Blues Clues

The Land of Thunder is located to the northeast of the Land of Fire, and for the ninjas of Cloud Shinobi Village to invade Konoha, they must travel from north to south. A group of shinobi moved quickly through the woods, heading toward the northern part of the Fire Country. The journey was long, requiring more than 20 hours of continuous travel.

Kazuya didn't feel tired. He had Kage-level Chakra, providing immense endurance. Moreover, along the way, he occasionally picked up the golden light, which felt very rewarding.

[You picked up 30 points of physical talent]

[You picked up 40 points of Body Flicker Technique skill experience]

[You picked up 50 points of Body Flicker Technique skill experience]

[You picked up 20 points of Chakra]

[You picked up 30 points of Chakra]

...

Though the quality of the golden light was average, the sheer quantity was substantial. Soon, Kazuya accumulated 3540 points of Chakra and 200 points of physical talent. His current Chakra amount became:

[Chakra: lv4 (13000/100,000)]

His physical talent also increased to lv5 (700/1000)! Just as he was about to rest, Jiraiya's body suddenly emitted golden light.

[You picked up 50 points of Body Flicker Technique skill experience]

[Your Body Flicker Technique has been upgraded, and it is currently Body Flicker Technique: lv4 (30/1000)]

Another breakthrough! Kazuya's Body Flicker Technique was now at lv4, the same level as his Three Body Technique. It was impressive to achieve upgrades even while on the move!

At this time, the team reached the border area of the Fire Nation, and they could encounter the Cloud Shinobi and Mist Shinobi ninja teams at any moment.

"According to the previous arrangement, scatter!" Sarutobi Shinnosuke, the captain of Anbu's first unit, ordered after a brief rest.

"Yes!" the team leaders responded, and the four ninjas of the Anbu team quickly disappeared.

Now, the only Anbu left were Kazuya's team, Kurenai's team, the eighth team with Hyuga ninjas, and the two main battle teams under Sarutobi Shinnosuke's command.

"Do you have information?" Jiraiya asked aloud.

"That's right, Master Jiraiya," Sarutobi Shinnosuke replied solemnly. "I received a secret report from the outpost ninja, indicating enemy activity on the border."

Jiraiya nodded and began to meditate, looking very dignified and powerful, far from the carefree persona he would adopt ten years later. This serious demeanor was understandable. After Tsunade left the village and Minato and Kushina's untimely deaths, even a powerful ninja like Jiraiya would go through a period of emotional depression. It was only human.

"Captain Kazuya!" Kurenai Yuhi approached and spoke in a low voice. "I found some traces left by ninjas."

"Take me to see," Kazuya, who had been idle, stood up.

"Yes!" Kurenai led Kazuya away, followed by Uzuki Yugao and Moonlight Hayate.

"Shinnosuke, let's go and have a look!" Jiraiya suggested.

"Yes, Master Jiraiya," Sarutobi Shinnosuke responded, then turned to his team. "Stay vigilant and be careful."

"Yes, Captain!" the Anbu replied.

After a while, Kurenai led the group to a dense forest. Pointing to the moss on the tree bark, she explained, "I found some moss scratches, probably footprints, and..."

Kurenai picked up a few broken branches from the ground. "These branches have been trampled and broken. Judging by the moss and branch locations, the enemy's destination should be..."

"It's a village!" Uzuki Yugao exclaimed, noting the height of the moss traces, which were over ten meters high—clearly left by ninjas.

"Are we facing another ninja war from Cloud Shinobi Village?" Moonlight Hayate, the sickly young man, questioned.

Jiraiya, observing the traces, appeared thoughtful. Kazuya remained silent for a moment before speaking slowly, "To trigger the Fourth War, Cloud Shinobi Village wouldn't be so bold. And these traces..."

"Are too fake!" Kazuya declared.

"Fake?" Kurenai looked surprised.

"Yes, too fake," Kazuya nodded. "The cuts on the broken branches are too smooth, not made by stepping on them, but cut deliberately. And the footprints—the bark beneath the trampled moss is too wet, indicating the intruders left recently. Elite ninjas wouldn't be so careless unless..."

"Unless time was too tight!" Kurenai's eyes lit up. "Captain, you mean..."

"It's a diversion," Jiraiya interjected. "The enemy spotted us from a distance and quickly retreated, leaving hasty, imperfect traces to mislead us."

"Exactly," Kazuya agreed. "This infiltrating ninja team is experienced and strong, probably with sensory ninjas or other detection methods. They anticipated our presence and left false clues."

"The other party left information to induce us to make mistakes," Jiraiya said. "Since the clues point to the village, the enemy's actual target is likely elsewhere, such as..."

Kazuya and Jiraiya exchanged a glance and said in unison, "The Daimyo's Mansion!"

"What?" Kurenai, Uzuki Yugao, and the others were shocked.

It made sense! Kazuya felt a sudden realization. No wonder, in the original plot, Konoha was forced to hand over the life of Hyuga Hizashi to quell the kidnapping of Hinata by Cloud Shinobi Village. Apart from the military pressure, the daimyo of the Land of Fire was likely threatened by the enemy's elite ninja squad. To threaten the Daimyo, Cloud Shinobi would dispatch extremely powerful ninjas.

Killer Bee...

Or perhaps the Fourth Raikage, Ay!?

Such audacious actions fit these brothers' characters perfectly! Everything now made sense to Kazuya. This ninja, capable of becoming the shadow of a village, truly had no faults!

At this time, Jiraiya felt a sense of relief. Fortunately, he had decided to follow the mission after hearing the old man's words. Otherwise, something disastrous might have occurred!

Jiraiya now looked at Kazuya with newfound respect. This Anbu, both in terms of strength and strategy, was impressive! While not quite at Minato's level, he was still an excellent ninja!

"Chase them!" Kazuya commanded coldly. "The enemy hasn't gone far!"

"Yes, Captain!" Kurenai and the Anbu responded.

Under the mask, Kazuya's gaze briefly flickered toward Jiraiya. The enemy had powerful ninjas, but so did Konoha. This opportunity was too good to miss. The impending clash would surely yield high-quality golden light, and Kazuya couldn't wait to seize it!