"Be careful, there's a fight ahead."
Walking at the front, Kakashi noticed signs of a battle in a nearby village.
Obito immediately ran over to Kakashi's side to check the situation, while Rin and Shisui kept a vigilant watch, staying close to the middle-aged client.
To get a clearer view, Obito activated his Sharingan to enhance his perception.
"One, two, three... five. There are five Ninjas, but their strength is average, and none of them are wearing headbands. I don't know which Ninja village they're from," Obito reported his observations.
"They're probably Ninjas from some rogue Ninja organization or wandering Ninjas," Kakashi replied.
The Ninja world isn't made up of just Ninja villages; however, the Ninjas from these villages are generally the most powerful.
"Mutsuki-sensei, should we take a detour?" Kakashi turned to ask Mutsuki.
Kakashi was more inclined to take a detour. Although the Ninjas ahead seemed average in strength, the most important thing in a bodyguard mission was ensuring the safety of the client. The fewer issues, the better.
"There's no need for that. I can defeat all of them by myself," Obito felt that it wasn't necessary to go to such lengths.
From Obito's perspective, the Ninjas engaged in battle were at a level that wouldn't even make it past the third round of the Chunin Exams. It felt somewhat frustrating to take a detour just for them.
"No need to detour, these are the only five Ninjas in the area," Mutsuki replied after a moment of thought.
Seeing that Mutsuki agreed with him, Obito couldn't help but show a smug expression.
"Mutsuki-sensei can use Sensory Ninjutsu, so that's why he can make that call. It's not the same as your recklessness," Kakashi said with a subtle mock.
"Keep talking, but I'm still right," Obito retorted sarcastically.
Although they were arguing, the two didn't slack off and kept observing their surroundings while walking.
After entering the village, Kakashi noticed that many villagers were nervously watching the Ninja battle. This struck him as odd because, logically, the villagers should be locking their doors and windows to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
Ninja battles aren't for entertainment; a single Kunai can easily end a regular person's life.
However, if they were watching out of curiosity, Kakashi felt that wasn't quite right. It couldn't be that they were so engrossed that they became nervous, could it?
At that moment, the villagers noticed Mutsuki and the others entering the village. Upon seeing the Konoha headbands and vests, they instinctively took a step back.
"More wandering Ninjas preparing to plunder the village, what a terrible environment," the middle-aged client sighed upon seeing this.
Although he didn't know who the two Ninjas being beaten were, he could tell from their uniforms that they were members of the Akatsuki Organization.
While the Akatsuki wasn't the strongest Ninja organization in the Land of Rain, its unique organizational agenda gave it considerable notoriety in the region.
As a Ninja organization, the Akatsuki Organization was truly a breath of fresh air, not only offering affordable prices for hiring but also occasionally doing good deeds outside.
Although the middle-aged client had a good opinion of the Akatsuki members, he had no intention of asking Mutsuki and his team to help the Akatsuki Ninjas.
That would be a trouble beyond the mission. Mutsuki's team had the responsibility to deal with the Ninjas attacking him, but they were not obliged to follow his orders to deal with other Ninjas.
"You deal with those two in robes, and I'll handle the other three," Kakashi said after a moment's thought to Obito.
Given the short amount of time, Kakashi couldn't analyze everything, so he chose to defeat all five Ninjas to solve the problem.
As Kakashi spoke, he observed Mutsuki's expression. Seeing no objection, he immediately focused his breathing.
"Just now, you wanted to avoid a fight, and now you're about to go on the offensive. Kakashi, your mouth is tougher than a Kunai," Obito couldn't help but remark.
Despite the sarcasm, Obito still moved according to Kakashi's instructions.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Obito gathered a large amount of Chakra in his throat, then transformed it all into fire-type Chakra, blasting out a massive flame.
Whoosh!!
The roaring flames quickly gathered into a huge fireball and shot towards the five Ninjas who were still fighting.
The five Ninjas immediately stopped their fight and retreated. They had no way of handling such a fearsome fireball.
"How about we retreat? Our luck's been too bad today. These Konoha Ninjas don't look easy to deal with," one tall wandering Ninja said, growing hesitant upon seeing Obito's formidable strength.
They only planned to loot the village and grab some things, not to fight Konoha Ninjas.
The tall wandering Ninja realized that his two companions had already turned and fled without looking back.
"Land of Rain damn it!" the wandering Ninja cursed, then turned to run.
"Flash!"
Kakashi focused all the Chakra in his legs, and with the amplification of the Breathing Technique and the activation of his lightning Chakra enhancing his body, Kakashi's speed became extremely fast, almost like lightning to the villagers watching.
Whoosh!
As Kakashi ran, he swung his White Fang Tanto fiercely. The two leading wandering Ninjas had their legs immediately shredded with blood splattering, and they fell to the ground.
The wandering Ninja slightly behind saw Kakashi's exaggerated strength and immediately slammed on the brakes, not daring to continue running.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!!
Kakashi didn't stop. He quickly took out a Shuriken and threw it at the uninjured wandering Ninja.
Kakashi's Ninja Tool throwing skills were excellent, and the wandering Ninja dodged clumsily, getting several scratches on his body.
Before he could think about how to escape, a Kunai laced with lightning pierced through his knee.
The earlier Shuriken was just a feint. The Kunai infused with lightning Chakra was Kakashi's real attack.
"We are the Ninjas protecting the village, not wandering Ninjas looking to plunder," the Akatsuki Organization Ninja quickly said as he dodged the Great Fireball.
Obito did not stop his attack because of the Akatsuki Organization Ninja's words—who knows if what he said was true.
First, he took out the ones who lost the ability to fight, then he would ask the villagers, and the truth would come out.
However, the Akatsuki Organization Ninja's words weren't entirely without effect. Obito, concerned about killing someone, refrained from using Fire Release and only used Taijutsu to attack.
But even with just Taijutsu, Obito was no slouch. The already injured Akatsuki Organization Ninja was knocked to the ground by Obito in just a few moves.
"Konoha Ninja-sama, thank you, but please don't hurt them. They are here to protect our village," the village chief said, seeing that Kakashi had taken down the wandering Ninja. He thought Kakashi and the others weren't bad people and stepped forward to speak.
"Huh? Really?" Obito scratched his head awkwardly.
"Sorry, I thought you were also robbers or something," Obito apologized immediately, pulling up the Akatsuki Organization Ninja he had knocked down.
"It's fine, you saved us too," said a tall and thin Akatsuki Organization Ninja, shaking his head.
If Kakashi and Obito hadn't stepped in, they would have quickly been killed by the three wandering Ninja who had surrounded them.
Another Akatsuki Organization Ninja also spoke up to express his gratitude.
Once it was clear that the three attackers were robbing wandering Ninja, Kakashi quickly took action and dealt with all of them.
If they hadn't been killed, they might have come back to retaliate against the villagers once their injuries healed.
Seeing the Akatsuki Organization Ninja were injured, Rin stepped forward and used Mystical Palm Jutsu to treat them.
A green light full of life enveloped the wounds of the Akatsuki Organization Ninja, healing them rapidly, leaving no scars behind.
"That's amazing, thank you so much," the tall, thin Ninja said with surprise.
There were no Medical Ninjas in the Akatsuki Organization, and without Rin's treatment, they would have needed a long recovery period.
Obito's gaze instinctively drifted upwards, some of those injuries were from his own attacks.
"Really, thank you for your help. We are Ninjas from the Akatsuki Organization. If you encounter any trouble in the Land of Rain, you can come to our organization for assistance," the tall, thin Ninja apologized again.
What he didn't expect was that this seemingly ordinary apology caused Rin to show an expression of shock, and Kakashi's eyes to become sharp.
Obito, who initially didn't react, soon came to his senses and his expression also became one of surprise, realizing he hadn't made a mistake after all.
"You're from the Akatsuki Organization?" Kakashi silently gathered Chakra and asked, cautiously scanning the surroundings.
He trusted Mutsuki's sensing ability, but Akatsuki Organization was a terrifying Ninja group that could challenge the five great ninja villages in the future, so he couldn't afford to be careless.
"That's right. Have you heard of our organization?" the tall, thin Ninja asked excitedly.
Not many Ninja organizations are remembered by Ninjas from the five great villages.
"Yes, we have heard of it," Obito said, ready to enter Flame Breathing Chakra Mode and activate Orochinagi at any moment.
Rin once again gathered Chakra in her palm, but this time she wasn't preparing to use Mystical Palm Jutsu; instead, she was using the Chakra Scalpel.
Due to the information brought by Naruto and Yamato, the Akatsuki Organization was in their minds the most terrifying Ninja organization.
Shisui noticed Kakashi and the others' actions and felt a bit confused. He didn't understand what was so important about the words Akatsuki Organization Ninja had just said.
Although Asuma and Jiraiya would die at the hands of Akatsuki Organization Ninjas, due to the time being too far ahead, Obito's summarized version of the Roran journey hadn't mentioned anything about the Akatsuki Organization.
Shisui's impression of the Akatsuki Organization still remained from the last mission in the Land of Rivers, where they almost fought, but his impression of Akatsuki Organization wasn't bad.
"If the Land of Rain had more Ninja organizations like yours, maybe the environment would be better," the middle-aged client praised.
Hearing the client's words, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin exchanged looks, realizing the situation wasn't quite what they had imagined.
"We will try our best. It is precisely to change the Land of Rain that we gathered together!" the tall, thin Ninja said, clenching his fist.
Obito scratched his head in confusion. Wasn't this supposed to be a terrifying Ninja organization? Why did it sound so positive? Could they have the same name?
Kakashi and Rin dispersed their gathered Chakra, and they could tell this wasn't an act.
In the end, Kakashi and the others watched the Akatsuki Organization Ninjas leave. After a brief rest, they continued escorting the client to their destination.
Along the way, Shisui asked about his confusion.
Kakashi didn't answer Shisui's question immediately. Instead, he subtly glanced at Mutsuki with the corner of his eye. Finally, Kakashi and Shisui stood at the front of the group to scout ahead before Kakashi responded.
"Obito probably didn't tell you about the Akatsuki Organization, right? According to the information from Roran, during the peaceful era of the future, the Akatsuki Organization is the strongest Ninja organization in the world. Its members are all S-rank rogue ninjas from various ninja villages, and they engage in activities like capturing Tailed Beasts."
Kakashi spoke in a volume that only Shisui could hear.
Shisui now understood why Kakashi and the others were being cautious. A Ninja organization this insane definitely required caution.
Shisui could only describe the Akatsuki Organization as crazy. The tailed beasts were the ultimate weapons of the Five Great Shinobi Countries, and stealing them would be declaring war on the Five Great Nations.
"If it's them, maybe they really will have that kind of power in the future," Shisui thought of Mutsuki's assessment of those Akatsuki Organization Ninjas.
Although they didn't seem very imposing, Mutsuki said that there were two among them that he couldn't defeat, and one who could directly kill him.
If such a genius grows stronger and gathers a group of powerful Ninjas, it would be entirely possible for them to carry out the kind of plans Kakashi had mentioned.
"I once encountered a few Akatsuki Organization Ninjas during a mission in the Land of Rivers..." Shisui thought for a moment and began to recount his experience with that mission.
Kakashi's expression became serious. He knew Shisui's strength well, and to kill Shisui in an instant would truly be difficult.
Because Shisui not only had the Sharingan, which enhanced his perception, but was also incredibly skilled in Body Flicker Jutsu, even the elite Jonin would find it impossible to defeat Shisui instantly.
Of course, elite Jonin didn't refer to people like Jiraiya or Orochimaru, the Sannin, whose renown in the Ninja world made them far beyond normal Ninja rank measurements.
"That should be correct, this Akatsuki Organization is the same one that will go on to steal the Tailed Beasts in the future. They're probably gathering strength now," Kakashi speculated.
Shisui's words made Kakashi more and more suspicious that Minato Namikaze's death might be linked to the Akatsuki Organization.
It was particularly suspicious that the Tailed Beasts went berserk at the same time Akatsuki Organization's goal was exactly to capture them.
Kakashi believed that at that time, the Akatsuki Organization might have attempted to make a move, but upon realizing that the Five Great Shinobi Countries were too strong, they retreated to gather more power.
...
"Didn't expect even Konoha Ninja would know about our organization. At this rate, maybe we can change the entire Land of Rain soon," the tall, thin Akatsuki Organization Ninja said with delight on the way back.
Another Akatsuki Organization Ninja also had a smile on his face.
Just like that, they chatted and laughed as they returned to the village where the Akatsuki Organization was stationed.
However, they didn't notice that a brown-haired Ninja was following them from behind.
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