"We need intelligence from Amegakure—specifically, information on the movements of Iwagakure and Sunagakure," Orochimaru said calmly.
Hiruko fell silent in thought.
As the temporary field commander, he immediately understood their intention.
Konoha naturally had spies inside Iwagakure and Sunagakure, so learning their movements wasn't difficult—but those reports always came with delays.
And in the current tense situation, even a small time lag could lead to catastrophic consequences.
The Land of Rain was the key battleground all three powers coveted.
Amegakure, sitting in the center, would inevitably keep close watch on both sides.
Their intelligence would be accurate, timely, and critical.
"The problem is," Hiruko said slowly, "Amegakure has completely gone underground. Finding their shinobi won't be easy."
A small village couldn't afford to face three major nations head-on.
"So," Orochimaru continued smoothly, "we need to plant a spy inside Amegakure."
The gazes of Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Jiraiya all shifted—
and landed squarely on Hiruko.
The meaning was painfully clear.
Hiruko's gentle smile didn't change, but internally, he was cursing them all.
The three of you just arrived and took my command authority—
and now you want me to infiltrate Amegakure?
Can you people be any worse?!
After a moment, Hiruko spoke carefully:
"Since this is only reconnaissance, someone too strong would draw attention.
Ideally, the candidate should have decent self-preservation skills and strong scouting ability—someone suited for gathering information discreetly."
He deliberately steered the criteria elsewhere.
Whoever wanted to be a spy could go.
He certainly wasn't.
Standing behind Hiruko, Hyūga Ming froze.
Wait.
Why does that description sound… familiar?
"Hyūga Ming," Tsunade suddenly asked in a flat tone,
"how's your Transformation Technique?"
Hyūga Ming glanced at his Lv.2 Transformation Technique and answered honestly:
"Average."
—Wait.
WAIT.
His eyes snapped open.
He looked up at the four adults.
All four were staring directly at him.
"…Huh?" Hyūga Ming pointed at himself. "You're not seriously thinking of sending me, are you?!"
And you—Hiruko—
you just became my instructor and your first move is throwing me in as an undercover agent?!
Is this how guidance works?!
Hyūga Ming stared at Hiruko in disbelief.
Hiruko quietly turned his head away.
He felt a little guilty—but not enough to volunteer himself.
After all, Hyūga Ming was only temporarily assigned to him by Tsunade.
They weren't close.
Better you than me.
Hyūga Ming wanted to scream.
Yes, he'd been eyeing Amegakure—
—but not like this.
If he went undercover, how was he supposed to farm Rain ninja?
He wanted drops.
Not intelligence.
"As long as you're careful, average is enough," Tsunade said after a moment.
"Amegakure doesn't have sensory-type ninja. If you're cautious, you won't be exposed easily."
Sensory ninja were rare.
Only the Five Great Villages deliberately cultivated them.
Smaller villages focused on raw combat strength.
Hyūga Ming: Wow. Thanks. Thanks to your entire family for telling me to 'be careful'.
In the end, despite Hyūga Ming's silent resistance, he was officially selected as the undercover agent.
The four adults simply weren't human.
Not a single one gave him a chance to refuse.
Hyūga Ming cursed under his breath as he followed Hiruko.
"I just graduated from the Academy. What virtue or crime did I commit to deserve being sent undercover by four grown adults…?"
Hiruko rolled his eyes.
The kid wasn't swearing, but somehow it still felt extremely offensive.
"We're not asking you to steal core secrets," Hiruko said, trying to placate him.
"Just some peripheral intelligence."
"So where are you taking me, sensei?" Hyūga Ming asked, finally stopping his rant.
They had reached the southeast corner of the camp.
There were only four or five tents in this area.
Hiruko pulled open a tent flap.
"Don't say I didn't take care of you," he said.
"Everything inside—take what you want."
Hyūga Ming stared inside.
Shuriken.
Kunai.
Explosive tags.
All kinds of ninja tools stacked into small mountains.
"…Really?" Hyūga Ming's eyes lit up.
"Yes," Hiruko nodded. "You're leaving today. No time to teach you jutsu—this is the least I can do."
Hyūga Ming narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"How much can I take?"
Hiruko waved dismissively. "As much as you want."
These were supplies Hyūga Ming's team delivered anyway.
"No problem letting him take some."
"Then… sensei, could you step outside for a moment?" Hyūga Ming said shyly.
"I pack pretty fast."
"No," Hiruko replied immediately.
"I need to record how much you take."
Just in case the kid tried something like mass transfer using sealing techniques or summoning.
Hyūga Ming clicked his tongue.
Hiruko's forehead twitched.
This kid definitely had that idea.
Good thing he hadn't trusted him completely—
otherwise the losses would've come straight out of his responsibility.
Hyūga Ming didn't care what Hiruko was thinking.
He dove straight into looting.
Explosive tags—
grabbed over a dozen and stuffed them into his pouch.
(Which, of course, actually went into his inventory.)
Explosive Tags (23)
He'd never fought such a wealthy battle before.
"Don't take too many explosive tags," Hiruko warned.
"They're dangerous to carry, and most fights won't even use them."
Hyūga Ming ignored him completely and grabbed another handful.
Then he spotted the Windmill Shuriken—
The expensive one he could never afford.
Without hesitation, he grabbed three or four.
Kunai—dozens.
Steel wire—essential.
Shuriken—he took even more.
Hiruko watched the pile visibly shrink.
Something felt very wrong.
"Wait—hold on!"
"What kind of ninja pouch is that?! How can it hold so much?!"
Hyūga Ming immediately stuffed in even more shuriken and replied innocently:
"Sensei, you said I could take whatever I wanted."
While talking, he casually slipped in a few more explosive tags and another Windmill Shuriken.
"STOP!!"
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