Chapter 018: Mizukage Candidate, Mei Terumi Joins the Group! (Requesting Stats)
"This is..."
Sasuke was bound and suspended mid-air by iron chains, looking in astonishment at what had tied him up.
These weren't real chains. They were golden and gleamed with light, forged purely from chakra.
From their nature... these were chakra constructs.
"A mistake...?"
Back where Sasuke had been standing, a large scythe was being retrieved.
Only then did everyone notice two Hidden Mist Village ninja standing under a tree by the roadside.
Or rather, they had been there the whole time, merely camouflaged.
Sasuke's attention had been drawn to puddles that appeared despite no rain. But the real ninjas had hidden nearby.
So, the puddles were meant to mislead the eye.
And to make it convincing, the two chunin had even placed real water clones in the puddles.
In the end... Sasuke fell for it.
"*Cough cough...*"
Naruto let out two coughs.
Because he was currently in a somewhat uncomfortable state. Three chains had burst out from his body and were now binding Sasuke.
It was thanks to these chains that Sasuke had been pulled up and suspended, dodging the attack from the Hidden Mist ninja.
But clearly, Naruto wasn't used to this condition.
"Wait a minute."
"Is this the Adamantine Sealing Chains...?"
"I actually used it!"
Naruto's face lit up with joy.
This was the technique that Kitahara Kaede had told him about in the apartment—a signature move of the Uzumaki Clan.
And now... he could actually use it!
"This is..."
"Uzumaki Clan's technique?"
One of the Hidden Mist chunin who had ambushed Sasuke said.
"You're quite knowledgeable."
"This is the Uzumaki Clan's exclusive technique—the Adamantine Sealing Chains."
"After all, their clan has an absurd amount of chakra."
Kakashi placed one hand on the Konoha headband covering his left eye and spoke.
[Younger Generations and Descendants (^\_-) Chat Group]
[Big Dummy Hashirama]: Naruto Uzumaki really is something.
[Big Dummy Hashirama]: That's the Uzumaki Clan's Adamantine Sealing Chains.
[Tobirama Senju]: His mother could use them effortlessly at any time.
[Tobirama Senju]: But until two days ago, Naruto had been heavily influenced by the Nine-Tails' chakra. Now that the Nine-Tails' chakra has been sealed, he actually managed to use them.
[Tobirama Senju]: So, Minato, in a way, your son is a genius.
[Minato Namikaze]: Hmm... yeah.
[Minato Namikaze]: It seems... I suppressed and held back Naruto's talent because of my personal feelings.
[Minato Namikaze]: He really is a genius.
...
Outside.
"..." Sasuke.
Sasuke had been gently placed to the side by Naruto and was now free again.
The two Hidden Mist chunin, realizing the gravity of the situation, did not attack right away.
"Leaf Village ninja..."
The two Hidden Mist chunin exchanged glances. "We don't want to fight you."
Though the statement was a bit ironic, considering they had just tried to cleave Sasuke in half.
But Naruto's Adamantine Sealing Chains had shown them this wasn't a group to mess with.
"Just hand over Tazuna."
"We're willing to pay 100,000 ryo."
"..." Kakashi.
"W-Wait a second!"
Realizing he'd been called out, and that his lies had been exposed, Tazuna quickly spoke up, "Leaf ninja, please don't abandon me."
"I am the only hope left for the Land of Waves."
"These Hidden Mist ninja are actually rogue ninjas hired by Gato."
"Gato is a businessman, but he's blockading the Land of Waves and forcing everyone to sell seafood to him only."
"He slashes the prices cruelly, which is why I want to build a bridge and restore commerce to the Land of Waves."
"But Gato is trying to kill me!"
"I'm sorry for hiding so much..." Tazuna said quickly.
He had now realized these Leaf ninja, though young and looking like rookies, were far from weak.
So, maybe the Land of Waves really could be saved.
"..." As their jonin leader, Kakashi didn't respond immediately.
He looked toward Kitahara Kaede.
According to the First and Second Hokage, his current mission was to train the younger generation.
And judging by Naruto, Sasuke, and Kitahara Kaede...
Clearly, the best bet was Kitahara Kaede.
In terms of strength, he was definitely a heavyweight.
And his thinking wasn't like that of an average rookie genin either.
Naruto and Sasuke were still young.
Sasuke was a bit slow.
Naruto was still too reliant on Kaede.
Given all that...
Kakashi chose to trust Kitahara Kaede.
"Regarding that matter..."
Kaede thought for a moment. "We can accept Tazuna's request."
"After all, we are Leaf ninja. Damaging our reputation over a mission isn't a good look."
"Agreed," Kakashi nodded.
"Then..."
Kakashi turned to the two Hidden Mist chunin.
"We can't accept your request..."
"Or rather..."
"We were never going to accept it in the first place..."
"What do you take the honor of Leaf Village ninja for?"
Kakashi's figure suddenly vanished, and before the Mist ninja could react, they collided with each other and fell unconscious.
Kakashi had appeared between them in a flash and disabled them both simultaneously.
"Amazing..."
Sasuke, now on the ground, noticed Kakashi's technique—this was the skill of someone forged through countless battles.
"Kakashi-sensei, go easy on them," Kaede suddenly said.
"Huh?" Kakashi was surprised.
After all, in a mission like this, enemy ninjas from other villages were legitimate threats.
"Because we still need to make a deal with these Hidden Mist ninja," Kaede said.
"What???" x3
Not just Kakashi, but Sasuke, Naruto, and even Tazuna were stunned.
"According to Mr. Tazuna's explanation..."
"Gato exploited the Land of Waves' resources, right?"
"Then... he must have amassed quite a fortune."
"After becoming a ninja, I realized... it's an expensive career."
"A basic ninja tool kit costs 5,000 ryo, and a deluxe one over 10,000. A single explosive tag is over 2,000."
"So..."
"I think it's only fair for Mr. Gato to share a portion of his wealth with us."
Kaede said.
"But as Konoha ninjas, we have our honor. We obviously can't be the ones to *make* Mr. Gato be generous."
If not them, then...
Wouldn't that job fall to the Hidden Mist ninja who had originally been hired by Gato?
[Ding!]
Just then, as the previous Hokage who were observing Kaede's actions watched in a daze, a new member joined the group.
[Inviting Kage-level power - Hidden Mist's Mizukage Candidate - Mei Terumi to the group]
[@Mei Terumi, congratulations, you've discovered a treasure.]
[The name of this group is the Younger Generations and Descendants (^_-) Chat Group]
[Also known as the "Kaede Kitahara Broadcast Group"]
[This group transcends time, space, and even death, gathering suitable individuals together.]
[@Mei Terumi, the current broadcast is about your Hidden Mist Village.]
[Mizukage Candidate - Mei Terumi]: What kind of treasure did I discover? Let me take a look... Oh no...
[Mizukage Candidate - Mei Terumi]: My Hidden Mist Village ninja have been bought off!