Chapter 104: Ch.104 All Survivors
Previously, Haku had always assumed that Kimimaro was someone planted by the village in the Hidden Leaf, meant to get close to Uchiha Sasuke. But now, hearing the shadow's new orders, he was surprised to learn that Kimimaro wasn't sent by the village at all.
The shadow's expression grew displeased. "So, you need to figure out how this remnant of the Kaguya clan managed to pass Hidden Leaf's examination!"
Haku, feeling helpless, nodded again. "Alright!"
The shadow sighed, "I don't want to push you, but you have to understand that information doesn't deliver itself."
"Yes, I will do my best."
The shadow then issued another reminder. "Remember, be very careful. Akatsuki is full of S-rank rogue shinobi from various villages—dangerous, ruthless lunatics. If your identity is exposed while investigating, no one will be able to save you."
Haku opened his mouth several times, wanting to tell the shadow that Akatsuki was a group specifically formed to fight against the invaders of the shinobi world, dedicated to saving it, and not a bunch of crazed maniacs. But he knew he had no position to explain anything about Akatsuki, so he swallowed his words. Instead, he said to the shadow, "Anything else? I've already arranged to spar with Shinji tonight. If that's all, I'll be going."
"Hmm, go on!" The shadow paused, then added, "It's best if you use your relationship with Uchiha Shinji to get close to Uchiha Sasuke. That way, no one will suspect you."
Haku nodded reluctantly and left the small grove.
...
At nearly the same time...
In a not-so-busy noodle shop, a middle-aged man dressed as a chef served a steaming bowl of noodles to Karin with a smile. After checking the hallway outside the private booth to make sure no one was around, he closed the door slowly. The smile on his face vanished, replaced with a cold look as he addressed Karin. "Why did it take so long for you to contact me?"
Karin whispered, "I was with my classmates all day."
The middle-aged chef scrutinized Karin for a moment, then said, "There's a new order from above. You need to find a way to get close to Uchiha Sasuke and Uchiha Shinji and investigate a mysterious organization called 'Akatsuki.'"
"What?!"
Karin was taken aback.
The chef frowned. "What's with that reaction?"
Karin quickly wiped the surprised look off her face. As a member of Akatsuki, she hadn't expected Hidden Grass Village to give her the task of investigating Akatsuki, causing her to momentarily lose composure.
The chef naturally didn't associate Karin with being an Akatsuki member. He assumed her surprise was simply reluctance to carry out the task since she had previously resisted the missions assigned to her.
"Just do your job!" The chef shot her a glare before adding a threat. "You wouldn't want to disappoint your mother, would you?"
Karin's eyes briefly flashed with anger as she took a deep breath and asked, "How's my mother doing?"
The chef answered without hesitation. "She's fine."
Karin suppressed her rage and thought to herself, "Just like Leader said, Hidden Grass Village is only using me. They won't tell me the real condition of my mother."
Although Uchiha Shinji hadn't yet arranged for Karin to meet her mother, he had passed a letter from Karin's mother to her through Coalball. From the letter, Karin had learned of her mother's actual situation.
After leaving the noodle shop, Karin headed toward the training ground.
On the way, she ran into Haku, who also seemed to be in a low mood.
Karin asked, "What's wrong?"
Haku smiled wryly, "They contacted me too."
Because of their similar backgrounds and their shared membership in Akatsuki, Haku and Karin had become close friends, confiding in each other about everything.
Both knew the other's secret—Karin was a spy sent by Hidden Grass, and Haku was a Hidden Mist agent planted in the Hidden Leaf.
Karin asked, "Why did they contact you now? Did they tell you to get close to Sasuke again?"
Haku nodded, "And they want me to investigate Akatsuki too!"
Karin couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of it all.
Haku glanced at her. "What's so funny?"
Karin waved her hand. "I just got contacted too, and guess what they want me to do?"
Haku frowned slightly. "Don't tell me they want you to investigate Akatsuki as well?"
Karin spread her hands. "Exactly! They want me to get close to Shinji and Sasuke to gather information on Akatsuki."
Haku's frown deepened.
It made some sense for Hidden Mist to investigate Uchiha and Akatsuki, given that the Third Mizukage had allegedly been controlled by Uchiha's genjutsu, which was a source of shame for the Hidden Mist leadership.
But for Hidden Grass Village to suddenly take an interest in Akatsuki? That was odd.
"Why is Hidden Grass investigating Akatsuki?" Haku asked.
Karin shook her head. "They never explain the reasons behind their orders, so I have no idea."
Haku sighed. "It must be because of those demons. Whatever they've done has made every village start targeting us!"
Karin tensed up. "What should we do? Should we report this to Leader?"
Haku said, "If we've noticed, do you really think Leader hasn't figured it out?"
"True!" Karin relaxed at the thought.
Haku added, "I just don't know what's going on with the people outside. Leader doesn't seem to trust them."
Back in the small town, Haku had already noticed Uchiha Itachi and Zabuza Momochi standing at the other end of the street.
He had assumed they would join forces with him to fight the Upper Moon demons, but instead, Itachi and Zabuza had simply observed the battle.
Haku still hadn't had the chance to ask Leader about this puzzling behavior.
"I don't care about those people. I only follow Leader's orders!" Karin said with conviction.
Haku smiled, feeling a bit more at ease. "Exactly. We are part of the inner circle; we don't need to worry about the outer group. All we need to do is follow Leader's commands."
Soon, the two reached the training ground, talking in hushed tones.
Despite it being late, Shinji was still in the training ground, practicing his taijutsu.
From a distance, watching Shinji training, Haku reminded Karin, "Even though Shinji is an Uchiha, he doesn't know anything. We must make sure not to drag him into this!"
Karin nodded seriously. "Yes, if he finds out, it'll only bring him harm!"
Both Haku and Karin had a deep, sincere affection for Shinji, who had accepted them wholeheartedly.
For both of them, Uchiha Shinji, with a similar past of rejection, felt like family—like fellow remnants of a world that had cast them aside.
At that moment, Shinji noticed the two standing nearby and waved at them. "What are you two whispering about over there? Come on, I've been waiting for you!"
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