Although Haseo had carried out a significant mission outside—one that was undoubtedly dirty work—he remained completely calm on the inside. He had long grown accustomed to life and death, and he understood well that while some lives deserved treasuring, others simply did not.
It had only been a few days since his departure from Konoha, and during that short time, "Kagenami" experienced no issues. The fledgling organization kept right on ticking... Well, that's probably because besides keeping their hideout up and running, they didn't have much else going on anyway.
The first phase of the barrier installation at Kagenami's underground base was nearly complete, and whether or not Haseo was present, everyone worked diligently. Upon his return, the biggest difference in Kagenami compared to when he left was that now it was finally something to write home about. For one thing, thanks to their outstanding performance at the Third Hokage's wedding and the fact that the group's leader was the renowned Jonin Haseo, the organization started gaining recognition among Konoha's ninja. Another reason was in more ways than one—now that another ninja had joined, Jinshou was finally complete.
Previously, Jinshou consisted of twelve members with codenames, but now the thirteenth member, Shikou, originally Lady Servant to Mito Uzumaki, had joined. Her given name truly was Uzumaki Shikou, meaning her inclusion was somewhat innocent luck—after all, it was Haseo who got inspired by her name to coin the rest of their codenames in the first place.
However, her arrival wasn't unexpected for Haseo. Shikou was actually a year or two older than Haseo himself, making her the eldest among the Uzumaki ninja within Kagenami. Also, having served beside Lady Mito before, she naturally brought cohesion to the other Uzumaki members.
Considering the typical personality traits of the Uzumaki clan, having someone capable of uniting the rest of them wasn't a bad thing at all. She willingly took up responsibilities, acted as Haseo's assistant, yet never caused trouble or stirred up conflict. Could there even *be* such a thing as a bad secretary this good?
"Lord Haseo, the second wave of our clanspeople has arrived in the village as well—in the days when you were away on your mission… Since you weren't here, Lady Mito personally made the arrangements. There were still only dozens of people in this second group, so its size was quite small, and importantly, these newcomers weren't ninja but ordinary civilians."
As soon as he returned to Konoha, Haseo headed straight to the Kagenami base instead of going home. Shikou immediately began updating him about recent developments.
"I see, Lady Mito has done us a huge favor."
Relocating and settling the Uzumaki should have been Haseo's responsibility. But since he hadn't been available, Mito Uzumaki stepped in instead. Although currently serving as the respected pillar between both Konoha and the Uzumaki clan, she had grown older and officially retired. Even though she would never refuse helping the clan, helping the clan was no longer part of her official duties.
Since someone else had gone the extra mile for him, Haseo naturally felt grateful.
As for the Uzumaki clansmen who had recently migrated over, the fact that they were ordinary people rather than ninja was perfectly normal.
When the Uzumaki migration to Konoha took place, naturally it wouldn't do to bring all the combat-ready ninja at once. If that happened, Konoha might be happy, but how would those remaining in the Land of Whirlpools survive? Therefore, within this gradual relocation plan, ninja and ordinary citizens would inevitably alternate during the move.
"By the way, I also have something to report..."
After Shikou finished reporting on the situation with the Uzumaki, Haseo then explained to her about the infrastructure project he had accepted from the next daimyo.
"I know I undertook this task without consulting you first, but... I believe a budget of sixty million ryo makes it worth our effort. Naturally, the Uzumaki will need funds to settle here in Konoha, yet the Hokage won't likely approve large-scale financial support specifically for this purpose, and the Land of Whirlpools itself doesn't have abundant resources. That means we have no choice but to figure out solutions ourselves.
You must understand that right now, the Kagenami Uzumaki ninja are still staying at Lady Mito's place, but that's only temporary. We should bring up the issue with the Hokage soon—once more Uzumaki settle into Konoha, he'll need to designate an area specifically for them."
A thousand or so Uzumaki wasn't too many, nor could it be considered few; to properly settle them meant constructing an entirely new street within Konoha.
Therefore, the money that Haseo managed to get his hands on was extremely important—and timely. He had done everything with the Uzumaki's interests in mind. How could Shikou ever consider this as him recklessly taking on unnecessary responsibilities?
"Lord Haseo is thinking for our sake. Such kindness, the Uzumaki cannot possibly reject... I will personally lead a team to handle the daimyo's barrier work."
"...Very well, though there are safety concerns..."
Specialized tasks naturally needed specialists, but Haseo still felt some concern about security.
With Konoha's Twelve Guardians already protecting the Daimyo's Castle, its security level was actually quite high enough—but even the most secure situations always had a "what if."
"There's nothing to worry about, Lord Haseo. While my combat abilities might not match yours, I'm at least roughly jonin-level. Regarding safety, don't concern yourself—we can protect ourselves. After all, the Daimyo's Castle lies within the Land of Fire, not directly on the Front Line."
Haseo blinked his eyes. Could it be she was the last warrior-type Namekian aside from Elder Fukasaku?
Well, don't forget—Shion had been kept by Mito Uzumaki herself all along. Although Haseo had never actually seen her fight, given her confidence, her battle strength—while perhaps no match for Frieza—should at least be capable of taking down someone like Ginyu.
After arranging the Uzumaki affairs, there remained another matter Haseo nearly forgot: what exactly should happen to Tsumiki Nono, the child everyone had worked hard to rescue?
Previously, when Haseo chose to save the girl, it hadn't simply been out of kindness or pity. One reason was because entering the Daimyo's Castle required a reasonable pretext for their squad, while the other lay in Haseo's sense of shame—he hadn't truly understood that lady servant, yet had shown arrogance toward her. In the end, the result proved his arrogance had been nothing more than ridiculous self-inflation.
![](!!!!
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>