The peace treaty with Iwagakure, under the guidance of the Third Hokage, was finally established.
As for the opposition from the Land of Grass? In this ninja world, where only the strong have a voice, it was naturally ignored.
Within Konohagakure, only the major clans and a few jōnin knew the full details. Some people grumbled about it, but their voices were drowned out by the overwhelming chorus celebrating the victory.
—
On the border between the Land of Rivers and the Land of Fire, three figures moved swiftly through the dense forest.
"Thanks to you, we finally got an easy mission. We can take it slow and get some well-earned rest."
"At this rate, our squad will all be promoted next year..."
"I heard the shelters have plenty of beautiful girls. Maybe I'll even start a family..."
"Then the real question is, should I stay in Root or take a position in the merchant…?"
Kakashi ignored his teammate's daydreaming. The other shinobi was used to this indifference and continued talking to himself.
"Fox, shut up."
The oldest member of the three-man squad, their leader, snapped impatiently.
"Yes, sir... But seriously, this is a tough choice."
"..."
—
They finally reached their destination at the border and met with their contact—an administrator of one of Root's shelters.
The man before them was a middle-aged shinobi, missing a leg and walking with a metal cane. A deep scar ran across his face, yet he radiated an air of competence.
"Ren... Didn't expect you to be the one coming. These your squad members? They look promising."
The one-legged man gave Kakashi and the other member a once-over.
"Yeah, they're good people." Their captain, Ren, nodded in agreement. His gaze carried a hint of nostalgia as he looked at the man before him.
"A senior, huh...? Then this mission evaluation should be a piece of cake," Fox commented in a playful tone.
"Teammates, huh?" Kakashi couldn't help but think of Obito.
"Come on, let's walk and talk."
—
Following the one-legged man, they arrived at what could loosely be called a village.
Collapsed buildings and half-burned houses littered the area. Tents were pitched everywhere, even in what used to be farmland. Women bustled around, tending to daily tasks, while children ran and played, laughing.
Despite the hardship, everyone stopped and bowed respectfully as the four passed through.
This was one of the many shelters under Root's Trade Association, housing refugees displaced by the war.
Most were from the Land of Rivers, unable to enter the Land of Fire due to wartime border restrictions. They had no choice but to remain in this limbo, stuck at the frontier.
The Trade Association often hired Root operatives to guard these shelters, and that was Kakashi's squad's current mission—investigating a bandit hideout twenty kilometers away.
A week ago, a shipment of supplies meant for the shelter was ambushed and stolen.
At first, they assumed it was just an ordinary bandit gang. But when the shelter's guards went to deal with them, they found evidence of rogue shinobi among the attackers. The Trade Association's samurai escort suffered heavy casualties.
—
Under the cover of night, the three infiltrated the 300-strong bandit camp.
The borderlands were rife with such groups, ranging from small gangs of a dozen to massive hordes of over a thousand.
But in the wake of the raging ninja wars, nobody cared about these sword-wielding bandits.
As long as they didn't threaten nobles, the deaths of commoners were nothing more than background noise.
It didn't take long for the team to gather enough intelligence and confirm their target.
"Take them alive."
For three jōnin, it was effortless.
The mission ended quickly, but the intel they extracted was unexpected.
These so-called rogue ninjas weren't wandering mercenaries.
They were Sunagakure shinobi.
Even more shocking—they revealed that over 200 Suna-nin were currently hiding within the Land of Fire's borders.
They had been operating in secret, using bandit gangs to loot the country's wealth and supplies.
This had been going on for four months.
The stolen goods were funneled through trade caravans in the Land of Rivers and smuggled directly back to the Land of Wind.
And the Land of Rivers' role in all this?
Unclear.
After all, Konoha had just cut a deal with the Land of Grass. The surrounding minor nations were unlikely to remain as loyal to the Land of Fire as they had in the past.
—
Danzo remained silent for a long time after receiving the report.
During wartime, as long as the conflict didn't involve nobles or shinobi, no one cared if villages were raided and civilians slaughtered.
Bandits thrived in chaos. Death among commoners was just another statistic.
"Nonō, tell Ryōma to rally the trainees at the training facility. We have work for them."
"Understood, Lord Danzo."
Nonō bowed respectfully before leaving the dimly lit chamber.
Danzo was left alone.
"So, in the end, I still can't just sit back and turn a blind eye."
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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