"I just have a few doubts I'd like to ask Mutsuki-kun about," Orochimaru said with a slight curve at the corner of his lips, smiling faintly as he stood up.
In public, Orochimaru of course wouldn't mention anything about Root directly to Mutsuki, and he did indeed have some questions he wanted to ask him.
Mutsuki nodded and followed Orochimaru as they walked to a quiet, secluded spot beside the camp.
"You should already know what you need to do here-Danzo should have told you everything," Orochimaru said, stopping beside a large tree and turning to look at Mutsuki.
The relationship between Orochimaru and Danzo was a bit complicated.
Nominally, Orochimaru could even be considered Danzo's subordinate, as he held a position within Root.
But in reality, Orochimaru and Danzo were equals-the two were collaborators.
They worked together on many things: human experimentation, research on Hashirama's cells, studies into forbidden jutsu, and more.
However, their most important current collaboration was regarding the position of the Fourth Hokage.
Although Danzo greatly desired to become the Fourth Hokage himself, he wasn't foolish. Given the current situation, it was nearly impossible for him to take the position.
Danzo had control of a Wood Release ninja, but the child was too young and hadn't matured yet. He also hadn't obtained the Rinnegan or the inheritance of the Ninja Sect.
For Danzo, becoming Hokage himself would be the best outcome. But if that path was blocked, only one option remained: his partner, Orochimaru.
The other two leading candidates for Hokage had only average relationships with Danzo. If one of them were to take the role, it might threaten Danzo's current influence and power within Konoha.
But Orochimaru was different. He and Danzo had a deep collaborative relationship-if the things they'd done were ever exposed, it would be enough to completely ruin both of them in Konoha.
In other words, they were grasshoppers tied to the same rope. Neither dared to betray the other easily, as they each held too much incriminating evidence on the other.
That's why Danzo could confidently give his full support to Orochimaru's bid to become the Fourth Hokage.
Once Orochimaru rose to power, thanks to their relationship, Danzo would undoubtedly gain even greater influence than he currently held.
After all, if Orochimaru ever dared to claim, "I am the Hokage," then Danzo truly had the means to make him regret it.
"I will do everything I can to help Orochimaru-sama achieve military merit," Mutsuki replied calmly.
"To have the assistance of such an exceptional ninja like Mutsuki-kun, the results this time should be quite impressive," Orochimaru praised without holding back.
"But it really is surprising-I didn't expect someone like you, Mutsuki-kun, such a genius, to come from Root," Orochimaru said, casting a curious glance at Mutsuki.
It wasn't that Orochimaru looked down on Root-it was just the truth. Root had talents, but not geniuses.
Because Hiruzen would never allow true geniuses to fall into Root's hands. Orochimaru could clearly see that Hiruzen had always intentionally limited Root's overall power.
"Orochimaru-sama flatters me. When it comes to genius, among the Legendary Three Sannin, you are the real prodigy," Mutsuki replied with a polite compliment.
Mutsuki had always been self-aware. Apart from Sealing Jutsu, which he trained in on his own, most of his other abilities were essentially gained through "cheats."
The reason he was able to develop a secret technique like Fire Dragon Dance wasn't because of some extraordinary talent in Fire Release-it was because he had received Perfect-level fire chakra nature transformation from the system, along with a vast number of Mastery-level Fire Release techniques.
His mind was packed with countless training memories related to Fire Release.
It was the same with Breathing Techniques. Mutsuki could develop new styles simply because he was already incredibly proficient in them. As long as he was willing to put in the time and effort, creating similar Breathing Techniques wasn't particularly difficult.
"I don't quite agree with that. At least when it comes to the development of Kekkei Genkai, you've surpassed me. After all, I haven't succeeded in cultivating a Kekkei Genkai myself," Orochimaru said with a slight shake of his head.
Orochimaru was willing to spend so much time researching various Ninjutsu and forbidden techniques, so of course he had studied Kekkei Genkai-especially Wood Release, which he had devoted a lot of time to.
But rather than saying he was researching Wood Release, it was more accurate to say he was studying the vitality of Hashirama Cells.
Compared to the power of Wood Release, Orochimaru desired the immense vitality within Hashirama Cells even more-because ninjas were simply too fragile.
"Mutsuki-kun, would you mind showing me your Ice Release?" Orochimaru asked after some thought.
He wasn't particularly interested in Ice Release itself, but he was quite intrigued by Mutsuki, who had managed to cultivate it.
Mutsuki nodded and agreed. He gathered chakra in his palm, transformed it into ice chakra, and released it all at once.
"Freeze Ray!"
A blue-white beam shot out, instantly freezing a small area beside Orochimaru.
*Clap clap.*
Orochimaru lightly clapped his hands. "I'm very much looking forward to your performance on the battlefield, Mutsuki-kun."
Orochimaru remembered from Mutsuki's intel that he was skilled in all five basic chakra nature transformations, capable of combining various Ninjutsu to enhance their power. Even a newly learned Ice Release could already be used to this level. Orochimaru was starting to wonder what kind of power Mutsuki's specialized Ninjutsu could display.
...
To help his students get used to operating without a sensei leading them, Mutsuki quickly assigned them a B-rank wartime mission-to investigate a village where a three-man Hidden Mist squad was suspected to be active.
Since his real body had free time, Mutsuki didn't send a Shadow Clone to follow them but instead followed personally, leaving a Shadow Clone behind at the camp.
Of course, to prevent any emergencies, Mutsuki had left a Flying Thunder God Kunai with the Shadow Clone. That way, if something unexpected happened, he would be immediately alerted and could rush back at top speed.
"There are six villages in total. Should we split up? Two per group, that would be faster," Obito suggested after Kakashi finished explaining the mission.
Splitting into four separate units would be even faster, but even Obito didn't dare to be that reckless on the battlefield. He, Kakashi, and Shisui could probably manage, but if Rin ran into enemies, things could go badly.
"That's not safe. If you want to finish faster, then just move faster," Kakashi rejected Obito's proposal.
If Mutsuki were with them, Kakashi might have agreed, because Mutsuki's Flying Thunder God Jutsu could provide quick support-but they didn't have that luxury now.
They didn't even have a Sensing Ninja. If a teammate encountered enemies, it would be hard to know in time.
In some ways, Transparent World had abilities similar to the Byakugan, but its range was far inferior and it couldn't function as a sensory technique.
Moreover, Kakashi didn't have the stamina to use Transparent World as a sensory jutsu-that was his trump card in combat.
"Safety is still the most important thing on the battlefield," Rin agreed.
"We can use Shadow Clones. Obito and I can each send a Shadow Clone to investigate other villages besides the ones our real bodies go to. That should improve efficiency," Shisui suggested after some thought.
Maintaining their condition on the battlefield was also important, so Shisui took the initiative to volunteer himself and Obito to use Shadow Clones, since their chakra reserves were significantly greater than Kakashi's and Rin's.
"That works," Kakashi agreed after a brief consideration.
Since this was a wartime B-Rank Mission, encountering enemies was almost guaranteed. Using Shadow Clones for intel gathering was a good option.
Feeling like Shisui had helped him regain some dignity, Obito grinned and threw an arm over Shisui's shoulder, thinking it was essential to form a united front with him against Kakashi. Shisui did have qualities Obito lacked.
After that, Shisui and Obito each created a Shadow Clone to scout the other villages, while their real bodies accompanied Kakashi and Rin to investigate.
Faced with ninja from their own nation's official great shinobi village, the villagers naturally answered every question without holding back, recounting all the suspicious individuals they had seen in the past few days.
While Kakashi and the others were investigating the second village, a memory of a battle with Hidden Mist ninja suddenly surfaced in Shisui's mind.
"They're in Tashi Village. It looks like one Jonin leading two Chunin. Obito's Shadow Clone is still stalling them," Shisui quickly organized his words and reported.
His Shadow Clone had intentionally dispelled itself to relay the intel to the real body.
Though their team was strong, expecting two Shadow Clones to defeat a Jonin squad was wishful thinking-they had to get involved personally.
"Move at full speed," Kakashi immediately ordered, then shot forward in the lead.
But for a team of this level, such an enemy lineup was nothing but a warm-up.
Except for Rin, each of them was capable of taking down an average Jonin head-on.
And while Rin couldn't overpower a Jonin in direct combat, she had no problem defending herself and possessed strong support abilities.
In other words, this four-man team's effective strength was equivalent to three Jonin and one medical specialist-level Jonin.
The Hidden Mist ninja, realizing that the Konoha ninja they had just defeated was only a Shadow Clone, immediately attempted to retreat-but Kakashi, having pushed Thunder Breathing to its limit, moved like a flash of lightning and blocked the three Hidden Mist ninja.
Though Kakashi appeared to be a freshly graduated rookie ninja, his dramatic entrance made the Hidden Mist Jonin wary.
Hearing the sounds of rapid movement behind him, the Hidden Mist Jonin's brows furrowed. Realizing backup was approaching, he didn't have time to worry about Kakashi's impressive approach. He immediately launched an attack.
"Take him out quickly. More Konoha ninja are coming!" the Hidden Mist Jonin ordered, flinging shuriken and directing his two subordinates to attack Kakashi.
Though he was in a hurry, his experience warned him that now wasn't the time to rush in himself. If he underestimated Kakashi and got taken down, his two subordinates would almost certainly die as well.
On the contrary, if his two subordinates could draw out some intel on Kakashi, he might still have a chance to turn the tables or escape.
The two Hidden Mist ninja charged forward. One unleashed a Water Release jutsu, spewing a stream of water toward Kakashi, while the other drew a longsword from his back and slashed at him.
"Flash!"
Kakashi focused his breathing to boost his power, converting all the chakra gathered in his legs into lightning-nature chakra and erupting it in a burst. He then drew the White Fang tanto and slashed forward.
Swish!
Kakashi vanished from where he had stood. Blood burst from the body of the Hidden Mist ninja who had charged at him with the sword, while the shuriken and jutsu from the others struck only the empty ground where Kakashi had previously stood.
"What incredible speed and cutting power!" The Hidden Mist Jonin's pupils contracted sharply. He hadn't expected Kakashi to kill someone in a flash while dodging their attacks.
"Wait... that face... that's the strongest genius of Konoha, Kakashi!"
Noticing Kakashi's silver hair and the lightning coursing over his body, the Hidden Mist Jonin finally remembered his name.
Before the war, Hidden Mist Village had distributed intel on Konoha's geniuses from the Chunin Exams to its forces, marking them with high priority for elimination if encountered.
And Kakashi was the brightest among them, having defeated all opponents and made it to the end.
"This kid was still taking the Chunin Exams last year, and now he's this strong?" The Hidden Mist Jonin was filled with shock.
At first, he had assumed Kakashi might be like Yagura-just short and baby-faced, but actually older. But now it was clear: this was a true, bona fide teenage genius.
Without hesitation, the Hidden Mist Jonin started running to the side.
It wasn't that he had no hope of winning, but he had no interest in a fight where he'd most likely die-especially since Kakashi's teammates were still on their way.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Flower Nail Crimson!"
Several kunai wreathed in flames flew rapidly toward the direction the Hidden Mist Jonin was retreating, forcing him to stop in his tracks.
The Hidden Mist Jonin turned his head to look and saw a boy who appeared even younger than Kakashi, panting lightly while still holding the posture from throwing the kunai.
"That ninja from earlier." Recalling Obito's face, the Hidden Mist Jonin felt speechless-had he run into Konoha's genius squad or something? Every single member seemed to be a prodigy.
"Phantom Body Flicker Technique!"
Facing the enemy, Shisui showed no intention of holding back. He immediately activated his Three-Tomoe Sharingan and launched an attack using Phantom Body Flicker Jutsu.
At the same time, Kakashi once again delivered a swift and deadly slash, instantly taking down the remaining Hidden Mist Chunin before quickly rushing over to assist Shisui.
By the time Obito and Rin arrived, the Hidden Mist Jonin was already seriously injured. Before Obito could even make a move to show off, Kakashi finished him off with a single strike.
"Damn, so close!" Obito scratched his head in frustration-if he had been a bit faster, he might've made it in time.
In truth, Obito could've moved faster, but he was worried Rin might run into danger if she traveled alone, so he deliberately didn't create too much distance from her.
"Mission accomplished. Let's head back." Kakashi said decisively.
Having just rushed at full speed and fought at full power, Kakashi had already used up most of his chakra and stamina, so he wanted to return as soon as possible-if they encountered another enemy, they'd be down a fighter.
Obito could only wear a bitter expression as he trudged along the road back to camp. He had planned to outshine Kakashi, but didn't even get a chance to perform.
This mission made Obito realize something-sometimes, speed really is everything.
Since the disciples were all safe, Mutsuki returned as well.
The moment Mutsuki left, Zetsu emerged from hiding.
"This guy's protective instinct is seriously over the top-even a B-Rank mission and he's still secretly guarding them," Zetsu muttered with a headache. "This really makes it hard for us to carry out our plans."
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