The Land of Rivers was a small country, serving as a buffer zone between the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind.
The mission briefing mentioned "stationed in the Land of Rivers," which Byakuya interpreted as monitoring the movements of Sand Village ninja. In other words, it was a surveillance outpost established by the Leaf within the Land of Rivers.
The Land of Rivers was shaped like a long corridor with complex terrain and dense vegetation—perfect for covert operations and reconnaissance.
Byakuya recalled that in the original story, the Akatsuki organization had used a hideout in the Land of Rivers to extract the One-Tail from Gaara.
"Sansan Kaoru? What kind of weird name is that?"
Honestly, for a Leaf surveillance unit stationed in the Land of Rivers to have a Sand Village spy embedded within it... whoever was in charge of that unit deserved a massive disciplinary action. They needed to dig three feet deep into that commander's background to see if they were compromised too.
Looking strictly at the mission itself, Byakuya couldn't glean much intel. Aside from the dry text, there was just a map of the surveillance unit's operational area.
What rank was Sansan Kaoru? What jutsu did they possess? What was their role in the unit? Byakuya was completely in the dark.
Since his life and the mission's success depended on it, Byakuya rolled up the scroll and went straight back to Hiroya's office.
"Byakuya? Is something wrong?"
"Sorry to disturb you, Principal. About the target..."
"Oh, right. That." Hiroya slapped his forehead in vexation. "I forgot to clarify. Since the Leaf is fighting wars against both the Cloud and the Rock simultaneously, things get hectic and mistakes happen. All the available intel for this mission has already been given to you. Byakuya Senkaku, time is of the essence. You must execute the mission immediately."
Byakuya took his leave.
Once he stepped out of the office, his expression darkened.
He didn't know if Hiroya was telling the truth or if this was a deliberate test set by Root.
Even assuming the worst about Root was probably giving them too much credit.
He had no choice but to grit his teeth and go. He'd have to adapt once he reached the Land of Rivers and complete the mission as safely as possible.
He was incredibly hungry for the "Major Increase in Chakra Quality" reward from Destiny Choice 2. It aligned perfectly with his current needs.
"No wonder it's called a 'Destiny Choice'..."
"I'm missing a trump card—something that can turn defeat into victory in a pinch."
Back at the warehouse, he sealed kunai, shuriken, explosive tags, and smoke bombs into the space-time scroll. He could summon them instantly with the Summoning Jutsu when needed.
He tied the small scroll to his left forearm. Since it was compact, he could wear it like a bracer. A larger scroll would have to be carried on his back, which would hinder his movement.
He took off his Leaf forehead protector and put on the Shuten-doji mask. He equipped the explosive tag sword and the standard katana he used for practice. He wore a black trench coat to slightly obscure his weapons.
He tied a pouch of soldier pills to his waist.
After a few steps, he decided to bring the detailed map as well.
Byakuya locked the warehouse doors, vaulted over the wall, and headed straight for the village gates.
---
The weather was clear, though the wind was strong, whipping his black coat around him like the robes of an unruly demon king.
For some reason, several people were standing inside the gate. Through the eyeholes of the Shuten-doji mask, Byakuya saw Kakashi Hatake, Kurenai Yuhi... and wait, was that Obito Uchiha in the goggles and sports jacket? Then the girl he was giggling at must be Rin Nohara.
Rin, with her short brown hair, looked at Byakuya's mask with surprise in her deep brown eyes.
Kakashi, seeing the strange attire, seemed to realize something and narrowed his eyes in observation.
"Rin, what are you looking at? Ah! What is that mask?!"
Rin whispered, "It's the legendary demon king, Shuten-doji."
"Oh. Whatever. Why isn't Sensei Minato here yet? We've been waiting forever," Obito Uchiha complained loudly. "Does Sensei Minato want to become Hokage too? Is he stalling to suppress me because he's afraid he can't compete with me?!"
"Kurenai! Sorry I'm late."
Kurenai waved at the approaching Hyuga girl. "No rush. We're still waiting for one more teammate, and Sensei Mimura isn't here yet either."
Obito, likely wanting to show off in front of Rin and divert her attention to himself, started bragging loudly and gesticulating wildly.
Byakuya walked past them.
Obito's flailing arm accidentally smacked Byakuya's shoulder.
"Hey, you..."
Obito wanted to apologize, but the thought of bowing his head in front of his crush made him lose face. He stiffened his neck and yelled at Byakuya, "You scared me! Apologize to me! Or don't, whatever, I won't hold it against you."
At this point, Obito hadn't fallen into darkness yet; his nature was still kind, which made his words come out as a contradictory mess.
"Obito, apologize quickly..." Rin started.
But Byakuya wanted to test himself against Kakashi Hatake.
He reached back and gripped the hilt of his katana.
Ideally, the wind picked up right then.
His coat danced, making Byakuya look exceptionally cool.
He drew the blade.
And slashed at Obito Uchiha.
The movement was lightning fast. Obito and Rin, who were standing right there, froze. They never expected a mysterious masked man to draw a sword inside the village over a minor disagreement.
Kakashi had been watching Byakuya the whole time.
The moment Byakuya drew his sword, Kakashi drew his White Light Chakra Sabre and dashed in front of Obito.
CLANG!!
The short white blade blocked Byakuya's slash.
Just as Byakuya expected.
The future Copy Ninja and Sixth Hokage wouldn't just stand by and watch.
"Back!" Kakashi said coldly.
"Huh? O-okay!"
Obito hurriedly grabbed Rin and scrambled back toward Kurenai.
The force coming from the short blade was immense, but Byakuya knew that if he added just a bit more power, Kakashi would have to deflect and retreat.
He could see Kakashi's right hand, gripping the sabre, trembling slightly uncontrollably.
Suddenly, Kakashi's left hand grabbed a kunai and slashed toward the throat beneath Byakuya's mask.
Ruthless technique.
But Byakuya had sensed the counterattack the moment it began.
He let the kunai come.
Substitution Jutsu!!
The kunai sliced into a log.
Kakashi's heart sank. Too late.
Using the visual confusion of the Substitution Jutsu, Byakuya instantly appeared behind him.
"Kakashi! Look out!"
"He's behind you!"
Obito, Rin, Kurenai, and the Hyuga girl all screamed in unison.
But Kakashi had committed too much force to his attack. His body was still carrying forward momentum. He could only turn his head halfway, staring helplessly at the grinning Shuten-doji mask.
This guy's use of Substitution is incredibly precise. His movement speed is insane. He left me zero time to react.
Kakashi felt a surge of bitter defiance. If I die, I should die on the battlefield, not in a worthless scuffle inside the Leaf!!
"KAKASHI!!!" Obito screamed.
Byakuya almost laughed out loud. Why are you all acting like this is a life-or-death tragedy?
He didn't intend to kill Kakashi. And truthfully, Kakashi hadn't intended to kill him either; when he slashed with the kunai, he had angled it down. The target was the chest, not the throat.
This was just a spar. Point proven.
Byakuya turned his blade sideways, intending to tap Kakashi lightly on the shoulder with the flat of the blade.
But at that exact moment.
A yellow flash suddenly appeared in his vision.