Yōkō carefully searched along the coastline.
Last time Captain Antelope met Squadron Leader Brown Bear, it was by the seaside.
Perseverance paid off; Yōkō found a shell half-buried in the sand, with three codes carved on it.
According to the code scroll, these two codes represented: one for the date, the 11th of next month; another for the direction, northeast; and the last one for the distance, 3 kilometers.
The ninja world used a lunar calendar based on the moon's phases. The 11th was only 4 days before the full moon.
Yōkō didn't dare act recklessly and hid under bushes in the coconut grove.
When the 11th arrived, Yōkō crawled out from under the bushes and ran to the location indicated by the mark.
Upon reaching the destination, Yōkō still didn't show himself rashly. Instead, he formed the Ram Seal and used the Shadow Clone Technique.
The shadow clone left the hiding spot among the reefs and walked on the sand.
As it walked, two dark figures suddenly jumped out, and the shadow clone froze on the spot.
"Who are you?"
One wore a blue wolf mask, the other a white marten mask. Neither realized the person with the fox mask was a shadow clone.
The shadow clone said: "Fox, the last surviving member of the Antelope Squad, requesting the Squadron Leader reassign me."
After verifying his identity, the two looked towards a coconut tree.
A person walked out from behind the coconut tree, wearing a brown bear mask.
That was Yōkō's squadron leader, Brown Bear.
Brown Bear took a few steps forward, then looked towards the reef where Yōkō was hiding.
Yōkō thought, As expected of the squadron leader, strong indeed, to see through the shadow clone so quickly.
He walked out from behind the reef and dispelled the shadow clone.
The shadow clone turned into white smoke, startling Blue Wolf and White Marten who had appeared first.
It wasn't the smoke that scared them, but the belated fear – if Fox had been an enemy, they would have been at a disadvantage.
Yōkō approached Brown Bear:
"Squadron Leader, Captain Antelope and Horned Ox sacrificed themselves. I am the only one left in my squad. I found this place using Captain Antelope's code scroll."
Brown Bear looked Yōkō up and down and said, "Your shadow clone has some of Antelope's essence; your basics are quite solid. A pity about Antelope, such a cautious man still died."
Yōkō didn't respond. More words, more mistakes; fewer words, fewer mistakes.
Captain Antelope was indeed cautious, but not cautious enough.
Brown Bear said: "The Antelope Squad is disbanded. You will now join the Blue Wolf Squad and follow Blue Wolf's orders."
Yōkō was greatly disappointed.
He had schemed so hard to kill Captain Antelope precisely because he wanted to become a squad leader and access more information.
Now look, he was still just a squad member, under an unfamiliar Blue Wolf.
He had to adapt to a new squad all over again.
The Anbu's assessment for squad leaders was very strict; they wouldn't appoint one casually.
Loyalty, strength, judgment – all were indispensable.
Yōkō glanced at Blue Wolf and White Marten.
Maybe... kill these two as well?
If these two died, surely he could become a squad leader, right?
Pick the flagpole from the chopsticks; as long as there are few enough chopsticks, even the shortest one can become the flagpole.
Although he thought this, Yōkō said: "Captain Blue Wolf, greetings. I am Fox. I learned a bit of the Shadow Clone Technique from Captain Antelope."
To make the Shadow Clone Technique seem legitimate, he had to reveal to the captain that he learned it from Captain Antelope.
Blue Wolf nodded and said, "Good. My squad lost two members; you just right fill the gap."
Blue Wolf bid farewell to the Squadron Leader and left with his squad.
On the way, they came to a supply point, took off their Konoha Anbu attire, and changed into Kumo-nin flak jackets and ninja swords.
These Kumo-nin equipments still had bloodstains on them, probably previously captured by the Blue Wolf Squad.
Following behind Blue Wolf, Yōkō felt somewhat frustrated and sighed.
He really felt it was unfair for Captain Antelope.
Whether Captain Antelope died or not, Yōkō was a squad member. Captain Antelope died, Yōkō was still a squad member. Didn't he die for nothing then?
Captain Blue Wolf, like Captain Antelope, didn't disclose the mission details, just kept pressing on.
Upon reaching a town, Captain Blue Wolf had the two squad members stop.
"Fox, use your shadow clone to enter the town and gather intelligence. See how many Uzumaki ninja are hiding in the town."
Beneath his mask, Yōkō frowned.
This was using him as labor. Knowing he had mastered the Shadow Clone Technique, they were putting him to work.
Searching for Uzumaki ninja was probably the same mission as the Antelope Squad's: to seize the Uzumaki clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains scroll.
Forming the Ram Seal, Yōkō created a shadow clone beside him, then applied the Transformation Technique to the clone, turning it into an ordinary person carrying a sack, walking towards the town.
A long time later, Yōkō suddenly stiffened.
The shadow clone had been destroyed, and its memories returned to the main body.
"What happened?"
Facing the captain's inquiry, Yōkō replied: "The shadow clone wandered around for a bit, sat down to rest by a wall, then a kunai suddenly appeared from behind and stabbed it to death."
"A kunai, not a ninja sword?"
Those using ninja swords were most likely Kumo-nin.
"It was a kunai, not a ninja sword."
Captain Blue Wolf said: "Continue using shadow clones to enter the town and gather intelligence."
After using the Shadow Clone Technique several times in a row, the clones kept getting destroyed.
Yōkō gasped for breath, his whole body weak as he sat on the ground.
Chakra was a mixture of physical and mental energy. After over-extracting chakra, lactic acid accumulated in the body's cells, causing body aches like after running five kilometers.
Captain Blue Wolf looked disdainfully at the useless Fox: "Continue, Fox, don't slack off. The intelligence is far from enough. Over ten times, and you haven't even seen the enemy's face."
Yōkō had to raise his hand again, extract chakra, and use the Shadow Clone Technique.
This technique consumed half his chakra each time, plus the Transformation Technique, rapidly depleting his already limited chakra reserves.
The key point was that Captain Blue Wolf wasn't giving him a chance to rest. Besides a nuclear-powered donkey, who could work continuously?
The shadow clone appeared and walked into the town.
A rustling sound suddenly came from the woods behind them!
Six figures emerged from the dense forest behind them – six Uzumaki ninja!
Having discovered suspicious persons several times in a row, they had already pinpointed the hiding place of the three Anbu.
The battle instantly turned fierce.
However, the strength of the three Konoha Anbu was no match for the Uzumaki ninja.
Yōkō really wanted to shout that he was Konoha Anbu, not Kumo-nin. But the Kumo-nin disguise he wore made him feel it would be useless to shout.
Captain Blue Wolf, wielding a long sword, continuously pressed the Uzumaki ninja, trying to get more information, to find out if these Uzumaki ninja had any sealing scrolls.
A summoned spider hidden in the shadows bit Captain Blue Wolf.
Under the effect of the poison, Captain Blue Wolf immediately began stumbling.
Konoha and Uzushiogakure were allies, but Captain Blue Wolf kept his mouth shut, not revealing his true identity even unto death.
About ten seconds later, the three Konoha members were successively killed by the Uzumaki ninja.
A kunai was thrust into Yōkō's lower back.
This familiar feeling... his previous shadow clones had all been killed by Uzumaki ninja attacking from behind.
The Uzumaki ninja behind him even twisted the kunai, churning Yōkō's intestines into a whirlpool.
—
His vision went black, then shifted.
Yōkō gasped for breath; he had resurrected.
He was crouching on the reef.
On the distant seaside beach were Squadron Leader Brown Bear and Captain Antelope, discussing who knows what mission.
He had returned to the night of the full moon, when Captain Antelope was still alive.
Yōkō crouched on the reef, carefully calculating.
[Mochizuki's Arc Activated!
The host has one resurrection opportunity per month. Upon death, will resurrect on the previous full moon night.
Reward: One draw opportunity:
1- Sealing Technique: Sealing Object Formula (Beginner);
2- Chūnin-level Chakra Amount (Stackable);
3- Kunai Thrust (Proficient).]
(End of Chapter)