Returning to the beach where the battle had just occurred, Hoshigaki Kisame was long gone.
Yakushi Nonō had been sent flying by the Great Sword Samehada and crashed onto a rock; this rock had been washed far away by the Water Release.
Yōkō carefully examined the rock, searching for clues.
A cloth strip!
He found a small piece of fabric, torn off by the rock, wedged in a crevice.
Yōkō used a kunai to pick up the cloth strip and placed it in his tool pouch to avoid contaminating it with his own scent.
He hurried off to find White Goat.
Outside a forest, Yōkō found the Fox Squadron's signal mark. Following the marks, he located the hiding White Goat.
"White Goat, this is a piece of cloth from a Kiri-nin spy's clothing. Use the Parasitic Destruction Insects to find the spy!"
"Understood!"
Parasitic Destruction Insects could distinguish scents. They weren't as sensitive as the Inuzuka clan's abilities, but they were sufficient for most tasks.
The Parasitic Destruction Insects tore at the cloth strip, memorized the scent, and then dispersed.
Soon, White Goat found a lead.
Yōkō and White Goat followed the scent, pursuing for half a day until the next afternoon, finally arriving at a desolate rocky cliff.
The cliff face held only bird nests.
Yōkō suddenly had a bad feeling.
A cluster of Parasitic Destruction Insects killed a seabird and brought it down.
White Goat untied a cloth strip bound to the bird's leg and said, "Captain, we've been tricked!"
Yōkō thought, Truly the Wandering Shrine Maiden. Before escaping, she actually laid false clues, wasting a good half-day of my time.
"Let's go, we're heading back."
Along the way, Yōkō was deeply worried.
Although Otsu was dead, Yakushi Nonō knew the truth. If Yakushi Nonō and Root exchanged information, he could still be exposed.
As they walked, White Goat suddenly noticed the Squadron Leader had stopped moving and waited quietly.
Yōkō suddenly said, "Let's go! We need to get back to the main camp quickly!"
He remembered Kurumi. Kurumi was an orphan from the Konoha Orphanage; perhaps she had clues about Yakushi Nonō.
Yōkō quickly returned to the main camp. He inquired about the whereabouts of Chūnin Kurumi and discovered that Kurumi's squad had taken a mission and gone to a certain part of the coast.
Yōkō left the main camp alone again, proceeding without delay to the location where Kurumi's squad was carrying out their mission.
By the coast.
Kurumi, leading three genin, was performing a routine patrol mission.
Kurumi noticed that when they left the main camp today, the ninja up and down the ranks seemed more relaxed.
Rumors said that Konoha's ANBU Battalion had achieved a great victory, dealing a heavy blow to the Kiri-nin, which might lead to victory in the war.
Other rumors said that Lord Orochimaru might come to the Land of Whirlpools frontlines.
These rumors all indicated that the war might be ending.
A genin nearly 2 meters tall came to the 1.5-meter-tall Kurumi's side.
"Captain, can we go back early today? I'm almost sick from eating Military Ration Pills. I want to go back to the main camp, even if it's just for a bowl of clear soup."
The tall genin's stomach was already growling.
"Of course not!" Kurumi said. "Eat a Military Ration Pill now. Don't fight the Kiri-nin on an empty stomach!"
Despite the significant height difference, the tall genin had to listen to Kurumi.
The tall genin wore a wronged expression, took out a Military Ration Pill, hesitated and hesitated, then swallowed it.
Kurumi thought, If the war could really end, that would be good.
The squad continued forward and saw a fishing village.
The war had ravaged the coastline of the Land of Whirlpools; it was unexpected to find an inhabited village here.
Most of the houses in the village were empty, but smoke was actually rising from the chimneys of two buildings.
"Someone's cooking!"
The tall genin shouted, then cautiously looked at Captain Kurumi.
Kurumi said, "Don't focus on eating. It's unusual for this village to have people. Let's investigate.
They could be refugees returning home, or it could be a Kiri-nin trap."
Kurumi led her squad into the fishing village, using bushes, overturned fishing boats, and other objects for cover.
"Fish soup, it's the smell of fish soup..."
As soon as the tall genin finished speaking, his vision blurred, and he slowly collapsed.
Kurumi shouted, "The fish soup scent is poisoned!"
Chakra glowed in Kurumi's hands as she quickly administered an antidote to herself.
Using scent to poison in an open area required extremely refined poisoning skills. Kurumi suspected her squad had encountered a Kiri-nin Jōnin.
Her three squad members fell one after another.
From three houses, three identical individuals emerged.
They were clones!
Two shadow clones burst, leaving only one person.
The enemy thought smoke from only one house would be too obvious, so they used shadow clones to create multiple false impressions.
"Kurumi, it's me, don't be nervous."
Kurumi rubbed her eyes, looking at the middle-aged woman before her.
She didn't recognize this person, but she would never forget this voice in her lifetime.
"It's me, Kurumi. I used a secret transformation technique."
"Is it really you, Matron?"
The middle-aged woman said, "It's really me. The orphanage was poor. You were malnourished as a child and never grew tall. That's what I feel most sorry to you about."
Now Kurumi was sure the middle-aged woman before her was truly the Matron.
Yakushi Nonō took out a scroll. "This is the money and ninjutsu I've saved up this year. Take it back to the orphanage."
"Matron, what about you? Aren't you returning to the orphanage? Don't you return to the orphanage for a month or two every year at the end of the year?"
"Me..." Yakushi Nonō's eyes grew downcast. "I can't go back for now."
She had to work for Danzo; otherwise, Danzo would capture all the children from the orphanage and take them into Root.
The weak would be used for experiments, the talented trained into Danzo's private subordinates.
Especially this year, the mission failure led to Yellow Dog gaining immense military merit. Danzo would not let her off.
That orphanage was her last attachment.
"Matron! Several of us have become ninjas. We can earn money to support the orphanage. Please come back to the orphanage. We all miss you so much."
Kurumi, just like when she was a child, rushed towards Yakushi Nonō.
Yakushi Nonō stroked Kurumi's head, just like in the old days.
Even though Kurumi had grown up, she could still hold her in her arms. Poor Kurumi, forever unable to grow taller.
"Kurumi, you've grown up. Take good care of your younger brothers and sisters. I still have missions. I cannot return to the village."
Kurumi looked up at the Matron. The Matron had disguised herself as someone she didn't recognize, but the voice was so warm, just like the Matron in her memories.
Just as Kurumi was enjoying the reunion, the Matron suddenly pushed her away forcefully.
A figure abruptly emerged from the ground, inserting itself between Kurumi and the Matron.
Kurumi instinctively thrust her kunai, wanting to stab the suddenly appearing enemy.
The kunai struck the enemy's back but felt like hitting an iron plate; the tip snapped off.
This ability?
The Self-Cursing Body Binding Seal restrained Yakushi Nonō.
Yōkō looked at Yakushi Nonō:
"Truly the Wandering Shrine Maiden. Not only did you leave misleading clues, but you also transformed into another person. If not for Kurumi, even if you stood right in front of me, I wouldn't know who you were."
Yōkō's fist turned copper-red and rose high.
Kurumi screamed miserably, "No! Captain Fox!"
***
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(Chapter End)