In the Anbu locker room, Yōkō met the first batch of Anbu shinobi graduating from Root.
Three new squad members.
They each chose three masks familiar to Yōkō: Antelope, Purple Cat, and Black Bull.
Yōkō adjusted his own fox mask. Perhaps after his death, the fox mask would also be returned to the locker room locker, to be worn by the next Anbu.
"Hello, Captain Fox!"
Yōkō nodded and said:
"The Fox Squad's most important current mission is to follow Squad Leader Black Gorilla's commands and protect the Uzumaki Princess.
The Uzumaki Princess can die behind us, but not in front of us."
The three members quickly replied, "Yes!"
At daybreak, Black Gorilla's squad left the Forest of Death and arrived outside the Senju compound to relieve another squad.
The Anbu were not allowed inside the Senju compound. When Uzumaki Kushina was within the compound, her safety was the Senju clan's responsibility.
Once she left the compound, the Anbu took over.
In the early morning, over a dozen children emerged from the Senju compound.
These children chatted, laughed, chased each other, and ran towards the Ninja Academy with their backpacks.
Uzumaki Kushina was among them.
Uzumaki Kushina's red hair was extremely conspicuous in the morning light. Having just experienced the destruction of her clan, her face showed none of the innocence typical of her age; instead, carrying sadness and melancholy.
Three young Senju girls surrounded Uzumaki Kushina, treating her very kindly.
Uzumaki Kushina entered the academy.
Yōkō hid behind the school building, observing the situation inside the classroom through binoculars.
The teacher was explaining the parabolic trajectory curve of a falling kunai.
Yōkō wasn't watching Uzumaki Kushina in the front row, but rather a blond child at the back of the classroom.
Namikaze Minato, Konoha's most dazzling genius for the next fifteen years.
Namikaze Minato occasionally glanced towards the front row, paying attention to the red-haired transfer student.
After watching the classroom for a while, Yōkō left the treetops, patrolled the Ninja Academy, and checked every potential hiding spot.
He encountered academy teachers on the way; they were used to it, knowing the Anbu were protecting the Uzumaki Princess.
Following the recently graduated young Senju clan head, Nawaki, the Ninja Academy had welcomed its second important student: the Uzumaki Princess.
The afternoon was the academy's sparring class.
During the sparring class, Yōkō was astounded.
Namikaze Minato's reaction speed was astonishingly fast.
After his own reaction speed had improved once, Yōkō could see it more clearly.
The moment his opponent's shoulder twitched, Minato was already raising his arm to block.
Minato was so fast it seemed he could predict others' movements.
His defensive taijutsu was impenetrable. When his opponent's guard opened up, a simple straight punch knocked them down.
The entire process appeared effortless and composed.
During a break in the sparring, Uzumaki Kushina was surrounded by some children who pointed and whispered about her.
Bullying the transfer student – the teacher quickly came over and shooed them away.
At 4 PM, the Anbu shift changed, and Black Gorilla's squad ended their duty.
Yōkō went to the Tsurugetsu Izakaya.
Ordering a pot of sake and some marinated meat, Yōkō passed the time alone.
The large amount of meat helped Yōkō's body grow stronger rapidly.
Meat was too expensive in Konoha.
Just eating meat in one evening could cost 10,000 Ryo.
Even a jōnin like Sarutobi Asuma couldn't sustain such a meat-heavy diet.
The benefits were also obvious.
After over a month back in the village, his chakra reserve had increased naturally.
Swallowing a large piece of beef, Yōkō pondered that he needed to find a way to increase his income; otherwise, he couldn't afford the meat.
No meat, no strength.
The proprietress, Kyōi, came over to Yōkō from time to time, asking if he needed anything else.
She liked Yōkō very much. He often stayed here, always ordered the best sake every day, ate a lot of meat, and spent a lot of money.
If she weren't a spy, but simply the izakaya proprietress, she would undoubtedly like Yōkō even more.
All the money Yōkō earned was invested in food and drink.
He bantered with Kyōi, telling her not to diet recently, as her chest seemed to have shrunk a bit from hunger.
Kyōi argued that her corset was too tight today; she definitely hadn't lost weight.
After Kyōi went to attend to other matters, Yōkō's gaze lowered slightly.
The izakaya was crowded with all sorts of people.
The way a person who had just entered pulled out a chair made Yōkō pause.
The movements of the shoulder, elbow, and wrist were exceptionally coordinated. When dragging the chair, its legs left the ground, hovering about one centimeter above the floor the entire time.
Cloud-Style Sword Technique...
Yōkō couldn't be mistaken. This unique way of articulating the joints was definitely Kumogakure's Cloud-Style Sword Technique.
After ten years of diligent sword training, even without holding a sword, one's arms would differ from others.
Yōkō, being proficient in the Cloud-Style Sword Technique, recognized it.
Using his sake cup to cover half his face, Yōkō pondered. In the original story, Kumo-nin spies had once kidnapped Uzumaki Kushina. Had the Kumo-nin already set their sights on Uzumaki Kushina?
This event should have happened before Uzumaki Kushina became the jinchūriki. The guard force for a jinchūriki was much stronger than that for the Uzumaki Princess.
The suspected Kumo-nin spy chatted for about an hour before leaving the izakaya.
Yōkō hastily stuffed all the remaining meat into his mouth and also stood up to leave.
If he could contribute to guarding the Uzumaki Princess, it would at least count as an A-rank mission, covering next month's meat money.
Kyōi quickly caught up to him: "Hey! Not studying Yin Release together tonight?"
"Taking a day off. Studying Yin Release every day would wear out even the Hokage's waist."
Kyōi watched Yōkō leave with regret.
After leaving the izakaya, Yōkō didn't pursue the suspected spy. Instead, he took his fox mask from his tool pouch and went directly to find Uzumaki Kushina.
In a small park near the Senju compound, Yōkō found Uzumaki Kushina.
He not only found Uzumaki Kushina but also the other Anbu squad on guard duty.
Eight-hour shifts, three shifts rotating. Black Gorilla's squad had handed over duty at 4 PM; the next shift change was at midnight.
Yōkō did not approach the guard squad, keeping his distance.
The Anbu also didn't urge Uzumaki Kushina to return to the Senju compound. This was her adaptation period to Konoha; it was better to let her move freely.
In the park, there were children from the Senju clan, as well as Uzumaki Kushina's classmates.
From a distance, Yōkō saw through his binoculars that Namikaze Minato was also in the park.
It was getting late. Many children had left the park, and even Namikaze Minato had gone home, heading west.
The park was calm.
Yōkō yawned. Why were these children so energetic? Why weren't they going home?
Suddenly, Yōkō's expression turned grave.
They're here!
Five figures appeared at the edge of the park!
One of them was the person Yōkō had seen in the izakaya.
Spies who could infiltrate Konoha Village wouldn't be too strong.
Kumogakure's well-known jōnin were each a key focus of intelligence reconnaissance. Chūnin, or at most elite chūnin, were easier to infiltrate with.
For Uzumaki Kushina, Kumogakure was risking its entire spy network.
Yōkō quickly entered the park.
Over ten seconds later, Yōkō looked up at the night sky in confusion.
Why hadn't the signal flare been fired?
For a major incident like the Uzumaki Princess being attacked, according to Anbu regulations, a signal flare absolutely must be fired.
Could there be a Kumogakure spy among this batch of new Anbu recruits as well?
...
Thanks to Dunlap Dulany for the support!
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(End of Chapter)