The black market of the town was hidden underground beneath a seemingly ordinary tavern.
Fox led Sora through the noisy main hall of the tavern to the kitchen area in the back.
In front of an inconspicuous storage room door, Fox knocked on the door panel in a rhythmic pattern. After a moment, the door opened a crack from the inside.
A pair of vigilant eyes scrutinized them from behind the crack.
"Buying goods."
Fox lowered his voice and gave a passcode.
The door slowly opened, and a thin man gestured for them to enter.
Behind the storage room, there was actually a staircase leading down to a brightly lit underground space.
This was the black market?
Sora looked around curiously. It was much more spacious than he had imagined, resembling an underground marketplace with people coming and going, yet it was unusually quiet.
Most people wore cloaks or masks, hiding their identities.
Stalls were scattered around, selling all sorts of shady goods, from forbidden jutsu scrolls, poisons, and stolen goods, to information and hiring services, everything was available.
'Just as expected, a place with all sorts of people mingled together.'
Sora thought to himself, subconsciously raising his guard. After all, in a place like this, betrayals and robberies could happen at any time.
Fox seemed very familiar with this place. He led Sora through the crowd, not looking around, heading straight for a stall in a corner.
It was a stall selling various medicinal herbs and ores. The stall owner was a middle-aged man with a scar on his face, lazily polishing something that looked like a beast's tooth.
Fox stopped in front of the stall, pretending to select herbs, but his fingers tapped out a complex rhythm on the stall seemingly by chance.
The stall owner paused his polishing slightly, looked up at Fox and Sora, especially giving Sora an extra glance, seeming somewhat surprised to see a "child" here.
Fox whispered an order to Sora, "Wait here. Do not wander off. Do not speak to anyone."
Sora nodded to show he understood.
Fox and the stall owner then exchanged a glance, and the two of them walked one after another towards a small partitioned room behind the stall.
'So this is the contact point.'
Sora understood. Such a mission obviously wouldn't be executed by just their squad alone; there must be Konoha intelligence personnel cooperating.
He stood quietly by the stall, eyes lowered, appearing calm, but all his senses were on high alert.
Sora could feel many subtle glances sweeping over him from the surroundings, but most were just curious, without obvious malice. After all, anyone who could come to a place like this, even if they looked like a child, was definitely not a simple character.
The wait wasn't long. After about ten minutes, Fox came out and gave Sora a look.
Without a word, the two quickly left the black market and returned to the tavern above ground.
Only after walking out of the tavern and into a quiet alley did Fox stop.
"Any gains, Captain?" Sora asked.
Fox nodded, his voice beneath the mask carrying a hint of gravity.
"Yes. Someone very important is indeed missing from Sunagakure, and their status is extremely high. Although the contact couldn't confirm exactly who, speculation points to... one of the top leadership."
Sora's heart stirred. It was indeed information about the Third Kazekage's disappearance, but on the surface he still pretended to be surprised.
"Top leadership? That means..."
"Yes, the matter is more serious than we imagined. Let's regroup with Grey Wolf and the others first."
...
An hour later, the four met again at an abandoned warehouse outside the town.
Grey Wolf and Night Owl had also returned.
Fox asked, "How did things go on your end?"
Grey Wolf shook his head, his tone somewhat helpless.
"The Mercenary Guild was very tight-lipped. We only know that Sunagakure has posted a large number of search missions with high rewards, but the mission details are vague. They only say it's to find a 'missing person', with no specific description. Many rogue ninja and mercenaries took the missions, but none have any leads."
Night Owl added.
"However, it's certain that Sunagakure's internal atmosphere is very tense. There are frequent troop movements, as if conducting a large-scale search and rescue."
Fox briefly relayed the information obtained from the black market.
Grey Wolf stroked his chin, speculating.
"An important person missing? Who could it be? An elder? The head of a major clan?"
"Whoever can cause such a major mobilization by the entire Sunagakure must be someone extraordinary."
Sora looked at the three lost in thought, inwardly shaking his head. Even if they pondered for days, they probably wouldn't connect the clues to the Kazekage.
After all, in the inherent perception of ninja, the Kage of a village represents the pinnacle of the village's combat strength, an absolute symbol of power. Anyone else could be in trouble, but definitely not the Kazekage.
Therefore, Sora deliberately spoke hesitantly.
"Captain... is it possible that the missing person is... the Kazekage himself?"
As soon as these words were spoken, the warehouse instantly fell silent.
Grey Wolf and Night Owl both turned sharply to look at Sora. Even Fox's body stiffened slightly.
Grey Wolf took a sharp breath and said.
"The Kazekage? Kid, you can't just say things like that!"
Sora calmly explained.
"It's just a speculation. For the entire Sunagakure to be in such chaos, with even border patrols and internal defenses showing obvious gaps, an ordinary high-ranking official probably doesn't carry that much weight. Moreover, if it's the Kazekage who is missing, everything makes sense, why the news is sealed so tightly, why the search is on such a large scale yet so secretive."
"Most importantly, if the Kazekage is missing, Sunagakure absolutely dare not make it public. Otherwise, neighboring countries, especially the Land of Earth and the Land of Lightning who are watching closely, might take advantage of the weakness."
Fox remained silent for a moment. He recalled the information the contact had hinted at, indeed suggesting the missing person's status was extremely high, far beyond that of an ordinary elder.
Then he slowly said.
"Your speculation is bold, but... not impossible."
"If it really is the Kazekage who is missing, then the nature of this matter changes completely."
This was no longer a simple investigation mission, but a major event involving the Kage of a village. If handled improperly, it could trigger international disputes or even war.
"Stay here. Do not move. Heighten your vigilance. I will go confirm this information again."
Fox gave the order decisively. After speaking, his figure merged into the shadows again, swiftly heading back towards the town.
Only Sora, Grey Wolf, and Night Owl remained in the warehouse.
...
After about half an hour, Fox's figure appeared again at the warehouse entrance.
Grey Wolf asked eagerly, "Captain, how did it go?"
Fox looked over the three of them and said solemnly.
"Green Snake's guess... is likely close to the truth. Although the contact still cannot confirm it one hundred percent, the Kazekage indeed has not made any public appearances for a very long time. He has even been absent from several high-level meetings within the village, which is extremely unusual."
"Furthermore, the contact provided a new, important piece of information. The son of a certain high-ranking official in Sunagakure might know some insider information. According to the contact's investigation, this person moves secretly, but in three days, he will appear at an oasis in the northeastern part of the Land of Wind, near the border with the Land of Rivers, for a secret transaction."
"Specific location?" Night Owl asked.
"The contact only gave the general direction of the oasis. We need to find the specific transaction location ourselves. But this might be the closest source to the core information we can currently access."
Grey Wolf clenched his fist.
"Finally, some substantial progress! It's better than searching around blindly like headless flies."
Sora silently gave praise to the Konoha intelligence personnel. He just wanted to get the evidence sooner and return to complete the mission earlier.
After all, the current Land of Wind could be described as a powder keg, ready to explode with a single spark.
And right now, those watching the Land of Wind's movements were not just Konoha alone!
Fox looked at Sora and the other two and gave the order.
"Rest here. Replenish supplies. We depart early tomorrow morning for the oasis. This operation is crucial. Be sure to make all necessary preparations."
"Yes!" The three responded in unison.
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