Departure from the Land of Rivers

The next day, at the gates of Konoha, a four-person team consisting of Uchiha Shintaro, Shirakumo Hayama, Maruboshi Kosuke, and Might Duy gathered.

Shintaro looked around and prepared to leave.

Hayama interrupted Shintaro's current thoughts and said, "Captain Shintaro, is it just the four of us?"

He glanced at a few people, particularly Kosuke and Duy.

Obviously, he didn't know the true strength of these two. He only knew that they were both Genin in the village.

He didn't realize that the weakest person on this team was actually himself.

Hayama couldn't speak directly because of politeness, but Kosuke and Duy also noticed his intention.

Kosuke smiled, patted Hayama on the shoulder, and said, "Don't worry, I won't hold you back. Besides, I cook very well. I can cook for you during the mission."

Hayama, a talented person with a dark gray ponytail, reminded Kosuke of his younger self, so he was kind and friendly to him.

Duy gave a thumbs-up and said, "Although I'm just a Genin, I will do my best. This is the path of youth!"

Shintaro then spoke, "You and Kosuke are both Genin assigned by Hokage-sama, and Duy is a Genin I invited. There's no problem with a team of the four of us."

Although Hayama always felt that Kosuke and Duy were not suitable for this S-class secret mission, he finally gave up because of Shintaro, the number one genius ninja in Konoha.

It's just that the pressure of this mission increased in his heart. After all, he had two Genin with him.

Seeing that Hayama no longer objected, Shintaro led the three of them and officially set off.

Along the way, they ate and slept outdoors, under the stars and the moon. When they were tired, they rested in the trees. When they were sleepy, they slept in the trees. When they were thirsty, they replenished their water from rivers along the way.

Time was money, especially since this mission was special, and time was life.

The placement of Sunagakure ninja would change every day. The sooner Shintaro and the others arrived, the more detailed information they would get.

So it took less than two days, and on the second night, Shintaro and the others arrived in the Land of Rivers.

The Land of Rivers, as its name suggests, had many mountains and river valleys.

Shintaro and his party traveled through thousands of mountains and rivers in the Land of Rivers before arriving in Tanigakure, a ninja village in the Land of Rivers. Tanigakure was very small compared to Konoha.

It was said to be a village, but in reality, it had grown into a large town. However, Tanigakure was a village in the true sense of the word.

The entire population of the village, including civilians, did not exceed 5,000, and the number of ninja was less than 200, most of whom were Genin.

Only Hisen's strength could reach the average Jonin level in Konoha.

Hisen personally received Shintaro and his team from Konoha.

"I have admired you for a long time; you are the number one genius in Konoha, Uchiha Shintaro, right? You come from a famous clan and are talented. Seeing you today, you indeed look the part. You are truly a talented person."

Hisen, a nearly 40-year-old from Tanigakure, was trying to please the 11-year-old Konoha Chunin, Shintaro, with a smile on his face.

This might be the tragedy of a small country and a small village, and it could also be said to be a way of survival.

Shintaro politely returned the favor, looked at Hisen's face, and then said, "Village Chief, you overpraise me. It's just a false reputation spread by the villagers through rumors. Can the information about this mission be more detailed?"

Hisen said with a serious expression, "Those two rogue ninja are elite Chunin and considered quite capable in our village. They coveted my position as village chief, and they joined forces to start a rebellion, but I suppressed it."

"Their rebellion was quelled, but they escaped. There are many mountains and rivers in the Land of Rivers, and no one knows in which mountain they are hiding."

"I sent many ninja teams from my village to search for them, but all failed, and it's inconvenient for me to leave the village. So I can only entrust the ninja from your village to help."

Shintaro nodded and said, "I'm afraid this task will take some time. During this period, I may need to stay in Tanigakure Village for a while."

"Don't worry, the accommodation prepared for you is all ready, and you can move in now."

Hisen smiled and signaled the servant beside him to take Shintaro and the others to their residence.

Shintaro stood up and asked casually, "Village Chief, has there been any unusual activity in Sunagakure Village in the Land of Rivers recently?"

Hisen's smile stiffened, then he replied with a half-smile, "I assure you that Tanigakure Village will remain neutral between Sunagakure and Konoha. I hope your village understands."

Shintaro nodded and left as if nothing had happened.

Hisen took a deep breath. He knew very well about Sunagakure's recent movements and was just pretending to be ignorant.

Because the weak Tanigakure Village couldn't afford to offend either side between Sunagakure and Konoha.

Sunagakure Village might not be strong among the five great ninja villages, but it could easily destroy the small village of Tanigakure.

Shintaro was led to the residence by the servant.

A single-family villa with its own backyard.

The servant handed over the keys to the residence and the necessary information for the mission, then left.

Shintaro turned around and said, "It's already late today. We'll set off tomorrow. Let's spend the night here tonight."

Hayama and Duy nodded.

Kosuke looked at everyone with a smile and said, "Then you can try my cooking skills tonight. I'll go buy the ingredients."

Shintaro said expectantly, "We'll be waiting."

Kosuke went to buy the ingredients.

Shintaro then found a detailed map of the Land of Rivers from the intelligence, spread it out on the ground, and said, "Let's discuss the plan. The target is Mount Akaishi, which is the mountain closest to the Land of Wind. If there is any activity in Sunagakure Village, it will be arranged there first."

"Let's search to the west, pretending to look for the rogue ninja, so that even if we encounter Sunagakure ninja, we have an excuse to escape unscathed."

Hayama looked at Shintaro in admiration. He had great confidence in this young but very calm and reliable ninja.

Duy followed the plan unconditionally. After all, it was Shintaro who brought him on this mission.

A while later, Kosuke returned with two large bags and a big iron pot on his back.

"Tonight's dinner is sukiyaki."

"Sukiyaki?" Shintaro asked, puzzled.

In fact, he had never eaten sukiyaki in his previous life until now.

Kosuke set up the iron pot in the kitchen.

He cut the beef into thin slices and grilled them briefly, then added soy sauce and sugar seasonings, and cooked them in the pot along with vegetables, mushrooms, tofu, and other ingredients.

When the water in the iron pot was almost dry, Kosuke added enough cooking sake to the pot to make it fresh.

He then brought the cooked sukiyaki pot to the table and cracked fresh eggs into everyone's bowls as a sauce. The aroma filled their noses, and everyone couldn't help but pick up their bowls and chopsticks and immediately taste it.

Shintaro, Hayama, and Duy all gave thumbs up in approval, making Kosuke smile with satisfaction.