"Naruto: Ice God"Chapter 195: Amiable and Gentle?
The Land of Grass was no stranger to Feng Bai.
During the Third Great Ninja War, he had led a squad to destroy the Kannabi Bridge and completely annihilated an Iwa shinobi unit in the process.
He'd even helped Obito awaken his Mangekyō Sharingan along the way.
Returning to this familiar place brought Feng Bai no good mood—instead, it made his expression even darker.
Irritated, he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd become the chosen workhorse, constantly running around on various missions.
His greatest wish had always been to latch onto a few powerful patrons, wait for the old man to "heroically sacrifice" himself sealing the bridge, then inherit Root and become the new generation's Potage—bah.
He meant to become the new generation's inheritor of the Will of Fire and live a carefree, wealthy life.
In the end, he might have inherited the Will of Fire, but the wealthy lifestyle remained frustratingly out of reach.
Reflecting on his recent actions, Feng Bai suddenly realized he'd become Konoha's babysitter—sent wherever needed.
Feng Bai, you can't continue like this. You need to straighten your attitude, strengthen your resolve, and bravely say no to the higher-ups!
"Feng Bai, take Dule and scout ahead for intelligence."
"Coming."
Feng Bai answered efficiently, completely forgetting his recent mental deliberations.
Taking Dule—who had graduated with him but remained a genin—he headed toward the direction Shikaku indicated. The two quickly discovered Hidden Grass Village's location.
However, Hidden Grass Village didn't look normal at all.
Out of respect for Hidden Grass Village's former father-son relationship with Konoha, Nara Shikaku, this strategic-minded shinobi, had planned to deploy his silver tongue to reason with them emotionally and rationally, persuading them to hand over the Uzumaki clan descendant.
But after hearing Feng Bai's report, he immediately led the others at full speed to Hidden Grass Village's entrance.
At first glance, he saw the village gate split in two.
"Hiss, this shouldn't be some unique architectural art of Hidden Grass Village, right?"
Looking at the Grass shinobi corpses scattered on the ground, Feng Bai crouched down and poked one with his finger, then turned to Shikaku.
"Definitely not. It looks like Hidden Grass Village was attacked, and the nature of this attack seems very similar to..."
Nara Shikaku's mind immediately recalled the colleague corpses he'd seen in Konoha's morgue.
"Prepare for battle."
Nara Shikaku's expression turned serious as he extended his right hand, ready to form seals.
"Similar to what?"
Feng Bai was curious. He hadn't fought Setsuna after the latter awakened his Mangekyō Sharingan, so he didn't know what his dōjutsu looked like.
Nara Shikaku, focused entirely on searching for enemy traces, didn't answer Feng Bai's question but continued maintaining his vigilant stance.
After confirming no enemies were nearby, Nara Shikaku arranged for several people to form a defensive formation as taught in the Ninja Academy, slowly advancing into the village interior.
Dismembered corpses were everywhere, along with some clearly burned by Fire Release.
"Help... help me..."
A barely audible cry for help came from the pile of corpses. The group exchanged glances, and Nara Shikaku used his secret technique to pull the caller out with his shadow.
To prevent a sneak attack, Nara Shikaku deliberately placed him at a distance where he could react.
After confirming the injuries weren't fake, Shikaku signaled Ranhua in the squad to toss the Grass shinobi a basic medical kit.
Once he finished bandaging himself, Shikaku could finally ask about what had turned Hidden Grass Village into its current state.
From his brief description, Feng Bai and the others understood Hidden Grass Village's current situation.
Just hours before their arrival, two masked individuals of unknown identity, leading several strangely-moving shinobi, had attacked Hidden Grass Village.
Any Grass shinobi who dared block them were instantly cut in half.
As if an invisible slash had struck them.
Hearing this, Nara Shikaku immediately realized the attackers were indeed the Uchiha who had previously assaulted Konoha.
However, this wasn't the time to discuss such matters, so he remained composed and signaled for the survivor to continue.
But the Grass shinobi refused to continue speaking, apparently very wary of Feng Bai and the others' Konoha shinobi identities.
Seeing this, Nara Shikaku didn't insist, only silently lamenting that he should have included a Yamanaka clan member in the squad.
No longer bothering with him, having learned the enemy's attack occurred hours ago, Nara Shikaku tentatively lowered his guard and prepared to advance, hoping to find Hidden Grass Village's leadership.
But the Grass shinobi suddenly reached out to block them, ignoring his own bone-deep wound and adamantly refusing to let the Konoha shinobi enter the village's depths.
Now he's sticking to principles—wasn't he desperately calling for help just moments ago?
Feng Bai silently complained, then noticed Nara Shikaku's subtle glance.
I see.
Instantly understanding the meaning behind that look, Feng Bai moved to a blind spot the Grass shinobi couldn't observe, concealed by Shikaku's tall frame.
An ice senbon flew out—the Grass shinobi who'd just had one foot in the Pure Land now had both feet firmly planted there.
The genin in the squad had all experienced the Third Great Ninja War, so they weren't startled by Feng Bai's sudden action.
Only Nara Shikaku looked puzzled.
What's going on? I just wanted you to use your reputation to intimidate him and see if we could extract some key intelligence—why did you give me that "I understand" expression and then kill him?
Just as Nara Shikaku was pondering how to tactfully ask Feng Bai what exactly he'd understood, Feng Bai's next words left him even more bewildered.
"Captain Shikaku, we can take advantage of Hidden Grass Village's current crisis to forcibly extract the illegally harbored Uzumaki clan members."
Nara Shikaku fell silent.
He recalled a recent drinking session at the Akimichi clan's barbecue restaurant with Inoichi and Chōza.
At the table, Chōza had confidently assured him that Feng Bai was different from his reclusive father—he was an amiable, gentle ray of sunshine who had protected his teammates countless times on the battlefield.
Before departure, the Third Hokage had also told him that Feng Bai was different from Danzo—he had inherited the Will of Fire and, like himself, was a moderate working for the village's development.
Is this gentle?
Is this amiable?
This guy holds exactly the same views as his hawkish old man—both wanting to forcibly seize the Uzumaki clan members from Hidden Grass Village.
But then again...
Right now, Hidden Grass Village is nothing but fish on a chopping block, isn't it?
Even if they abducted the Uzumaki clan members, as long as they killed all witnesses, who would know it was Konoha's doing?
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