Chapter 52: Chapter 52: The Approaching Mist and Cloud Ninjas

After Kushina and Nawaki went home, Tsunade, Orochimaru, and Natsuki arrived at ANBU headquarters.

The situation was urgent. There was no time to rest—they had to act immediately.

As one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages—and the strongest—once Konoha began operating, its speed was incredibly fast.

Due to her relationship with the Uzumaki clan, Tsunade became the operation’s commanding officer.

She issued many orders, but they could be summarized into three points.

First, after controlling Junpei, have him return to Kirigakure.

If Kirigakure discovered him missing, they would know their plan had been compromised.

Whether they acted early, delayed, or canceled the operation—none of those outcomes would benefit Konoha.

Enemies hiding in the dark were the most terrifying.

Second, have Uzumaki Mito write a letter and send it to the Uzumaki clan first.

Although Konoha and the Uzumaki clan were allies, a group of ninjas entering the Land of Whirlpools without prior notice would be far too abrupt.

Third, assemble the ninjas participating in this operation.

To ensure success, the lowest rank Tsunade selected was Tokubetsu Jonin.

And this operation was classified as S-Rank.

Upon successful completion, all participants would receive a handsome reward.

After all orders were issued, Natsuki and Orochimaru arrived at the ANBU training grounds.

This was the assembly point.

Tsunade remained at ANBU headquarters to command and coordinate.

"Teacher."

Having nothing to do while waiting, Natsuki asked, "Does Konoha have the Water Release: Hiding in Mist Technique?"

"You want to learn it?"

Orochimaru asked in return.

"Mm."

Natsuki nodded. "I think Hiding in Mist could be quite useful in many situations."

"To maximize its effectiveness, it must be combined with the Silent Killing Technique."

Orochimaru said calmly. "The Silent Killing Technique has an extremely high learning difficulty and is particularly time-consuming."

No wonder Water Release ninjas from other villages rarely used Hiding in Mist—only Kirigakure employed it regularly.

Natsuki smiled. "I’m not learning the Silent Killing Technique. I want to modify Hiding in Mist."

Orochimaru’s gaze instantly sharpened.

He had forgotten that Natsuki, like Senju Tobirama, was a creator-type ninja.

"You already have ideas?"

Orochimaru asked instinctively.

"I already have three."

Natsuki held up three fingers.

The Smoker template had five abilities, but three were quite similar and could be classified as one concept.

"...?"

Orochimaru’s mouth couldn’t help but twitch.

Didn’t you just see Hiding in Mist for the first time a couple of days ago?

How do you already have three ideas?

Even if he and Sarutobi Hiruzen wanted to create a ninjutsu, having three suitable concepts in two days would be impossible.

Orochimaru suddenly understood the Hokage’s feelings.

Right now, he felt both surprised and gratified.

"Wait here. I’m going to the Hokage Building."

Orochimaru snapped back to reality and headed out.

When he returned, he carried a ninjutsu scroll—the Water Release: Hiding in Mist Technique.

Natsuki took the scroll and began studying it.

After all, Ability 2 of the Smoker template required learning this technique.

Fortunately, Hiding in Mist wasn’t difficult. Its learning difficulty was only D-Rank.

While Natsuki waited and studied, ninjas gradually arrived at the training grounds.

They were all notified by ANBU to participate in this mission.

After greeting Orochimaru, they stood in place and waited.

But many gazes fell on Natsuki.

He was the only child present—extremely conspicuous.

They all guessed his identity: most likely Orochimaru’s student, Natsuki.

But letting a third-year child participate in an S-Rank mission?

Time passed slowly.

More ninjas gathered until Tsunade and Jiraiya arrived.

"Ninjas from the Inuzuka, Aburame, and Hyuga clans will handle reconnaissance."

Tsunade walked to the front and ordered. "For this operation, we must ensure we arrive without alerting any enemy ninjas."

The Inuzuka clan had ninja hounds. The Aburame clan had insects. The Hyuga clan had the Byakugan. All three were natural sensory specialists.

"Yes!"

Everyone answered in unison.

"Move out!"

With a wave of her hand, Tsunade leaped into the air.

The group followed toward the Land of Whirlpools.

The Land of Whirlpools was located between the Land of Fire and the Land of Water—a small peninsular country.

It had a unique characteristic: the Daimyo of the Land of Whirlpools was also from the Uzumaki clan.

Normally, the ninja world followed the "one village per country" system.

A country’s Daimyo nominally commanded the village’s ninjas.

The Land of Whirlpools was an exception.

This indirectly demonstrated the Uzumaki clan’s strength. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

And the emergence of Jinchuriki had made the Uzumaki clan’s sealing jutsu famous throughout the ninja world.

Possessing a treasure invites trouble. This made them a target for Kumogakure and Kirigakure.

If Kumogakure was purely after sealing jutsu, Kirigakure had additional motivations.

If Kirigakure wanted to attack Konoha, they couldn’t bypass the Uzumaki clan.

The Uzumaki clan served as Konoha’s bridgehead against Kirigakure.

Eliminating them would remove one obstacle.

Two days later, Natsuki and the others successfully arrived in the Land of Whirlpools.

The first head of the Uzumaki clan was named Uzumaki Ashina. He had been close friends with Senju Hashirama, forming an alliance with the Senju clan.

Senju Hashirama had even married Uzumaki Mito and incorporated the Uzumaki clan’s crest into Konoha’s symbol.

The current clan head was Uzumaki Ashina’s son, Uzumaki Keisuke.

"Clan Head Keisuke, it’s been too long."

Tsunade greeted him with a smile.

"Welcome."

Keisuke sighed. "If not for your timely warning, we wouldn’t have known disaster was imminent."

"The Uzumaki clan and Konoha are allies. This is what we should do."

Tsunade paused. "Let’s end the pleasantries here. We must make arrangements as quickly as possible."

"You’re right."

Keisuke nodded.

He quickly organized matters.

He had the other Konoha ninjas rest while taking Orochimaru, Jiraiya, and Tsunade to the meeting hall.

Although Natsuki was Orochimaru’s student, he was young and had traveled for two days. He was already exhausted and didn’t participate.

After eating, he fell into deep sleep.

In the afternoon, the Uzumaki clan became busy.

But to avoid alerting the enemy, only a small number of trusted ninjas took action.

Their tasks consisted of two parts.

One was establishing defensive barriers.

The other was setting traps.

Natsuki naturally didn’t need to participate.

He stayed in his room, studying the Hiding in Mist Technique.

However, he didn’t study for long.

A week later, in the dead of night, the Hyuga ninjas stationed by the sea detected approaching Kumogakure and Kirigakure forces.

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