Chapter 309: Anko's Rage
A familiar sensation of spatial displacement washed over Toneri, and he found himself back in the mountains on the border of the Land of Fire.
He looked at the three silent figures before him and, after much hesitation, finally spoke. "Look, I'm grateful for your help, but there are only three of you... With all due respect, I don't think you can defeat that guy."
Hearing this, the woman, who had been admiring the scenery, finally turned her gaze to him. She spoke slowly, deliberately. "No need to rush. First, tell us about the current state of the Shinobi World."
"Sigh." With a helpless sigh, Toneri explained everything he had observed from the moon. When he mentioned the concept of "Hidden Villages," not only the woman, but the two men also looked at him with curiosity.
"Villages? You mean, different clans united together in a single village?" the woman asked, disbelief in her voice.
Seeing Toneri nod, she muttered to herself, "Impossible. Who could have the vision and charisma to unite enemies who have been killing each other for generations?"
She pondered for a long time, then suddenly, her face lit up with excitement. "I've changed my mind. Before we complete our mission, I want to travel the Shinobi World. I want to see how people live now."
Toneri frowned. "But the mission..."
Before he could finish, a terrifying pressure slammed into him, forcing him flat onto the ground.
The forest fell silent as animals fled in terror from the woman's aura.
"Don't think that just because you have the Master's orders, you can tell me what to do," the woman said, her playful expression replaced by a chilling killing intent that made Toneri's blood run cold. "I decide how and when I do things. Do you understand?"
"I... I understand," Toneri stammered, sweat pouring down his back.
Satisfied with his fear, the woman retracted her aura and returned to her cheerful demeanor.
"Get up! I can't wait to try a hot spring!" she chirped, skipping ahead. The two men followed silently, leaving a tearful Toneri sitting on the ground.
"Father... who are these people...?"
Land of Rice Fields, A Busy Street.
Three figures walked slowly through the crowd.
"Ah, I'm so bored," a black-haired girl of about ten complained, yawning loudly. Her two companions ignored her.
Seeing that she wasn't getting any attention, the girl's eyes darted around. Suddenly, she dashed to a nearby stall, grabbed several skewers of dango, and ran off, leaving her exasperated companions to deal with the angry vendor.
"Sorry, sorry. Please forgive my friend's rudeness," a handsome boy with black hair and black eyes apologized with a wry smile, fishing money out of his pocket.
"Honestly, kids these days have no manners," the vendor grumbled as he took the money.
The boy bowed apologetically and hurried away.
"Don't blame her too much, Shisui," the other companion said with a smile. "We've been out here for days without finding our target. It's no wonder Anko is going crazy."
These were Kyosuke's students: Uchiha Shisui and Yamato. The girl was, of course, Mitarashi Anko.
With Kyosuke increasingly busy, he often couldn't lead them on missions personally. As a result, command of the team fell to Shisui, who was now a Jonin.
Without Kyosuke's strict supervision, Anko's wild nature had fully emerged. Shisui could only try to reason with her, unable to truly suppress her... or perhaps he just couldn't bring himself to be too harsh.
"I know," Shisui said. They exchanged a few words and then ran off in the direction Anko had gone.
"Ouch!"
Anko, triumphant with her stolen dango, was sprinting down the street when she collided with a pedestrian as she turned a corner.
Oh no! Realizing she hadn't sensed the person at all, Anko tried to pull back her momentum to avoid hurting an innocent civilian.
She was a Chunin, after all. A collision with her could seriously injure or even kill a normal person.
But to her surprise, after a brief impact, she was the one who went flying.
She sat on the ground, dazed, unable to process what had just happened.
"My, what a reckless little girl," the woman she had run into said. Instead of apologizing, she seemed amused.
This was the last straw for Anko.
She jumped to her feet, pointing an accusatory finger at the woman. "You have the nerve to call me reckless?! Why didn't you dodge? Did you want to send me flying?!"
"You're quite unreasonable," the woman laughed, covering her mouth in mock surprise. "I was just walking. You were the one who ran into me. If you got sent flying, it's because you're weak. How can you blame me?"
"Argh! You're infuriating!" Outmatched in strength and now in words, Anko looked ready to explode, which only made the woman laugh harder.
But despite her frustration, Anko wasn't stupid. The collision had made the difference in their strength painfully clear. She decided to wait for her teammates. With the three of them together, surely they could take her down.
A few moments later, Shisui and Yamato arrived.
Shisui ignored Anko's whining complaints. From the moment he arrived, his gaze had been fixed on the woman. As a Jonin, he could clearly sense the terrifying aura emanating from her.
Seeing this, a sudden, inexplicable surge of rage boiled up inside Anko. Ignoring her teammates, she turned and attacked the woman.
"Stop!" Shisui cried out.
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