After moving far away from the capital of the Land of Rain, Danzo issued commands to Battalion Commander Yellow Dog in the heavy rain, then left with the Root ninja.
Battalion Commander Yellow Dog came before the three squadron leaders and assigned the mission.
"Amegakure's unexpected participation in the war forced the village to make two preparations.
First, on the main front, Orochimaru, Tsunade, and Jiraiya are leading troops into the Land of Rain, seeking to annihilate Amegakure's main force.
Second, attempting negotiations.
Hanzo proposed terms: he is willing to negotiate as long as we drive out the Suna-nin.
Both the main battlefield and the negotiations are essential for winning the war.
Based on the intelligence provided by Hanzo, our battalion will head to the Yoshimizu River in the southern part of the Land of Rain to investigate the Suna-nin's purpose and drive them out of the Land of Rain.
The war against Iwagakure is the core conflict of the Second Shinobi World War. To quickly pincer attack the Land of Earth with Kumogakure from north and south, we must resolve the issue with the Rain ninja as soon as possible.
The three squadrons will investigate the three sections of the Yoshimizu River separately, capture Suna-nin prisoners for interrogation, and find out what conspiracy the Suna-nin have near the Yoshimizu River."
Yōkō was assigned to investigate the middle section of the Yoshimizu River.
Battalion Commander Yellow Dog now defaulted to the Fox Squadron, being the strongest, so they received the most difficult tasks.
His recent performance had been a bit too good; he still needed to lay low.
Just like in his previous life working at a company, more work didn't lead to more reward; more work just led to even more work, continuously.
If you said you knew how to do double-sided copying, all the department's copying would become your job, and you could never escape it short of resigning.
Having received their orders, the three squadrons dispersed in three different directions.
After walking for half a day, White Sheep suddenly said, "Squad Leader! There are a large number of ninja ahead!"
Yōkō quickly moved the squadron to higher ground with a better field of view.
Through the binoculars, everything was obscured by rain and mist, making it hard to see clearly into the distance.
He missed the previous White Sheep; if he were here, he could have identified the distant ninja long ago.
"Squad Leader! My insects have detected Aburame clan insects in the distance! They are Konoha ninja!"
"Oh? That's great news. It might be the main force commanded by Jonin Orochimaru."
Yōkō sent White Sheep to liaise with the main force, informing them that they were Anbu to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings.
Before long, four ninja appeared from the other side.
The leader was a female ninja wearing a mask, with a high collar and an insect gourd on her back – an Aburame clan ninja.
After the Aburame ninja approached, she scanned the area, her gaze settling on the ninja wearing the White Sheep mask. "Is it you?"
Yōkō was taken aback. Was she identifying a fellow clan member among the Anbu based on their insects?
Yōkō stepped in front of White Sheep and said, "Aburame ninja, mind the Konoha confidentiality regulations."
Even if you recognize a fellow clansman, how can you say it out loud?
"Sorry, Captain!" the female ninja said:
"I am Aburame Shime. I'm here to relay orders from Vice-Commander Orochimaru-sama.
Orochimaru-sama said that if you are an Anbu ninja, please have the Anbu squad leader come to see him."
Yōkō was somewhat puzzled, unsure why Orochimaru wanted to see the Anbu.
Orochimaru was Root's 'Kinoe', possessing the authority of an Anbu Battalion Commander, so Yōkō had no choice but to comply.
Along the way, Aburame Shime kept glancing back at White Sheep.
Even though the Anbu Squad Leader had reprimanded her, she couldn't help but want to look at White Sheep a few more times.
White Sheep hid at the very back of the squadron.
Yōkō also went to the rear of the squadron and asked, "White Sheep, did you have any unfinished business before joining the Anbu? Who is Aburame Shime to you?"
White Sheep felt somewhat panicked.
The Anbu required absolute reliability from its members. The Squad Leader would judge his eligibility to remain in the Anbu based on his answer.
White Sheep said:
"Squad Leader, the Aburame clan raises insects inside their bodies, making it difficult for us to marry outside the clan.
Aburame Shime is the fiancée assigned to me by the family, but I truly cannot develop feelings for her.
Aburame Shime is a good girl. To make her forget me, I chose to disappear and join the Anbu."
Yōkō spoke in a knowing tone: "Joining the Anbu can indeed help you lay low for a while. When it comes to women, familiarity breeds affection; the key is how long you last. Why trouble yourself over it?"
White Sheep didn't understand what his captain was implying and just shook his head:
"Captain, you don't understand. I cannot develop any feelings for Shime.
More importantly, the insects inside me reject the insects inside Shime."
"Wait!" Yōkō seemed to have uncovered another secret of the Konoha clan: "You're saying that when you and Shime are together, the insects inside both of you also need to be compatible?"
"Yes." White Sheep said:
"On the wedding night, just like the exchange of bodily fluids, our insects also need to exchange and... mate.
My insects detest her insects; we can't be together.
An Aburame couple gives birth to a child, and the insects reproduced from the couple's insects become the child's Parasitic Destruction Insects."
Yōkō sucked in a cold breath, a vivid image appearing in his mind.
While an Aburame couple enjoyed their wedding night, countless densely packed insects on the floor, walls, ceiling, and windows might also be enjoying their own wedding night.
He had already learned a little about how messy the Ino–Shika–Chō trio of clans could be.
Who would have thought that the usually quiet, reserved Aburame clan was also this messy, and in a way that made one's scalp crawl.
Yōkō said:
"That really is a physiological aversion, not just from you, but also from your insects.
I'll warn her again not to look for you or inquire about you."
Yōkō returned to the front of the group, found Aburame Shime, and said, "Squad Leader Shime, please stop looking back. There is no one you know in my squadron, understand?"
Shime was dejected, her lips turned downwards, almost crying. "I understand, Captain."
Following Aburame Shime, they entered the Konoha troops.
The Konoha ninja rested wearily against trees.
In this heavy rain, it couldn't really be called rest; at most, it was relaxing their tense muscles.
Over 400 ninja were searching for an opportunity to engage the Rain ninja in a decisive battle in the pouring rain.
The Land of Rain and the Land of Wind could be called the two most disliked places by Konoha ninja. The environment here was terrible; a single trip would make you lose at least ten pounds.
Reaching the front of the troops, Yōkō saw the frontline commander for this battle: Orochimaru.
Standing beside Orochimaru were Tsunade and Jiraiya.
Jiraiya was chattering nonstop in Tsunade's ear, completely unaware of Yōkō's arrival.
As Yōkō got closer, he could hear Jiraiya comforting Tsunade, urging her not to be despondent over Kato Dan's death.
Tsunade leaned away from Jiraiya with disgust, her expression and posture screaming revulsion.
Orochimaru asked:
"Fox, if I recall correctly, you are from the Yellow Dog Battalion. Is your mission related to the war in the Land of Rain? If so, report the mission details to me to facilitate my planning."
Yōkō glanced at the people around Orochimaru: Jiraiya, Tsunade, and two staff officers. This wasn't according to protocol.
Seeing impatience flash across Orochimaru's face, Yōkō quickly averted his gaze.
Given how favored Orochimaru was by the Third Hokage and his importance to Danzo, Orochimaru was the protocol.
Yōkō told Orochimaru about encountering Hanzo outside the capital of the Land of Rain, especially the conditions Hanzo had proposed.
After listening, Orochimaru said:
"Advisor Danzo actually agreed to Hanzo's terms. I will defeat Hanzo on the main battlefield; there's no need to make any compromises with him at all.
Fox, you may leave."
Yōkō thought to himself, I hope you can still be this confident when Hanzo is beating you down.
***
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(Chapter End)