After making all the necessary preparations, Shimizu arrived early at the agreed departure point.
Looking up, he saw that Yoshimaru and Maruboshi Kosuke had already finished organizing their forces. The two groups—hundreds of shinobi in total—set off in a grand procession.
That efficiency…
But then—
That white figure suddenly surfaced in his mind again.
If someone really had been targeting Konoha all along… there was no way they would miss an opportunity like this.
Before departure, he had already relayed this concern—clearly and seriously—to both Yoshimaru and Kosuke. They should have made the necessary precautions.
Hopefully… Sensei and the others will be fine.
But it wasn't just them.
He and Minato Namikaze, along with that unseen "suicide squad," were even more likely to have been marked.
He hadn't forgotten the killing intent that "Tobi" held toward Minato.
Nor the fact that he himself had tried to kill that man before leaving.
For a brief moment, Shimizu felt the weight of pressure settle on his shoulders.
The enemy was in the shadows, while they stood in the open.
Even Konoha's intelligence network had been rendered useless.
"…What's taking him so long?"
Yoshimaru and the others had already departed—so what was Minato still doing?
Shimizu couldn't help but wonder if something had gone wrong.
Minato had always been punctual.
But soon enough, Minato and his group finally appeared within his line of sight.
"Minato... what is this?!" Shimizu's eyes widened at the three figures trailing behind the future Hokage.
It was Team Minato.
What were these three brats doing here?
"Let me get this straight... you're bringing three kids on a mission like this?" Shimizu said bluntly.
The expressions of the three immediately turned sour.
They had just been looked down on.
"I already discussed it with Senior Kosuke," Minato explained, scratching his head. "We simply don't have enough manpower."
"And Rin's medical skills are solid. Treating the wounded won't be a problem."
Shimizu's gaze shifted to the other two.
"Kakashi's strength is decent. And Obito has grown as well…"
At that moment, Kakashi simply kept his head down, staring at the ground in silence.
But Obito finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Uzuki-senpai, you're seriously underestimating us!"
Even if you're "Shunshin Shimizu," you can't just look down on us like that!
We're chunin too—we've got pride!
Shimizu ignored the outburst entirely and said flatly,
"Don't forget about him."
"How could I forget?" Minato's gaze sharpened, turning cold. "If anything… I'm afraid he won't show up again."
But against an enemy as elusive as that masked man, no one had a better solution.
Even if they could defeat him, they couldn't keep him.
Still, Shimizu's concern wasn't really about that man.
It was about these three kids.
This mission had been largely pushed forward by him.
And for something this dangerous, he had absolutely no confidence that these three could survive to the end just by relying on "protagonist luck."
If that masked man appeared…
If they were surrounded by Sunagakure forces…
Then these three would die. Without question.
And if that happened—
Wouldn't the entire future fall apart?
"I gave Kakashi one of my marked kunai," Minato said. "If anything happens, I can return instantly."
"…Fine."
"Shimizu, do you still have the kunai I gave you before?"
"…Lost it."
"Then take this one," Minato said, handing him another. "Same rule as always—if you don't channel chakra into it, I won't be able to track your position."
"Thanks."
Shimizu silently accepted Minato's risky decision—and at the same time, made up his mind to keep an eye on the three kids when he could.
Just moments ago, he had extended his sensory perception and taken a closer look at Kakashi's chakra.
It was already approaching jonin-level standards.
No wonder Minato had said Kakashi was strong…
At the same time, Shimizu felt a flicker of surprise.
At this rate, Kakashi would likely reach jonin even earlier than in the original timeline.
Then again… even Chidori had appeared nearly two years ahead of schedule.
For a true genius like Kakashi, advancing early wasn't surprising at all.
"So Uzuki-senpai agrees?!" Obito lit up with excitement.
"Minato is the captain. It's his call." Shimizu replied flatly.
"Yeah!! Team Minato, let's move out!"
The five of them quickly set off toward the battlefield where Jiraiya had fallen.
…
...
...
"Hey, Kakashi… do you think Jiraiya-sama is still alive?" Obito whispered from his hiding spot in a tree.
"I told you already—no talking during this kind of operation," Kakashi replied from another concealed position nearby.
"But we've been waiting here forever… and we haven't seen anyone," Obito muttered under his breath. "Sensei said this area's just the outer perimeter. It should be relatively safe."
"Uzuki-senpai said the enemy could appear at any time," Kakashi warned.
"He also said we're just a bunch of rookies…"
"..."
"Rin, don't you think so?"
It took a while before Rin finally responded in a soft voice.
"I think… Uzuki-senpai is just looking out for our safety."
"I still feel like he's looking down on us," Obito grumbled. "I mean, I carry the Uchiha name, you know."
"Haven't you noticed?" Kakashi said quietly. "Sensei often asks for Uzuki-senpai's opinion."
"If Sensei trusts him that much… then we should too."
From the way Minato treated Shimizu, Kakashi had already realized something deeper.
The strong didn't seek out the opinions of the weak.
Only equals spoke to each other like that.
So… Uzuki-senpai's strength had already reached the same level as their teacher?
Before this, Kakashi had assumed Shimizu was only comparable to Minato in terms of speed…
"I guess that makes sense…" Obito admitted reluctantly. "But Sensei is clearly worried about Jiraiya-sama, right? Uzuki-senpai, on the other hand, doesn't seem worried at all…"
"…Maybe that's because he has more confidence in Jiraiya-sama," Kakashi said after thinking it through.
"Maybe…" Obito muttered. "Still… I feel like Uzuki-senpai has some other objective."
"…What would a simple-minded guy like you know?" Kakashi shot back.
"Hey, Kakashi—"
"Shh!"
Obito immediately fell silent. The three of them quietly remained hidden in the trees, their breathing becoming almost imperceptible...
Within less than a minute, a four-man squad of Suna shinobi appeared in their field of vision.
Sunagakure ANBU!
The tension in the air spiked instantly.
With just the three of them… they likely couldn't handle a unit like this.
Kakashi slowly drew his short blade, his mind racing as he calculated the chances of being discovered.
Based on their trajectory… closest distance, about thirty meters…
A dangerously close range.
For jonin, that distance could be closed in the blink of an eye.
He glanced slightly to the side.
Obito and Rin both had unease written all over their faces.
Stay calm… they might not notice us…
Kakashi locked his gaze onto the enemy, watching every movement as they drew closer.
50 meters…
40 meters…
30 meters…
And then—
Nothing happened.
The four shinobi passed by and gradually disappeared into the distance.
They didn't notice us…
Kakashi let out a silent breath of relief.
"Phew…" Obito exhaled as the tension drained from his body.
"Hey, kid… what exactly are you looking at?" A middle-aged man's voice suddenly sounded right behind Obito—laced with faint mockery.
...
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