Upon hearing this, Uchiha Yato deliberately warned the group.
In territories controlled by minor shinobi villages, such behavior was highly likely to occur.
When faced with such actions, they should uphold the attitude befitting a major nation.
Hearing Yato say this, the others found it somewhat surprising—after all, Yato was generally known to be a bit unreliable.
Seeing the approaching figures, Yato gave everyone a meaningful look before stepping forward and saying,
"Honorable shinobi, we are merely passing civilians. Please show mercy—these are just goods we traded from another village."
Before leaving the Land of Wind, Yato had instructed everyone to conceal all Hidden Leaf insignias.
His intention was to deliberately lure out some opportunistic individuals.
Otherwise, how else could he earn some extra income?
Cough—
How else could they uphold the attitude of a major nation?
Hearing Yato's words, the man initially seemed nervous but quickly grew arrogant.
"Don't worry, we're not bandits or thieves. Just leave your supplies behind, and I guarantee you'll live."
Listening to such brazen words, Yato didn't know what to say.
He could only obediently play along with their script.
As for Yato's decisions as their superior, the rest of the Hidden Leaf exchange group complied without much resistance. After all, if there were any real threats to their safety, Yato would undoubtedly protect them.
To prevent Hyūga Hizashi's Byakugan from being recognized by sharp-eyed shinobi, Yato had even made Hizashi wear an eyepatch.
Upon seeing Hizashi, the shinobi couldn't help but sneer in disdain.
In Yato's eyes, this minor shinobi had already earned a spot on his blacklist.
He was only enduring this far to gather intel.
Just then, another group of people rushed over from a distance.
One of their leaders immediately addressed the Hidden Leaf group:
"Quick, hide! Leave this shinobi to me. I'll return your supplies to you later."
Glancing at their attire, Yato could roughly guess who they were.
Well, the Akatsuki's outfits were rather distinctive, after all.
Yato was happy to play along for now.
He would fully commit to his role as Hidden Leaf's finest actor.
With that, Yato instantly shifted his expression to one of terror and bolted forward.
Seeing this, the others followed suit, fleeing in the same manner.
After putting some distance between them, Hizashi couldn't take it anymore and questioned Yato:
"If other nations find out that Hidden Leaf shinobi are this cowardly, what kind of reputation will we have?"Hizashi always prioritized everything related to the Hidden Leaf above all else. Of course, when it came to the main family, their interests took precedence.
Uchiha Yato said, "Hizashi, you're too rigid. You should learn to be more flexible."
"Let me give you the simplest analogy. In the current situation, how much information do you think you can gather about the people around us?"
Hearing Uchiha Yato's words, Hizashi began to ponder.
Hizashi then said, "Two groups fighting within the Land of Rain means they either belong to this country or have wandered into it."
"Either way, these two groups are on opposing sides."
Uchiha Yato nodded. "Well said. The first group is likely ninjas from the Rain Hidden Village."
"Right now, they're probably a self-organized minor village, engaging in such rogue activities to make ends meet."
"The other group should be the Akatsuki organization that's recently emerged within the Land of Rain."
"This is a perfect opportunity to gather intelligence on both groups' strength and information. Isn't this convenient?"
Hearing this, Hizashi was momentarily speechless.
Uchiha Yato wasn't wrong at all—by pretending to be weak, they could obtain more authentic intelligence.
However, doing so would mean trampling the Hidden Leaf's reputation into the dirt.
Seeing Hizashi still hesitating, Uchiha Yato grew impatient.
He continued, "We just came from an exchange with the Sand Village. Don't you have Sand headbands?"
"Even if we end up fighting them, we can just claim we're from the Sand Village. Just use fewer Hidden Leaf Ninjutsu—problem solved."
"Don't be so rigid. Be more flexible—the world is full of possibilities!"
Uchiha Yato persisted in his own way, trying to enlighten Hyūga Hizashi, whose thinking was genuinely inflexible.
Listening to Yato's plan, Hizashi found it feasible. They could gather intelligence while preserving the Hidden Leaf's dignity, leaving the Sand Ninjas to take the blame.
This way, they'd kill three birds with one stone.
What could be better?
During their conversation, members of the Akatsuki soon appeared before Uchiha Yato.
Yato stepped forward and greeted them, "Thank you, honorable ninjas, for protecting our goods."
"This reward is but a small token of our appreciation."
Yato played his role thoroughly, even producing currency commonly used in the Land of Wind.
Seeing his politeness, the Akatsuki squad leader didn't give them too hard a time and explained calmly,
"No need. Our organization simply disapproves of such behavior. Be careful when traveling through the Land of Rain."
Uchiha Yato didn't insist too much.
Still, he firmly placed the money in their hands and said respectfully,
"You're good people, helping us out."
"This small sum is just a humble gift. We can't let those who do good deeds feel unappreciated."
"The shinobi world is too chaotic these days—we're just trying to survive. You must take care of yourselves to maintain this peace."
Yato wasn't wrong here. Apart from the major villages, life wasn't easy for smaller ninja villages.
As for Uchiha Yato and his group, their financial and combat capabilities were actually quite solid—they just needed information.So Uchiha Yato was willing to go with the flow, sending some small supplies to help them relax while also making it easier to gather intelligence.
Uchiha Yato actually had another motive in mind.
With the Third Great Ninja War approaching, it was unlikely that Sasori would assassinate the Third Kazekage at this point, but there were probably other triggers brewing.
During this period, the Akatsuki organization was about to undergo a major transformation. Uchiha Yato wanted to see if he could prevent such a tragedy from happening.
Under Uchiha Yato's persuasion, the small-time leader relaxed and accepted the money and supplies they offered.
To show his gratitude, he decided to escort Uchiha Yato and his group for a while.
During this time, Uchiha Yato deliberately and inadvertently inquired about the current situation in the Rain Hidden Village.
It was pretty much as he had expected, with no major discrepancies.
Just as they were about to leave the Rain Hidden Village, the same scenario played out again.
Another group blocked their path.
This time, however, the people blocking their way were wearing Akatsuki robes, and the leader had bright orange hair...
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