Deep within the forests of the Land of Fire, several black-clad shinobi were fleeing at full speed, clearly being pursued.
"Where do you think you're running?"
A calm voice sounded behind them.
In the next instant, thick wooden tendrils shot out from all directions, wrapping around the fugitives and binding them tightly together.
Almost at the same time, three figures appeared atop the trees above, looking down at the captives from on high.
They were Ren, Shisui, and Yūgao.
Ren glanced at the struggling shinobi. None of them begged for mercy. He nodded and turned to Shisui.
"Looks like another mission wrapped up. If nothing unexpected happened, they're probably from Kumogakure."
"That matches the intelligence," Shisui replied with a nod. Then he sighed softly.
"Honestly, doing missions with you is starting to feel boring."
"That's true," Yūgao agreed. "We barely have to do anything—he solves everything by himself."
That comment made Ren unhappy.
"Hey, hey, hey. If it were me, I'd love to have a teammate like that. What's wrong with finishing a mission easily?"
Ren was openly dismissive of their complaints. A mission was a mission—if someone could do more work and solve it cleanly, what was there to dislike?
If Ren had to choose, he'd love a teammate who let him slack off and reap the benefits.
"Alright, let's head back," Shisui said, noticing other ANBU squads approaching.
"We'll leave the rest to them. Kumogakure's retaliation really came fast."
"It did," Yūgao sighed.
Ever since they had "invited" the Fourth Raikage back to Konoha, Kumogakure had started stirring trouble.
Internal probing. Attacks on Konoha shinobi during missions.
They were retaliating in their own way.
The feeling was eerily similar to the period after the Fourth Hokage's death—the most humiliating era for Konoha.
It was during that time that Hyūga Hizashi had lost his life.
"Let's get moving," Yūgao said again.
Shisui and Yūgao were visibly emotional about it, but Ren didn't dwell much on the matter.
In fact, the more Kumogakure acted up, the better it was for him—especially since he had few large-scale missions at the moment.
Time quietly advanced to Konoha Year 55.
During this period, both Ren and the shinobi world underwent many interesting changes.
The negotiations between Konoha and Iwagakure had concluded.
Kitsuchi, along with the Iwa shinobi captured earlier, was returned to his homeland.
The results weren't bad—acceptable to all parties.
But Ren's "boss," Danzo Shimura, was clearly dissatisfied. Because of this, Konoha held several high-level meetings.
As an ordinary ANBU, Ren had no idea what conclusions were reached.
All he knew was that his former superior seemed to be in a very good mood lately.
"Enjoy it while you can," Ren thought flatly.
"Who knows when you won't have the chance anymore."
He didn't comment further. For him, it was all the same—and his own mood was pretty good too.
Kumogakure's small maneuvers significantly increased his post-return workload, but the value those people provided exceeded expectations.
He no longer had to idle on village patrols. Instead, he frequently went out to deal with "shinobi of unknown identity."
Even without major missions, he steadily made a tidy profit.
[Ren]
Overall Physical Attributes: Lv.11
Chakra: Lv.9
Abilities:
• Wood Release Lv.7
• Flying Thunder God Lv.7
• Taijutsu Lv.6
• Curse Mark Lv.7
• Yin Release Lv.6
• Scorch Release Lv.7
• (others omitted)
Freedom Points: 0
Ren nodded lightly at the panel.
He had only five Freedom Points left before. Combined with this mission's rewards, he finally upgraded Flying Thunder God, Taijutsu, and Yin Release.
He'd hesitated over Taijutsu.
Given his current physical stats, he could already kill most opponents without refined technique.
But after thinking it through, he realized he'd fallen into a trap.
"Am I starting to think like the Ōtsutsuki?"
He remembered clearly how strong those beings were—Tree Fruit eaters with Kekkei Mōra.
And yet, their endings were uniformly miserable.
Whether it was arrogance, madness, or narrative inevitability, one fact remained clear—
They relied on brute force.
In real shinobi combat, despite overwhelming power, their technique and tactics were lacking.
Their fights were linear, crushing everything head-on.
Shinobi combat, by contrast, layered tactics, deception, and skill to multiply strength.
"Ōtsutsuki Isshiki was impressive," Ren muttered.
"He overwhelmed Naruto and Sasuke completely."
Even forced Naruto into sacrificing Kurama with that ridiculous "Baryon Mode."
Though later Ren realized Naruto had been tricked—tailed beasts could revive.
Still, compared to fighting Isshiki, Ren felt battles against Uchiha Madara were far more brutal.
Madara had maxed out both technique and buffs.
The Ōtsutsuki fought on instinct alone.
"I can't walk their path."
Wood Release and Flying Thunder God gave him immense advantages—but he couldn't abandon the fundamentals of being a shinobi.
That was why he upgraded Taijutsu.
How far he'd take it later would depend on necessity.
During this time, he also successfully fused Scorch Release using the established formula.
Once again, the system notified him of bloodline mutation.
That only strengthened his confidence.
"Still missing Lightning Release… and a complete chakra mode."
"And, of course—Freedom Points."
Thankfully, the shinobi world wasn't peaceful.
If Ren remembered correctly, this year would be very lively.
"Hokage-sama."
Inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi rubbed his temples tiredly but smiled at the three of them.
"This mission is complete. Well done."
But his smile was strained. He looked more exhausted than usual.
Ren didn't dare say much—he knew full well he was partly responsible.
The Fourth Raikage? Him.
The Iwagakure mess? Him.
Danzo's rising influence? Also him.
Danzo was content.
The Third Hokage… wasn't.
I'm really committing crimes against heaven, Ren thought—then shrugged internally.
Luckily, his skin was thick.
He worked for Danzo. If something went wrong, it was the boss's fault.
[Mission Complete]
Objective: Capture Spies
Completion Rating: A
Reward: Freedom Points +1
Ren nodded quietly. Even small missions had value.
"You may rest now," Hiruzen said, sealing the scroll. "Good work."
"Please wait, Hokage-sama," Ren said, bowing slightly.
"I have intelligence to report."
"Oh?"
Hiruzen paused. Despite everything, he genuinely liked Ren.
Wood Release. Flying Thunder God. Flawless work ethic.
Yes, Ren once followed Danzo and may have done questionable things—but Hiruzen lacked proof and didn't believe it justified mistrust.
Ren's flaw was obvious, though.
He was too extreme.
"Very well," Hiruzen said. "Shisui, Yūgao—"
"No need," Ren interrupted. "This involves the Akatsuki. They'll be involved."
"…I see," Hiruzen nodded. "Kakashi and Itachi are on duty today. Proceed."
"Yes."
Ren didn't hide anything.
"My external intelligence assets have reported activity."
Hiruzen's expression hardened.
Ren had been authorized to build an intelligence network, with a monthly budget of five hundred thousand ryō.
Hiruzen hadn't expected returns this soon.
"It seems Akatsuki is recruiting new members," Ren continued.
"And according to my information… this candidate was once a Konoha shinobi."
Hiruzen felt unease rise in his chest.
"…Who?"
"…Likely Orochimaru."
The room went silent.
"Orochimaru…"
Shisui, Yūgao, Kakashi, Tenzo—all froze.
Hiruzen's pupils shrank.
This was the name he least wanted to hear.
"I understand," Hiruzen said at last. "Where are they heading?"
"Possibly toward Iwagakure."
Hiruzen's mouth twitched.
Why is it always Iwa?
Still, considering Ren's previous actions, Iwagakure was ironically safer.
"I'll consider it carefully," Hiruzen said. "You'll have an answer soon."
"Yes, Hokage-sama."
After they left, Hiruzen sighed deeply.
Danzo.
The Uchiha.
Now Orochimaru.
Too many problems.
"Kakashi," he ordered. "Recall Jiraiya immediately. This is urgent."
"Yes!"
Outside the office, Yūgao murmured, "Didn't expect Orochimaru's name to show up."
"Nothing's confirmed yet," Ren replied calmly.
"But intelligence only needs to be valuable, not absolute."
Shisui fell silent, then spoke.
"Ren… I may be leaving ANBU."
Ren looked surprised—then nodded inwardly.
Uchiha affairs were spiraling out of control.
"I understand," Ren said calmly. "Focus on your clan."
After a pause, Shisui bowed deeply.
"This next mission will be my last. After that… please look after Itachi."
Ren smiled faintly.
"Ask Kakashi."
Shisui hesitated, then activated his Sharingan briefly, scanning the surroundings.
"I've decided to gamble," he said quietly.
Ren understood instantly.
He's going after Danzo.
And Ren also knew the likely outcome.
Izanagi.
Uchiha Kagami's Sharingan.
Shisui was walking toward a dead end.
Should I warn him?
Ren hesitated.
Then—
No.
Instead, an idea formed.
Maybe I can make this… interesting.
Elsewhere, in the Rain Country—
Kakuzu stood before Pain.
He hated being here.
Especially after being crushed by that Wood Release brat.
But money talked.
Monthly payments. No cuts. Extra bounties allowed.
Best boss he'd ever had.
"I have a recommendation," Kakuzu said. "A man with hatred for Konoha—and ties to Hanzō."
"…Who?" Pain asked.
"Orochimaru."
Nagato's Rinnegan turned.
"…Iwagakure," he murmured.
"Let's take a look."
Back in Konoha, Jiraiya returned.
"This kid's trouble incarnate," he muttered after reading Ren's file.
But Hiruzen was serious.
"Help him," the Hokage said.
"And if possible… bring Orochimaru back."
Jiraiya fell silent.
"…I'll try."
Konoha Year 55.
The Uchiha were restless.
Danzo was smiling.
Akatsuki was moving.
And the Night of Extermination drew ever closer.
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