Kannabi Bridge (5)

"I'll give you some of the explosive tags just in case, but I still hope that you can wait for me to come back and complete the final bridge-blowing mission together." Although Minato understood that he couldn't always keep them under his protection, especially during the war, he still gave his team this final care.

"Yes!" they responded in unison.

"That's it. From now on, we will split into two groups. Be careful!" After briefly explaining the rest of the matter, Minato no longer hesitated and disappeared on the spot in a flash. Konoha's front line was barely holding on. If he didn't go there, they would likely lose a large area of the position again.

"Captain, can we make a plan for the next step?" Obito's blurted-out "captain" stunned Kakashi and Rin for a second or two. But soon, Kakashi realized that Obito had changed and finally took over the conversation calmly.

"Let's take another look at the map. This is not Konoha. We need to familiarize ourselves with the terrain first." Kakashi's gentle answer made Obito feel relieved. Looking at each other, the two of them looked like close friends.

"Obito and Kakashi..." Rin still didn't quite understand the sudden change in the two. Did she miss something? She felt like she was being left out. Then she glanced at Yami, who was supposed to be an outsider. Surprisingly, he was not at all surprised that the relationship between Obito and Kakashi had eased. So, was she the outsider?

"This mission is mainly about infiltration, so our route should be through secluded paths and uninhabited areas as much as possible." Kakashi's finger first pointed out their location on the map, then moved along a thin line to the location of Kannabi Bridge. No one had much objection.

"However, we have already encountered an enemy reconnaissance ninja before. Although we successfully eliminated him, the enemy will definitely react as a result," Yami said, not thinking they would remain undiscovered.

"You mean?" Kakashi's previous recklessness had finally made him start to think more critically about the problem.

"If the four of us act together, we'll still be too conspicuous. Why don't we spread out a bit?" Yami suggested. If he had a choice, Yami preferred to complete tasks alone rather than working in a team.

"We need to disperse further? But..." Obito glanced at Rin beside him with some worry. He prioritized protecting his companions over the mission.

"My suggestion is that Kakashi and I go our separate ways ahead, while Obito and Rin move slowly forward behind us to avoid the dangers we encounter. We'll meet up every few miles until we reach the mission's destination. I think this will ensure each other's safety and concealment to the greatest extent possible."

"I'm in a team with Obito?" Rin was a little surprised, but Obito was already happy in his heart. He didn't expect that Yami was such a thoughtful person.

"You are a medical ninja, so naturally, you are our priority to protect," Yami explained. But his intentions weren't as he explained. He was worried that Uchiha Madara might have already had an eye on Obito and subconsciously wanted to stay away from him.

"Captain Kakashi, what do you think?"

"I..." After hearing this suggestion, Kakashi felt a bit redundant as a captain. Yami's arrangement was better than he thought. However, "This is a good proposal, but it's too risky to go it alone."

Based on yesterday's observations, Kakashi believed that Obito and Rin were both weak and needed care. Having the two weakest people in the team form a group was a bit like leaving them to fend for themselves. Although the mission was indeed the priority, what Minato said about teamwork still rang in Kakashi's ears.

"How about this: Obito and I will go ahead and explore the way, and you and Rin will stay behind to guard against the enemy coming from behind. If we are attacked, we'll find a way to notify each other to rescue or leave," Kakashi suggested.

"You let Rin be in a group with him? But is he... really that good?" Obito was not very satisfied with Kakashi's arrangement.

"Don't worry. Didn't the Hokage say that we are elite ninjas? Trust him and my arrangements." Kakashi shut up Obito by citing his previous words.

"…Alright," Obito finally compromised, remembering what Minato had said. But he was still worried. So before leaving, he found Yami with a serious look on his face. "Rin, I'll leave it to you."

"Yeah..." Yami didn't expect Kakashi to group them this way in the end. But at least he wasn't grouped with Obito, so that was okay.

"Also, you said before that every time your companions complete a mission with you, they die, right?" After solemnly asking for help, Obito suddenly changed the subject.

"That's right."

"Well, I, Uchiha Obito, will bet everything I have here to dispel the rumors about you. No one will die this time, and we will complete the mission successfully. Just wait and see!" Obito said, adjusting the Konoha headband on his head with great enthusiasm, then turned around and left without waiting for Yami to respond.

"…" If this kid doesn't go astray in the future, he really has a chance to become Hokage….assistant. After all, a Uchiha can't become a Hokage. Also, there is no such thing as "if" in this world. Everyone always has a glimmer of hope before something happens. Looking at Obito's departing figure, Yami felt quite complicated. Because he was familiar with the plot of Naruto, he was actually planning to secretly eliminate Obito on this mission.

"Even though Obito looks silly sometimes, he can also say things that make people feel at ease." Rin walked over with a smile. Seeing Yami's silence, she thought it was the effect of what Obito had just said.

"Really…" Yami, who was thinking about the best method to kill Obito, quickly restrained his expression after being interrupted by Rin. To hide his facial expression from revealing any flaws, he suddenly began to pretend he was talking to himself. "As expected of Kakashi…"

"As expected what?" Rin looked curious.

"Kakash seems to like Obito more than..." Yami deliberately looked up at Rin at this time with a smile. "Sorry, I was just kidding."

"…" Rin, who was smiling just now, suddenly froze when she was suddenly teased like this. Come to think of it, if Kakashi had any feelings for her in that regard, he would never have grouped them like this.

Moreover, when Yami proposed the group action, she actually expected to be grouped with Kakashi. But neither Yami nor Kakashi gave her the grouping she was looking forward to. Compared to being in a group with the more troublesome Obito, being in a group with Yami might be slightly better. So she didn't oppose Kakashi in the end. Of course, she didn't hate Obito, but sometimes Obito's feelings for her were so passionate that she didn't know how to respond, so she felt troubled.

"Maybe Kakashi really likes men." Giving up on herself, or perhaps with the resentment of a little girl, Rin also secretly criticized Kakashi's actions. But she soon found herself laughing at what she had said.

"Let's go. Kakashi and the others have been gone for a while. We can catch up."

"Yeah." Because of a few jokes, Rin's anxiety about being "abandoned" by her other two companions was reduced a lot. At the same time, her impression of Yami also changed slightly. He was able to cleverly estimate her feelings at this time and ease the atmosphere. Beneath the cold appearance, the real Yami-san might be a gentle person.

*****

"Look, there are marks left by Kakashi and Obito. It seems they are not in danger ahead for the time being." Under a big tree, Rin happily used a kunai to carve a response mark under the one left by Kakashi, indicating that there was no danger behind them yet.

"Um." They had already been traveling in the land of Grass for two days. According to the previous plan, their team of four had infiltrated relatively smoothly. Next, they just needed to proceed steadily and reach the hidden location near Kannabi Bridge as soon as possible, so they could carry out the blasting work.

But the smoother things go, the more careful you need to be. This was the experience that Yami had summed up over the years.

"Let's camp here today." Yami slowly jumped down from the trunk of the big tree. After scouting the road ahead, he was not in a hurry to catch up with Kakashi and Obito.

"Set up camp now? But there's still some time before dark..." Rin was a little confused. They had already confirmed that there was no danger ahead, so why not continue?

"This journey has been too smooth, so smooth that it's a bit abnormal. Besides, we are almost near Kannabi Bridge. There is no point in rushing forward. We might as well take this opportunity to set up some traps."

Yami took out the explosive tags that Minato had distributed to them from the backpack behind him. In this situation where the enemy is in the open and they are in the dark, a good trap can often play a greater role.

"Trap?" Along the way, Rin had seen many traps set by the enemies on the road.

"Yes. If we encounter an enemy that we are no match for, we should try to lure them to where we have set up traps. This way, our chances of winning will at least be a little better."

"I see." Although she wanted to meet the other two companions as soon as possible, Rin knew that Yami's cautious approach might be the right one.

But... if he had considered everything so carefully, why did those people who went on missions with him still die? While helping Yami set the trap, Rin couldn't help but think about this. But this kind of question was really hard to ask. Although their relationship seemed to have eased before, apart from necessary conversations, she and Yami had basically not talked about anything else in the past two days.

*****

"That brat Ōnoki is really boring."

Somewhere underground, Uchiha Madara listened to the information transmitted by Black Zetsu from the surface. Hearing that a large-scale war had broken out in the Ninja World again, the already elderly Madara raised his eyelids slightly.

"But it seems like every war is started by these boring guys."

Boring, childish, and cowardly—this was Madara's evaluation of the Tsuchikage of Iwa Village, Ōnoki.

"Where is the Uchiha brat I chose now?"

"They are already on their way to the mission and are probably approaching the border area of the Fire Nation now," Black Zetsu replied.

"I don't have much time left. After I die, I'll leave the rest of the plan to you."

 Madara looked at his "clone"—Black Zetsu, with a pitch-black body.

"Understood, my Lord," Black Zetsu replied respectfully.

***

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