Land of Whirlpools...
Night!
"Be careful!" A masked ANBU jonin signaled to his four teammates. "If we can't rescue them, then just..."
"Kill them!" A cold voice came from behind the mask.
No one showed any reaction to these words. They simply nodded because they were...
The assassination squad. Whether the targets were their own people or outsiders, as long as the order came from above, they would carry it out without hesitation.
"Then move out!"
"Yes!"
Several figures instantly vanished into the night.
...
"Captain Komaki!" A Uzu-nin spoke respectfully to Uzumaki Komaki. "Nothing will go wrong tonight, right?"
Uzumaki Komaki patted the Uzu-nin's shoulder and stretched lazily. "Everyone has been working hard lately. Lord Jun said that some villages might act out of desperation and cause trouble these days."
"Haha, everyone knows that," the Uzu-nin replied awkwardly. "It's just..."
"Kind of boring."
"Seems like your training intensity isn't enough then!" Uzumaki Komaki said helplessly. "I'll assign you extra training tomorrow!"
"..." The Uzu-nin was speechless. Night watch duty really was boring, and this was his first time doing it! "Actually, it's still quite fun. Can Captain Komaki pretend you didn't hear that?"
"Haha." Uzumaki Komaki smiled and nodded. Before the Uzu-nin could feel relieved, he calmly said to another short-haired Uzu-nin beside him, "This guy gets triple the training tomorrow. Make sure he remembers it!"
"Yes!" The short-haired Uzu-nin grinned mischievously. "I'll make sure of it!"
"..."
Why did I have to open my big mouth?!
The Uzu-nin slapped his own face in frustration. There was no way out now—he really would have to endure extra training tomorrow. He quickly changed the subject. "By the way, Captain Komaki, I heard the Land of Whirlpools is reforming its military structure."
"Are we not going to establish a hidden village?"
Uzumaki Komaki gave him a sidelong glance. "Don't ask too much. You'll find out when the time comes."
From recent developments, he could tell that Lord Jun didn't seem interested in building a hidden village. Instead, he wanted to centralize military power, conduct unified training, and gradually expand the armed forces.
This...
Could already be inferred from some of the orders passed down from above.
"Then will there be no more shinobi in the future?" The Uzu-nin sighed. "I thought Uzushiogakure could become the sixth great hidden village."
"Shut..." Uzumaki Komaki was about to cut off his complaints when...
"Beep!!"
A sharp, piercing alarm suddenly rang out!
"Enemy attack!!"
All the Uzu-nin snapped to attention and immediately shouted, rushing toward the source of the alarm.
...
Uzumaki Jun rubbed his eyes tiredly and got up from bed. It had only been a few days, and someone was already launching an attack. Couldn't they be a little more patient?!
Which village was it this time?
Uzumaki Jun looked at the night sky. It was probably around 3 or 4 a.m. Why cause trouble at this hour?
Did they really think the Land of Whirlpools had no defenses?
Though he loved sleeping in...
"Let's deal with this first." This alarm was a sealing technique developed by the Elder. Inspired by the household registration and ID system, it involved imprinting a sealing formula on each person and setting up a sealing array around their sleeping quarters. If an unauthorized person entered the array, it would activate, emitting dazzling lights and a shrill alarm!
"If the sound were better, it'd be like a disco." Uzumaki Jun stared helplessly at the flashing, color-changing array. He had no idea how the Elder came up with this. Did they have a...
Party-loving heart?!
Aside from the awful noise, the swirling lights...
Totally looked like it!
"Lord Jun!" Kakuzu appeared beside Uzumaki Jun and said flatly, "They're here?"
"Yeah," Uzumaki Jun sighed. "Making noise in the middle of the night... so annoying!"
Next time, he'd ask the Elder if the sound could be changed. This one...
Was terrible!
"Kill them?" Kakuzu asked expressionlessly.
"Do you have morning grumpiness?" Uzumaki Jun asked curiously.
"No."
"Then why so violent?" Uzumaki Jun floated in the air and patted Kakuzu's shoulder. "Don't be so bloodthirsty. The Land of Whirlpools treats prisoners well."
"We're short on manpower lately. Road construction needs workers."
"..."
Kakuzu paused, then nodded. "That's a good idea. Saves money. And if their village pays ransom, we can even make a profit!!"
Suddenly, he felt regret. Back when he robbed people, why did he kill them?
Later, finding easy targets became so hard. If he had just taken the money and let them go...
Then come back periodically to collect more!
Right now, the Land of Whirlpools was struggling financially. If not for this kid restraining him, he'd have gone back to his old ways.
"Don't worry, there will be bread, and there will be milk." Uzumaki Jun sighed. "Don't think about shady stuff. The Land of Whirlpools is a nation of love and peace."
"If the villages pay to get their people back, do we release them?" Kakuzu asked flatly.
"Of course," Uzumaki Jun said. "Consider it tuition fees."
"Tuition for what?"
"For learning advanced ideologies like prosperity, democracy, civility, harmony, freedom..."
Hearing this, Kakuzu stared at the kid in disbelief. "You want to throw the shinobi world into chaos?"
"...No, I'm maintaining peace in the shinobi world!!" Uzumaki Jun gazed melancholically at the ongoing battle in the distance, filled with emotion...
Why didn't anyone understand him?
He...
Was a good person!
...
The moment they stepped inside, hearing the sudden music and seeing the colorful lights...
They knew they were screwed.
They were just here to kill a few people. Did it have to be like this?!
Music, disco lights...
Couldn't they let ANBU do their jobs properly?
"Captain..." An ANBU jonin said grimly, "We're trapped."
Trapped by this strange sealing array.
"Kill!" The captain said coldly. "Since we've been discovered, act fast. Complete the mission at all costs!"
"Yes!!"
Just as the ANBU prepared to strike...
"Don't be so reckless!!" A voice suddenly rang in their ears. "The Land of Whirlpools treats prisoners well!"