chapter 178 part 2
His gaze was firm, his tone sincere as he said, "The Leaf Village itself is a large, united, and friendly village, like a big, warm family. Every shinobi living in it bears the sacred responsibility of protecting the Leaf!"
He paused, then gave an example, "Guy-sensei, think about it. If one day, a horde of vicious villains suddenly swarmed the village, wouldn't we all have to do our part and contribute to its defense? Or for instance, if one day, more than ten shinobi as strong as Kakuzu appeared in the Hidden Leaf Village, a few elite shinobi alone wouldn't be enough to handle them. As members of the Leaf, wouldn't we also have to step up? If I can learn a few more skills, even if I can only deal with one extra enemy, that's still one less danger for the village."
He spoke with righteous passion, his eyes burning with a fiery light, as if he could already see himself displaying his prowess on the future battlefield, protecting the Leaf!
"For the Leaf! For the Land of Fire!"
"Alright!" Upon hearing Uchiha Ren's sincere words and thinking of the two times Uchiha Ren had risked his life to save his dear friend Kakashi, Guy felt as if he had been injected with a shot of adrenaline. As if on steroids, he slammed his palms together with a loud clap, shouting emotionally, "Then I'll teach—"
That high-pitched tone and rising inflection fully displayed the surging passion in his heart. He was already prepared to impart all his knowledge, eager to pass on the essence of the Eight Gates Released Formation to Uchiha Ren.
But just at this critical moment, Kurenai Renhi, who had been listening quietly from the side, looked stern. She strode forward and timely interrupted Guy's speech.
She frowned slightly and said with great earnestness, "Guy, let's talk about these things after we get back from this mission. The priority right now is to find Lady Tsunade."
Her voice was gentle yet unquestionable. Startled by the sudden interruption, Might Guy subconsciously raised his hand to scratch his head. His initial excitement subsided slightly, a trace of regret flashing in his eyes before he returned to his usual state and responded helplessly, "Oh… okay, okay!"
Uchiha Ren gritted his teeth, his voice squeezed from his lips, "Kurenai-sensei, you really are a shinobi who considers the bigger picture!"
Kurenai Renhi shook her head. "I'm sorry, Ren. Some things… are a bit complicated."
"In that case, if we find Tsunade, can I assume you won't stop Guy-sensei from teaching me?"
Kurenai Renhi thought for a moment, then pursed her lips. "Mm… if everything goes smoothly, I won't say anything about your arrangement."
Kurenai Renhi's mission for leaving the Hidden Leaf Village this time was entirely different from Guy's and Uchiha Ren's.
Guy's mind was completely focused on the proper task of finding Lady Tsunade, hoping to locate the legendary medical-nin as soon as possible to save Kakashi from his injuries.
As for Uchiha Ren, he was driven by a thirst for great power, single-mindedly wanting to learn Might Guy's Eight Gates Released Formation, and incidentally get the bedridden Kakashi healed.
As for Kurenai Renhi, she actually had a more secretive and crucial mission—to secretly monitor Uchiha Ren and prevent him from defecting from the Leaf.
The complexity of the Uchiha Clan and various past incidents made the two advisors, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane, exceptionally wary of Uchiha Ren's every move. Thus, they dispatched Kurenai Renhi, whose genjutsu skills were superb, for this important task.
If Uchiha Ren defected and took the training method for the Eight Gates Released Formation with him… that would be a huge problem.
However, these three shinobi with their different goals were far from the only ones from the Hidden Leaf Village on a mission outside.
Several kilometers away from them in the snowfields, two other figures were following them silently.
Both wore the conspicuous Hidden Leaf Village forehead protector. One was intently examining a shinobi scroll, while the other crouched to the side, observing a few insects without blinking.
The insects trembled slightly in the icy snow, as if transmitting some kind of information to him.
"Incredible, becoming a Tokubetsu Jonin of the village at just fourteen years old."
Fu's gaze was full of admiration as he couldn't help but praise his companion who was focused on the insects—Torune.
Torune was not distracted by the praise. His expression remained cold as he said flatly, "They're just ahead. The temperature here is too low. My tracking insects can't follow them for much longer in this environment. We need to think of a way to get past two Jonin."
Hearing this, Fu frowned slightly, lost in thought. After a moment, he said slowly, "Very difficult!"
"Guy's taijutsu is extremely tricky, and as the village's genjutsu master, Kurenai Renhi's genjutsu is even more unpredictable. The slightest carelessness will trap you in an illusion, unable to move. Whether we fight them one-on-one or together, the two of us can't handle them."
The thought of confronting these two renowned Jonin head-on filled his heart with a sense of powerlessness.
But since Lord Danzo trusted him so much, he couldn't very well make excuses.
Torune pursed his lips and pondered for another moment before asking tentatively, "Would an ambush work?"
"Useless," Fu shook his head in denial without hesitation. "That kid's self-preservation ability is outstanding, and his reaction speed is extremely fast. Plus, with two Jonin protecting him, trying to kill him right under their noses is nearly impossible."
"This is troublesome."
Torune touched the personal letter Danzo had given him and said helplessly, "It seems we'll have to join forces with the Snow Ninja this time after all. I just don't know how many benefits Lord Danzo promised the Land of Snow."
At this, Fu's gaze turned sharp. "Everything is guided by Lord Danzo's will. Even if the village suffers some losses this time, it is all for the future of the village! If geniuses from the Uchiha Clan keep appearing one after another, the village will sooner or later fall into the hands of these lunatics! That would be a great calamity!"
Having been brainwashed by Danzo since childhood, Torune nodded. "Understood!"
After finishing their discussion, the two followed the direction on the map, chose an even more difficult path through the snowy mountains, and hurried towards the Land of Snow.
Three days passed quickly. The three shinobi from the Hidden Leaf Village looked at the main gate of the Land of Snow and breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Might Guy's watermelon-cut hair was already frosted over. He stomped his feet in place, shouting slogans, his nose running from the cold.
Kurenai Renhi's condition wasn't much better; her eyebrows were covered in frost.
And Uchiha Ren?
Walking through the snowfield was as natural and unrestrained for him as walking on a great prairie.
Compared to the memories of the Extreme Cold Hell, this place was child's play.
Uchiha Ren took a deep breath and suddenly formed Hand Seals.
"Ren, what are you doing?" Kurenai Renhi immediately became guarded.
However, Uchiha Ren simply released a Great Fireball Technique at an empty patch of ground.
At the same time, he coated a feather with Armament Haki and stuck it into the Great Fireball.
Just like that, he had made a simple hand warmer.
He pinched the end of the quill and handed the feather to Kurenai.