September 15th, Year 43 of Konoha.
After more than a week of rest, Sarutobi Asuma and his team finally received another mission: to travel to the Kannabi Bridge, on the border of the Land of Grass and the Land of Earth, to exchange intelligence with Stone Ninja.
When Asuma heard about this mission, he was stunned for quite a while.
This location was rather sensitive for him.
Fortunately, it wasn't to destroy the bridge.
After some preparation and packing the intelligence scroll, Asuma and his team departed the village at 10 AM and headed west.
"Asuma, someone's following us from behind," Kurenai Yūhi alerted him.
"No need to worry about them!" Asuma replied.
He had already sensed it.
It was likely Anbu shinobi.
The intelligence he held might not be entirely truthful.
One visible, one hidden – it was a normal setup.
They only stopped for half an hour for a midday rest before continuing on their way.
They spent the night resting within the borders of the Land of Grass.
On September 16th, at 3 PM, Asuma and his team arrived at the Kannabi Bridge.
Immediately after, three Stone Ninja appeared on the other side of the bridge.
"Kurenai, Shizune, you two stay back and provide support!" Asuma ordered.
Kurenai and Shizune nodded in unison, ready at any moment.
Asuma, however, walked onto the bridge alone.
A Stone Ninja from the opposite side also stepped forward alone.
The two finally met in the middle of the bridge, simultaneously handing over the intelligence scrolls to each other.
After scanning the scroll, Asuma nodded, "No problems here!"
"No problems on my end either!" the Stone Ninja replied.
Then, both retreated simultaneously.
Rejoining Kurenai and Shizune, Asuma gave the order, "Withdraw!"
The intelligence exchange proceeded smoothly without any incidents, and Kurenai and Shizune's tension eased slightly.
"Asuma, what do you think the intelligence we gave the Stone Ninja this time was about?" Kurenai asked curiously.
Shizune guessed, "Maybe it was about the Sand Ninja?"
"Probably not," Kurenai shook her head. "The Sand Ninja are at a disadvantage right now; helping the Stone Ninja wouldn't benefit us."
"We'll know in time," Asuma said with a smile.
However, he had his own suspicions.
The intelligence they delivered this time was likely related to the Cloud Ninja.
On September 17th, Asuma and his team returned to Konoha, completing their mission.
However, after less than a day of rest, the three were dispatched on another mission.
They were sent north to the northern border to guard against the Cloud Ninja and patrol.
They stayed there for a full month.
And after resting for less than a week, Asuma and his team were sent to the southeastern border again.
This time, they were guarding against the Mist Ninja.
The deployment was also for a month.
And so, Asuma was constantly on the move.
Sometimes patrolling the borders, other times venturing to the edges of the battlefields against Stone Ninja, Sand Ninja, and Mist Ninja to gather intelligence.
Unknowingly, time had flown by, and it was now February, Year 44 of Konoha.
The land was covered in a white blanket of snow.
Upon returning from a mission, Sarutobi Asuma and his companions heard shocking news.
The Third Raikage had led Kumogakure elites into the Land of Earth, but they were ambushed by Stone Ninja.
To allow his subordinates to retreat, the Third Raikage single-handedly held off tens of thousands of Stone Ninja, ultimately falling in battle.
"Fighting tens of thousands of ninja alone, that's incredible!"
Yūhi Kurenai and Shizune were stunned by the news.
It was truly explosive.
This was also the first Kage to die in battle since the Great War began!
"Tens of thousands might be an exaggeration, but it was likely several thousand."
Sarutobi Asuma sighed, "The Third Raikage, he was the most proficient Lightning Style user in the ninja world, known as the strongest spear and the strongest shield."
"Plus, Lightning Style is quite effective against Earth Style."
"Without sufficient numbers, it would have been impossible to stop the Third Raikage."
At this moment, Yūhi Kurenai remembered the intelligence sent to the Stone Ninja last year, and couldn't help but hesitate to speak.
Sarutobi Asuma shook his head.
He had already determined that the Third Raikage's encirclement and death was likely related to the intelligence sent previously.
Betraying Kumogakure would greatly benefit Konoha.
Kumogakure had been restless before, and weakening them now would significantly reduce Konoha's pressure if war broke out later.
"So, the death of the Third Raikage also had a part in my doing!"
Suppressing his thoughts, Sarutobi Asuma invited Kurenai and Shizune to go soak in the hot springs.
Yūhi Kurenai agreed without hesitation. Shizune said, "Why don't we invite Lady Tsunade?"
"Lady Tsunade has been preferring to stay home and research lately."
Sarutobi Asuma nodded, "Then Shizune, you go call Sister Tsunade, and I'll call Sister Kushina. We'll meet at the Hot Spring District."
"Okay!"
The three immediately split up.
However, when Sarutobi Asuma arrived at Uzumaki Kushina's home, he found Namikaze Minato there as well.
Naturally, he invited Namikaze Minato along.
Namikaze Minato then called Kakashi and the others.
By the time they reached the Hot Spring District, the numbers had surged.
On the women's side were Yūhi Kurenai, Tsunade, Shizune, Uzumaki Kushina, and Rin.
On the men's side were Sarutobi Asuma, Namikaze Minato, Kakashi, and Uchiha Obito.
They opened two bathhouses, separated only by a wooden wall, and they could even hear the laughter from Yūhi Kurenai and the others next door.
Relaxing in the hot water, Sarutobi Asuma asked Namikaze Minato, "Brother Minato, is Jiraiya-senpai in the village?"
"He should be. He just returned to the village three days ago."
Namikaze Minato asked, "Why? Are you looking for Jiraiya-sensei about something?"
"No!"
Sarutobi Asuma shook his head and smiled, "I was just thinking, if he were here too, it would be quite a show."
Namikaze Minato gave an awkward smile.
He was all too familiar with his teacher's peculiar habits.
Uchiha Obito, on the other hand, couldn't help but ask curiously, "Asuma, why do you say that?"
Glancing at Uchiha Obito, Sarutobi Asuma smiled, "That's a secret!"
"Tch!"
Uchiha Obito pouted.
Sarutobi Asuma turned to Kakashi and asked, "Kakashi, how is your Lightning Style coming along?"
"It's improved a lot, but achieving what you described, covering my whole body without affecting my attack power, is still difficult," Kakashi replied.
Namikaze Minato, however, praised with a smile, "Kakashi's Lightning Style sword technique has truly inherited Sakumo-senpai's mastery."
Kakashi shook his head, "I'm still a long way from being like my father."
Hatake Sakumo's sword technique emphasized speed and sharpness, which was why he had the title White Fang.
His speed relied on the activation of his own cells through Lightning Style.
Furthermore, his indomitable sword strikes were also due to the addition of Lightning Style chakra.
"Kakashi, you're only 10 years old. In another ten years, you won't be inferior to Sakumo-senpai."
Namikaze Minato spoke.
He had always praised Kakashi's talent, saying it was no less than his own.
Uchiha Obito, standing nearby, couldn't help but feel jealous and muttered, "Once I awaken my Sharingan, I'll instantly surpass Kakashi!"
Namikaze Minato heard him and said, "Obito, while the fame of your Uchiha clan is built upon the Sharingan, a true powerhouse is strong even without it."
"Your Uchiha clan's senior, Fugaku, his strength is astonishing even without using his Sharingan."
Uchiha Obito, quite unconvinced, turned his head away.
Sarutobi Asuma saw this and was about to speak when a sudden explosion boomed from next door.
This was immediately followed by two angry roars.
"Jiraiya, you bastard!"
"Die!"
Sarutobi Asuma's eyes lit up. Jiraiya was indeed nearby gathering inspiration, but he hadn't expected Tsunade to be there as well.
As one of the Sannin, Tsunade understood Jiraiya all too well. She knew that when he was in Konoha, places like hot spring inns were unavoidable for him. Having been fooled once, she was naturally on guard. A slight sense confirmed Jiraiya was gathering inspiration in the next building over, and she immediately became enraged, her fists cracking.
Sarutobi Asuma was also paying attention to the surrounding activity, after all, his Kurenai was in the next building too, so he couldn't let anyone peek.
Seeing Jiraiya caught by Tsunade, he quickly got dressed to go watch the show.
Namikaze Minato was speechless with amusement.
Kakashi and Uchiha Obito, however, exchanged bewildered glances.
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