisuke finally understood Orochimaru's intention.
"This is not a trap set for me, but a setup for my subordinates. To be precise, it's aimed at Uchiha Shisui."
Keisuke sat on the back of the [Shadow Creature], his thoughts churning. "Hyūga Retsu is from the main family; her Byakugan ability is special, and she won't be sent to the battlefield personally. Shizune is a medical-nin, so even less so. The only one who needs to go to the battlefield is Uchiha Shisui."
Keisuke put himself in Shisui's shoes and considered the situation. "Either accept the C-rank mission, risk his life, and go to the rear of the Iwagakure war zone to gather intelligence; or accept the A-rank mission and go to the front lines to face the Four-Tails Jinchuriki. It seems no matter which one he chooses, for Shisui, it is an extremely dangerous mission."
Keisuke chuckled lightly and controlled the [Shadow Creature] to fly far away, completely ignoring the battle situation below. "But Orochimaru, you have still underestimated the caliber of an Uchiha..."
(End of Chapter)
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