62: The Order to Return to the Village

About a day later.

　　In the forest at the junction of the Land of Rivers and the Land of Fire, a team of three rushed back in the direction of the Land of Fire.

　　Compared to the tense atmosphere when we went to the country of the river, the current atmosphere has become much more relaxed and freehand.

　　The team that rushed back to the realm of the Fire Kingdom was Shiraishi, Ruri, and Ayane.

　　Since the root team was eliminated, he never encountered any enemies again, and he spent a day in peace.

　　Both Shiraishi and Ayane's chakras also recovered. Half a day ago, Ruri also woke up from a deep sleep. Although the injuries caused by the immortal arts have not fully recovered, her face still looks very pale, but she has recovered a little strength. Enough to have some self-defense ability.

　　Considering that there were many factors in this mission, and it involved the game between Konoha's high-level officials, and the Sand Ninjas didn't know if there were any follow-up chasing troops, so after Ruri woke up half a day ago, the three of them got up. After a while, he rushed back to the country of fire with all his strength to find out what was going on with this mission.

　　It was about three o'clock in the morning, and it was still very dark.

　　Ayane carried Ruri, who was temporarily unable to move, and rushed with all her strength, and Shiraishi followed closely.

　　"By the way, is it really okay to go back like this?"

　　Ayane spoke abruptly, looking a little worried.

　　"What do you mean?"

　　Shiraishi glanced at her.

　　"The root ninja is a member of Anbu. Although the affiliation is different, after all, they died in our hands."

　　Ayane didn't think that if she went back like this, nothing would happen.

　　Although the root ninja framed them first, if the messenger behind this incident was a certain high-ranking Konoha, what would he do if he knew?

　　Maybe the three of them will be convicted on the grounds that they killed the root ninja.

　　"It doesn't matter, haven't those corpses been disposed of in advance? After we go back, we just need to explain that we were caught in a Sand Ninja's trap. If they ask, they will insist that they don't see any roots."

　　Ruri, who was lying on Ayane's back, breathed softly and said slowly.

　　"That's fine?"

　　"Of course not. But as long as we deny that we haven't seen it, and there is no evidence, we can't do anything about it. In the end, I will use the power of Uchiha to do something to find the source of the information from the top of the village. If the other party wants to get to the bottom of it, then make it known to everyone. Let's see how they end."

　 Ruri said in a calm tone.

　　Ayane nodded in agreement.

　　She couldn't use Hyuga's power to put pressure on the top of Konoha, but Ruri was different.

　　She is one of the candidates for the next patriarch of the Uchiha family. Within Uchiha, she has enough prestige and even has a group of fans who are very loyal to her.

　　This is the power of the giants, even the high-level Konoha must weigh it.

　　"Sometimes I really envy you, Ruri."

　　Ayane lowered her head and said with a slight smile.

　　"Envy? Speaking of which, the matter of the two of you hooking up behind my back has not been settled yet."

　　Ruri frowned, not satisfied with this.

　　Shiraishi and Ayane smiled awkwardly and turned their faces away, not answering Ruri's question directly.

　　"After going back, it's best to explain this matter one by one."

　　"Yes, I see. It's not a big deal anyway."

　　Shiraishi touched his head, looking distressed.

　　Where to say it, explain it all, or hide half of it, so that this matter can be successfully revealed. The power of words is really fascinating.

　　"However, I didn't expect you to choose an adventurous way, using the unfinished Sage art to trigger the fire escape. After returning, for safety, it is better to have a re-examination."

　　"Long-winded. I can do what I like."

　 Ruri snorted, shook her black hair, and turned her head away.

　　"It's really troublesome..."

　　Hearing Shiraishi complaining there again, Ayane smiled and was about to say something when suddenly two figures appeared in her white-eyed vision.

　　"Someone caught up from behind, it was Jiraiya Jonin, and an old classmate from the class next door."

　　Ayane quickly revealed the identities of the two ninjas chasing after them.

　　Both Shiraishi and Ruri frowned.

　　Although they wondered why Jiraiya and Minato appeared here, the three of them stopped and waited for the two to catch up from behind.

　　After a while, Jiraiya and Minato appeared in front of the three of them. The two of them were in the dust, and there were signs of battle on their bodies, and they seemed to have suffered a little.

　　After seeing that the three of Shiraishi were all right, Jiraiya breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "That's great, you three are fine."

　　If these three died in a conspiracy, then he may live in guilt for the rest of his life.

　　The clothes on the three of Shiraishi's bodies were a little damaged, and there were bloodstains. At a glance, they knew that the three of them had survived a very cruel battle and escaped from death.

　　"Jiraiya Jonin, and that yellow hair, why are you two here?"

　　Ruri asked Jiraiya's intention in a cold tone.

　　"That, Uchiha-san, my name is Namikaze Mina..."

　　"Shut up, yellow-haired guy, I didn't ask you, I asked your teacher."

　　Jiraiya also patted Minato, who was smiling bitterly, on the shoulder. Minato had heard that Ruri was a difficult person in school, so he didn't take offense at that.

　　"It's a long story about this, but the most important thing is the safety of the three of you. The village will definitely give you an explanation later."

　　"Explanation?"

　　There was a contemptuous sneer at the corner of Ruri's mouth.

　　"Yes, I will personally vouch for you..."

　　"No need. Uchiha's affairs will be solved by Uchiha himself, no outsiders need to intervene!"

　　Ruri's attitude is also very strong.

　　Hearing this, Jiraiya is also more certain, Ruri and the three understand some of the problems in this mission.

　　For example, the root... no, I must have known it.

　　Especially Ruri, a ninja from a wealthy family, has a very good vision and mind, and Jirai also dares not fool around in this matter.

　　"I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do. If Uchiha wants to be held accountable, that's your business. I help you out of the responsibility and obligation of the ninja in the same village."

　　Zilai also smiled, it is better to say that he is also happy to see this.

　　There is nothing happier than being able to make that guy in Danzo suffer.

　　"I hope so."

　　For Jiraiya's promise, Ruri didn't take it to heart.

　　The so-called Sannin, in the eyes of the entire Uchiha, is only so much.

　　What's more, they are still affiliated to the Senju clan, and Ruri only believes half of the words of Jiraiya.

　　"Compared to this kind of painless thing, I'm very curious about what punishment Hokage-sama will do to the senior who made the mistake. That's the key, isn't it?"

　　Ruri's sarcastic words made Jiraiya sigh helplessly.

　　Even a little girl sees things so clearly, Uchiha is indeed a powerful and powerful family that cannot be ignored.

　　Shiraishi was silent on the side, acting as a small transparent person in everyone's eyes.

　　◎

　　Returning to Konoha Camp is a few hours later.

　　Soon after dawn, the Konoha ninjas in the camp walked out of the camp one after another.

　　During the shift change of the on-duty staff, the medical ninjas did not even have enough to eat breakfast, so they rushed to the simple infirmary and alternated with the medical ninjas who had been busy all night there.

　　Because Sakumo Hatake, the leader of Sakumo Squad, has not returned and is still on the mission, Ruri is temporarily the captain and will report to the highest-ranking officer, Orochimaru, on the content of this mission.

　　Jiraiya also took Minato to other places to do his work.

　　Shiraishi and Ayane stayed bored not far from the camp.

　　"Yo, Shiraishi kid, long time no see, much stronger than before."

　　The voice came from one side, it was a familiar and very hearty female voice.

　　Turning his head, Shiraishi saw a beautiful woman with pale blond hair.

　　After Shiraishi was stunned for a while, the other party gave a wicked smile and said, "Why, don't you recognize me?"

　　Only then did Shiraishi react, and bowed to the ninja: "Long time no see, Tsunade-sensei."

　　Although he was not a direct disciple, Tsunade was indeed the instructor of Konoha's first batch of medical ninja experimental training classes, and he taught Shiraishi a lot of knowledge about medical ninjutsu.

　　"Hello Tsunade."

　　Ayane also bowed and hurriedly saluted Tsunade.

　　Tsunade just waved his hand and said with a smile, "You don't have to, just be casual. There's nothing wrong with this mission, right?"

　　She asked intentionally or not.

　　Shiraishi didn't think about anything, so he answered honestly: "I heard Ruri say that this is a trap of the sand ninja, and deliberately used wrong information to guide us Konoha ninjas to annihilate."

　　Then, he looked very puzzled, as if he didn't quite understand what was going on with this mission.

　　Ayane coughed twice.

　　"Little girl from Hyuga's family, are you feeling unwell?"

　　Tsunade looked at her.

　　"Well, when I came back, I found that my throat was a little uncomfortable, maybe I had a cold."

　　Ayane replied.

　　"Girls, pay attention to your body." Tsunade put his eyes on Shiraishi again, patted his head lightly, and his voice softened: "It's alright, things will pass. I'll take care of you for the next thing, make sure it's settled."

　　"Thank you Tsunade-sensei. But Sand ninja is really too despicable, Tsunade-sensei should be careful."

　　Seeing Shiraishi's innocent, harmless eyes that cared about him, Tsunade sighed in his heart.

　　Damn that Danzo guy.

　　These are the pillars of Konoha's future.

　　Tsunade cared about Shiraishi again, and before entering the tent, he also gave Shiraishi a few scrolls, which were all Tsunade's valuable experience in medical ninjutsu.

　　She sincerely admires a simple and honest boy like Shiraishi. Even if his talent in medical ninjutsu is not very outstanding, he may have relied on the nepotism of a woman to enter the Sakumo team, but his serious and dedicated spirit is worth her attention. Young ninjas who are hardworking and motivated are vigorously cultivated.

　　Uchiha's little girl is also interested in him. Tsunade thought.

　　"Shiraishi-kun, you are so bad."

　　Ayane watched Tsunade enter the tent and complained to Shiraishi.

　　If she hadn't known the truth, she would have almost believed Shiraishi's nonsense.

　　"I don't want to do this either, but this is what I rely on for my survival. And I don't feel good about cheating on someone who treats me with such sincerity. She is a ninja like Fujimura-sensei besides you, who sincerely hopes I will be a good ninja."

　　Speaking of which, Shiraishi thought of Fujimura Taiga, the head teacher who accompanied him through his six years of study.

　　I don't know if I have finished my single dog career now, all of them are Chunin-sama who are running for three, which is really worrying.

　　Ten minutes later, Ruri walked out of the tent with a displeased face.

　　Because the physical injury is not yet healed, so the walking speed is not fast.

　　"What do they say?"

　　Shiraishi and Ayane leaned over and asked.

　 Ruri glanced at the two of them, tried her best to suppress her anger, and said, "What else can I do, Commander Orochimaru, let the three of us return to the village immediately and stand by."

　　"Immediately?"

　　"Return to the village and stand by?"

　　These two interrogative words came out of Shiraishi and Ayane successively, with surprised expressions.

　　"Wait, Sakumo-sensei hasn't come back yet..."

　　"He told us not to wait for him to come back, and leave now to escort the wounded who can't participate in the battle with other teams back to the village."

　 Ruri repeated the order in disgust.

　　"Is that so? It seems to be a lot more troublesome than I thought."

　　Shiraishi said something meaningful.

　　Although the responsibilities of the Sakumo squad are rather special, the commander-in-chief of the battlefield is Orochimaru, one of the three ninjas.

　　He has more on-the-spot dispatch power than their leader, Sakumo Hatake.

　　Therefore, even if the three of Shiraishi protested, it was useless, they could only obediently return to the village and stand by.

　　As for Sakumo's affairs, the three of them are completely unknown. There are still many unresolved questions about the fault of this mission, but presumably the commander, Orochimaru Kamijin, will not reveal it to the three of them.

　　In the final analysis, it is the lack of identity and strength.

　　If Sakumo is here, even if Orochimaru has a higher status, he can't ignore Sakumo's question.

　　"That's it, pack up and get ready to go."

　 Ruri was upset, she didn't plan to go back to the village.

　　It's only been a few days since I came to the front line, and now I have to go back.

　　Half an hour later, a lot of ninjas gathered here at Konoha Camp, and a lot of carriages were prepared, and many wounded were resting in the carriage.

　　In addition to the three Shiraishi, there were more than 30 Konoha ninjas, including four from the Jōnin. There were also several medical staff in the team who were responsible for recuperating the wounded.

　　...

　　"Why let the three of them go back?"

　　Inside the tent, Tsunade sat aside and looked at the pale young ninja in confusion.

　　His long black hair fell straight down, and his face was handsome, but he had a somewhat feminine temperament.

　　This person is Orochimaru, the commander-in-chief of Konoha's frontline forces against Sandyin.

　　Along with Jiraiya and Tsunade, he is a ninja of the three ninjas.

　　In the face of Tsunade's question, Orochimaru's reason is also very simple: "The war is imminent, I don't want to make a mess here because of this troublesome political dispute."

　　"But let the three of them go back like this..."

　　"Sakumo should not know about this. He is not suitable for this kind of political field, and maybe he will cause other troubles. Now Konoha's main goal is to defeat Sand Shinobu, and I don't want to be distracted by this kind of thing."

　　Orochimaru shook his head, no matter what the truth of the matter was, he was not interested.

　　He will not be distracted by this kind of thing, and the final result depends on Hokage himself, he is not the one who makes the final decision.

　　"I'm not worried about Uchiha and Hyuga's little girl, but that kid..."

　　"Do you care about him?"

　　Orochimaru looked at Tsunade as if interested.

　　"He's one of the students I've taught. I don't want him to touch the dark side of the village. He just does his job as a medical ninja and lives on."

　　Tsunade sighed.

　　"Yeah, in this chaotic age, being able to survive is the best outcome. But human growth is often accompanied by pain, experiencing the coldness of the world. Just like Nawaki is for you, it is also for me in this way."

　　Orochimaru said here, looking at his hands, there was a hint of gloom in his eyes.

　　"Actually, we can't do anything, we can't change anything..."