Evening.
The group met at the edge of the moat.
"Master Ye Liang, I've already located Gato's mansion. It's guarded by more than a dozen rogue ninja from the Mist village, all around Chunin level."
"Master, the moat had rogue ninja again today, but I chased them all away!" Obito Uchiha proudly claimed credit.
To prevent rogue ninja from attacking fishermen, Ye Liang had assigned Obito Uchiha to follow Jiu Kai, and clearly, it had been very effective.
At this moment, Rin Nohara seemed somewhat hesitant.
"What's wrong? Did you find anything at Gato's company?" Ye Liang asked.
Gato's company was just a bunch of Mafia thugs. Although numerous, they were all ordinary people who couldn't use Ninjutsu. That's why Ye Liang assigned the least experienced Rin to investigate there.
"Master, today I observed Gato's company and found that most of the employees were still children around seven or eight years old. They carried tools and bamboo baskets, working with great difficulty at construction sites. I even saw the children's hands and feet rubbed into bloody messes!"
Rin Nohara suddenly bowed deeply to Ye Liang!
"Master! Please help them!"
Ye Liang was taken aback.
He hadn't expected Rin Nohara to show such compassion. This made him somewhat ashamed.
Compared to Rin's righteousness, Ye Liang's attitude—doing good deeds only for mission rewards—pales in comparison.
"I've already contacted Konoha. Soon they'll handle the rogue ninja in the water. As for Gato's company, they're just regular Mafia goons with no ninja skills. Taking them down afterward won't be a problem."
At this point, Ye Liang slightly swallowed.
"As for Gato himself, once reinforcements arrive, I'll personally take care of him!"
"Thank you, Master." Rin Nohara expressed her gratitude.
Ye Liang's plan was flawless—a multi-pronged attack strategy. With reinforcements coming, completing the mission would naturally be effortless.
However, just at this moment, more than twenty ninja suddenly emerged from the moat water. They orderly surrounded Ye Liang and the others on the shore.
"Tsk tsk tsk, your plan really is good, but unfortunately that brat exposed you today."
"There's an ambush!"
Ye Liang and the others immediately stiffened.
At this moment, however, Obito suddenly looked in shock at the leader who was speaking.
"You're not that rogue ninja who attacked the fishermen earlier? You dare come back again? Let me beat the crap out of you!"
Cursing, he immediately planned to go forward and teach the man a lesson, but after taking just a couple steps, Kakashi pulled him back.
"Shshsh!"
Several rapid shuriken shot into the spot where Obito had just been standing.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu! You're a Jonin!"
Kakashi immediately shouted.
Just as Obito charged forward, Kakashi immediately sensed something was wrong. This leader hadn't flinched even as Obito rushed toward him, which naturally seemed suspicious. Therefore, Kakashi instinctively pulled Obito away.
"Hiss!"
Obito broke out in cold sweat.
[Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu] is an A-rank Ninjutsu. It's extremely hard to master and rarely learned even among Jonin. Those who do master it are usually Tokubetsu Jonin!
"Tsk tsk tsk, this white-haired kid has quick reflexes!"
The leader smacked his lips, but his gaze remained fixed on Ye Liang.
In the current situation, anyone could see that Ye Liang was clearly the strongest here!
"You seem pretty capable," Ye Liang said mockingly, then suddenly burst into applause.
He smirked at the rogue ninja leader before him, looking completely at ease, as if the two dozen ninjas surrounding him were just harmless civilians.
"What's going on with this guy?" The leader showed suspicion.
But Ye Liang remained calm and expressionless.
Taking control of the momentum first had always been Ye Liang's approach to dealing with people. When in doubt, act confidently first; no matter how strong the opponent is, they'll surely hesitate a bit toward himself—this had become Ye Liang's current strategy.
"What the hell? Another Jonin? In my past life watching Naruto, I never saw so many Jonins! Now after reincarnation, Jonins are everywhere like flies!"
Furthermore, Ye Liang quickly realized that this rogue ninja wasn't just any ordinary one.
He cast a subtle glance at the weapon wrapped up behind the man.
"A broken sword! Cleaver Sword!"
This person was Biwa Juzo!
Former member of the Seven Swords of the Bloody Mist, and the first wielder of the Cleaver Sword.
Such prestigious titles made him a famous ninja within Kiri. Later on, although he'd lost to Might Duy, right now he was definitely an extremely powerful figure.
Ye Liang was certain that even Orochimaru, without his forbidden techniques, would be no match for this man!
"No wonder this mission's rank is actually SSS-class?!" Ye Liang suddenly recalled what the System had said about this task.
At the time, he hadn't paid much attention. Looking back now, it sent chills down his spine!
His very first SSS-rank mission pitted an ordinary man against Orochimaru. If not for that sudden flash of brilliance, he might have died back then!
With rising power and the unexpected acquisition of Flying Thunder God recently, Ye Liang had gotten slightly arrogant.
Now that he'd faced reality, it was time to get serious again.
"Kakashi, you guys deal with these grunts. Let me handle this boss," Ye Liang said solemnly.
The Seven Swordsman wasn't something these kids could handle. Even Kakashi, already a Jonin, would be nothing more than cannon fodder against Biwa Juzo!
To prevent any unexpected mishaps, Ye Liang decided to take on the Seven Swordsman member Biwa Juzo alone.
"Yes, sensei!"
Kakashi responded immediately, quickly leading the others like Obito away to deal with the minor enemies.
He rarely saw Ye Liang acting so seriously, so naturally understood what was going on.
"Kid, I actually admired you quite a bit originally, too bad someone wants your life, and I have no choice but to oblige."
"Want my life? Are you serious?"
Ye Liang heard Juzo's words and felt momentarily stunned.
At this moment, something clicked in his mind.
Biwa Juzo had once been the spiritual pillar of Kiri. At this particular time period, he hadn't even defected from Kiri yet—how could he possibly appear here?
"Someone wants my life?"
He repeated Juzo's words again, somewhat confused.
"It was an old man—frail-looking, but incredibly strong. And he paid me well."
"Old man? Danzo? Or The Third? But that's impossible?"
Ye Liang tried to recall, but no matter how hard he searched his memories, he couldn't find any trace of such a person.
"What's his name?"
Biwa Juzo shook his head—he clearly had no idea.
"Cut the chatter! Get ready to fight!"
Suddenly, Ye Liang vanished in a flash, his body abruptly disappearing from sight!
[Shinra Tensei]
A quick combo followed by a powerful attack!
That was the best combo he could come up with right now.
But things were never that simple.
The moment Ye Liang disappeared, Juzo immediately raised his Cleaver Sword to block behind him.
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