Chapter 114: Land of Rain Assassination Operation!
The setting sun cast a dim yellow glow, sharply dividing sky from earth.
A gentle breeze blew from the horizon, bringing the coolness of early spring evening,
ruffling the roots of Tsukasa's hair.
He was stunned.
What?
The first task of becoming a Root shinobi is to scrub the boss's back?
Being treated like a servant on day one—what kind of workplace hazing is this?
Tsukasa raised his hand, as if trying to protest,
"No, wait, I think we at Root should have more urgent missions."
However, Aburame Ryoma shook his head and looked back.
His eyes beneath his sunglasses were sharp and penetrating as he slowly interrupted:
"Listen, kid."
"At least here, no one wants to hurt you."
"You're too tense. You haven't rested properly in far too long. Your body is constantly on alert, ready to fight—even now."
Aburame Ryoma observed Tsukasa's tensed leg muscles and the way his hand unconsciously hovered near his weapon pouch.
Seeing him in this state, he sighed,
"In this condition, you won't be able to complete the next mission properly."
Aburame Ryoma turned around, stepped onto the wooden platform in his sandals, and walked toward the white mist drifting from the hot spring bathhouse.
"You've been in this country for days,"
"but you haven't actually experienced the hot springs of the Land of Hot Water, have you?"
"Come and try it."
Tsukasa frowned slightly, unable to figure out what the other man was thinking.
He followed along—past the front desk, into the changing room, switching into a yukata. Then, under veteran Aburame Ryoma's guidance,
he rinsed off. Finally, almost without realizing it, they both found themselves soaking in the hot springs.
"Ahh..."
Sinking into the steaming, misty pool,
Tsukasa felt a stark difference from his last hot bath experience with Kumogakure's Dodai.
The water was around 43 degrees Celsius, and once submerged, his chaotic, high-strung mind seemed to instantly calm.
His face flushed slightly as he felt every pore open.
He slumped against the edge of the pool, completely unwilling to move.
Tsukasa turned his head, still looking at Aburame Ryoma beside him with confusion, and asked:
"This seems a bit different from the Root shinobi lifestyle I imagined?"
"Besides, isn't it said that Root operatives are supposed to be 'nameless and emotionless'?"
Aburame Ryoma leaned against the edge of the pool, raised his hand to pick up a bottle of sake, and took a comfortable sip.
He was silent for a while before shaking his head,
"How can a shinobi truly lose their emotions?"
"Most Root operatives are second or third sons in their families. They join Root for their clan's sake, going through cruel and inhumane training to become emotionless machines who only kill and complete missions."
"Just like our Aburame clan—in the future, one of Shibi and Shikuro's children will definitely join Root. There's nothing we can do about it."
"But I'm an exception, and so are you."
Tsukasa raised his eyebrows slightly, thought for a moment, considered Aburame Ryoma's age, and understood.
Root was founded after Hiruzen Sarutobi became Hokage, and by then, Aburame Ryoma was already an established shinobi.
And this Root vice-commander before him, Aburame Ryoma,
appeared taciturn and preferred working alone, but in reality, this was a way to hide a side of himself unknown to the public.
Tsukasa was silent for a moment, then looked up and asked,
"You should know I'm an Uchiha, and Root and the Uchiha clan don't exactly have a close relationship."
"So why are you telling me all this?"
Aburame Ryoma sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration.
"Although Orochimaru accepted you as his student, he apparently agreed to certain conditions with Lord Danzo and has other matters to attend to on the Land of Rain battlefield."
"So during the Rain Country operation, you're assigned under my command."
"And I've always preferred working alone—I'm not good at considering my subordinates' feelings."
"Honestly, I haven't given much thought to village versus clan, Root versus Uchiha."
"But from the perspective of your superior, I hope you can be more straightforward with me."
"That's the first reason."
After hearing these words, Tsukasa's expression changed.
It seemed Orochimaru had paid quite a price to tie him to his side and obtain the forbidden technique of Physical Regeneration from him.
Then,
Aburame Ryoma paused, and after a long silence, slowly spoke:
"Also, if you really must ask why,"
"It's because—"
"I see a different future in you."
"We so-called Root shinobi are nameless people who support peace from the shadows."
Aburame Ryoma looked up at the crescent moon rising in the sky and said with some emotion:
"For us, giving up our names, our emotions, our past and future—it's not something worth mentioning."
"But even while carrying darkness, I hope this power can be used for the right purposes, and that Root shinobi, even if nameless, should..."
At this point, Aburame Ryoma suddenly stopped talking, shook his head and said:
"Forget it, why am I even telling you this."
He reached to the edge of the pool, retrieved a scroll, and tossed it to Tsukasa. Closing his eyes, he said in a low voice:
"This is your next mission."
"At first, I didn't understand why Orochimaru assigned you to complete such a dangerous mission."
"Now I understand a bit better, but for you, this mission is still far more dangerous than a normal S-rank assignment."
Tsukasa's expression froze as he caught the scroll.
The green scroll featured a solemn cloud pattern, and the wax seal bore the official Konoha Village emblem.
At this moment,
Aburame Ryoma opened his eyes and belched with a stern expression.
"You only have this much time to rest. Now, memorize the route, then destroy the scroll and commit everything to memory."
"I'll explain the mission details on the way!"
"Make sure to rest well tonight. We depart promptly at 8 a.m. tomorrow."
With that, Aburame Ryoma stood up, climbed out of the pool, dried himself with a towel, and headed for the sauna.
Soon,
Tsukasa was the only one left in the moonlit pool.
He glanced at the scroll in his hand, his expression freezing.
He immediately tore open the wax seal and unfolded it with a flick of his wrist.
Then,
he saw a terrifyingly detailed route map.
Starting from Konoha's position in the Land of Rain,
it circled inward around Sunagakure's four frontier outposts. As if dancing on a knife's edge, the route bypassed these positions, penetrated deep into the Land of Rain, and reached the border of the Land of Earth.
Then it crossed the massive rock statues at the Land of Earth's border, passing through the top-secret natural fortress formed by desolate rock walls and mountains.
Finally, it arrived at a circled rock canyon area near Iwagakure in the Land of Earth—
a location perfect for an ambush.
At the end of the scroll were written the mission's name and target—
"Land of Rain Assassination Operation!"
Target:
The newly appointed Fourth Kazekage—
Rasa!
End of Chapter 114
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