"About right."
When Senju Hikaru reached a point roughly three hundred meters from the underground lab he remembered, he stopped firmly in place.
He knew he couldn't go any closer—if he pushed forward from here, it was hard to say what might be detected.
This wasn't a truly "safe" distance, but compared to other spots, it was the most suitable for what he was about to do.
He wasn't sure what the maximum range of his link with a small lizard would be.
His link range with Lizardmaru was extremely long—but that was because Lizardmaru was powerful. When Senju Hikaru synchronized with Lizardmaru, it was basically Lizardmaru's chakra doing the heavy lifting, letting Senju Hikaru grasp its condition from afar.
A tiny lizard couldn't possibly compare.
Senju Hikaru had never summoned a small lizard before, but he guessed the little thing wouldn't be able to sustain the connection over too great a distance. Around three hundred meters was probably its limit.
He took a deep breath.
Instead of summoning immediately, he first used his sensory ability even more carefully, sweeping the surroundings.
Insects and plants were his priority.
He checked insects to guard against Aburame Ryōma.
He checked plants because Root was experimenting with Hashirama Senju's cells—who knew whether they'd produced some plant-based monstrosity capable of sensing intruders through vegetation?
As for animals, even if no specific clan was mentioned, Senju Hikaru didn't dare relax.
Plenty of clans could still manage animal control or influence—Yamanaka techniques, for example.
Senju Hikaru remembered that in the original story, Yamanaka Ino had controlled birds to locate Kakuzu. And Root loved recruiting clan shinobi.
Even if Root hadn't yet reached the later stage of openly trampling ninja village rules, their lies could still lure idealists into joining—until, little by little, they became Danzō's private army.
"Looks like there really isn't much defensive coverage right now."
After a thorough scan, Senju Hikaru confirmed he couldn't sense any chakra signatures in animals, plants, or even small pests like mosquitoes and flies.
That result pleased him.
Opportunities like this were rare—he couldn't afford to miss it.
He inhaled again, then began forming hand seals quickly.
Seals at this range could create chakra fluctuations and trigger unnecessary trouble, but summoning a tiny lizard shouldn't be too risky.
Puff.
Smoke spread, and a very small lizard appeared before him.
The little lizard flicked its tongue.
Then a faint, extremely subtle chakra signal flowed from it into Senju Hikaru.
Senju Hikaru understood immediately: this was how the lizard clan communicated.
Through that connection, the summoner could also learn what abilities the summoned lizard possessed.
The lizard clan really was fascinating.
Their abilities were remarkably diverse.
In combat, the undisputed ceiling was Lizardmaru.
But when it came to intelligence gathering, their types were all over the map—animal communication, camouflage-based infiltration, reconnaissance… they could do it.
However, the lizard Senju Hikaru summoned this time was not the one that used chakra resonance to communicate with animals.
Animal thinking differed greatly from human thinking.
More importantly, Senju Hikaru needed materials—documents, lists, written records.
He didn't believe animals could understand those.
And animals wouldn't truly be under his control—meaning they could abandon the mission halfway, or cause unpredictable problems.
That was unacceptable.
So the best choice was a summoned creature that was obedient, could recognize human writing, and had strong concealment abilities.
After weighing it all, Senju Hikaru chose a summoned lizard as his primary tool for this mission.
"Concealment, disguise… and rapid memory?"
As Senju Hikaru's chakra fused with the lizard's, he quickly learned more about it—especially its capabilities, which genuinely surprised him.
He had chosen this lizard with those traits in mind, but what he understood through the contract scroll couldn't compare to holding it in his hand and receiving the information directly through their chakra link.
Once he confirmed everything, a smile tugged at Senju Hikaru's mouth.
Truly… a "Kishimoto-style" summon.
Even a lizard with almost no combat power could provide value that sometimes surpassed battlefield needs.
If Senju Hikaru were cruel enough, he could even use these lizards to accomplish assassinations he himself might not be able to pull off.
In his modern world, the simplest assassination was remote, silent, and clean.
In this world, that approach had limitations—so the most practical method became poisoning.
And the lizard clan did have poisonous members.
Used properly, Senju Hikaru could silently poison many targets without suspicion ever reaching him.
He shook his head and forcibly dropped that line of thinking.
Poisoning wasn't "dishonorable," not really. For extreme-efficiency shinobi, the simplest method of eliminating an enemy was often the best.
And unless you were someone like Hashirama Senju—who basically didn't fear toxins—most people absolutely did.
In the previous mission, Sasori had been a master of poison. The ANBU and Root teams had suffered horribly; only a handful returned, and those survivors still carried lingering aftereffects.
That alone showed how terrifying poison could be.
Senju Hikaru didn't reject poison as a tool for eliminating unnecessary threats—but he wouldn't use it on enemies within the village.
At least, not right now.
He steadied his thoughts, then looked down at the lizard in his hand.
"Are you ready?" he asked quietly. "This mission is extremely important. You can't leave any traces. Understand?"
"Hiss, hiss." The small lizard flicked its tongue like a snake.
"I need their documents—important documents. If you can, bring back everything."
Senju Hikaru's face was calm and unreadable now. In moments like this, it was hard for him to maintain his usual warm, smiling mask.
"Especially their experiment rosters… and the records of their experimental materials…"
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