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"The envoys from the Land of Wind and the Hidden Sand Village were attacked?"
Upon hearing this news, the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers was incredulous. Just a few days ago, those people were arrogantly warning that he, the Daimyo, might be attacked, but now, they were the ones in trouble.
"Not a single survivor?"
"No, and the bodies left behind were all from the Land of Wind's Daimyo's mansion; not a single body from the Hidden Sand Village was found," an official within the Daimyo's mansion reported.
Ninja corpses can reveal a lot of information, so Sakumo, after killing the remaining individuals, took all the bodies with him.
"Quick, inform the Land of Wind and the Hidden Sand Village. Tighten security in the Daimyo's mansion, and don't let any mistakes happen anytime soon!"
The Daimyo of the Land of Rivers was genuinely frightened. If even the ninjas from the Hidden Sand Village were dead, could he be next? He wanted to secretly flee but feared being watched by those from the Leaf at all times.
After a moment, the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers bit the bullet and ordered his official, "Tell the people from the Hidden Sand Village to come over sooner and send more people; we can talk about everything they propose, provided they send more reinforcements!"
"Yes, my lord."
The official hurriedly went to make arrangements, also tightening the security patrols around the Daimyo's mansion, striving to ensure not even a bird could get in.
The stricter patrol orders also affected Yoichi. What was usually a relaxing job suddenly became busy; he typically let his shadow clones handle the guard duty while he and Kakashi did some information gathering.
Now, there was no time to slack off, as all areas were on high alert, leaving no place to wander.
Initially, Kakashi had some moral principles, but under Yoichi's persuasion, he suppressed them.
Guarding for a long time, even the places where he rested were patrolled by other samurai.
However, these two days were not without gains. He used the skill twice on the guards of the Daimyo's mansion, acquiring spirit energy both times.
This stolen spirit energy, unlike the chakra stolen from Mina, merged entirely into Yoichi's soul, significantly boosting his spirit energy.
With stronger spirit energy, his Sharingan became even more intuitive to use.
Yoichi, who had recently evolved his Sharingan to three tomoe, felt that casting genjutsu had become easier and more potent after stealing spirit energy twice.
He hypnotized a samurai guard from the Land of Iron with his Sharingan genjutsu without the victim noticing. Even after waking up, the guard would not remember being under the influence of the Sharingan's genjutsu.
And to facilitate physical contact for the stealthy theft, Yoichi got along quite well with the guards of the Daimyo's mansion.
While on patrol duty, Kakashi suddenly whispered, "Captain, why has the defense suddenly strengthened? Is someone really going to assassinate the Daimyo?"
"It's definitely out of fear that they've tightened security, but as for what they're afraid of, I'm not sure since I haven't gone out to gather information recently."
Yoichi shook his head, having spent much time just trying to locate the Daimyo's mansion treasury, which was also difficult to infiltrate.
In the following days, Yoichi and Kakashi found themselves immersed in long-term guard and patrol duties.
Still, Yoichi found opportunities to steal from the samurai every day. Besides stealing clothes and a samurai sword twice, the other three times he stole were all body energy.
After each theft, the samurai he stole from would collapse to the ground, while Yoichi felt lighter and gained a significant amount of strength.
Stealing body energy three times made Yoichi's body stronger.
This ability was perverse, and Yoichi even considered targeting strong ninjas for theft, thinking that with some luck, he might steal a Kekkei Genkai.
But stealing was somewhat risky.
---
"Captain, the Daimyo's mansion's security seems a bit lax today, aside from the regular guards, some seem to have already rested," Ryosuke observed after studying the map of the Daimyo's mansion for a long time.
This was possible because the Land of Rivers Daimyo's mansion lacked sensor ninjas, allowing Ryosuke to freely use sensory jutsu to track the movements of chakra-trained samurai.
Another ninja in the squad asked, "Why is the security relaxed today? Could it be a trap?"
Ryosuke stroked his chin, saying, "It's possible, but it could also be because the heightened security in the past few days left many without proper rest. The person I used Mind Body Switch Technique on showed no signs of a trap. Captain, what should we do?"
He was only providing the information he had gathered; the final decision was up to Sakumo.
"This is an opportunity."
After pondering for a moment, Sakumo spoke gravely, "Although we don't know how the Hidden Sand Village learned about our mission, those people have lost contact with the Hidden Sand Village for five days, and the Daimyo's mansion of the Land of Rivers must have informed them."
"The longer we wait, the less chance we have, so we act tonight!"
Although they had intercepted the Daimyo's mansion's messengers to the Land of Wind twice, the lack of communication for five days meant the Hidden Sand Village must suspect their people were in trouble.
"Get ready, and let's proceed with the plan we've established!"
"Yes, Captain."
After the others acknowledged, they hurried to prepare.
Sakumo looked at the sky; he had carried out many dangerous missions before, but never felt as anxious as he did today.
Then, shaking his head, he stopped dwelling on it, planning to request a long vacation after this mission to spend quality time with Kakashi.
The night was pitch-black, with clouds covering the moonlight.
Inside the Daimyo's mansion, lanterns and electric lights were the only sources of illumination; otherwise, guarding in the dark night would be much more challenging.
Suddenly, Yoichi sensed chakra fluctuations not far outside. His spirit energy, now stronger, seemed more sensitive to chakra.
The next second, explosions sounded from outside.
These explosions, like a signal, instantly woke the slumbering Daimyo's mansion.
Kakashi immediately reached for his short sword, but Uchiha Yoichi said, "Don't rush. Just follow the mission orders."
Despite saying this, Yoichi didn't lower his guard. The noises of battle indicated that tonight would not be quiet, fortunately, they weren't guarding the Daimyo directly, or they'd have to confront the enemy head-on.
Then, a figure suddenly leaped from the wall and quickly rushed towards them.
Yoichi cursed his luck internally but still took out ten shuriken, throwing them in a 3-3-4 pattern.
The shuriken collided and rebounded in the air, creating a barrage that attacked the intruder from all angles, some even striking from peculiar directions.
"Uchiha-style shurikenjutsu?"
Sakumo recognized the shuriken technique instantly. He drew his short sword, deflecting the incoming shuriken one by one. Then, the guard defending suddenly drew his sword and charged at him.
Clang!
The short sword, the sound of the wind blade, and the faint thunder echoing on his body, Sakumo was all too familiar with this technique.
This was his White Fang sword technique!
(End of Chapter)
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In the black of night, sparks flew as invisible slashes nearly broke the hard stone pavement to pieces.
Clang, clang, clang, clang!
The collision of two short swords resonated fiercely, as if performing a tumultuous symphony within the courtyard of the Heavenly Guard Tower.
Kakashi's sword swung faster with each move, a principle he had learned from Yōichi. The strategy was simple: strike so swiftly that the opponent can only defend, eliminating the need for your own defense.
However, facing this adversary, Kakashi felt a surprising lack of strength. Each of his swings was predictably countered and deflected with precision.
"This is impossible!"
In Kakashi's mind, disbelief took hold. As a chunin who had undergone extensive training, how could he be rendered so ineffective against someone?
It was as if he was practicing swordsmanship at home with his father.
After their exchange, Sakumo immediately knew—the guardian of this tower had to be his son, Kakashi, who was adept in both Wind and Lightning Release, techniques exclusive to their Hatake lineage.
"Kakashi has indeed improved, but now is not the time for mentoring and sparring!"
Sakumo recalled his teammates who had been delaying for him at the main courtyard and instantly made a decision.
He launched a sweeping three-strike combo with his short sword.
The first strike forced Kakashi to block vertically, the second nearly disarmed him, and by the third,
Kakashi's sword was knocked right out of his grasp.
With a powerful kick, Sakumo sent Kakashi flying.
Given the covert nature of their mission, embracing the shinobi's resolve was essential. Although Sakumo would not fatally harm his son, making a profound impression was within his intentions.
After launching Kakashi away, Sakumo swiftly headed towards the Tower. Shortly after breaking into the daimyo's residence, Sakumo had managed to capture the River Country's daimyo's chief steward, from whom he acquired critical information.
It turned out the daimyo of the River Country changed his sleeping quarters nightly, and tonight, he was in the tower. This information was known only to the chief steward and the daimyo's five personal samurai guards.
Once Kakashi was dealt with, Sakumo quickly made his way towards Yōichi, guarding outside the tower. Planning to swiftly handle him and then assassinate the daimyo of the River Country inside.
Yōichi, suspecting his opponent to be Sakumo from the start, had kept his Sharingan activated, observing. Sakumo's swordsmanship bore a resemblance to Kakashi's, yet with a crucial difference in lethality, confirming his suspicions when Sakumo ultimately chose not to deal a killing blow but rather knocked Kakashi's sword away and kicked him aside.
Seeing Sakumo charging at him, Yōichi quickly drew his sword, with lightning coiling around the blade like a serpent.
Clang!
The blades met, sending sparks flying. Yōichi's sword, wrapped in lightning, was quickly dispersed by Sakumo's invisible wind blades.
"Indeed, it's Sakumo. His mission must be the assassination of the River Country's daimyo."
After a single exchange confirming the other's identity, Yōichi decided to withdraw. The location and timing were wrong for a confrontation with Sakumo, despite Yōichi's desire to test himself against the legendary White Fang's swordsmanship.
As for the daimyo's commission?
Failure would only be blamed on the underground exchange office, not Uchiha Yōichi himself.
With another slash, Yōichi used the momentum to retreat, revealing his Sharingan in the dark night, its crimson gaze unmistakable.
Sakumo was taken aback by the sight, but it also confirmed why Kakashi was present.
As Yōichi made his exit, Sakumo immediately entered the tower. Soon after, panic-stricken shouts for help echoed from inside.
"This scoundrel was actually hiding here? When did he sneak in?"
Yōichi shook his head, then hurried to check on Kakashi, contemplating the failed bounty. Missing out on twelve hundred million was a setback, but not coming back with anything after half a month away from the village was not an option either.
After Kakashi was helped up, clutching his chest, he asked, "Captain, why didn't you stop that man?"
"The situation is complicated. I'll explain once we're away from here. For now, follow me."
Before Yōichi could finish, several figures suddenly appeared on the courtyard walls of the tower.
"White Fang of the Leaf, come out! Your teammates have been captured by us. Even if you've killed the daimyo of the River Country, it's useless!"
Fujiwara , a shinobi from the Sand Village, shouted loudly. He had been lying in wait in the main courtyard for Leaf's shinobi to fall into the trap, not expecting the White Fang himself to be among them, and to have knowledge of the daimyo's hiding place.
Fortunately, they had managed to capture the remaining Leaf shinobi quickly and headed over.
As for the daimyo of the River Country, Fujiwara wasn't too concerned. Alive or dead, it didn't matter; it was a Leaf shinobi who attempted the assassination, so either way, the Sand Village would profit.
"Captain, is it Father?"
Kakashi whispered, now understanding why his every move had been effortlessly countered.
Yōichi gestured for Kakashi to be silent, sensing the complication of their predicament. While they could easily escape, Sakumo's situation was precarious.
Escaping for Sakumo was challenging unless he eliminated everyone present, which was unrealistic given the numbers against him and the uncertain outcome of such a battle.
After a while, Sakumo emerged from inside the building, the visibly shaken daimyo of the River Country by his side. The sight of Sakumo mercilessly slaughtering the daimyo's samurai guards had terrified the daimyo, who was still struggling to speak after witnessing the carnage and nearly losing his own life.
"Fujiwara , release my teammates!"
Sakumo declared, essentially admitting to Fujiwara 's identification and thus forfeiting the mission.
His teammates immediately became anxious, unable to voice their concerns. They understood the importance of their mission and that Sakumo could easily forsake them to assassinate the daimyo and escape.
There was nothing on their persons that could trace them back to the Leaf Village, and Sakumo could even destroy their bodies to eliminate any evidence.
However, Sakumo chose not to take that route, valuing his comrades over the mission.
His principles and beliefs had not wavered from the beginning.
"Alright, we'll exchange."
After some thought, Fujiwara decided it was better to keep the daimyo alive. Choosing a new daimyo with an unknown stance towards the Sand Village was risky, but the current daimyo would undoubtedly harbor resentment towards the Leaf. Saving the daimyo now would expand the Sand Village's influence into the River Country, along with access to strategic locations and metal resources.
"Release them, and let them come over!"
"Don't play tricks, White Fang of the Leaf. Release them at the same time, or none of you will leave."
Fujiwara refused to release them first. If they did, the Leaf might still kill the daimyo. But if he didn't release the hostages, Sakumo wouldn't spare the daimyo. The best outcome was to release the hostages simultaneously.
At this moment, Yōichi suddenly stood up, pretending to be in a hurry and loudly exclaimed, "You scoundrels, don't use the life of the daimyo as a bargaining chip. Give the daimyo to me!"
(End of Chapter)
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