Hidden Mission

After everyone left, Yami turned his attention to Hiruzen, waiting to hear what he wanted.

Hiruzen leaned back in his chair, looking slightly weary. "First, I apologize for calling you here on such short notice. Our forces are scattered, and there aren't many strong people in the village who are... well, as ideal as you."

Yami shrugged. "It's fine. I was bored anyway. Might as well go out and stretch."

Hiruzen's eye twitched at Yami's casual attitude. Not many people treated an A-rank mission as lightly as he did.

"To be honest, there are two reasons I wanted you on this mission," Hiruzen explained. "First, Shinsuke's team is short by one person, and there aren't many skilled and competent Chunin like you that I can think of to join them."

These were Hiruzen's honest feelings. Despite Yami's apparent reluctance to leave the village for missions, one thing stood out about him—he always got the job done. No matter how tough the mission was or how unexpected the situation became, Yami completed it. Sometimes, even his companions didn't make it back, but Yami always did.

According to the rules, this made Yami the ideal shinobi to rely on. The only drawback was his rank and his relatively small chakra reserves, which limited him to B-rank missions or lower in the past. But now, things were different. Ever since Hiruzen read the report of Yami's last mission, he realized that the mere Chunin rank didn't do justice to Yami's true strength. It felt like a waste to leave someone like him in the hospital, tending to patients, instead of being out there, accomplishing critical missions for the village.

"Yami," Hiruzen called, leaning slightly forward, his hands clasped together on the desk. "This mission is not as simple as it appears."

Yami's brow furrowed slightly. "What do you mean, Lord Hokage?"

"The Tsuchigumo Clan has existed for many years and made it clear that they would remain neutral. Even during the previous two wars, they didn't take sides and stayed out of the conflicts."

"I see. So you're thinking something must have happened that caused them to suddenly switch sides after all these years—something Konoha is unaware of," Yami replied.

The Hokage smiled, seemingly pleased with Yami's quick deduction. "That's right. We don't know why they chose Konoha of all villages. If anyone has good judgment, they'd see our village's peculiar situation right now and wouldn't normally try to associate with us while we're being pushed back."

"So, what you want from me is…" Yami trailed off.

"Exactly. While your mission is to escort the envoy and negotiate, there's an additional task I need you to handle," Hiruzen continued. "I want you to discreetly investigate the Tsuchigumo village and see what they're hiding from us."

Yami scratched the back of his neck. "Aren't you being a bit too paranoid here? They probably don't know about the internal trouble Konoha's facing, seeing as we're holding back the other four villages."

Hiruzen smiled. "Being paranoid is what keeps you vigilant against any potential threat."

'It also prevents you from seeing the solutions and only gets rid of the problems,' Yami thought.

"I understand. I'll see what I can find," Yami agreed, understanding why the Hokage had chosen him. His stealth techniques made him the perfect candidate to gather information without being noticed.

'It seems this Transparent Escape Technique is putting me in the spotlight lately,' Yami mused. Most of the missions he'd been involved in were exactly because of this skill, making him question whether it was the right choice to openly show it in the first place.

"I trust your judgment, so I'm giving you full freedom to act," Hiruzen said with a serious tone. "If by chance you find anything that poses a threat to Konoha, then…"

He left the sentence unfinished, but Yami understood the Hokage's intentions. If the Tsuchigumo Clan had something that could threaten Konoha, he would definitely take it for himself. Hiruzen didn't need to say more; Yami would do everything necessary to secure it if it could benefit him.

"Can I ask you something?" Yami inquired. "I kinda get why you assigned this task to me, but why didn't you tell the others? Or do they already know?"

Hiruzen paused, carefully choosing his words. "It's hard to deceive ninjas most of the time. So, sometimes it's better to have genuine people beside you while hiding your true motives among them."

"Understood," Yami replied.

Hiruzen didn't need to elaborate further. Yami understood why the others were kept in the dark, but he didn't really care. This mission could prove more profitable than staying in the village. Still, he had one last request.

"Can you tell me how to form a contract with a summons?"

Only a select few knew how to contract and summon beasts, and none of them had any real reason to help him. So, he decided to ask Hiruzen directly. After all, the Hokage had been a reliable source of jutsu so far.

"Oh, are you interested in summoning creatures?" Hiruzen asked, raising an eyebrow.

Yami nodded. "Yes, I think it could be useful for future missions."

The benefits of contracting a beast were numerous. Aside from having a powerful ally in battle and potentially gaining access to natural energy, what caught Yami's attention most was the reverse summoning technique. It could be a perfect escape plan if he was ever surrounded, or a way to hide and transport items without anyone noticing.

It could also be the ideal place to train his Kekkei Genkai and build a lab for his 'experiments.'

Hiruzen thought for a moment before pulling a scroll from the shelves. "This contains general information on summoning contracts. It's classified, so handle it with care. When you return from this mission, I'll personally show you how to form a contract."

Using his soul perception, Yami sensed that Hiruzen was sincere in his offer. Satisfied, he chose to trust him for now.

Of course, there was still the matter of which summon to choose. The Hokage's monkey summon was out of the question, and the frogs were also a no-go. Those 'self-righteous' amphibians would never approve of his experiments.

After discussing a few more mission details, Yami left the Hokage's office. As he reached the exit of the Hokage Tower, one of the guards stopped him.

"There's a message for you," the guard said, handing Yami a piece of paper. "It's from Jonin Shinsuke. He said to deliver it directly to you."

Yami unfolded the note, revealing a single sentence: "Meet at Konoha's gate in half an hour."

Raising an eyebrow, Yami considered the message. 'He probably wants to size me up and assess my abilities before the mission. Smart move, given the circumstances.'

Yami found nothing wrong with this. He also wanted to see what kinda of people he would be working with.

Realizing time was short, Yami pocketed the note. "Looks like I need to finish my shopping quickly." With that, he hurried off.

He didn't head straight home but instead made his way to the bustling commercial street. Upon reaching it, he entered stealth mode, moving carefully through the crowd, ensuring not to bump into anyone as he maneuvered around them.

Eventually, he stopped in front of a large store with various weapons displayed outside. Ignoring the swords and kunai, Yami headed straight inside.

The store owner was chatting with a few customers and had no idea that Yami had entered and he was browsed the shelves.

Yami scanned the shop, looking for specific items. After a few moments, he spotted what he was searching for—explosive tags, tucked away on a lower shelf.

Seeing that no one was looking in his direction, Yami discreetly slipped several tags into his pouch, unnoticed by anyone in the store.

"Thanks for your donation," he thought with a smirk.

Satisfied, he quietly left the store without a second glance.

He repeated the same process at a few more stores, collecting similar "donations" undetected as he moved through the market district. By the time he was done, it was nearly time for his appointment with Shinsuke. Yami hurried back home to prepare for the mission.

"This should be enough, right."

After checking his gear and the ninja food, he left for Konoha's gate.

But before reaching it, he entered stealth mode in an attempt to observe his new 'colleagues' before the mission.

***

Read Advance Chapters on Patreon:

patreon.com/Calm_Storm

Thank you very much for your support!!