Uchiha Tatsumi didn't know how much time had passed before Yuluo returned, just as he was starting to drift off on the bed.
"Let's go. The captain is back. He wants to see you," Yuluo said as she knocked on the wooden door.
At that moment, a black-haired man stepped out from the room next door. "Oh, Yuluo, the captain's back?"
He scratched his head, and flakes of dust fell like the drizzle from Amegakure.
Uchiha Tatsumi, being somewhat of a clean freak, felt his scalp tingle.
The man looked half-awake, but when he noticed Tatsumi and the others, his eyes widened with excitement. "Oh? You three are the newcomers?"
His energy suddenly spiked, like he'd just spotted prey.
Rope Tree tried to respond, but the man didn't give him a chance. "That age… ah, I get it!"
He clapped his hands together. "You must be Anbu recruits, trained since childhood. Not bad. Handling missions already at that age."
He clearly mistook them for members of Konoha's Anbu, which wasn't too surprising. Anbu often selected children with exceptional talent for early, intensive training—far more rigorous than standard Academy instruction. These recruits typically began field missions long before their peers.
Rope Tree again opened his mouth to clarify, but the man plowed ahead. "Haha, Yuluo, let me take these kids under my wing!"
Yuluo ignored him and continued walking.
The man showed no signs of embarrassment and simply followed alongside Tatsumi and the others.
Seeing that he couldn't get a word in, Rope Tree gave up trying to explain.
The four of them followed Yuluo down the left-hand corridor, which led into a spacious room filled with scrolls and cabinets.
Inside, a middle-aged ninja sat waiting. Ryuji was also present, maintaining his usual scowl when he saw Tatsumi and the others.
The middle-aged man smiled. "I'm Xiuyuan, the commander here. I've been briefed on your situation by Anji."
He gestured for the trio to sit down.
"Let me explain—our primary mission here is gathering intelligence on Iwagakure. All kinds of intel. The work is dangerous, but if you're cautious, it's manageable."
He added, "Also, though we're under Konoha's command structure, we operate independently as part of Anbu."
Xiuyuan clearly took pride in that affiliation—practically glowing with self-importance.
But to Uchiha Tatsumi, something felt off.
The full name, Ansatsu Senjutsu Tokushu Butai (Assassination Tactics Special Forces), sounded prestigious, even awe-inspiring. Anbu represented the epitome of covert warfare—assassins, spies, masters of infiltration. It was the ideal of shinobi stealth and lethality.
Still, Tatsumi couldn't help but recall how in practice, Anbu often seemed more like expendable background characters. In the manga, they frequently acted as faceless extras—often showing up only to be quickly overwhelmed or killed by powerful enemies. Their most repeated line might as well be: "This area is off-limits. Leave immediately."—right before they were wiped out.
So despite their mystique, Anbu weren't as invincible as their name suggested.
Xiuyuan gave them a brief pause, presumably for "shock and awe," then continued.
"I'm not a fan of babysitting. You may be disciples of Lord Orochimaru, but I doubt you're ready for independent intel work."
He glanced at each of them, as though evaluating who might lead them.
Rope Tree and Tatsumi exchanged a subtle glance.
Ryuji looked openly displeased.
Yuluo, ever expressionless, showed neither agreement nor objection.
Meanwhile, the excitable man from earlier leaned forward in anticipation, clearly eager to be assigned.
"Yuluo, I'll leave them to you," Xiuyuan said.
Yuluo nodded silently.
The enthusiastic man slumped in disappointment.
"Hmph. My sister's stuck babysitting these brats," Ryuji muttered.
"Ryuji," Xiuyuan said mildly, "I understand your grief over your brother. But that's no excuse for sarcasm."
"…Understood, Boss Xiuyuan," Ryuji mumbled, turning away.
"Take them around, Yuluo. Help them get familiar with the area and explain our operations."
"Understood," she replied.
Tatsumi and the others followed her out again.
"There are three passages here," Yuluo explained as they walked. "One leads to the resting quarters, one to our records room, and the third to the holding cells for captured enemy shinobi."
"As I mentioned, our main mission is intel gathering. Combat happens, but it's secondary. Now I'll show you the holding area."
The trio followed her quietly—until a pained cry echoed down the hall from ahead.
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