Wok Shadow Ninja

Chapter 98: Hanare

Ino wasn't particularly embarrassed about having her intentions exposed. She scratched her head and said, "Well, I heard that Kakashi-sensei has a good relationship with Lord Jiraiya, and Lord Jiraiya is, uh, close friends with Lady Tsunade. So, I was hoping Kakashi-sensei could put in a good word for me with Lord Jiraiya."

Currently, Konoha had very little influence over Tsunade. If the village were to formally ask Tsunade to take Ino as her disciple, Tsunade would likely ignore the request. The only way was through personal connections. Ino's brief encounter with Jiraiya wasn't enough to get him to vouch for her, but if Kakashi were to speak on her behalf, things would be different. Kakashi had significant clout with both Jiraiya and Tsunade.

Becoming Tsunade's disciple was one thing.

Learning the Steam Danger Explosion technique was another.

This technique was far more difficult than Ino had anticipated. For example, basic knowledge like water transformation and oil transformation needed to be reverse-engineered from the existing Steam Danger Explosion or adjusted and modified to suit her. The technique had four steps: creating a water clone, chakra water transformation, oil transformation, and the final cyclic explosion. Currently, she could only complete the first step of creating a water clone. The second step, chakra water transformation, required extensive practice. She estimated that with more effort, she might achieve partial water transformation. However, oil transformation was extremely challenging. The previous user of the technique, the mustached man, had provided very little information on this aspect. Trying to reverse-engineer a true water-style oil transformation from existing knowledge was a daunting task.

So, she set her sights on Jiraiya. Jiraiya was skilled in using fire and oil techniques, so he might be able to provide her with some foundational guidance.

She wanted Kakashi to formally recommend her to both Jiraiya and Tsunade. Kakashi was the student of the Fourth Hokage, the son of the White Fang of Konoha, and not only inherited his predecessors' legacy but also embodied the Will of Fire. He was akin to Shanks in One Piece a man with immense prestige.

Ino needed that prestige now.

Inoichi thought for a moment, then picked up a document handed over by the ANBU and flipped through it. "The Land of Keys, Lock Village, kunoichi Hanare… Hmm, don't get involved in this matter. Leave the rest to me."

Ino left, and Inoichi sought out Ibiki Morino, the head of the Torture and Interrogation Force, to emphasize the subtle connection between the captured kunoichi and Kakashi.

Ibiki was known for his ironclad impartiality, but he wasn't a fool.

He didn't know that Kakashi would become the Sixth Hokage in the future, but he knew that in the current village, with the Sannin having left one after another and the Fourth Hokage having fallen in battle, Kakashi was essentially the pillar among the younger generation of ninjas.

As a close confidant of the Third Hokage, he was also aware of many of the Third's thoughts. Kakashi was very close to the position of Hokage.

If Kakashi really had some feelings for this kunoichi, and if Ibiki's interrogation methods were too harsh, resulting in the kunoichi losing an arm or an eye, it would be hard to make amends later.

No question about it this issue needed to be escalated.

Ten minutes later, the kunoichi Hanare is file was on the Third Hokage's desk.

The Third Hokage also found the situation tricky. Often, it wasn't so much Kakashi's influence as it was the legacy of the Fourth Hokage. The Fourth and his wife had sacrificed themselves to save the village, and everyone owed them a debt of gratitude. Naruto, due to the Nine-Tails sealed within him, had hardly benefited from this. In a way, a disciple and a son were similar, and much of this intangible debt of gratitude had fallen on Kakashi.

After pondering for five minutes, the Third said, "Bring this kunoichi to me. I'll speak with her personally."

"Yes, Hokage-sama."

The next day, while eating ramen, Naruto casually glanced back and saw Kakashi walking side by side with the kunoichi Hanare on the streets of Konoha.

Their demeanor wasn't exactly intimate, but it was far from being strangers.

"Pfft!" Naruto spat out his noodles through his nose, earning a glare from the ramen shop owner, Teuchi.

"Sorry, sorry!" Naruto didn't bother explaining. He hastily put down some money and rushed out to follow them.

Along the way, he ran into Sakura, who had just come out of the Yamanaka Flower Shop, and Sasuke, who was standing coolly in the middle of a bridge. The three of them, driven by curiosity, stealthily trailed the pair.

Soon, Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Hinata, Kiba, and Shino joined the tail.

Even Konohamaru, Moegi, and the other kids eventually tagged along.

At the front were Kakashi and Hanare, occasionally chatting and laughing, while in the shadows, behind corners and trash bins, a large group of people were hiding!

In the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage was also watching the scene through his Telescope Technique.

Standing beside him were Danzo and Inoichi.

The old man coughed and dispelled the chakra from the crystal ball.

"Lock Village placed a seal in this kunoichi's right eye. Inoichi, if you were to use your mind-reading ability on her, she could use that seal to reverse-read the information in your mind. Your decision to report this was very wise."

Inoichi now felt a bit of fear. Who would have thought that this kunoichi named Hanare had a reverse surveillance seal in her eye? Losing village intelligence was one thing, but if the Yamanaka clan's secret techniques, medicines, and formulas were leaked, Inoichi wouldn't be able to face his ancestors even in death.

In the entire Konoha, only the Third Hokage had the ability to detect such a seal hidden in the eye.

Ino's actions couldn't be said to have saved the Yamanaka clan or the village, but looking back now, Inoichi felt that his daughter's luck was truly remarkable, as if blessed by the gods.

Danzo sneered, "Lock Village? Such a small ninja village dares to spy on Konoha? Hiruzen, do you intend to continue tolerating this?"

The Third took a puff of his pipe and replied evasively, "Hanare said she has never returned to Lock Village. The village fears that its spies might be captured and reveal its location, so it never allows them to return. They've been wandering outside for years and don't even know where the village is. I believe Hanare is telling the truth."

Danzo couldn't help but let out a cold laugh. This Lock Village actually dared to provoke Konoha!

Their audacity was astounding. Konoha had tens of thousands of ninjas. Crushing a small village like this would be as easy as squashing a bug. Weren't they afraid? Yet, they treated their own elite ninjas like thieves, sending them away from the village and their families at a young age to train and gather intelligence in other villages, without ever revealing the village's location. They offered only a vague hope, making them seem both bold and pitifully cautious.

Danzo left with a final remark, "Hmph, I'll have Root investigate this matter."

Meanwhile, Teams 7, 8, and 10 gathered under the pretext of celebrating Kakashi and Hanare is reunion, enjoying a barbecue together.

Naturally, Kakashi was footing the bill.

Over the years, he had completed numerous missions, killed many ninjas, and had little personal expenses. He had plenty of money!

Seeing that someone else was paying, Asuma was unusually cheerful, constantly calling out to the chef, "More barbecue! Bring out the large plates!"

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