Aburame Tetsumaru grabbed Uchiha Akira once again, dragging him behind a large tree by the roadside. As soon as they turned the corner, Akira saw the problem, and his face instantly went chalk-white.
Every passage leaves a trace. No matter how skilled a tracker or infiltrator might be, a trail can never be perfectly erased.
A hundred-pound man lying flat on the ground might be able to smooth over stones and dirt, but how can he prevent the grass and flowers from breaking? In the end, all he can do is snip the broken stems, pull them out, and replant them into the soil before leaving.
From a distance, it looks like nothing is amiss. But up close? The severed stems are as clear as day.
Akira was an extreme outlier among the Uchiha: he was terrified of death, which made him hypersensitive to danger. He understood the lethal implications in an instant. The resentment he felt toward his Captain for bullying him evaporated, replaced immediately by a submissive, bowed head.
Kurama Yun, likely exhausted from the day's constant travel, was a bit slower to react. It took her several minutes to grasp the situation.
Then, the girl wiped her face, and her expression shifted into one of stone-cold seriousness. A heroic, valiant aura instantly incinerated her lazy fatigue; even her eyebrows seemed to sharpen.
Another personality?
Tetsumaru was now certain: Kurama Yun had a dissociative identity disorder—and not just one split, either. It was the first time in two lifetimes he had seen someone like this in the flesh. Unsure of how to deal with it, he decided his best course of action was to simply pretend he hadn't noticed.
"Captain, orders?" Yun asked. Her voice was crisp and ringing.
"..." Tetsumaru stared at her for a long moment through his sunglasses before speaking. "We're abandoning Hisamoto's trail. We're tracking these hidden ninjas instead."
"It's highly likely these two groups are connected. If we follow the ambushers, we might actually find the rogue ninja sooner."
"I'm going to make some preparations. We move out immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
"Coming~" Yun's voice shifted back to a soft, sugary "moe" tone.
This time, even Akira noticed the anomaly. Being the cautious "coward" he was, the Uchiha followed his Captain's lead and said absolutely nothing, acting as if he were deaf and blind to the change.
Tetsumaru bit his thumb, wove a series of seals, and slammed his hand down.
Summoning Jutsu!
With a puff of white smoke, a waist-high Hive appeared. Tetsumaru opened the hatch and retrieved three Dragonflies and three Scent Moths. He woke the six insects and sent them into the air before dispelling the summoning.
Since leaving Squad Ueno, Tetsumaru had felt a lingering sense of insecurity. He had initially thought that keeping his unique abilities hidden would be an advantage. He assumed only Captain Ueno and Might Duy—neither of whom were gossips—truly knew the extent of his swarm, so he'd kept his new teammates in the dark.
But seeing the tracks left by these elite infiltrators, Tetsumaru realized he had been overlooking the enemy.
Often, the person who knows you best isn't your friend, but your enemy—especially an enemy you've fought but failed to kill. They will scrutinize every scrap of evidence and every lingering trace you leave behind. In that context, keeping secrets from his own teammates was just plain stupid.
Having reached that conclusion, and needing superior reconnaissance power for the task ahead, Tetsumaru brought out his heavy hitters.
The Dragonflies were a brilliant emerald green with shimmering, metallic carapaces. The Scent Moths were pure, snowy white and fluffy, with a pair of massive, translucent pale-yellow antennae. They were quite beautiful.
The insects immediately caught Yun's attention. She reached out, mesmerized by the fluffy Scent Moth, and tried to pet it.
"Don't touch it," Tetsumaru warned sharply. "The Scent Moth isn't just a tracker that uses its antennae to catch scent molecules. It's a combat unit."
The moth's primary weapon was its "fluff"—fine, microscopic scales. Every single scale was laced with a potent toxin. When scattered, the moth could generate a massive, localized cloud of lethal poison.
Relying on the superior tracking of the moths and the high-altitude, birds-eye view of the dragonflies, Tetsumaru was confident they could shadow these veteran infiltrators.
"Move out."
They followed the moths for two solid hours. Just as Kurama Yun was beginning to wheeze for breath, they finally caught up with the group.
It wasn't three squads. It was five full-strength squads—twenty Iwagakure shinobi in total.
"Too many. We can't take them," was the immediate consensus of Squad Aburame.
Iwa-nin were famously straightforward. Their jutsu was a monotonous cycle of Earth Style and Explosion Style; as for Dust Release, that was a Kage-level secret they didn't need to worry about. On a typical battlefield, dealing with Stone-nin was simple: if you knew Lightning Style, you almost always won. If you didn't, you just had to adapt to their rigid patterns.
However, Stone-nin were notoriously resilient, defensive-minded, and exceptionally skilled at teamwork. The more of them there were, the exponentially more dangerous they became. Once they gathered ten or more in one spot, even ninjas who could beat them one-on-one usually preferred to steer clear. Trying to crack the "tortoise shells" of Earth Style specialists was a tedious, hours-long chore that no one enjoyed.
The only exceptions were the Raikages and the future Fourth Hokage.
Earth Style users were still ninjas; their "glass cannon" base stats didn't change, and their defense was entirely dependent on their jutsu. The Raikages used Lightning Style Chakra Modes to naturally suppress the Earth element. Minato Namikaze, once he reached his prime, possessed peerless speed; against him, no ninja could finish a hand seal in time. Without their Earth Style armor, they were just one Rasengan away from a body bag.
Tetsumaru lacked that kind of overwhelming power. Facing five Iwa squads, he simply "lay flat," ordering his team to rest and wait for an opening.
Uchiha Akira took one look and immediately buried any thoughts of glory-hunting. He wanted to show off his new jutsu, but he wanted to stay alive more.
Kurama Yun, the physical weakling, had it worst. After a day of trekking followed by a two-hour sprint, she was in a daze, collapsed on the ground and gasping for air.
Using the long-range vision of his dragonflies, Tetsumaru stayed far back, observing in silence. He even directed Akira to set up a small, camouflaged tent.
In truth, Tetsumaru was quite anxious. This was his first time leading an independent mission in two lifetimes. While he was confident in his deduction, his heart was still racing. Tracking a group of Iwa-nin wasn't his actual mission. If they reached the end of the line and didn't find Hisamoto, he would receive his first "Mission Failed" mark.
Initially, Tetsumaru hadn't cared about his record, but after carrying a "100% Success Rate" for so long, he'd grown attached to it. He didn't want to lose it so easily.
Of course, once a decision is made, the worst thing you can do is hesitate. He had to see this through. Even if he failed, it was just a mark on a piece of paper.
As the hours ticked by, the Iwa-nin began setting traps and establishing ambush positions. The situation became clear.
Tetsumaru relaxed. He even found the leisure to teach Akira how to dig a smokeless pit and start a stealth fire to boil water and cook rice.
With a tent, hot water, and a warm meal, the trio recovered quickly. Yun's stamina returned, which pleased Tetsumaru; he had no intention of a frontal assault and would need to lean heavily on her Genjutsu.
As evening approached, Tetsumaru recalled his last dragonfly. After half a day of rotation, the three scouts were at their limit; once darkness fell, their visual advantage would vanish.
The surveillance was handed over to the Ghost-faced Moths, specialized night-reconnaissance insects. They flew silently and possessed incredible night vision, though they were painfully slow.
The gap between night and day was obvious; the moths couldn't match the dragonflies' field of view. To keep eyes on the target, Squad Aburame had to abandon their safe distance and move closer to the Iwa ambush zone.
When the moon rose, the key player finally appeared. The rogue ninja Hisamoto made contact with the Iwa-nin.
Tetsumaru let out a breath of pure relief. He quickly finalized the battle plan.
He huddled with Akira and Yun for a final briefing. "There's no doubt now. Hisamoto is an Iwa spy. Given that he's only a Chunin, I suspect his only role—besides delivering the intel—is to bait Konoha forces into this ambush. He likely won't participate in the actual fight."
"Best case scenario: he withdraws alone shortly. That's our golden window to take him down."
"Average scenario: he moves a short distance away, and we have to close in and risk a quick strike."
"Worst case: he stays for the ambush. If that happens, we play it by ear. If I judge the risk too high, we retreat."
"Remember: absolute obedience to my commands. Anything else will be treated as insubordination."
The two nodded. Yun hesitated before asking, "Captain... what about the Konoha ninjas the Iwa are waiting for? Should we find a way to warn them?"
"???"
Tetsumaru and Akira stared at Yun with identical looks of bewildered skepticism until the girl blushed and lowered her head. No one spoke.
Tetsumaru + Akira:The people coming are almost certainly Root. Why would we go out of our way to find trouble by helping them?
Tetsumaru had deduced it was Root through logic; Akira had seen it with his own eyes. Through his Sharingan, the tracks near the village were saturated with that "Root style" that made every Uchiha's skin crawl.
"One last emphasis," Tetsumaru said, still uneasy. "We are here for an assassination, not a siege. I would rather fail the mission than commit us to a suicide charge."
"We are ninjas. A professional ninja gets the job done quietly."
"Yes, sir."
"Prepare according to the best-case scenario. Go."
The three split up, taking positions behind the Iwa ambush line.
Tetsumaru released a swarm of Katydids. Their chirping started low and grew louder, eventually forming a rhythmic, overlapping chorus. The silent night in the mountains was suddenly filled with life.
Two sensitive Iwa-nin found the sudden noise suspicious. One of them, the commander, ordered a quick search. They soon caught a few of the emerald-green insects. They inspected them several times but found nothing out of the ordinary; they weren't familiar enough with the local fauna to realize these weren't native.
A noisy forest feels safer, the commander thought. He crushed a few of the katydids and put the matter out of his mind.
Tetsumaru had originally bred Katydids as alarm-bugs, but their uncontrollable, all-night chirping had led him to replace them with the quieter crickets for tactical use. However, because they were beautiful and had such a resonant "voice," he had started selling them as pets in Konoha; the business was booming.
He had released them for two reasons: first, to create a "white noise" background for their own movements, and second, to serve as a subtle warning to the incoming Konoha ninjas. He just hoped they were familiar with the Aburame's "pet" business.
Hisamoto removed his Leaf headband and replaced it with a long-lost Iwa protector. He bid farewell to the Iwa company commander and, intel in hand, set out on the road back to Iwagakure.
He was a carefully planted spy who had been impersonating a Konoha ninja for nearly ten years. As a ninja with mediocre talent and a specialty in basic Earth Style, he'd had no future in the Stone. He had taken this long-term, high-risk mission as a gamble.
Now, as soon as he reached Iwa, he would reclaim his name and his true face. More importantly, he would receive a massive bonus, three high-level jutsu scrolls, and a safe, administrative position.
Excited as he was, Hisamoto didn't lose his caution. He took the long way around, planning to circle east of the Land of Rain and enter the Land of Earth through a remote route.
After five days of grueling travel through desolate terrain, he finally saw the gates of Iwagakure.
Walking into the village he hadn't seen in a decade, he spotted the Tsuchikage building with its massive "Earth" kanji. Tears began to stream down his face.
After a series of tedious security checks, he received an immediate summons from the Tsuchikage. He didn't dare delay, rushing to the office.
To his shock, the short Third Tsuchikage was personally waiting for him at the entrance. The ninjas flanking the leader were strangers, but their gear marked them all as Jonin. Hisamoto felt like he was walking on air.
After bowing, the Tsuchikage personally presented him with his bonus, the jutsu scrolls, and a promotion order: he was being named a Jonin of Iwagakure.
Hisamoto was a whirlwind of joy and disbelief. A Jonin? It was beyond his wildest dreams. Could he really handle the responsibility? But gods, it felt good. It felt like a dream.
"Hahahaha—uugh!"
Akira softly pulled his blade from Hisamoto's right lung. Hisamoto's mouth fell open, but the blood surging into his airway made it impossible to scream. He could only manage a wet, ragged gasp. He managed a bitter, dying smile. So, it really was a dream.
He had been struck by Yun's Genjutsu. The moment he had fallen into the trance, Akira had made the first move, piercing his lung to silence him.
Yun followed up instantly, severing the tendons in his wrists to prevent him from weaving seals.
Finally, Tetsumaru used his Kikaichu to inject a massive cocktail of sedatives and paralytics, shutting down any final suicide attempt.
Capture successful.
Once Hisamoto was unconscious, Tetsumaru meticulously checked his body. After neutralizing several traps, he found the intelligence described in the mission scroll.
Tetsumaru didn't open it. He rolled it up and stuffed it into Kurama Yun's pouch.
He gathered all the metal tools and weapons from Hisamoto's person, wrapped them in the man's own clothes, bundled them with a belt, and handed the heavy pack to Akira.
Tetsumaru then stuffed the naked Hisamoto into a transport bag. A thirty-something ninja weighed at least 110 pounds—not a light load. He hoisted the bag onto his own back.
"Mission accomplished. Retreat."
THOOM. THOOM. THOOM.
The Iwa ambush had been triggered. Tetsumaru glanced back, but could see nothing through the dark. He hesitated for a heartbeat, then turned and ran without looking back.