It took this small squad roughly three days to return from the Grass Country outpost to Iwagakure.
No one noticed that, from a certain point onward, Chūnin Yoshida had already been replaced by someone harboring far less innocent intentions.
And so, with almost no resistance at all, Hagoromo successfully infiltrated the enemy's stronghold—one of the Five Great Ninja Villages: Iwagakure.
This was Hagoromo's first time carrying out a mission of this nature. Strictly speaking, such tasks should never have been assigned to a young ninja in the first place. Yet it was clear that Jiraiya valued Hagoromo greatly—so much so that Hagoromo felt… startled.
"Honored" wasn't quite the right word.
When he first saw the plan, he had been genuinely shocked.
Yet after actually entering Iwagakure, his mindset turned out to be unexpectedly calm.
From a geographical standpoint, Iwagakure resembled Sunagakure in some ways, while its sheer elevation and terrain echoed Kumogakure. The village was surrounded by natural fortresses—towering cliffs, massive rock formations, and steep mountains.
It was easy to defend and hard to attack.
Or rather, the village itself was a natural stronghold, designed first and foremost to repel invaders.
Without infiltrating in this manner, it would have been nearly impossible for Hagoromo to enter Iwagakure without alerting the enemy.
And if his identity were exposed inside the village for any reason—
His fate would be grim.
The Third Tsuchikage, Ōnoki of the Two Scales, was notorious for his stubbornness. Under his leadership, Iwagakure ninja were likewise known for their fearlessness and their willingness to die on mission.
That was precisely why the chūnin Hagoromo was impersonating—"Yoshida"—was so universally disliked.
A timid coward like that simply didn't fit Iwagakure's culture.
…Then again, such a personality wouldn't be welcomed in any hidden village.
Even Konoha—whose atmosphere was comparatively gentler—was no exception.
Because of this, Yoshida had a reclusive personality, no close blood relatives, spoke little, had almost no friends, and rarely interacted with others outside of missions.
A target with simple social ties like this minimized the risk of exposure.
Once the supply squad entered Iwagakure, it was officially disbanded. Information regarding the next assignment would be issued separately.
Hagoromo was truly pushing himself.
Maintaining a perfect-level Transformation Technique wasn't difficult for him.
The real challenge was keeping it active at all times.
In fact, even his imitation of Yoshida's speech patterns was over 95% accurate. That alone was enough to fool anyone—especially since Yoshida always spoke timidly. As long as his voice carried a slight tremble, no one would ever suspect that such an inconspicuous ninja had been replaced.
With his successful entry into Iwagakure, the first phase of the mission was complete.
The task never required Hagoromo to sabotage anything inside the village—that would have been suicidal. No matter how unscrupulous Jiraiya could be, he wouldn't assign a mission guaranteed to kill his disciple.
…Though, judging objectively, even if this mission succeeded, the mortality rate was never going to be low.
For Hagoromo, the first half of the assignment was simple:
Disguise himself as Yoshida.
Travel the supply route back to Iwagakure.
And memorize that route perfectly.
Although Konoha spies had previously reported on this logistics line, the intelligence was vague. Future operations would require absolute precision, so firsthand confirmation was essential.
Unfortunately, despite learning the route, Hagoromo paid no special attention to a certain hyper-sensitive keyword—
Kannabi Bridge.
Once inside Iwagakure, Hagoromo immediately faced his first real problem.
He had no idea where Yoshida lived.
This wasn't due to intelligence negligence. Even with detailed maps, Iwagakure's complex terrain and dense architecture made it nearly impossible to locate a specific residence without guidance.
Given the urgency of the war, if he was still wandering around aimlessly after nightfall—
He'd be finished.
Fortunately, there was still plenty of daylight left. Hagoromo felt pressure, but not panic.
"Ha! Yoshida, you're finally back! How'd the mission go?"
While Hagoromo was pondering his next move, someone greeted him cheerfully from a distance.
Hagoromo glanced at the man, compared his features, and instantly identified him.
"Aono… it's you."
A natural smile appeared on his face, and the nervous tremor in his voice noticeably eased.
Because this man was Yoshida's friend.
…Remarkably, even someone like Yoshida had a friend.
Tragically, that was exactly where Yoshida's misfortune lay.
Not only was he unpopular within the village—
His one and only "friend" was actually a Konoha spy.
The ninja named Aono looked utterly ordinary, about the same age as Yoshida. He strode toward Hagoromo with open enthusiasm.
As he walked, his right hand—partially hidden in his sleeve—formed a subtle hand sign.
A sign identifying his affiliation.
Hagoromo saw it.
He understood it.
And he ignored it completely.
He didn't know whether this spy belonged to Konoha's official intelligence division or Danzō's Root.
But right now, he was Yoshida.
And Yoshida didn't do unnecessary things.
No spy was ever worthy of complete trust. For all he knew, Aono could be a double agent—someone who might suddenly say "Sorry, I'm actually with Internal Affairs."
"The mission was the same as always," Hagoromo said calmly. "Luckily, nothing unexpected happened."
"That's great," Aono replied as he approached. "Ever since you got stuck doing logistics, your luck's been incredible. I'm jealous—my last mission nearly got me killed."
"Aono… did something happen?"
"Yoshida's" voice carried concern.
"Well, it's not classified, but it's a long story. Let's talk at your place."
"Ah… sure."
In truth, Aono didn't wait for confirmation—he simply started walking ahead.
Hagoromo stayed alert, but now he understood.
Aono was guiding him home.
With no better option, Hagoromo followed.
Along the way, they chatted casually, but in reality, Aono was continuously slipping in reminders about things Hagoromo needed to be careful about in Iwagakure.
Once they arrived at Yoshida's residence, the conversation continued indoors.
Nearly two hours later, Aono finally took his leave.
Hagoromo escorted him to the door. Once Aono disappeared from sight, Hagoromo shut the door and his expression instantly turned cold.
During their "idle chat," Aono had covertly passed along a message.
Iwagakure was preparing for a major incursion into the Land of Lightning.
The operation would involve over 5,000 ninja. Many would be conscripted.
Yoshida was likely to be among them.
The first half of this intelligence matched what Hagoromo already knew.
The latter half was vague—the exact number of participating ninja was still uncertain.
But if "Yoshida" truly took part—
Then this identity might still prove extremely useful.
PS: I've been releasing chapters daily . Honestly, it hurts seeing almost no support on Patreon after all that work.If you're enjoying the fic, even a little, supporting me would mean a lot. It helps a student stay independent .
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