Chương 29: The Test

"Anko, Itachi, you two will be responsible for watching over Mr. Hiroyama's warehouse from here on." After Itachi and Anko acknowledged the order, Shuji turned back to Jirocho and said, "I understand what you've explained. If things are as you say, Mr. Wasabi, your current situation is likely far from safe." After all, Jirocho personally seeking out Konoha ninja wouldn't go unnoticed and would undoubtedly be viewed as a provocative move by his rivals.

Shuji had originally assumed Jirocho would invite him to his residence immediately. However, after a brief hesitation, Jirocho said, "Things on my end are fine for the time being, though there are a few matters I need to arrange first. If you doesn't mind, please wait a moment. Once I've handled them, I will personally return to apologize for the delay."

"In that case, we won't keep you sir. After you." Jirocho excused himself and departed. Watching his back as he left with a few guards from the upstairs window, Shuji found it somewhat strange.

"That guy... he was the one asking for help, yet when you offer to step in, Shuji, he turned it down," Anko remarked, having caught Shuji's implicit offer of direct protection, which Jirocho had clearly declined.

"He probably already has someone protecting him, someone who isn't convenient to reveal just yet. He needs to head back and make arrangements first," Shuji replied evenly.

"This mission is way too complicated," Anko sighed.

"As expected of someone who made Jonin, your brain works so fast, Shuji. It's like none of this bothers you at all." With that, she flopped onto the bed, acting thoroughly exhausted. Itachi glanced at her sideways.

"If Lord Hokage accepted the Wasabi Family's request, why couldn't he just state it clearly when assigning the mission instead of being so cryptic?" Anko complained.

"If we knew this was the deal beforehand, we could've just wiped those guys out back at the city gate." The youngest in the team finally couldn't help but speak up: "As ninja, we cannot openly deal with official figures in public, Senpai."

"Well, sure, but then why bother with that merchant's affairs? Technically, our escort mission is already complete. If we can't do it openly, can't we just handle it at night? They're just a bunch of ordinary people anyway."

"Because the village added two secondary objectives. Those bandits might be connected to rogue ninja, or there might be ninja embedded among the bandits..." Itachi recalled his first mission with Shuji, where intel reported a small gang of a dozen bandits, but the leader turned out to be a rogue ninja.

"That is why the Captain decided not to act hastily."

"Still though..."

"Care for some water?" Shuji poured himself a cup and looked at the two of them.

"I'll take some," Anko said, sitting up and pulling a chair opposite Shuji.

"Just as Itachi said, for the Chashan Gang to be brought into the fold, there must be another force backing them. As for why Lord Hokage didn't assign the task directly..." Shuji recalled similar precedents in his memory, like the famous Land of Waves assignment where Tazuna, unable to afford an anti-ninja mission fee, pulled a trick by posting a C-rank escort mission in Konoha. Before becoming a ninja, such things might have seemed simple.

But after becoming a shinobi, especially after reaching Jonin, the underlying mechanics became clear. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. The village had its own rigorous evaluation system; a mission's rank wasn't determined simply by what a client claimed. Tazuna's situation involved the entirety of the Land of Waves; there was no way Konoha was completely blind to it.

From a pragmatic perspective, the moment Kakashi Hatake encountered the Mist Chunin Demon Brothers, he must have realized something was off. Yet Kakashi had pressed on with the mission, eventually going head-to-head with an S-rank rogue ninja from the Mist. It was hard to believe there wasn't a secondary motive at play. While village ninjas did eliminate rogues on sight, that applied to low-tier fugitives that could be handled in passing.

Against an S-rank rogue like Zabuza, while burdened with three green Genin, extreme caution would normally dictate a retreat. The most plausible explanation was that Konoha, recovering from the tremors of the Uchiha Clan massacre, was scouting new sources of mission revenue and probing the situation in the Land of Waves, feigning ignorance of Tazuna's true agenda. In the Land of Waves incident, the reasonable interpretation was that Konoha and Tazuna shared a tacit, mutual interest.

As for this escort mission, it wasn't quite a mutual alignment of hidden agendas. Rather, Hiroyama Makoto happened to post a top-tier C-rank request, and the village seized the opportunity. Seeing that the payment was adequate, they bumped the rank to B and dispatched Squad 5 to address the situation in Dehashi Port. Because the Heishizhong's exact involvement remained unconfirmed, the two discretionary secondary objectives were left open to Squad 5's judgment.

Only the B-rank escort duty was mandatory and required flawless execution. As for leaving things unsaid... The person being tested... is probably me, Shuji thought, having a clear idea of what was happening. His conduct now differed fundamentally from the original Shuji. From his choice of the first mission upon recovering his body to his attitude when accepting the second, none of it matched the previous version of himself who was obsessed with proving the lingering glory of the Senju bloodline.

Even in his past life, if a model corporate employee suddenly stopped striving so aggressively, a supervisor would drop by in person to ask if something had gone wrong. That was why this mission was assigned to him. It was a mission with no inherent operational difficulty; how far it was pursued depended entirely on Shuji himself. He could do the absolute bare minimum by simply completing the caravan escort.

Upon returning, the village wouldn't fault him for ignoring Wasabi Jirocho, as Jirocho possessed no official token or proof that the village had formally accepted his petition. This B-rank mission would serve as a quiet reward for a war hero, adding a trivial padding to his record. The village leadership would conclude that Shuji had lost his fiery ambition after surviving a near-death experience, adjusting his future trajectory accordingly. This was likely the path that best aligned with Grandmother Toka's wishes.

It also suited Shuji's personal inclinations. He was merely an ordinary guy—unfortunate yet fortunate—possessing no extraordinary talents or profound wisdom. However, the future would not permit him to choose such an idle path. Taking the impending Uchiha massacre as an example, such an event was inherently a severe blow to the village's power, which would inevitably degrade his own living environment. If he wanted to prevent such catastrophes, he couldn't afford to lack standing and influence within the village.

"A ninja village directly intervening in another nation's internal affairs is something that can never be stated openly," Shuji explained to Anko.

"We simply need to assess the situation and act accordingly. That's precisely why an independent squad led by a Jonin with discretionary authority was assigned to this mission."

"Heheh, then I'll leave everything in your capable hands, Lord Jonin," Anko giggled, relaxing back.

"Simple folk like me are only good at following orders." The purple-haired kunoichi's lazy posture earned a brief glance from Shuji. If given the choice, he too would prefer to just move his fists without overthinking.... Meanwhile, as Jirocho concluded his visit with Shuji's group, the current guard captain of Dehashi Port was reporting the gate incident to a tall man wearing a brown kimono, a white haori outer coat, and a katana strapped to his waist.

"Master Jubei, how should we handle those ninjas? Regarding the city gate tax..."

"Keep an eye on them and avoid any conflict with the Konoha shinobi. Suspend collecting the gate tax for the next few days until they leave," Jubei said, his dark, gloomy eyes locking onto the guard captain.

"Keep a tight leash on your men. Do you understand?" The guard captain trembled, dropping to his knees and bowing frantically in agreement.... Elsewhere, having returned to the Wasabi Family estate, Jirocho was talking to another individual.

"Oh... Jonin, Shuji..."

"It doesn't matter. Since he's inclined to step in, let him come."

"In that case, I will personally invite him over again. My previous refusal likely raised some doubts in his mind, he might even question my trustworthiness," Jirocho said with a smile to the figure before him, rising to his feet.

"Ah, it's fine. Once he sees me, he'll understand."

"Naturally."